Technology
Technologies, particularly digital and space technologies, raise political, strategic and economic issues that are profoundly transforming the dynamics of international competition and cooperation.
Related Subjects
China in the Race to Low Earth Orbit: Perspectives on the Future Internet Constellation Guowang
In April 2021, the Chinese government officially, but rather quietly, established a new state-owned enterprise (SOE) named China SatNet. Its mission: build out China’s “mega-constellation” program for low Earth orbiting internet satellites, known as Guowang (“national network”).
China/United States: Europe off Balance
As French President Emmanuel Macron (accompanied by Ursula von der Leyen) is on a state visit to China, some twenty Ifri researchers decipher the stakes of the U.S./China/Europe strategic triangle.
How the War in Ukraine is Changing the Space Game
The war in Ukraine has become a showcase for the new commercial paradigm emerging in the space sector (New Space). As such, it seems to confirm the relevance of adaptation efforts led by the United States – more specifically the Pentagon – since the mid-2010s.
The Technology Policies of Digital Middle Powers
Digital technology is an element of power in the international system as well as an area for competition among countries. The study provides a qualitative comparison of the technology policies of nine of the digital middle powers: Brazil, India, Israel, Japan, Kenya, Nigeria, Russia, South Korea, and the United Kingdom. It seeks to reflect the diversity of national technology policies, as well as to identify those countries’ convergences and divergences with Europe, the United States and China.
Digital Sovereignty: European Policies, American Dilemmas
European digital sovereignty has been made a priority by Ursula von der Leyen’s European Commission. Due to the privileged position of American companies in the European market, Brussels’ efforts towards digital sovereignty (on privacy, antitrust, data sovereignty, etc.) are closely scrutinized by American policymakers.
Software Power: The Economic and Geopolitical Implications of Open Source Software
Open source is at the heart of the Internet infrastructure, of the software used by individuals or governments, and of the innovation processes of tech companies. Faced with threats to the security and sustainability of the open source model, governments are getting a hold of the topic, which is becoming increasingly geopolitical.
Neither Surveillance nor Algorithm-driven Consumerism. Toward an Alternative European Model for Smart Cities
Numerous smart city projects are emerging, guided by objectives of efficiency and improvement of public policies. All of them are based on intensive use of data and digital tools, but their concrete achievements take various forms. Some models are being exported and are becoming levers of influence, while Europe is still looking for its own path.
“Open” Telecom Networks (Open RAN): Towards a Reconfiguration of International Competition in 5G?
In line with the anti-Huawei diplomatic campaign of the Trump and Biden administrations, the United States has promoted an alternative: Open RAN, a concept defined by "open" network architectures. At the intersection of 5G geopolitics and standards, what risks and opportunities does Open RAN present for European technological sovereignty?
Reindustrializing France: Challenges of the Digital and Environmental Transformation
To succeed in the challenge of reindustrializing France, French and European companies must undertake a dual process of digital and environmental transformation, in a context of international competition.
The Pacific caught in the World Wide Web? Geopolitics of submarine cables in Oceania
This article provides a review of the digital connectivity of the Pacific Islands nations (Polynesia, Melanesia, and Micronesia) and the main challenges and prospects arising from it, at a time when the submarine cable market is undergoing profound change and a growing politicization of this technology on the international scene.
Software Power: The Economic and Geopolitical Implications of Open Source Software
Open source is at the heart of the Internet infrastructure, of the software used by individuals or governments, and of the innovation processes of tech companies. Faced with threats to the security and sustainability of the open source model, governments are getting a hold of the topic, which is becoming increasingly geopolitical.
Neither Surveillance nor Algorithm-driven Consumerism. Toward an Alternative European Model for Smart Cities
Numerous smart city projects are emerging, guided by objectives of efficiency and improvement of public policies. All of them are based on intensive use of data and digital tools, but their concrete achievements take various forms. Some models are being exported and are becoming levers of influence, while Europe is still looking for its own path.
