Alternative Systems Cost Significantly Less Than Leading US Hyperscalers
- Evidence-Based Insights: Innovate Europe Foundation (IE.F) presents data on the economic resilience of the „EuroStack“.
- Comparative Analysis: A sample IONOS + Nextcloud reference model reduces TCO by over 60% compared to US hyperscalers.
- Strategic Autonomy: Providing an actionable decision-making framework for enterprises and the public sector.
BERLIN/BRUSSELS, 28 January 2026 – Within the framework of European efforts to secure technological sovereignty, the Innovate Europe Foundation (IE.F) has today published its latest research report, „Building the Case: EuroStack“. Produced in collaboration with researchers from the Thunderbird School of Global Management, the study provides empirical evidence for the viability of independent digital ecosystems. The findings indicate that a European technology stack achieves up to five times greater infrastructure efficiency in direct cost comparisons with established US hyperscalers.
In light of the 80% market dominance by non-European gatekeepers, the study addresses the critical need for economically sustainable alternatives that align with the EU’s Digital Decade 2030 targets. The IE.F evaluates the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) and contrasts established proprietary models with a sovereign European „EuroStack“.
Validating Economic and Legal Resilience
To provide actionable insights, the research employs a practical reference model consisting of IONOS infrastructure and Nextcloud collaboration software. Each of the major hyperscalers’ costs were calculated based on their own current marketing and pricing materials. For a 1,000-user baseline, significant discrepancies in cost structures emerge: The EuroStack model enables operations for € 205k per year, compared to up to € 674k for US-based alternatives.
"With the EuroStack white paper, we provide empirical proof that strategic autonomy in Europe is an economic gain," says Clark Parsons, Managing Director of the IE.F. "The funny thing is, these cost figures have been sitting there all along; we just did the math. Through the cooperation of academia and leading tech partners, we have demonstrated that a sovereign digital ecosystem is a market-ready and highly competitive reality today, offering both fiscal stability and legal resilience against extraterritorial data access."
The analysis concludes that the transition to sovereign stacks is a vital step for regulated industries, such as finance and healthcare, to decouple digital growth from geopolitical risks. By leveraging open standards and transparent pricing, organisations can significantly optimise their IT expenditure while ensuring full compliance with European data protection standards.
About the IE.F
The IE.F is a think tank, forum and dialogue partner that advocates for the interests of the German and European digital and innovation ecosystem in order to strengthen Europe's technological sovereignty. It is constituted and financed exclusively by a small circle of leading European tech founders and receives no public funds or financing from US companies.
The full policy paper is now available for download.