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Europeans Turn to Local Digital Services Amid U.S. Tech Firms’ Political Shift and Privacy Concerns

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As former President Donald Trump’s second term unfolds, many Europeans are increasingly distancing themselves from U.S. tech giants, driven by political unease and growing concerns over digital sovereignty and data privacy.

In Berlin, volunteers at a charity-run market stall by Topio are helping people remove Google services from their smartphones, installing alternative Android versions without Google integration. Michael Wirths, Topio’s founder, said the people now seeking help are no longer just privacy advocates, but politically aware individuals who feel exposed by continued reliance on American tech.

Interest in European digital alternatives has surged in recent months. According to Similarweb, usage of non-U.S. email, search, and messaging services has seen notable growth. Berlin-based Ecosia, an environmentally focused search engine, reported a 27% year-on-year increase in EU traffic, capturing 1% of Germany’s search market. Meanwhile, Swiss-based ProtonMail saw an 11.7% rise in European users, while usage of Google’s Gmail dropped by 1.9%.

The backdrop to this trend includes Trump’s renewed isolationist rhetoric, a U.S. trade war with Europe, and a cooling of transatlantic diplomatic ties. Prominent U.S. tech CEOs including Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, Mark Zuckerberg, and Sundar Pichai appeared at Trump’s second inauguration, fuelling public concern in Europe over the political alignment of these firms. Musk, previously an adviser to Trump, fell out with the president, but his close past association left an impression.

Digital sovereignty—a call for Europe to reduce dependency on foreign tech—has gained traction. British tech experts report average users, including hairdressers, are asking about alternatives to U.S. services. British software engineer Ken Tindell said his family is deliberately reducing reliance on American platforms, citing inadequate U.S. privacy laws.

The policy climate has further inflamed tensions. U.S. Vice President JD Vance accused Europe of suppressing free speech, while Secretary of State Marco Rubio threatened visa bans for officials who “censor” Americans, potentially including regulators enforcing EU digital laws. U.S. firms like Meta have criticized Europe’s Digital Services Act (DSA), claiming it censors content. However, EU officials argue the DSA is intended to curb online abuse and misinformation.

Privacy experts like Greg Nojeim confirm that European concerns are valid. U.S. laws allow the government broad access to data, even if stored outside the U.S. but managed by American companies.

European governments are beginning to act. Germany’s coalition government has pledged to shift toward open-source software and EU-based cloud services. In Schleswig-Holstein, all public IT systems must use open-source tools. Meanwhile, Berlin funded Ukraine’s use of France’s Eutelsat satellite service over Musk’s Starlink.

Still, completely severing ties with U.S. tech remains unlikely. Infrastructure dependencies—such as content delivery networks and cloud platforms—are largely U.S.-controlled. Ecosia and France’s Qwant still partially rely on Bing and Google for results, and cloud hosting often comes from the very firms they seek to avoid.

Nevertheless, grassroots movements persist. Reddit’s BuyFromEU group has over 200,000 members encouraging users to switch to EU tech alternatives. Messaging app Signal, although U.S.-based, saw a 7% rise in EU use in March, while WhatsApp usage stagnated.

Despite the push, digital rights experts caution that voluntary shifts alone won’t significantly dent Silicon Valley’s market hold. “The market is too captured,” said activist Robin Berjon. “Regulation is needed as well.”

Australia’s Teen Social Media Ban Trial Finds Age-Checking Software Can Work

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Organizers of the world’s largest trial of age assurance technology say that software-based methods to enforce Australia’s upcoming ban on under-16s using social media are feasible, despite some limitations. The government-commissioned Age Assurance Technology Trial involved over 1,000 Australian school students and hundreds of adults.

Starting this December, companies such as Meta (owner of Facebook and Instagram), Snapchat, and TikTok must demonstrate they take reasonable steps to block users under 16 or face fines up to A$49.5 million (approximately $32 million). This makes Australia the first country to implement such a ban.

Concerns have been raised by child protection advocates, tech groups, and youths about the enforceability of the ban, citing methods like Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) that mask users’ locations.

Tony Allen, CEO of the UK-based Age Check Certification Scheme overseeing the trial, stated, “Age assurance can be done in Australia privately, efficiently and effectively.” The trial concluded there are “no significant tech barriers” to deploying such software, though no single solution works perfectly in all cases.

Allen also highlighted risks around data privacy, noting that some firms may over-collect data beyond what regulators or law enforcement would require in the future.

While detailed data and product names were not disclosed, a final report will be submitted to the government next month to guide upcoming industry consultations before the December enforcement deadline.

The office of Australia’s eSafety Commissioner commented that preliminary results indicate age assurance tech, if used properly alongside other methods, can be “private, robust and effective.”

Australia’s approach is being closely monitored internationally as other governments consider measures to protect children from social media exposure.

Oracle to Offer Elon Musk’s Grok 3 AI Model to Enterprise Customers

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Oracle announced on Tuesday that it will integrate Grok 3, the latest large language model developed by Elon Musk’s xAI, into its cloud infrastructure portfolio for corporate clients, expanding its AI offerings alongside models from Meta, Mistral, and Cohere.

Grok 3, which debuted in February 2025, was previously available to premium subscribers on Musk’s X platform and to developers through xAI. Now, Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI) will host the model in its data centers, allowing business users to run Grok 3 with full enterprise-grade security and data residency protections.

“Our goal here is to make sure we can provide a portfolio of models — we don’t have our own,” said Karan Batta, Oracle’s Senior VP of Cloud Infrastructure. “That’s the current strategy. We are going to be the one that offers all of them.”

This collaboration aligns with Oracle’s strategy of being a multi-model platform, enabling clients to integrate a variety of AI systems into their enterprise workflows without compromising on data sovereignty or compliance requirements.

What It Means for the Market

  • Grok 3, which competes with models from OpenAI and DeepSeek, will now be accessible to companies who prefer Oracle’s security and compliance environment.

  • Oracle’s move reflects rising demand from businesses seeking access to cutting-edge AI models without having to rely on public-facing APIs that may expose sensitive data.

This announcement follows broader trends of cloud providers forming strategic partnerships with AI startups to diversify their AI ecosystems, especially as businesses become more discerning about how and where their data is processed.