Digital Sovereignty: The Overlooked Issue One Year Into Trump’s Second Term

Last week marked the first anniversary of Donald Trump’s return to the White House. Journalists and columnists seized on the moment to talk about everything from tariffs to annexation threats to budget plans, but no one mentioned digital sovereignty—or what Artificial Intelligence Minister Evan Solomon called “the most pressing policy and democratic issue of our time.”[1]  

Over the past year, it’s become clear just how important it is for governments to have control over the data they generate. Big Tech companies control much of Canadians’ sensitive data—and much of the world’s, too.[2] All of those companies are U.S.-based, and as such are subject to U.S. laws, including FISA and the CLOUD Act, which enable U.S. authorities to compel access to data hosted by U.S. companies even when that data is stored outside the United States.  

A U.S. tech giant investing hundreds of millions of dollars to build a data centre in Quebec is not going to protect our sensitive data from the prying eyes of the U.S. government.  

Defending Canada’s sovereignty involves protecting the country’s land and sea borders. On Data Privacy Day, let’s remember that we need to protect our digital borders as well. Today we call on political parties to take a stronger stand in favour of asserting digital sovereignty and introducing measures that would require companies and organizations to use Canadian sovereign cloud services for their sensitive, strategic data. To truly have control over our own affairs, we need to reclaim ownership of our digital infrastructure and place our trust in the expertise of Canadian providers. Digital sovereignty is indeed a key pillar of our Canadian sovereignty. 

It is, by any measure, the most pressing policy and democratic issue of our time.  

Stéphane Garneau, President of Micrologic, a sovereign cloud provider 

Sources:

1. The Canadian Press, “Ottawa assembling AI task force as it prepares refreshed strategy,” National Newswatch, September 24, 2025, retrieved on January 23, 2026. https://www.nationalnewswatch.com/2025/09/24/ottawa-assembling-ai-task-force-as-it-prepares-refreshed-strategy. 

2. Vincent Larouche and Patrick Lagacé, “Contrats de 310 millions sans appeld’offres :Santé Québec confieses données à Microsoft,” La Presse, June 17, 2025, retrieved on January 23, 2026. https://www.lapresse.ca/actualites/2025-06-17/contrats-de-310-millions-sans-appel-d-offres/sante-quebec-confie-ses-donnees-a-microsoft.php