- May 05, 2026
- ; 10:45
- -
- May 05, 2026
- ; 13:00
As geopolitical fragmentation deepens and technological competition intensifies, the transatlantic partners face a shared but increasingly complex challenge: how to advance digital sovereignty while preserving the openness, innovation, and economic dynamism that underpin their prosperity.
For the United States and Europe, digital sovereignty is no longer solely about control over critical technologies – it is about managing a fundamental tension between security imperatives and economic competitiveness. Efforts to de-risk supply chains, restrict technology flows, and protect critical infrastructure come with direct costs (e.g. subsidies, compliance burdens, duplication of capacity) and indirect costs (e.g. reduced efficiency, slower innovation, market fragmentation).
At the same time, failing to act exposes democracies to strategic vulnerabilities, coercion, and systemic risks. The transatlantic relationship is therefore central: alignment can reduce costs and amplify resilience, while divergence risks creating regulatory fragmentation, competitive distortions, and weakened collective security.
On May 5, Aspen Germany and Microsoft will host a discussion with Lisa Monaco, President of Microsoft Global Affairs, and John Reyels, Director for Digitalization, Cyberdefence and Digital and Data Policy at the German Federal Foreign Office, that will examine how to operationalize digital sovereignty in a way that manages these trade-offs – ensuring security while sustaining growth and innovation across the transatlantic space.
