Europe's AI sovereign strategy risks excluding women-led firms

The European Commission’s recent push for a Public Procurement Act and the Cloud and AI Development Act aims to bolster regional infrastructure, yet these initiatives fail to track contract awards to women-led firms. With public spending accounting for roughly 14 percent of the EU’s GDP, the current strategy risks reinforcing a concentrated supplier market rather than diversifying the ecosystem. While the proposed legislation mandates reporting on small and medium-sized enterprise participation, it remains silent on gender, ensuring that policymakers can measure total contract value without identifying who actually receives the opportunities.

Leveraging existing procurement tools

Closing this gap does not require new frameworks, but rather the application of existing mandates. Under Article 67 and Article 70 of current procurement directives, contracting authorities already possess the power to integrate inclusivity criteria into contract performance. Spain has already implemented such equality standards within its science procurement, proving that institutional mechanisms for change are available. By requiring prime contractors to report the share of value allocated to women-led firms, the EU could transform its procurement power into a tool for market equity. Without a shift in political will, however, the drive toward digital sovereignty will likely remain a male-dominated endeavor.