Cloud computing Archives | Page 2 of 55 | Digital Watch Observatory

EU prepares tougher rules for older data centres

The European Commission is preparing more stringent requirements for ageing data centres rather than allowing legacy infrastructure to operate under looser rules.

A draft strategy tied to the EU’s tech sovereignty package signals that older sites will face higher efficiency expectations and stricter sustainability checks as part of an effort to modernise the digital backbone of the EU.

The proposal outlines minimum performance standards for new data centres by 2030, aiming to align the entire sector with the bloc’s climate and resilience goals. Officials want to reduce energy waste and improve monitoring across facilities that have long operated without uniform benchmarks.

The draft points to an expanded role for the Cloud and AI Development Act, which is expected to frame future obligations for cloud providers instead of relying on fragmented national measures.

Brussels sees consistent rules as essential for supporting secure cloud services, AI infrastructure and cross-border digital operations.

The strategy underscores that modernisation is central to the EU’s vision of tech sovereignty. Older centres would need upgrades to maintain compliance, ensuring that Europe’s digital infrastructure remains competitive, efficient and less dependent on external providers.

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EU pushes federated cloud plan to reduce dependence on foreign tech

Europe is building a federated cloud and AI infrastructure intended to reduce reliance on US and Chinese technology providers and avoid ongoing strategic vulnerability.

The project, known as EURO-3C, was announced in Barcelona by Telefónica and is backed by the European Commission. More than seventy organisations across telecommunications, technology and emerging companies have joined the effort.

Architects of the scheme argue that linking national infrastructures into a shared network of nodes offers a realistic path forward, particularly as Europe cannot easily create a hyperscale cloud provider from scratch.

The initiative follows a series of US cloud outages that exposed the risks of excessive dependence on external infrastructure and raised questions about sovereignty, resilience and long-term competitiveness.

Commission officials described the programme as a way to build a secure cross-border digital ecosystem that supports industries such as automotive, e-health, public administration and sovereign government cloud.

Telefónica stressed that agentic AI, capable of taking autonomous actions, will play a central role in enabling Europe to develop technology rather than import it.

The partners view the project as a foundation for a unified and independent digital environment that strengthens industrial supply chains and prepares European sectors for the next phase of cloud and AI adoption.

They present the initiative as a significant step toward reducing strategic exposure while stimulating domestic innovation.

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Samsung strengthens Japan 5G rollout with Rakuten Mobile partnership

Samsung has secured an agreement with Rakuten Mobile to deliver Open RAN-compliant 5G radios supporting a nationwide mobile network upgrade across Japan. Commercial deployment is expected to begin in 2026 following extensive testing of the cloud-native infrastructure.

Rakuten Mobile continues to expand its fully virtualised network architecture, designed to improve flexibility, performance, and vendor interoperability. The integration of Samsung equipment demonstrates growing industry confidence in Open RAN technology at large-scale commercial deployments.

Equipment supplied includes low-band and mid-band radios, alongside energy-efficient Massive MIMO systems operating in the 3.8 GHz spectrum. Compact hardware enables easier installation on buildings and street infrastructure while improving capacity in dense urban areas.

Executives from both companies highlighted ambitions to accelerate AI-enabled networks and global Open RAN adoption. Samsung also positioned the partnership as a step toward future 6G innovation and broader next-generation connectivity services.

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Free plan users can now transfer data to Claude

Anthropic has enhanced its Claude AI chatbot to make switching from other platforms easier. Users on the free plan can now activate Claude’s memory feature, which allows them to import data from other AI platforms using a new dedicated tool.

The update ensures that users don’t have to start over when transferring context and history from competitors like OpenAI’s ChatGPT or Google’s Gemini.

The memory import option, first introduced in October for paid subscribers, now appears under ‘settings’ → ‘capabilities’ for all users. The tool lets users copy a prompt from their previous AI and paste the output into Claude, seamlessly transferring past interactions.

The recent popularity of Claude has been driven by tools such as Claude Code and Claude Cowork, as well as the launch of the Opus 4.6 and Sonnet 4.6 models. Upgrades enhance Claude’s coding, spreadsheet, and complex task capabilities, boosting its appeal to new users.

Anthropic’s visibility has also increased amid debates with the Pentagon, as the company refuses to loosen AI safeguards for military use, drawing ‘red lines’ around mass surveillance and autonomous weapons.

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SharePoint strengthens Microsoft 365 Copilot with enterprise knowledge

Twenty-five years after its launch, SharePoint has grown into one of Microsoft’s largest collaboration platforms, serving more than one billion users annually. The service now underpins vast volumes of enterprise content, with billions of files and millions of sites created each day.

Microsoft positions the platform as a foundational knowledge layer for Microsoft 365 Copilot. As the primary grounding source for Copilot, it contributes to the Work IQ intelligence layer, enabling AI tools to operate within an organisational context.

New agentic capabilities allow teams to build solutions using natural language prompts within governed Microsoft 365 environments. Custom AI skills package organisational standards, terminology, and business logic, helping ensure outputs align with internal policies and workflows.

AI-driven publishing features are now embedded across its web authoring tools. Organisations can plan, refine, and distribute content at scale while maintaining governance controls and consistent communication standards.

Content stored in SharePoint also powers semantic indexing and retrieval systems that support contextual discovery across Microsoft 365 applications. Microsoft says these capabilities enable more proactive knowledge surfacing and strengthen Copilot’s ability to deliver grounded responses.

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Non-human identities gain importance in cloud and AI security

As organisations expand across cloud environments, non-human identities are becoming a critical component of modern cybersecurity strategies. Managing machine identities and their associated secrets is increasingly central to reducing risk and improving AI-driven threat detection.

