The European Parliament in Strasbourg hosted a debate lastTuesday on the European Union’s ability to respond to the growing impact of Artificial Intelligence (AI). In particular, lawmakers addressed Europe’s technological dependence on the United States, where companies such as OpenAI and Anthropic are developing new cybersecurity-focused models –GPT-5.5-Cyber and Mythos, respectively– that could enter the European market in the near future.
These developments have raised several questions within the EU: Are European companies capable of developing their own advanced AI systems? To what extent could Europe be harmed if its data and cybersecurity infrastructure depend on foreign powers?
Cypriot Deputy Minister for European Affairs Marilena Raouna, whose country currently holds the rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union, stated that “AI is becoming increasingly integrated into our economy and our security,” while warning that the new generation of advanced AI systems also poses significant risks.
“It allows us to detect vulnerabilities in software, but in the hands of cybercriminals or hostile state actors, it can become a threat,” she said.
Raouna stressed that these risks are already materializing through sophisticated phishing attacks and disinformation campaigns: “The EU must be prepared and cannot afford to fall behind.”
Defensive AI versus offensive AI
Henna Virkkunen, Executive Vice-President of the European Commission for Technological Sovereignty, acknowledged that Europe remains highly dependent on foreign technology.
“AI can be used for good and for bad. It can provide tools to protect infrastructure, but it can also create risks if exploited by malicious actors. These new models have enormous capabilities and operate at great speed. Vulnerabilities can now be detected in hours, whereas previously this took months,” she explained.
- European Commission Executive Vice-President for Technological Sivereignty Henna Virkkunen during Tuesday’s session in Strasbourg
- European Parliament
The recent announcements surrounding the development of new cybersecurity AI models by OpenAI and Anthropic, as well as their expected arrival in European markets, have created a dilemma within the EU. At present, Europe lacks companies capable of developing systems of this level of sophistication. As a result, the protection of databases, civil and military infrastructure, hospitals and other critical services depends heavily on the North American technology industry.
European technological sovereignty
Concerns about Europe’s dependence on foreign AI models were already highlighted last February in a report published by Euractiv, which revealed that the European Parliament had sent an email to MEPs banning the use of AI tools on their tablets for security reasons.
In any case, if these new models eventually enter the European market, they will have to comply with both the EU AI Act and the Cyber Resilience Act.
At this crucial moment for European technological sovereignty in AI, political groups in the European Parliament broadly agree on the need to promote homegrown European AI models in order to reduce dependence on external actors as much as possible. In this context, the EU is placing its hopes on the French company Mistral AI to develop European cybersecurity solutions capable of competing with US technology.
As AI technology advances at an unprecedented pace, one question raised during the parliamentary session reflected both the ambition and uncertainty surrounding this new era: “Who says the next Nobel Prize in Medicine or Peace will not go to an AI model?”
Cooperation between European institutions and member states is expected to play a key role in helping the EU respond to this rapidly evolving technological landscape.
The European Parliament in Strasbourg hosted a debate lastTuesday on the European Union’s ability to respond to the growing impact of Artificial Intelligence (AI). In particular, lawmakers addressed Europe’s technological dependence on the United States, where companies such as OpenAI and Anthropic are developing new cybersecurity-focused models –GPT-5.5-Cyber and Mythos, respectively– that could enter the European market in the near future.
These developments have raised several questions within the EU: Are European companies capable of developing their own advanced AI systems? To what extent could Europe be harmed if its data and cybersecurity infrastructure depend on foreign powers?
Cypriot Deputy Minister for European Affairs Marilena Raouna, whose country currently holds the rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union, stated that “AI is becoming increasingly integrated into our economy and our security,” while warning that the new generation of advanced AI systems also poses significant risks.
“It allows us to detect vulnerabilities in software, but in the hands of cybercriminals or hostile state actors, it can become a threat,” she said.
Raouna stressed that these risks are already materializing through sophisticated phishing attacks and disinformation campaigns: “The EU must be prepared and cannot afford to fall behind.”
Defensive AI versus offensive AI
Henna Virkkunen, Executive Vice-President of the European Commission for Technological Sovereignty, acknowledged that Europe remains highly dependent on foreign technology.
“AI can be used for good and for bad. It can provide tools to protect infrastructure, but it can also create risks if exploited by malicious actors. These new models have enormous capabilities and operate at great speed. Vulnerabilities can now be detected in hours, whereas previously this took months,” she explained.
- European Commission Executive Vice-President for Technological Sivereignty Henna Virkkunen during Tuesday’s session in Strasbourg
- European Parliament
The recent announcements surrounding the development of new cybersecurity AI models by OpenAI and Anthropic, as well as their expected arrival in European markets, have created a dilemma within the EU. At present, Europe lacks companies capable of developing systems of this level of sophistication. As a result, the protection of databases, civil and military infrastructure, hospitals and other critical services depends heavily on the North American technology industry.
European technological sovereignty
Concerns about Europe’s dependence on foreign AI models were already highlighted last February in a report published by Euractiv, which revealed that the European Parliament had sent an email to MEPs banning the use of AI tools on their tablets for security reasons.
In any case, if these new models eventually enter the European market, they will have to comply with both the EU AI Act and the Cyber Resilience Act.
At this crucial moment for European technological sovereignty in AI, political groups in the European Parliament broadly agree on the need to promote homegrown European AI models in order to reduce dependence on external actors as much as possible. In this context, the EU is placing its hopes on the French company Mistral AI to develop European cybersecurity solutions capable of competing with US technology.
As AI technology advances at an unprecedented pace, one question raised during the parliamentary session reflected both the ambition and uncertainty surrounding this new era: “Who says the next Nobel Prize in Medicine or Peace will not go to an AI model?”
Cooperation between European institutions and member states is expected to play a key role in helping the EU respond to this rapidly evolving technological landscape.
