Europe goes offline on U.S. orders

Europe is dependent on AI from Washington. A single executive order in the U.S. is enough to cut off an entire continent’s access to cutting-edge AI. The ban on Anthropic’s latest models highlights just how vulnerable Europe’s digital infrastructure is. Those who build their future on foreign infrastructure are surrendering their sovereignty.

On June 12, the U.S. government issued an export control regulation prohibiting all foreign nationals from accessing Anthropic’s latest AI models. Anthropic subsequently withdrew the Fable 5 and Mythos 5 models from circulation worldwide. The official justification cited national security. For users in Europe, Asia, and the rest of the world, this simply meant access revoked, without warning.

Dependency Becomes a Location Issue
The case reveals just how heavily European companies, government agencies, and research institutions depend on U.S. providers. Many digital strategies tacitly assume that American services will always remain available. Now the flip side is becoming apparent: Europe has little influence when Washington changes rules or assesses security risks differently. Digital sovereignty is thus no longer a theory, but a hard-and-fast location issue.

Sovereignty Instead of Isolation
Digital sovereignty does not mean turning away from U.S. technology. It means remaining capable of acting in an emergency. To achieve this, Europe needs its own high-performance infrastructure, its own base models, and data spaces under its own control. It is crucial that critical applications in government, security, and industry are not tied to individual foreign providers. Those who rely solely on external cloud and AI services are planning without a safety net.

What decision-makers can do now
Leaders must rethink their AI strategies. First, multi-vendor approaches and locally operable models are becoming mandatory, especially in critical areas. Second, the question of who holds the reins must be part of every decision regarding digital infrastructure. Third, investment is needed in European alternatives and open ecosystems to ensure choice. The blocking of Myth 5 and Fable 5 is a warning sign. Those who take it seriously will use it as a starting point to ensure digital sovereignty is no longer left in the hands of others.