• The contract, procured by public-sector cooperative govdigital eG, covers Berlin, ​Bremen, Hamburg, Hesse, North Rhine-Westphalia and ​Rhineland-Palatinate, with other states able to join
• Pricing ‌is ⁠structured in five tiers based on active users, ranging from up to 50,000 to more than 500,000. No school authority has to commit to a set volume up front, so each can begin with its current users and grow from there
• The maximum value of ​the framework ​agreement is €67.5 ⁠million, according to the federal government's official procurement portal
• The solution is ​based on IONOS Nextcloud Workspace, combining ​file ⁠storage, document collaboration and communication tools, the companies said
• The platform will run exclusively in ⁠German ​data centres on open-source ​technology, without non-European dependencies

...

Archived

Decentralized messaging platform Matrix is no longer the upstart it once was. The organization is now a serious challenger to the status quo as concerns about sovereignty and independence reach new heights.

At the organization's recent Malmo event, which grew attendance 30 percent year-on-year, the mood shifted from "yes, this is important" to "yes, we're rolling this out."

...

The system is an alternative to services such as Microsoft Teams. It has become popular in the public sector as governments grow increasingly wary of relying on US tech giants for services that the Trump administration could switch off at will.

However, that increased interest and subsequent roll-outs have brought a level of scrutiny Matrix was not fully prepared for. A recent report regarding anonymous reaction to a roll-out of the technology by the European Commission took Element - the company that puts the lion share of the money into Matrix - by surprise.

One attendee at the Malmo conference observed, "First they [competitors] ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you."

Matrix remains an open standard, however, the open source foundation behind it would certainly welcome more paying members.

"It's true that we're definitely getting more attention than we have had before," said Element CEO Matthew Hodgson.

...

This comes amid worries about the reliability of international partners, from early projects including France's Tchap messenger for the public sector and Germany's BundesMessenger through to more recent users, such as the Swedish public sector. Indeed, in one memorable demonstration during the Matrix event, messages were sent between French, Swedish, and NATO entities.

"I cannot overstate the strangeness," Hodgson added, "of having various national militaries phoning up every couple of days, saying, 'Look, we need to get on board Matrix too because we need to talk to this country and they're using Matrix, and we need to talk to that country, and they're using Matrix.'"

...

Not that Element or Matrix is trying to build a better Teams than Teams. Patrick Alberts, Element's Chief Product Officer, said, "This is a digitally sovereign communication solution that, by and large, works like Teams in many aspects, but it's not set out to be the faster Porsche here..."

As for the reported complaints from the European Commission over Element's software implementation, Diana Gheorghe, EC head of sector for Communication and Collaboration Services, addressed them directly and described the anonymous complaints as "the natural friction of [a] high-profile rollout that we have done at scale."

...

Microsoft (and other tech giants) cannot escape concerns about who ultimately controls the data and what administrations might do with it. In 2025, a Microsoft representative memorably confirmed the US giant "cannot guarantee" data sovereignty to customers in France.

There is, however, a fly in the Matrix ointment. The platform is open source and, like so many open source projects, requires funding. Right now, Element accounts for much of the Matrix Foundation's funding. Hodgson finds this a little frustrating.

"If every government who is operationally dependent on Matrix put the smallest amount of money in the Foundation, the Foundation would have enough money to really start investing in the ecosystem and not be dependent on Element basically picking up the tab."

...

Archived

I want to buy a pair iems I found, which I found through a well known Chinese seller on Amazon, but I don't want to buy through Amazon. So the question is: any e-shops that sells iems here in Europe?

