Today, businesses are being asked to navigate profound disruption on two fronts.
On the one end, there is artificial intelligence (AI) and generative AI (GenAI), which have already had an intense impact on industries, economies and society at large.
On the other, widespread geopolitical uncertainty is making it increasingly challenging to operate uninterrupted on a global scale.
For Didier Ongena, Microsoft’s VP for global government and EMEA public sector, it’s hard not to see how these two challenges are connected.
Speaking yesterday at the Microsoft Sovereignty Summit in Cape Town, he said humans have developed many tools, from cars and motorcycles, to electric toothbrushes and toasters, throughout history.
“But every so often we invent a technology that will have a profound impact on society, and it’s unsurprising that we are now seeing big players in the world competing to advance these technology capabilities.”
Describing technologies like this as general-purpose technologies that serve as the foundations for more widespread advancements, Ongena compared AI and GenAI to innovations such as the printing press, electricity and the internet.
“In my experience, the invention of a new general-purpose technology matters, but what matters more is the adoption and the dissemination of that technology. When we talk about digital sovereignty, the focus is often on the potential risks of implementation,” he said. “But I wanted to also highlight the risk of not doing; of not deploying and using those capabilities at scale and of not gaining that first mover advantage.
Speaking to ITWeb on the sidelines of the event, Ongena admitted that while AI holds incredible potential, it is also opening the door for cyber criminals to access better, more effective tools.
“I know this isn’t a particularly popular thing to say, but cyber security should be number 1,2,3,4,5 on every business and country’s list of priorities.”
A matter of sovereignty
At the summit, Microsoft emphasised that digital sovereignty is rapidly becoming a defining factor in how countries and organisations build trust, compete and grow in the digital economy.
The focus was on how to move beyond theory to practical implementation, and how organisations across both the private and public sectors can innovate with confidence while retaining control of their data, operations and compliance obligations.
In talking to governments worldwide, Ongena has had countless discussions about sovereignty, which can be difficult to navigate because the definition of sovereignty has changed significantly over the last two or so years.
“When meeting with a customer and talking about sovereignty, I ask them to pause and spend five minutes defining what sovereignty means for them because the reality is that sovereignty means different things to different people.”
He shared a short list of common concerns that come up – from managing sanctions and cyber crime, to data residency, data extraction and ensuring data isn’t being used to train AI.
Ongena pointed out that once a business has made its own list, the next step is to map out how likely it is that this risk will materialise. For example, cyber attacks happen every day, so this is a real risk that needs to be managed very actively.
If one thinks of AI as a general-purpose technology poised to have a huge economic and societal impact, then AI adoption is a sovereign imperative.
“By this, I mean that if you look at some of the leading sectors in South Africa, all of these industries are already being fundamentally disrupted by technology and if these industries don't have access to the same capabilities and if they are not encouraged or at least authorised to deploy these tools, then these industries will not be able to compete on a global scale.”
He added that governments must view AI capability as a matter of national interest, not just another business tool.
“When countries are thinking about sovereignty, they often look at France as a good example, because France has always had a very strong stance on sovereignty and at keeping things inside the country. But I don't think people realise that nobody is fully sovereign. So, I would advise that you build your capability based on your unique risks and requirements, don't try to replicate what others are doing, so that you’re able to be part of the global system.”
Share