As digital infrastructure grows, machine identities function as secure access credentials for applications, services, and automated processes. Effective governance can reduce vulnerabilities, improve compliance, and streamline operations across sectors such as finance and healthcare.

Integrating non-human identities into AI security frameworks enables more contextual anomaly detection and improved visibility into network behaviour. Rather than relying solely on static scanning, organisations can adopt adaptive models that enhance predictive threat response.

Challenges remain, particularly around coordination between security, DevOps, and research teams. Gaps in collaboration and limited awareness of identity lifecycle management can create blind spots that weaken overall cyber resilience.

Automation is increasingly seen as essential for scaling non-human identity management. By automating secrets rotation, certificate renewal, and access reviews, organisations can strengthen governance while enabling security teams to focus on higher-value strategic priorities.

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Ericsson completes first pre-standard 6G OTA session in US

Ericsson has completed the world’s first pre-standard 6G over-the-air session in the United States, marking a milestone toward commercial 6G networks. The trial took place in Plano, Texas, using a pre-standard system built on an AI-native, cloud-based architecture.

The demonstration validated core 6G building blocks, including radio hardware, RAN Compute, software-defined air interfaces and cloud platforms. Ericsson said its software architecture is deployable across CPU and GPU hardware environments.

The trial used spectrum in the 7GHz range with 400 MHz carrier bandwidth and focused on uplink performance, energy efficiency and spectral utilisation. The system included Ericsson radios, baseband platforms and cloud-native software.

According to the company, the test demonstrated capabilities to support AI-driven applications, such as robotics, that require real-time control and high-quality video streaming. Future 6G networks are expected to deliver consistent low latency and enhanced uplink capacity for advanced AI services.

Ericsson said the milestone strengthens US participation in global standards development, including 3GPP and Open RAN. The company plans to expand trials across additional spectrum bands while building on its US research and manufacturing footprint.

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Deutsche Telekom and Nokia advance open and AI-native RAN

Nokia and Deutsche Telekom have expanded their collaboration to advance cloud-based, disaggregated, and AI-native RAN technologies. The strengthened Innovation Cooperation Program deepens joint work in Cloud RAN, open interfaces, and next-generation solutions.

The partnership builds on years of cooperation focused on open and flexible architectures. Both companies said the expanded effort aims to improve network efficiency, programmability, and long-term operational value for service providers.

Work on Open Fronthaul integration is being intensified following earlier multivendor deployments in Germany linking Nokia baseband units with O-RAN-compliant radios. Additional integrations covering Open Fronthaul and Cloud RAN are progressing within confidential development programmes.

The companies are also advancing O-RAN-aligned management capabilities through open O1 interfaces and deeper integration of configuration management. A vendor-independent Service Management and Orchestration platform remains central to Deutsche Telekom’s multivendor RAN strategy.

Nokia will act as Deutsche Telekom’s strategic co-creation partner for AI-native RAN development. Joint efforts will focus on AI-powered receivers, adaptive beamforming, predictive optimisation, and lab and field validation to support intelligent, autonomous mobile networks.

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Amazon commits €33.7 billion to expand Spain cloud footprint

A €33.7 billion investment in Spain to expand cloud and AI infrastructure marks the most significant technology commitment in the country’s history, as Amazon confirms its major expansion plan.

Announced at MWC26 Barcelona, the package adds €18 billion to funding revealed in 2024 and strengthens the Amazon Web Services (AWS) Europe region based in Aragón.

Total investment in the AWS Europe (Spain) Region is expected to add €31.7 billion to GDP by 2035 and support around 29,900 jobs annually. About 6,700 direct roles stem from Amazon operations, with additional jobs created in construction, logistics, and supply chains.

New manufacturing and fulfilment facilities in Aragón are expected to create about 1,800 additional jobs, including a dedicated AI and machine learning server plant.

Since entering Spain in 2011, Amazon has invested more than €20 billion across retail, logistics, and cloud services. The Amazon Web Services region, launched in 2022, is accelerating AI adoption across Europe, including among Telefónica and BBVA.

A further €30 million will be allocated to community initiatives through 2035, focused on education, sustainability, and local development. Renewable energy projects, including 100 solar and wind sites, support operations and a net-zero carbon goal by 2040, establishing Aragón as a growing European digital hub.

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Claws become the new trend in local agentic AI

A new expression has entered the AI vocabulary, with ‘claws’ becoming the latest term to capture the industry’s imagination.

The term refers to a growing family of open-source personal assistants designed to run locally on consumer hardware, often on Apple’s compact Mac mini rather than on cloud-based servers.

These assistants can access calendars, email accounts, coding tools, browsers and external model APIs, enabling them to carry out complex digital tasks autonomously.

Interest increased after AI researcher Andrej Karpathy described his experiments with claws, prompting broader attention across online communities.

Many users have begun adopting the tools as lightweight agentic systems capable of handling real work, from scheduling meetings to writing software overnight by linking to models from providers such as OpenAI.

The name originated with Clawdbot, which was recently rebranded as OpenClaw and became a prominent example in Silicon Valley.

A wave of variants, including NanoClaw, ZeroClaw and IronClaw, has followed, marking a surge in locally run assistants that appeal to users seeking greater autonomy, privacy and experimentation.

Growing enthusiasm for claws highlights a wider shift towards agentic AI running directly on personal devices.

Whether these systems become mainstream or remain a niche developer trend, they show how quickly the AI landscape can evolve and how new concepts often spread long before they fully mature.

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