Hello, people. I managed to settle on a few alternatives hosted/created in Europe, and I decided to make this post to serve as an inspiration for others into picking European alternatives to American Big Tech. I will also mention how close I am to fully commit using them completely. Here we go:Facebook ------> Friendica (99% of the time - I noticed it's been weeks since I last accessed Facebook. Down from pretty much all the time at its peak)Instagram -------> Friendica and the Fediverse, via Friendica (75% of the time - I still have friends sending me reels and stuff, and nowadays, it looks like new people are more likely to connect with you on Instagram. However, I am aware of who owns that thing and how addicting it is, so I am trying to limit its usage as best as I can. I did create a pictures-only circle to compensate)Reddit -------> The Fediverse, via Friendica (70% of the time - Reddit still has native content for my own language and the old Reddit interface which makes it sane enough to use - even though the content gets more and more garbage. I created a circle called "Frontpage" on Friendica that I seldomly visit)YouTube -------> PeerTube, via Friendica (5% of the time I guess - YouTube has this talent of getting you through rabbit holes, and the content creators are paid, unlike on the Fediverse, where some PeerTube instances actually charge you to put their videos there, so probably not that enticing for them. Shout-out to some of the YouTubers I do follow who moved here though).WhatsApp --------> Signal (5% of the time, some friends are really starting to use that), XMPP (0.5% - seldomly enter for some groups, but no one is using this, sadly), Briar (0% of the time - literally not a single soul there. The concept is nice, since that's why I'm still having that installed, but that's the only reason I keep it. Getting people on XMPP seems easier than this imo)Goodreads --------> Bookwyrm (100% - fuck that shithole Bezos who owns Amazon and doesn't give a crap on this platform)IMDB ----------> Moviebuff (100% - yes, that is a federated alternative to IMDB and Letterboxd; also fuck that shithole Bezos who owns Amazon and doesn't give a crap on this platform)Last.fm --------> Libre.fm (40-50% I guess - great platform. Not so good when it comes to certain features, but shout-out to Matt Lee for keeping the lights on for so long, and for continuing to do so)Geocaching.com -------> opencaching.ro (0% of the time - sadly had no time to look for caches anymore. Bummer. I'd love to log something)Google Maps ---------> Organic Maps (60% of the time - in process of changing for CoMaps - the clanker-free version of Organic Maps, sorry), InfoTB (40% of the time - this is the local transit app. It is proprietary as fuck but since it is made by my local transit agency I can be 100% sure it's gonna work properly and be more up-to-date than even Google Maps. And there are plenty of missing features from Google Maps itself compared to this afaik)Google Drive, OneDrive, Dropbox, Box ---------> Nextcloud (99.9% of the time - I still have data there, but I seldomly use these. Also there's no Linux client, so eff them), pCloud and Filen (whenever I want to transfer something larger - haven't committed to storing all the stuff there. Will need to do some cleanup through my cloud storage accounts too), Mega (50% of the time - larger stuff goes there; got my account when they offered 50 GB for free)Google Contacts, also on Microsoft and Yahoo -------> Nextcloud contacts (65% let's say - new contacts go there. Need to do some purge on the others whenever I have the time)Google Calendar ---------> Nextcloud calendar (10% of the time - have to move some recurring events there, which are 90% of how I use that service tbh; also need to do some cleanup)Gmail, Outlook, Yahoo -------> Eclipso mail (0% of the time - feature-wise seems good enough for me, but just like in the other cases, I need to do some cleanup - need some time to spare; I am thinking of leaving yahoo for good out of the other 3; I may leave the other two as well if I find a good aliasing service. IDK, thinking how to move things forward)Keepass (100% of the time - never used another password manager; used one of my cloud providers for syncing)Google Photos -------> My own laptop, backed up to an external hard drive (100% of the time - cannot get any more European than that) - I use Shotwell for organizing stuffGoogle Keep ---------> Nextcloud Notes (100% of the time); in the past I used Zettel Notes on Android, now I am only keeping it to read articles offlineMicrosoft OneNote --------> Nextcloud Notes (0% of the time - I need to move out some of the notes from there)Google Translate --------> DeepL Translate (100% of the time - never seen another product that was literally on par with the American product - even better); also I am looking for some dictionaries to use locally with Goldendict; I do have some, but not enoughChrome --------> Librewolf (100% of the time)Microsoft Office ---------> LibreOffice (100% of the time when I'm opening any document)AntennaPod (100% of the time - never used anything else for podcasting; currently syncing my podcasts with Nextcloud)Spotify --------> SoundCloud (0% of the time currently, have used it extensively in the past; this is pretty much the only service that I accept as streaming), I also currently mostly buy music, so most of the time I am listening offline (let's say 100% of the time); there's also Nextcloud music installed on one of the servers I'm on.Netflix ---------> local cinema (100% of the time - yes, I do have such a thing. Better to support your local business).Uber ---------> Bolt (100% of the time), I'm also using the public transport, and I've started riding my bike more.Windows --------> Linux (100% of the time - switched since almost 10 years ago; that shit belongs to the dumpster).Android ----------> Sailfish OS (90% of the time - wow, that's such a fantastic system if you manage to around some of its shortcomings; can't wait for the 5.3 version, that will have broader support for Android banking apps such as Revolut. Can't wait for it!).Of course, I am using the new Jolla Phone, so another point for a European smartphone.Mastercard, Visa ---------> RoPay (0% of the time - it's a recently launched thing in my country. How the hell does that shit even work?!? I tried to use it twice at a self-checkout in Auchan, and it was just not working), Wero, other European solutions (???% - the idea behind them is good, but those are not even available in my country, what the hell?!?).Amazon -------> eMag (30% of the time - Amazon is not even present in my country. But we fortunately have the same shitty version of it that tries to sell everything called eMag), brick&mortar stores (70% of the time I guess), I'm aware that I'm privileged to live in a big city, so I have plenty of options available, but if you do have the opportunity as well, why not go take a breath of fresh air on your way there.McDonald's, KFC, other fast food chains -----> Hesburger (10% of the time - meh food but at more affordable prices), shawarma places (5% of the time - yes, there's plenty of them here, but don't want to spoil myself too much), pastry shops (are they called like this in English) such as Luca or the local mom&pop ones (10% of the time, Luca expanded into Poland too, that shit is good for a snack), regular restaurants (50% of the time).And that's pretty much it, I guess? If there's anything missing it means I have found no alternative to it or haven't thought of it. By any chance, did I miss something though? And how do you fare with your usage on European alternatives? Did you find your own Euro-Stack? Do you miss something yourself from it?

