Open Digital Infrastructure

Open Digital Infrastructure represents the set of open-source code, standards and knowledge assets that digital building blocks like software libraries, compilers, communication or network protocols are composed of.

They are created by individuals, volunteer communities, in research institutions and SMEs or other corporate environments. Together, they form a foundation of free and public code that is designed to solve common challenges – firstly, in programming, but when applied, also to provide a multitude of core functions for society.

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Current Co-Commissioned Projects

Wired & Orbited: Reclaiming Infrastructure for a Resilient Internet (with ARTICLE 19)

A series of primers exploring challenges to openness, transparency, and accountability in submarine cables and satellite-based internet systems.

Authored by ARTICLE 19 experts collaborating on the Wired & Orbited focus (see: https://www.article19.org/resources/wired-and-orbited-reclaiming-infrastructure-for-a-resilient-internet/), these brief research overviews in various outlets examine e.g. Starlink deployment paradoxes, satellite governance conflicts, cloud infrastructure democratic deficits, and how AI crawlers might break the internet’s business model.

  1. https://www.thedailystar.net/opinion/views/news/debunking-the-starlink-paradox-bangladesh-3987761Examines how Starlink’s satellite internet deployment in Bangladesh reveals tensions between technological promises of universal connectivity and the geopolitical realities of infrastructure control by private tech giants.
  2. https://www.techpolicy.press/global-fight-over-who-governs-communications-satellites-heats-up/Explores the escalating international debate at the ITU over whether satellite operators like Starlink can beam signals into countries without explicit national consent, highlighting the tension between global connectivity ambitions and spectrum sovereignty principles.
  3. https://www.techpolicy.press/amazon-cloud-outage-reveals-democratic-deficit-in-relying-on-big-tech/Argues that the October 2025 AWS outage demonstrates how concentration in cloud computing infrastructure creates democratic failures, with critical services from secure messaging apps to government platforms going offline when a single provider experiences technical issues.
  4. https://www.techpolicy.press/creepy-ai-crawlers-are-turning-the-internet-into-a-haunted-house/Examines how the spread of AI-powered web crawlers turns the internet into a space of extraction and surveillance, where bots gather data for tech companies, eroding online privacy and control – and exposes tensions between open digital commons and privatized, unregulated algorithmic exploitation.

EU Sovereign Tech Fund Feasibility Study (by Open Forum Europe + External Researchers from EUI and Fraunhofer Institute, co-financed by GitHub)

A comprehensive legal and economic analysis examining the viability of establishing an EU-wide Sovereign Tech Fund to invest in critical open source infrastructure. The study proposes at least €350 million over seven years to enhance Europe’s digital sovereignty and cybersecurity resilience.

The report ‘Funding Europe’s Open Digital Infrastructure: The Economic, Legal, and Political Feasibility of an EU Sovereign Tech Fund (EU-STF)’ (see:https://eu-stf.openforumeurope.org/) provides a roadmap for establishing an EU Sovereign Tech Fund to secure and maintain critical open source technologies essential for Europe’s digital sovereignty, cybersecurity/cyber resilience, and competitiveness.

  1. The Report — Funding Europe’s Open Digital InfrastructureThis report outlines the case for an EU Sovereign Tech Fund (EU-STF) to address chronic underinvestment in open source technologies. By securing, maintaining, and scaling critical open digital infrastructure, the fund would strengthen Europe’s digital sovereignty, cybersecurity, and competitiveness. Drawing on the success of Germany’s Sovereign Tech Fund, it proposes a mission-driven, pan-European model to ensure sustainable and resilient open source ecosystems.
  2. The Policy Primer — Investing in the EU Sovereign Tech FundThe EU-STF is a scaled, pan-European, mission-driven evolution of Germany’s Sovereign Tech Fund to invest in the maintenance, security, and improvement of strategically important open source software globally. Derived from our main report, this policy primer provides actionable insights to policymakers on how to make the EU-STF a reality.

Atlantic Council Study on Funding Security (ecosystem collaboration)

D//F facilitated liaison for a forthcoming Atlantic Council study commissioned by Germany’s Sovereign Tech Agency, demonstrating the importance of ecosystem coordination and benchmarking in advancing shared understanding of how to sustain and secure critical digital infrastructure.

Contact

If you are interested in supporting our co-commissioned work, or look for a strategic opportunity to be matched with a philanthropic partner on your Open Digital Infrastructure Challenge or Insight contact us via:

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