How Dependent Is Britain On Foreign Technology?

“Data sovereignty” is a major trending topic these days, from news headlines to themes at major tech events around the world. And it’s not just data everyone’s worried about; it’s the idea of sovereignty in tech altogether. Thus, the recent warning from M16 Chief, Sir Richard Dearlove, about how foreign states have their “fingerprints all over our critical national infrastructure” has done pretty much the opposite of falling on deaf ears.

And for good reason. At the moment, Britain is focused on investing heavily in sovereign technology capabilities, by means of its £500 million Sovereign AI Fund, among other things, while policymakers on the sidelines are still questioning whether the UK has become too reliant on a small number of overseas technology providers. Geopolitical instability seems to be at an all-time high these days, from the Russia-Ukraine war to the US-Iran conflict (to name a issues), making many previously reliable relationships and partnerships seem a little less strong than they once did.

In light of current circumstances, the focus has shifted to control. That is, control over who owns the infrastructure that powers public services, where the technology come from and what happens if access to it becomes restricted during a geopolitical dispute.

Concerns Around Tech Dependence Are Growing

According to new polling from Merlin Strategy, concern about foreign control of critical infrastructure is widespread across the UK. The survey of 2,011 adults found that 85% would be concerned if a foreign government could restrict Britain’s access to infrastructure it relies on during a future conflict or international crisis.

Further to this, around 65% of respondents said they would feel unsafe about overseas-headquartered companies owning technology or data relied upon by the armed forces and border security, while 63% expressed similar concerns about policing and law enforcement systems. Undoubtedly, these concerns reflect growing scrutiny of the UK’s reliance on large international technology providers.

According to Politico, earlier this year, the House of Commons Science, Innovation and Technology Committee warned that the UK’s dependence on a small number of US technology companies could represent a strategic vulnerability, emphasising a concern that many people have already been worried about for quite some time. In particular, several MPs highlighted the growing role of Palantir, a US-based data analytics company, in the public sector, describing the company’s increasing presence as an “unacceptable point of weakness”. The committee also warned that Britain may not always be able to rely on allies for access to critical technologies, calling for a clearer national AI sovereignty strategy.

With a US President and government behaving incredibly unpredictably, constantly lashing out at other foreign powers (both friends and enemies) without much warning, the concern is not without warrant.

Technology Has Become A National Security Question

Dearlove’s warning reflects a growing belief among policymakers that critical technology infrastructure now sits alongside traditional defence assets as a matter of national security. “Foreign states, including China, have their fingerprints all over our critical national infrastructure, and that means we’re exposed. For the sake of Britain’s national security this cannot continue,” he said.

“The UK needs sovereignty over the technology and hardware that underpins its public services or it risks overseas actors taking control of them at will.”

Former Chair of the House of Commons Defence Committee Tobias Ellwood argues that the threat landscape has fundamentally changed. “Britain’s enemies no longer need to bomb a power station to damage the country; increasingly, they can attack or disrupt the technology that keeps it running,” he said.

Ellwood believes the challenge isn’t necessarily foreign technology itself, but rather the absence of alternatives. As he explains, “We cannot build everything ourselves, nor should we. But when it comes to the systems essential to keeping Britain running, we must have a sovereign fallback.” Essentially, it’s probably not a great idea for Britian to have all its eggs in one basket.

His warning highlights a growing concern among security experts that dependence on overseas providers could leave critical services vulnerable to political decisions made beyond Britain’s control. “A political decision taken thousands of miles away could restrict access to technology on which our economy, public services and national security depend,” he added. And that is of great concern to a nation that prides itself on its independence.

What Does This Mean For UK Startups?

For the UK’s technology sector, the debate presents both a challenge and an opportunity. Successive governments have talked about backing British technology businesses, while Prime Minister Andy Burnham has pledged to use public procurement to support domestic firms. Defence Secretary John Healey has also promised to buy British “not if possible, but by design” across areas including defence, AI and technology.

If policymakers become more serious about technology sovereignty, it could create significant opportunities for British startups operating in cloud infrastructure, cybersecurity, AI, data management and digital public services.

The reality, though, is that replacing global technology giants is unlikely to happen overnight. The UK’s public and private sectors remain deeply integrated with international providers including Microsoft, Amazon Web Services and Palantir, and changing that is going to be a systemic project that’ll take a great deal of time, effort, money and collaboration to achieve.

Thus, the question isn’t just about whether Britain can become completely independent, but more about whether it can build enough domestic capability to avoid becoming dangerously dependent. At least for now. Indeed, as AI becomes more and more deeply embedded into government systems, public services and national infrastructure, that question is likely to become one of the most important technology debates of the decade.

In fact, in many ways, it already is.