Yeah it is interview with company, but the information is interesting.

Also see https://www.key.aero/article/airbus-helicopters-vision-frances-future-military-helicopters

Hello all,

checkout this short blog article about Filen Drive (EU made cloud drive) and most importantly Cmdr File Manager which is a copy of Total Commander for macOS. If you used Total Commander before this will feel as home!

Hey, im looking for some stainless steal cake form and muffinform but cant find any stainless steal once. Can you help me out please?

Archived version

...

Investing in circularity is therefore not a side issue, but a competitiveness strategy. By designing products for disassembly, reuse and recycling, Europe can reduce dependency on newly mined imports while building industries that generate jobs, innovation and intellectual property at home. The transition to a low-carbon, circular, and resource-efficient economy could generate 1.2 million new jobs in the EU by 20303.

Policy is starting to recognise this. The EU’s Critical Raw Materials Act (CRMA) sets a binding target that domestic recycling provides at least one quarter of the block’s annual consumption of strategic raw materials. Recycling and recovery plants can qualify as strategic projects, benefitting from streamlined permitting and access to finance. National funds and the ResourceEU action plan aim to address remaining bottlenecks.

...

For most Dutch shoppers, iDEAL has simply been how you pay online. Since 26 October, customers of 11 Dutch banks have been able to pay merchants online with Wero, the wallet run by the European Payments Initiative (EPI). The banks are ABN AMRO, ASN Bank, bunq, BUUT, Finom, ING, Knab, Nationale-Nederlanden, Rabobank, Triodos Bank and Van Lanschot Kempen. Merchants can now start switching through their payment service providers, and EPI aims to complete the migration by the end of 2027.

EPI’s chief executive, Martina Weimert, described seeing Wero inside Dutch shareholders’ banking apps as “definitely the milestone” the company had been working towards.

...

Wero sits inside a broader European debate about reducing reliance on non-European card schemes and wallets. EPI is backed by 18 banks and payment providers. The planned European Network for Payments aims to connect schemes serving around 130 million users in 13 countries. Meanwhile, the ECB is preparing the digital euro. It has pointed to a pilot in 2027 and potential first issuance in 2029, subject to legislation.

The two are often presented as complementary, a private bank-led wallet and public money underneath. In practice, banks, merchants and regulators will need to decide how much overlap the market can sustain. They will also need to settle who bears the cost of acceptance and integration.

...

Archived

For playing Counter Strike 2 and World of Warcraft.

Any ideas on where to get good quality and preferably sustainable bathrobes?

Thank you in advance!

...

From worker surveillance to warfare, the risks of the widespread adoption of AI are increasingly clear. According to polls, large majorities of Europeans are in favour of regulating AI. For instance one survey from the European Commission shows 82 percent of people find it important to have rules which protect workers’ privacy when AI is used in the workspace.

But while citizens support government actions to regulate AI, the Council’s text goes in the opposite direction. Under the guise of “winning the global AI race” the EU has embarked on a radical deregulation programme.

...

Ireland’s reliance upon giant non-EU firms creates insurmountable conflicts of interest, as evidenced by the country’s record in the area of data regulation and taxation.

...

Since the [European] Commission put out its Digital Omnibus proposal in November 2025, lobbyists have, on average, been having three meetings with MEPs every working day.

...

With EU member states accepting the radical deregulation of our digital rights, attention will now focus on the European Parliament. Already, Big Tech, with its massive lobbying firepower, is ramping up its lobbying of MEPs.

