Digital Watch Observatory - Digital Governance in 50+ issues, 500+ actors, 5+ processes
Cloudflare’s outage exposes cloud fragility as Brussels eyes gatekeepers. Plus: EU Digital Omnibus on AI/GDPR, Singapore’s AI sandbox, India’s DPDP, ETRS plan, Africa’s Cotonou 2030 goals.
Rolex’s quiet move from luxury symbol to diplomatic actor reveals a surprising twist in how influence is negotiated in today’s shifting global landscape.
A long-term training plan will ensure that the EU’s justice staff gain the skills needed to operate confidently with digital tools and AI-supported decision systems.
New UK initiatives channel billions into AI development, backing start-ups, expanding data centres and driving scientific innovation across regions including South Wales.
The new feature by OpenAI turns ChatGPT into a collaborative environment instead of a one-to-one assistant, allowing coordinated planning and shared decision-making.
Meta is notifying Australian users it believes to be under 16 that their accounts on Instagram, Facebook and Threads will be deactivated starting 4 December, a week before the nationwide ban takes effect.
Tech industry welcomes lighter EU rules but says reforms fall short.
The EU plans to loosen AI and data privacy rules, giving companies more flexibility while simplifying cookie consent processes to foster innovation across the continent.
Proposed GAIN AI Act aims to prioritise US buyers before China.
Must read
Analysis
The future of the EU data protection under the Omnibus Package
The EU data protection law and competitiveness are struggling to work cohesively, according to senior Union leaders. That is why the GDPR and ePD are next on the digital omnibus’ chopping board. With leaked drafts and questionable legal reasoning, all eyes are on 19 November for the Commission’s official proposal.
Analysis
The AI soldier and the ethics of war
AI is transforming warfare from a human-driven struggle into a machine-guided simulation, raising urgent questions about the future of ethics, accountability, and humanity on the battlefield.
Analysis
The rise of large language models and the question of ownership
Balancing open access and corporate ownership of these models will determine whether AI becomes a shared global good or a private monopoly.
Analysis
Most transformative decade begins as Kurzweil’s AI vision unfolds
Ray Kurzweil predicted AI would change everything. The 2020s may prove him right.
DW monthly
Digital Watch newsletter – Issue 104 – October 2025
Issue 104: In our October 2025 issue, we unpacked new rules for children’s online spaces and examined the global struggle to steer AI. We analysed shifting rare-earth supply chains and what recent cloud outages reveal about digital resilience. We also looked back at the signing of the UN Cybercrime Convention. We also recapped key Geneva events shaping the future of international digital governance.
DW WEEKLY
Weekly #239 Digital draught: When the cloud goes offline
Cloudflare’s outage exposes cloud fragility as Brussels eyes gatekeepers. Plus: EU Digital Omnibus on AI/GDPR, Singapore’s AI sandbox, India’s DPDP, ETRS plan, Africa’s Cotonou 2030 goals.
DW at a glance
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WSIS+20 Process
The year 2025 marks 20 years since the finalisation of the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS), and a review process looking at 20 years of WSIS outcomes implementation will conclude with a high-level meeting at the UN General Assembly (UNGA), in December. This page keeps track of the process leading to the UNGA meeting in December 2025. It also provides background information about WSIS and related activities and processes since 1998.
Explore the Observatory
Digital Technologies
From internet applications to quantum computing, we focus on advanced and emerging digital technologies which are increasingly reshaping our economies and societies.
Clusters of Policy topics
We unpack digital policy by exploring over 50 topics – from access and sustainable development to network security and the future of work – classified in 7 clusters.
Processes
Follow some of the most important digital policy processes, from the EU's work on the Digital Services Act/Digital Markets Act to the UN Cybercrime Ad Hoc Committee.