Is the Price of Convenience "Digital Sovereignty"? Growing Distrust of American Tech Companies in Germany

Waking up in the morning, I pick up my smartphone and search for news on Google.

I check Instagram and Facebook, and order products on Amazon. At work, I use Microsoft's software and American companies' cloud services, and if I have questions, I ask generative AI like ChatGPT.

Such scenes are not unusual in Europe in 2026.

However, what if much of the digital infrastructure supporting this lifestyle is provided by a handful of giant companies based in the United States?

A recent public opinion poll in Germany highlighted that many people do not consider this situation to be "fine because it's convenient."

According to a survey conducted by YouGov for "Welt am Sonntag," 66% of Germans believe that major American tech companies like Amazon, Google, Meta, Apple, SpaceX, and OpenAI have too much influence within Germany.

Conversely, 18% said they do not think the influence is too great, and 17% were undecided.

The survey was conducted from July 10 to 13, 2026, with 2,411 participants. ※1

Looking at the numbers alone, it might seem like news of growing opposition to American tech companies in Germany.

However, a closer look reveals that the core issue is not simple anti-American sentiment or rejection of AI.

What is perceived more seriously is the inability to sufficiently control the critical digital infrastructure driving society and the economy by their own country or Europe itself.

The feeling that "influence is too strong" spreads across party lines

Interestingly, this concern is not concentrated in any particular political faction.

According to the survey, supporters of the Green Party expressed the strongest concern.

85% responded that "the influence of American tech companies is too great."

Among Left Party supporters, it was 77%, SPD supporters 74%, and CDU/CSU supporters 72%.

On the other hand, among AfD supporters, it was below half at 47%, with 34% saying the influence is not excessive.

Although there are differences based on political stance, the concern is shared across a wide range from center-left to center-right.

Differences by age are also visible.

While 60% of those aged 18-29 said the influence is too great, it exceeded 70% among those aged 60 and over.

It is assumed that young people use digital services like Google, Instagram, iPhone, Amazon, and generative AI more frequently in their daily lives.

Yet, the result that 60% are aware of the issue indicates that "using the service" and "unconditionally welcoming the company's influence" are separate matters.

There are also differences in educational level, with 73% of respondents with a high educational level considering the influence of American tech companies excessive, compared to 58% in the lower educational group.

The biggest concern was not "AI taking away jobs"

So, what are the people of Germany afraid of?

Surprisingly, fear of generative AI itself was not the biggest reason.

Among those who said the influence of American tech companies is "too great," 63% cited "increased dependence on the United States" as a concern.

59% viewed the formation of monopolistic or oligopolistic structures by giant companies as problematic.

55% cited risks to data protection and privacy.

And 53% were concerned about the possibility of companies influencing public debate and opinion formation through algorithms used in Google searches and social media.

Additionally, about 30% felt the danger of giant tech companies influencing political decision-making and legislation.

On the other hand, concerns about workers being disadvantaged or losing jobs due to AI were at 25%.

22% cited the expansion of social inequality due to AI and other factors.

Thus, what emerged from this survey is a deeper anxiety about the structural issue of "who holds the digital infrastructure that drives society," rather than the straightforward fear of "AI taking human jobs."

From Google to OpenAI, American companies hold the "gateway to life"

When considering the power of American tech companies, focusing solely on sales figures or corporate value can obscure the essence.

What is important is that these companies hold the "gateway" connecting humans to the digital society.

Google controls search and advertising, and Android.

Apple controls smartphones and app distribution.

Meta controls communication platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp.

Amazon is a giant not only in e-commerce but also in cloud services through AWS, supporting global corporate systems.

Microsoft is deeply embedded in businesses and administrations through Windows, Office, and Azure.

Newly added to this is generative AI.

The fact that OpenAI was exemplified alongside Amazon, Google, Meta, and Apple in this survey is symbolic.

Generative AI companies have quickly been recognized as having a significant social impact, not just as emerging IT services.

In the future, if AI agents take over tasks like searching, emailing, shopping, document creation, programming, and operating corporate systems, AI could become the "gateway for humans to access the digital society," similar to browsers and smartphone OS.

If that happens, choosing which AI to use will not be a simple matter of product selection.

89% of companies also recognize dependence on foreign digital technologies

The concerns of general consumers overlap with the situation on the corporate side.

In a survey released by Germany's IT industry association Bitkom in 2025, 89% of German companies importing digital products and services from abroad acknowledged their dependence on them.

51% said they are "strongly dependent," and 38% said they are "somewhat dependent."

Furthermore, 57% of companies said that if the supply of digital technology from abroad were cut off, they could only continue their business for a maximum of one year. ※2

In current business activities, a vast supply network spanning multiple countries and regions has been formed, with the US for cloud and AI, China for hardware, and Taiwan for semiconductors.

Therefore, the idea of "making everything in Germany" is not realistic.

The problem is becoming so dependent that the business itself cannot be sustained the moment a specific country or company is gone.