However, digital deregulation is not inevitable. The European Parliament has a crucial opportunity to stop this dangerous proposal and defend the hard-won data protection safeguards.

...

Some MEPs are fighting for our fundamental digital rights, whilst others are fulfilling the wishes of Big Tech ... This list provides an overview and allows you to write to MEPs with just one click. A quick email is all it takes. Raise your voice now!

...

Archived

Archived version

...

Shortly after the outbreak of the Second World War, Eli Heckscher delivered a lecture at the Stockholm School of Economics on the fate of “the West”. His diagnosis was, above all, technological. He argued that early industrial machinery had left ample room for individual freedom. However, it was the network systems that followed – railways, the telegraph, power lines and, finally, radio – that changed society. As networks could only be controlled from their centre, Heckscher noted, they strengthened those in control, first large firms and then the state (Heckscher 1939).

The digital economy of the 2020s has so far followed Heckscher’s predictions. Cloud platforms, app stores, and frontier AI models are network systems with a single control room. Their fragility has been repeatedly exposed, for instance when a defective CrowdStrike update disabled 8.5 million Windows devices in July 2024.

...

By 2050, Europe should strive to become the world’s most capable mesh economy: a dense network of small and medium-sized enterprises and municipalities that leverage interoperable, open, and increasingly local digital infrastructure rather than renting intelligence from a few central labs. I refer to this vision as “Small is beautiful 2.0”, in reference to E. F. Schumacher’s (1973) call for technology on a human scale.

...

Schumacher lost the argument in the 1970s because mass production economics were against him. With generative AI, however, the conditions are changing. Open-weight models running on local hardware can now accurately answer most chat and reasoning queries.

...

Concentrated economic power rarely remains purely economic. Firms that control the infrastructure on which administrations and markets rely acquire influence over the rules that govern them. Heckscher’s warning applies to both sides: the same networks that empower large firms also empower the central state.

...

If the mesh is the destination, the choices made about digital policy now will be crucial.

• Firstly, ensure that switching is the default option at every layer of the emerging AI economy. From January 2027, the Data Act will abolish cloud switching charges, and since March 2024, Article 6(7) of the Digital Markets Act has obliged gatekeepers to grant interoperability with features of their operating systems. The same logic should apply to AI: firms should be permitted to transfer fine-tuned models, agent configurations, and associated data between providers and onto their own hardware.

• Secondly, write procurement rules with the mesh in mind. Public buyers account for around 15% of the EU’s GDP. The Commission’s proposed Public Procurement Act contains several provisions that could benefit SMEs, including a requirement for suppliers to grant buyers the licenses needed to operate, adapt, and maintain deliverables (Article 63), and a cap on turnover requirements (Article 27). However, open-source solutions are only mentioned as an option for buyers pursuing innovation objectives (Article 61). The co-legislators should require an assessment of exit costs for every digital purchase and give preference to solutions that buyers can run on infrastructure they control.

• Thirdly, measure intelligence per watt rather than gigawatts. Capacity targets for gigafactories count inputs. A 2050 benchmark should measure outcomes, such as the proportion of AI workloads that European firms and public bodies can run on their own infrastructure and the cost of switching. Therefore, part of public compute funding should go to distributed edge capacity and shared public inference services. The Swiss open model Apertus, released in 2025 and offered through an international public AI inference utility, demonstrates how such a service could function.

• Finally, fund diffusion rather than European champions. More than half of EU Horizon funding currently goes to mid-tech firms and consultancies with limited growth potential. In contrast, single-recipient SME instruments, such as the EIC Accelerator, have a more lasting effect, but only for small, independent firms (Fuest et al. 2025). A European AI extension service modelled on the US Smith-Lever Act of 1914, which took university expertise to farms, could deliver applied AI knowledge to small firms via universities and regional innovation hubs (Frazier 2025). A more proactive competition policy plays a role, too. If their innovations and teams are simply absorbed by the hubs through acquisitions and “acqui-hires” that fall below merger thresholds, public money spent on small firms is ultimately wasted.

...

Scale as a means, not an end in itself

Critics will argue that a continent without its own frontier model cannot afford to be romantic about small units. However, the argument is not that Europe should avoid large-scale projects. Rather, it is that Europe should not mistake scale for the destination. Learning from Heckscher, Europe’s success in 2050 should be measured by how many of its firms and citizens can build, adapt, and switch AI on their own terms.

...

