Digital Sovereignty in the Age of AI

Speaker: 
Roberto Baldoni (Senior Advisor for Technology and Cybersecurity Policy to the Ambassador of Italy in the United States and Honorary Professor of Computer Science at Sapienza University of Rome)

As artificial intelligence becomes a critical resource, digital sovereignty is evolving from a question of data control into a broader challenge of controlling the technological infrastructures that generate intelligence. In a multipolar world increasingly shaped by geopolitical competition, the technology stack underlying AI systems — from semiconductors and cloud infrastructures to models, orchestration layers, and digital platforms — is becoming a key determinant of economic power, resilience, and strategic autonomy.

This talk examines how dependencies across these critical layers are reshaping the balance between states and firms. Using the AI technology stack as an analytical framework, the talk explores the emergence of new forms of digital dependency and the growing importance of trusted technologies aligned with transparency, security, resilience, and democratic values. The talk finally argues that preserving digital sovereignty in the age of AI will require countries with the same values to rethink industrial policy, technological cooperation, and governance in order to maintain autonomy and trust within an increasingly interconnected and competitive technological world.

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Roberto Baldoni is Senior Advisor for Technology and Cybersecurity Policy to the Ambassador of Italy in the United States and Honorary Professor of Computer Science at Sapienza University of Rome. He previously served as Founder and first Director General of Italy’s National Cybersecurity Agency (ACN) and as Deputy Director General of the Italian Intelligence Community (DIS) with responsibility for national cybersecurity. His work focuses on strategic autonomy, trusted technologies, AI geopolitics, and digital sovereignty. He is the author of books, scientific articles, op-eds and policy papers on technology, cybersecurity, and the future of democratic governance in the age of artificial intelligence.