EU sovereignty is often framed in terms of policy and regulation, yet many organizations are left with a more practical challenge: how do they turn it into something concrete?

This talk begins by clarifying what cloud sovereignty actually means: who it applies to, why it matters, and how organizations can approach it strategically. Niels Claeys will outline a pragmatic path, starting from business risks and regulatory requirements, moving through technology stack evaluation and workload identification, and ultimately translating this into a target architecture.

To make this tangible, he will explore a range of architectural patterns: from fully on-premises platforms to sovereign control planes in the public cloud, as well as portable workload designs that reduce vendor lock-in. He will also take a realistic look at EU-based cloud providers and what they currently offer as alternatives to hyperscalers.

Finally, Niels Claeys will examine the role of open source as a key enabler of sovereignty, showing how it supports transparency, portability, and long-term flexibility. Attendees can expect concrete examples, real-world trade-offs, and actionable insights for teams navigating sovereignty in regulated environments.