This article is part of a series on (European) innovation and capabilities. Hi everyone, This is a transcript of my presentation over at the European Microwave Week 2020, actually held in 2021. You can find the video here and the slides here. I’d like to thank Frank van Vliet, general chair of the EMW, for inviting me to do this talk. The words have only been edited lightly - it is still presentation style, so here and there the sentences are not written like how they’d be in a more forma...| Bert Hubert's writings
This article is part of a series on (European) innovation and capabilities. In a break from the usual GPS/Galileo, DNA and C++ posts, here is a bit on 5G and national security. It turns out that through PowerDNS and its parent company Open-Xchange, we know a lot about how large scale European communication service providers work - most of whom are our customers in some way. In addition, in a previous life I worked in national security and because of that I have relevant knowledge of how gover...| Bert Hubert's writings
Lately there’s been some confusion: places like SIDN (Dutch national operator of all internet names that end on .NL) claim that nobody in Europe can deliver their computer needs, and that they therefore must outsource their operations to American cloud providers. Dutch version of this page here: Cloud Native, Europa, de ‘Bijenkorf’ Megascaler 🇳🇱 Meanwhile, we have large providers of servers and services in the Netherlands and in Europe who claim that they can (and do) provide thes...| Bert Hubert's writings
Recent is er verwarring: instellingen als SIDN claimen dat niemand in Europa nog in hun computerbehoeftes kan voorzien, en dat ze daarom wel moeten uitwijken naar Amerikaanse aanbieders. English version: Cloud Naïve: Europe and the ‘Bijenkorf’ Megascaler Tegelijkertijd hebben we in Nederland en Europa grote providers van servers en diensten die beweren dat zij dat soort diensten wel degelijk kunnen leveren. Wat is er aan de hand? IT diensten draaien op software en die draait weer op hard...| Bert Hubert's writings
Op 27 maart was er een mooi gesprek over de Nederlandse en Europese afhankelijkheid van “de cloud”. Het gesprek vond plaats op het ministerie van Economische Zaken en Klimaat, en deelnemers waren onder andere minister Micky Adriaansens en staatssecretaris van digitalisering Alexandra van Huffelen. Het onderwerp wordt dus (terecht) serieus genomen. Dit artikel is onderdeel van een grotendeels Engelstalige reeks over Europese innovatie en digitale afhankelijkheden. De bijeenkomst werd gehou...| Bert Hubert's writings
This article is part of a series on (European) innovation and capabilities. This is a lightly edited transcript of my presentation today at the ACCSS/NCSC/Surf seminar ‘Cyber Security and Society’. I want to thank the organizers for inviting me to their conference & giving me a great opportunity to talk about something I worry about a lot. Here are the original slides with notes, which may be useful to view together with the text below.| Bert Hubert's writings
This article is part of a series on (European) innovation and capabilities. The very short version: All of computing is moving to the cloud at a rapid pace, including (government) parts you might want to keep under your own control Europe has no relevant ‘hyperscaler’ cloud providers at all, and there is a desire to change this by policy means Competing with the IKEA-concept is nearly impossible. Offering IKEA-like products but then with a smaller range is not an attractive proposition.| Bert Hubert's writings
First a round of thanks for the many people in industry and government who provided valuable links, background and insights! I could not have done this without your help! If you spot any mistakes, or have suggestions, please do contact me on bert@hubertnet.nl The EU’s new Cyber Resilience Act is admirable in its goal. And the EU is not alone in thinking something needs to be done about the dreadful state of security online – the Biden administration has just released its National Cybersec...| Bert Hubert's writings
This article is part of a series on (European) innovation and capabilities. Feedback is very welcome on bert@hubertnet.nl. I’d also like to thank the many proofreaders, but all mistakes remain mine! In the world of (high) technology, Europe is exceptionally weak at innovating. There are many ways to explain how this came to be, and a lot of the discussion focuses on unfair business conditions and regulation. In this post however I want to talk about important cultural and social reasons tha...| Bert Hubert's writings
This article is part of a series on (European) innovation and capabilities. Periodically I read about governments or institutions wanting to stimulate innovation, often to achieve a certain (worthy) goal. Frequently, the far larger amounts of money that other countries or continents are spending on innovation are then bandied about as justification. And I die a little inside every time that happens. Money and innovation have a very intricate relation.| Bert Hubert's writings
This article is part of a series on (European) innovation and capabilities. Europe’s communication needs are currently almost exclusively delivered by Chinese hardware that connects us to US-based platforms. For a variety of reasons, this is not a good idea. As stated recently by Charles Michel, President of the European Council, “Interdependence is natural, even desirable. Over-dependence, however, is not”. Photo by Sara Kurfeß on Unsplash At the core, the problem is that almost no co...| Bert Hubert's writings
This article is part of a series on (European) innovation and capabilities. Recently I participated in a very useful panel that aimed to demystify European digital sovereignty. Even though we spoke for more than an hour (video), we obviously were not able to fix all of Europe’s sovereignty problems! The event was organized by Scaleway (previously Online SAS or Online.net), a 100% subsidiary of what I think is Europe’s most innovative telecommunications company, Iliad.| Bert Hubert's writings
This article is part of a series on (European) innovation and capabilities. Earlier this year I was very happy to be interviewed by Thomas Ramge for Germany’s Federal Agency for Disruptive Innovation (SPRIND). Many podcasts are just two guys talking to each other, but here Thomas brought along a lot of expertise & spent serious time preparing, which contributed hugely to having a productive conversation. Even if it is still two guys!| Bert Hubert's writings