“Open” Telecom Networks (Open RAN): Towards a Reconfiguration of International Competition in 5G?
In line with the anti-Huawei diplomatic campaign of the Trump and Biden administrations, the United States has promoted an alternative: Open RAN, a concept defined by "open" network architectures. At the intersection of 5G geopolitics and standards, what risks and opportunities does Open RAN present for European technological sovereignty?
Critical technologies and industrial capabilities: National definitions and implications. The French case.
France has historically paid significant attention to strategic technologies and industries, whether they were strictly defence- and nuclear deterrence related, or considered as vectors of national independence and security, more broadly.
Fishing for Chips: Assessing the EU Chips Act
China, the United States, and the European Union (EU) are currently developing strategies for semiconductors aimed at financing R&D and the installation of new factories on their territories, in particular through subsidies. The EU Chips Act, announced in February 2022, represents a real break in Europe's industrial policy.
The Political Economy of the Metaverse
The "metaverse", at the heart of the strategy of large digital companies such as Facebook (Meta), does not yet exist and it will take decades to build it. This briefing provides an overview of the issues.
Implications of the Global Supply Chain Reform: A Taiwanese Perspective
How have both the private and public sectors in Taiwan sought to mitigate the challenges posed by the reform agenda for global supply chains (GSCs)?
Europe’s Quest for Technological Power
Computing power plays a key role in enabling data analytics and machine learning, in cybersecurity, for scientific research, and in military domains like nuclear warhead design and detonation simulation.
Digital Sovereignty Review of Macron’s Term and Debates in the 2022 Presidential Campaign
One month before the French presidential election, this briefing assesses the actions undertaken during Macron's term as well as the presidential candidates' proposals concerning France's digital sovereignty.
Convince and Coerce: U.S. Interference in Technology Exchanges Between its Allies and China
The tough-on-China policy adopted by the Trump and Biden administrations has – and will increasingly have – important consequences for Washington’s allies, both on their infrastructure choices (5G, submarine cables...) and on their technological exchanges with China.
Support independent French research
Ifri, a foundation recognized as being of public utility, relies largely on private donors – companies and individuals – to guarantee its sustainability and intellectual independence. Through their funding, donors help maintain the Institute's position among the world's leading think tanks. By benefiting from an internationally recognized network and expertise, donors refine their understanding of geopolitical risk and its consequences on global politics and the economy. In 2025, Ifri supports more than 80 French and foreign companies and organizations.
Related centers and programs
Space Program
Space has become a crucial theme in the main international think tanks’ research activities as it entails important strategic, economic, and technological issues.
Since 2001, Ifri has integrated space in its research, notably by ensuring that the political dimension of scientific and human exploration programs is emphasized, and by supporting reflections on the Code of Conduct for Outter Space Activities.
Today, as part of its research agenda, Ifri mobilizes several of its centers and programs to transversally tackle the theme of space, through three main inputs:
- the competition of powers, driven by the Sino-American rivalry;
- critical points related to mastery of space, such as the issue of autonomous access to space or the mega-constellations necessary for the digital revolution;
- these developments’ challenges for Europe and its status as a space power.
Since the Summer 2020, Ifri has been coordinating a tripartite European Space Governance Initiative, together with two other renowned European think tanks: the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Auswärtige Politik (DGAP) in Germany and the Istituto Affari Internazionali (IAI) in Italy.
Center for Geopolitics of Technology
Artificial intelligence (AI), 5G, cybersecurity, robotics, semiconductors, space…Technologies—particularly digital technologies—now profoundly affect all human activities and, by extension, international relations. The political, strategic, economic, and social stakes that arise from them are expressed across multiple political levels, involving states, international organizations, and private companies alike. International dynamics of competition and cooperation are being reshaped as a result. To address these challenges, Ifri launched its Geopolitics of Technology Center in 2020, offering a distinctly European perspective on the international issues surrounding so-called critical technologies.