63% of consumers also feel "increased foreign dependence"

Another survey shows the same trend.

In a survey conducted by Deloitte in Germany in April 2026, 63% expressed concern that Germany is increasing its dependence on foreign technology companies.

Compared to a survey at the end of 2025, this percentage increased by 13 points.

There is also a growing tendency to prefer storing personal data on servers in Germany or Europe.

However, Deloitte points out that the market share of European cloud providers in the German market remains at about 15%. ※3

In other words, while there is a demand for "using European services," the supply capacity to meet that demand is still insufficient.

This highlights the difficulty Europe faces.

The EU has begun to move seriously on "technological sovereignty"

Against this backdrop, the EU also advanced its policies significantly in 2026.

On June 3, the European Commission announced the "European Technological Sovereignty Package."

It outlined a policy to strengthen semiconductors, cloud, AI, and open source in an integrated manner to enhance Europe's digital autonomy.

The pillars include the "Chips Act 2.0" to support next-generation semiconductors, the "Cloud and AI Development Act (CADA)" to strengthen cloud and AI infrastructure, and an open-source strategy. ※4

Importantly, Europe is not aiming to "exclude American companies."

The European Commission's policy emphasizes reducing excessive dependence on non-EU operators while keeping the market open to partners.

In other words, it is not about "not using foreign services."

It's about being able to choose another service when needed.

Being able to transfer data.

Not letting a single company control critical infrastructure.

This "ability to choose" is the core of digital sovereignty.

Germany and France also align on "reducing dependence"

On June 17, 2026, Germany and France announced a common definition of "digital sovereignty."

The two countries pointed out that there is significant dependence on third countries across the entire technology stack, from semiconductors to software, data management, and AI.

They emphasized the need to nurture European startups and tech companies to create globally competitive enterprises. ※5

It can be seen that Europe's digital policy, which was centered on regulation, is beginning to shift its focus to an industrial policy of "nurturing technology and companies ourselves."

On social media, harsh reactions like "Did you just realize this now?"

So, how do general internet users view this issue?

Currently, there is not a large volume of social media reactions to the YouGov survey itself, so here we look at related discussions on "Germany and Europe's dependence on US tech" and "digital sovereignty" exchanged on platforms like Reddit in 2026.

In a March post addressing Germany's dependence on US technology, criticisms like "this issue has been known for years" were prominent.

There was dissatisfaction, especially regarding the lack of sufficient alternatives despite previous warnings about the legal and political risks of using American companies' cloud and software. ※6

In other words, on social media, the issue is seen not as a "sudden crisis" but as a "long-standing problem that has been neglected."

"Invest in European-made" — Expectations for open source

In April, a significant debate arose in the German-speaking Reddit community over the German government's substantial spending on software from American companies.

The reaction was, "If you're spending that much money, shouldn't you invest more in European companies and open source?"

This is the idea of demanding public investment in open-source software like LibreOffice and European-specific services.

On the other hand, there was also a realistic point made that "it's not easy to replace the product lineup of giants like Microsoft." ※7

IT systems used by large administrative bodies and companies are not simply a matter of reinstalling Office with another software.

Consideration must be given to compatibility with past files, employee and staff training, cloud integration, authentication, security, maintenance, and data exchange with other organizations.

There is a significant gap between the political will to "be independent" and the practical requirement of "being able to work from today."

"Just make a European version" won't solve it

When Germany and France presented a common policy on digital sovereignty in June, various opinions were exchanged on Reddit.

While there were voices welcoming European independence, questions arose such as "Who will actually continue developing for the long term?" and "Who will bear the cost?"

There were also posts from users who had actually switched to European company services, introducing small actions like changing their search engine from Google to a European service.

However, at the same time, evaluations like "the alternative service is not yet as easy to use as Google" were also seen. ※8

This is a very important issue for digital sovereignty.

Users do not choose products based solely on political ideology.

For search, it's search accuracy.

For cloud, it's functionality, price, speed, stability.

For generative AI, it's model performance.

For smartphones, it's the number of apps and ease of use.

If Europe is serious about reducing dependence on American companies, it must create products that make people want to use them over American-made ones, not just say "use it because it's European-made."

Europe's weakness is not "lack of engineers"

In another Reddit discussion asking why Germany did not develop a giant tech industry like the US, voices pointed to issues with the funding environment and societal attitudes towards digital technology.

The view is that the problem was not "lack of talented IT personnel," but rather the investment environment and market creation needed to support growth into a giant company. ※9

Google, Amazon, Meta, Microsoft, and others have accumulated massive R&D investments, acquisitions, and infrastructure investments over a long period.

The same is happening with AI.

Creating a high-performance AI model alone does not guarantee competitive success.

A massive ecosystem including data centers, semiconductors, electricity, cloud, development tools, researchers, and startup funding is necessary.

The real difficulty of Europe's digital sovereignty lies not in "regulating