Digital Sovereignty: Wildberger Wants Less Microsoft and Palantir

A fresh wind is blowing through the Federal Ministry for Digital and State Modernization (BMDS): Head of Department Karsten Wildberger (CDU) has declared war on technological dependence on the USA. He is specifying how the federal administration and security authorities will manage in the medium term without the dominance of industry giants like Microsoft and the controversial big data company Palantir. For the minister, this is not just a matter of IT infrastructure, but also of national sovereignty.

Figures from the budget calculation show the urgency. According to these, federal spending on Microsoft products alone grew to 481.4 million euros in 2025.

In a conversation with the online news outlet Politico, the minister explained that Microsoft had been a trusted partner for decades. However, the goal of invulnerability weighs heavier than established business relationships. According to him, the path to independence should lead through open-source solutions, which are currently already being rolled out on workstations in his own ministry.

The calculation behind the increased interest in open-source software: Through free modifiability and the option to publicly document vulnerabilities, the state frees itself from the proprietary control of individual corporations. Wildberger is therefore striving for comprehensive, freely available administrative software that could have relevance beyond internal use for the market.

Open Source Instead of License Fees

Palantir is currently particularly controversial. The analysis software for security authorities is considered an established player internationally in this field. In Germany, Federal Minister of the Interior Alexander Dobrindt (CSU) is considering using the US software to ensure short-term police operational capability. States like Bavaria and Hesse have already taken the lead. However, the federal government recently applied the brakes.

Security interests take precedence as long as no European solution exists, Wildberger admits. At the same time, however, he announced that he would specifically support European companies in this field that have market potential. The state must act as a facilitator and send a signal to smaller, emerging companies that the state trusts them with such complex tasks.

The minister expects it to take two to three years for a competitive European alternative to Palantir to be ready. To drive this transformation forward, he intends to use a new weapon against bureaucracy: the IT planning reservation.

He envisions using this consistently for the first time in the upcoming budget allocation. This will give the BMDS a de facto veto right over IT projects of other ministries. Wildberger compares his role to that of a video referee in football, intervening when common standards are violated.

IT Planning Reservation as a Corrective

The economic logic behind the announced crackdown: If every ministry develops its own AI platforms or isolated software solutions, it costs taxpayer money and leads to fragmentation. Instead, the federally owned AI platform Kipitz is to become binding. By bundling resources and stopping duplicate structures, Wildberger expects relief for the strained budget. The right of intervention applies to projects with a volume of 500,000 euros per year or three million euros in total costs. This threshold is intended to ensure that the BMDS has a say in all relevant digitalization projects.

Regarding commercial AI software like ChatGPT, the minister urges caution. He warns against its casual use in sensitive areas, which he considers very dangerous.

The direction is set: more control, more transparency through open source, and targeted promotion of domestic tech talent should mark the end of an era in which Germany merely acted as a licensee in Redmond and Silicon Valley. The decision in the cabinet on big data software for security authorities, expected at the end of April, will show how quickly the government is moving towards independence.

(mki)