Berlin / Neckarsulm, 20.05.2026
A milestone for digital sovereignty: STACKIT to become the secure cloud foundation for the federal government’s new AI platform (BMDS)
A strong signal for the digital independence of Germany and Europe: The SVA System Vertrieb Alexander GmbH — together with Codesphere and STACKIT (Schwarz Digits)—has been awarded the contract for the forward-looking large-scale project of the Federal Ministry for Digital Affairs and State Modernization (BMDS) . As a BSI-certified cloud provider, STACKIT is providing the uncompromisingly secure and sovereign infrastructure foundation for the project, which is valued at approximately 250 million euros.
In the future, federal and state government agencies will use this new platform to leverage innovative AI applications, for example for intelligent document processing (such as the specialized procedure KIPITZ) or to drastically accelerate planning and approval processes. The rollout in public administration will be facilitated, among other things, through GovDigital, the nationwide cooperative for sovereign IT solutions.
To ensure that sensitive government data remains completely independent of third countries, the BMDS relies on STACKIT’s industry-proven and government-approved infrastructure.
Why STACKIT? Maximum security and 100% technological control
The Ministry’s decision underscores the need to combine state-of-the-art AI technologies with the strictest European security and data protection standards. STACKIT offers the ideal, sovereign foundation for this:
- Absolute key control (BYOK/HYOK): Through the Bring-Your-Own-Key and Hold-Your-Own-Key procedures, government agencies retain sole and complete control over their encryption keys.
- Uncompromising security through Zero Trust: The cloud infrastructure is based on a strict Zero Trust architecture following the default-deny principle. This consistently prevents data access by non-governmental entities or actors from third countries.
- No vendor lock-in thanks to open standards: Through a clear focus on open-source technologies and adherence to the principles of the German Administrative Cloud (DVC), the platform remains maximally interoperable. The government retains full technological sovereignty.
- Strong division of labor within the consortium: While SVA is responsible for the overall architecture, system integration, and governance, and Codesphere provides the highly efficient platform layer, STACKIT, as a BSI-certified cloud infrastructure, provides the unshakable, sovereign backbone.
A new era for digital administration in Europe
Following the groundbreaking successes with the European Commission and the Dutch government, this major federal project solidifies STACKIT’s role as a leading force for digital sovereignty in the public sector.
We are proving that highly innovative AI applications for the government can thrive on a foundation that operates independently from the ground up—completely free from stock market pressure, private equity interests, or geopolitical dependencies. Leveraging the technological power of the Schwarz Group (including Lidl and Kaufland) as a cloud provider, STACKIT transforms digital self-determination from theory into practice, enabling the public sector to operate in a future-proof, capable, and sovereign manner.