• EU-Australia FTA will remove 5.5% critical minerals tariff
• Agreement expected to be signed early next year
• Australia, EIB 'very close' to MOU for funding arm
• Looking initially at rare earths, gallium, antimony

...

The European ​Union expects a wave of investment into the Australian critical minerals sector as it ‌pushes to diversify its supply chain away from China, the bloc's ambassador to Australia Lawrence Meredith said on Tuesday.

Australia and the European Union struck a free trade agreement in March after eight years of negotiations, removing tariffs on almost all goods ​and easing EU access to Australian critical minerals.

...

"It is going to be a game changer," Meredith said.

In parallel, talks are "very close" for Australia to ​sign a memorandum of understanding with the European Investment Bank, which would act as the bloc's funding ​vehicle, Meredith added.

"The European Union will be massively investing in critical minerals. Since we wish to diversify away from China, then one of the most likely partners has to be Australia," he said.

EU policy proposals have laid out as much ​as €10 billion ($11.2 billion) for critical raw materials within the larger €409 billion competitiveness fund, as the EU debates its ​budget from 2028 to 2034. Australia is one of several critical minerals "superpowers" in which the EU is looking to invest, ‌including Brazil, ⁠South Africa and Canada. The EU also expects to invest along the supply chain, including in processing, Meredith said.

...

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.ca/post/72895333

Canada is making big strides toward a sovereign space capability.

Ukraine’s Starshield satellite terminals stopped working after a still-unexplained order came from inside the White House, and Canada has spent years quietly building its own military space network like radar satellites, Arctic communications, and its own rocket launch pads. I trace Canada’s RADARSAT constellation, its new Telesat Lightspeed Arctic network, and a government document that literally says the goal is to “augment and replace” America’s WGS system.

This is a great video not just about Canada but about all allies of the US right now needing to rethink space capability in the wake of Elon Musk's bullshit.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R0mRJCPuInY

Archived version

Taiwan's Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) yesterday called for Taiwan and Europe to build trusted supply chains in artificial intelligence (AI) and drones, saying closer cooperation could strengthen economic and national security.

Speaking at the opening of the annual conference of the Formosa Club, which connects pro-Taiwan parliamentarians across Europe, Lin said Taiwan’s semiconductor, AI server and emerging drone industries complemented Europe’s expertise in precision manufacturing and industrial technology.

“These require trusted partners because they directly involve national security and critical infrastructure,” he said.

...

Russia’s war against Ukraine had demonstrated how excessive economic dependence could become an instrument of coercion, Lin said, adding that Taiwan offered a partnership grounded in trust and shared values.

Taiwan was developing a complete drone supply chain encompassing hardware, critical components and cybersecurity standards, he said.

As an example of industrial cooperation, Lin cited a proposed technology park in Poland planned by the Taiwan Electrical and Electronic Manufacturers’ Association.

The project would focus on AI data centers, smart cities and electric vehicles, he said.

Lin described economic cooperation as one pillar of Taiwan’s “integrated diplomacy,” alongside partnerships with fellow democracies.

...

Archived version

Italy and Japan are strengthening industrial cooperation through a new agreement between Italy’s Ministry of Enterprises and Made in Italy and Nippon Sanso Holdings. The partnership aims to accelerate investment in semiconductors, electronics, and advanced technologies, leveraging Nippon Sanso’s expertise and integrating businesses, universities, and research centers to support competence centers and develop technical know-how

...

says users have the right to know who’s recording them

The Naval Strike Missile, or NSM, is a precision-guided cruise missile Kongsberg developed to engage surface ships and selected land targets. Kongsberg currently advertises an engagement range exceeding 300 kilometers (186 miles), without disclosing an exact maximum, and high subsonic speed. It combines sea-skimming flight and evasive maneuvers with a passive imaging infrared seeker and automatic target recognition. Its warhead and programmable fuze are intended to damage or destroy the selected target, while precise impact-point selection helps concentrate damage on vulnerable areas. A hit does not automatically guarantee a sinking.

To give a sense of scale to this to illustrate how much these missiles shut down any kind of naval threat russian can pose to Norway...

Take the line with your eyes and place one end on the coast or interior of Norway and start to rotate the other end around and think about how impossible it would be for russian ships to completely clear a littoral region of anti-ship missiles....

Of course this goes both ways, but it is easy to see why russia can't really project power through the Baltic Sea except with small unmanned craft designed for sabotage, any outright movement of concentrated naval power would get erased by these missiles in the event of war and russia would probably not even know where the missiles came in the wake of it given the immense amount of possibilities a range like this opens up for coastal defense.