Pre-procurement

Pre-procurement is where the real decisions are made. It is the moment to define purpose, protect values, and set the conditions under which technology serves the public interest. Treated seriously, it becomes more than a gateway to the market: it is a governance function that shapes what will be built, how it will operate, and whose interests it will advance.

Why this matters

Digital sovereignty is not a checkbox. It is a multidimensional, ongoing capability to retain control, preserve the freedom to pivot, and act independently across people, organisations and the wider ecosystem. Europe’s AI capacity increasingly relies on infrastructures it does not fully control, with data processed and models trained in environments governed beyond EU jurisdiction. Without sovereignty, ethical safeguards and regulatory ambitions risk becoming aspirational rather than enforceable.

At the same time, purpose must lead. Buying compute or algorithms without a clear public objective turns technology into a costly distraction. Pre-procurement is the chance to align with societal goals, to insist on transparency and accountability, and to avoid being locked into opaque services. It is also where alignment with the EU’s policy landscape can be prepared in practice, so obligations under the AI Act, the Data Act and the GDPR are capable of being met in operation, not only on paper.

Our approach

We keep this phase focused and pragmatic. First, we help clarify the problem to be solved and the outcomes that matter, so usefulness guides design rather than the other way round. Next, we surface the sovereignty implications: where control sits, how to retain the capacity to switch or improve, and how to avoid structural dependencies that erode oversight. We bring market awareness without ceding control, ensuring engagement with suppliers informs choices while keeping the public interest at the centre. Throughout, we emphasise open interfaces, interoperability and auditability as defaults, so future governance remains possible and rights can be exercised in practice. The detail is calibrated to your context; the direction of travel is constant.

The outcome

A pre-procurement position that is defensible and value-driven. You know what you need and why you need it. You understand the sovereignty trade-offs and how to keep options open over the full lifecycle, from deployment to decommissioning. You are prepared to make requirements that can be enforced, and to select partners who compete on transparency, quality and fitness for public purpose rather than on hype. The result is a procurement that strengthens Europe’s capacity to act, delivers systems that are useful and trusted, and turns high-level principles into everyday practice.