Luxembourg’s digital economy ambitions just got a bump after Proximus Group and LuxConnect announced they will create a joint subsidiary in Luxembourg to offer disconnected cloud services.
The strategic Belgian-Luxembourg partnership will support disconnected operations through the Google Distributed Cloud Hosted, a disconnected sovereign cloud solution for governments, regulated enterprises and international organisations.
“The pandemic has strongly accelerated the use of cloud solutions and collaborative tools. The current geopolitical situation further intensifies the demand for highly secure technologies. I am proud that this Belgian-Luxembourg cooperation will be a European pioneer in terms of sovereign cloud,” Luxembourg prime minister Xavier Bettel said following the announcement.
The Google Cloud Computing platform helps businesses and governments modernise their information technology systems, process data and build applications using artificial intelligence, and protect and keep data and citizens safe with integrated cybersecurity tools. It is used in over 200 countries.
The five-year partnership was presented during an economic mission to the west coast of the US where the prime minister visited Google’s Mountain View headquarters.
According to Proximus, the agreement enables sovereign cloud services to support disconnected operations through Google Distributed Cloud Hosted, which does not require connectivity to Google Cloud to manage infrastructure, services, APIs, or tooling.
Google Cloud CEO Thomas Kurian said: “We are pleased to partner to bring this cutting-edge technology to Luxembourg, to invest in go-to-market teams based in Luxembourg and Europe that will help our customers and partners adopt these technologies, and, in collaboration with government and educational institutions, to establish centers of excellence in artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, and other advanced technologies.”
“We are extremely proud to announce the first Google cloud disconnected solution in the Belux region. This is a major milestone as Proximus, partnering notably with LuxConnect, will be able to guarantee full operational sovereignty for its clients on EU terms. Proximus will moreover leverage its vast cloud services experience in order to bring these disconnected cloud services to the Belgium and Luxembourg markets,” Proximus CEO Guillaume Boutin said.
