Why the World Needs European Alternatives to Big Tech

The Problem With Big Tech’s Grip on Our Digital Lives

For decades, the internet has been dominated by a handful of US-based technology giants. They have given us powerful tools, but they have also taken something precious in return: our privacy.

Data has become the world’s most valuable resource — extracted, traded, and monetized, often without our knowledge or consent. Social media platforms track what we read, what we like, where we go, and who we talk to. Email providers scan inboxes to build advertising profiles. Productivity tools quietly harvest metadata about how and when we work.

According to the World Economic Forum’s Global Risks Report 2025, advancing technologies and expanding digital footprints are making it easier for governments, corporations, and threat actors to “reach deeper into people’s lives.” Surveillance capitalism has become the default model of the internet.

As Meredith Whittaker, president of the privacy-focused messaging service Signal, puts it:

“Our ability to live lives privately has been slowly eroded by data collection… in a way that is not always consensual.”

This erosion of privacy is not a side effect. It is the business model.

Privacy Is Not a Feature – It’s a Human Right

We often think of privacy as something optional: a setting we can turn on or off, a preference we can choose if we care enough. But privacy is more than a consumer choice. It is a fundamental human right.

The right to privacy is enshrined in the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights and the European Convention on Human Rights. Without privacy, there can be no true freedom of expression, no safe space for new ideas, no meaningful democracy.

As Whittaker says:

“There is no security without the ability to question the status quo, to make sure that is robust and to change things that are broken.”

When our data is constantly harvested, we lose the safety to experiment, to dissent, to think differently. And without that, innovation and democracy both wither.

Why Europe Needs Its Own Digital Alternatives

Europe has led the way in defining data protection standards. The GDPR set a global benchmark for how personal data should be handled responsibly. But regulation alone is not enough. If the tools we all rely on are built in Silicon Valley — designed to extract value from our lives rather than protect them — Europe remains dependent.

This is not only a matter of compliance. It is a matter of digital sovereignty.

• When US software dominates, European citizens’ data often flows across borders, into jurisdictions with weaker privacy protections and surveillance programs.

• When open-source alternatives are overlooked, we trust closed black-box systems that cannot be audited or challenged.

• When NGOs, creative agencies, and businesses must rely on Big Tech tools, they risk compromising their values — even as they work to promote democracy, sustainability, or social good.

Europe deserves its own technology stack: tools built here, on European soil, with European values of privacy, dignity, and accountability at their core.

Connie: A Pure European Alternative

This is why we built Connie.

• Born in Denmark. Connie is designed and developed in Denmark, a country with some of the strongest traditions of democracy and digital trust.

• Built on open source. Transparency is non-negotiable. Like Signal, Connie uses open-source technologies so our claims about privacy can be verified, not just marketed.

• Privacy-first. Connie never sells, mines, or exploits your data. Your documents remain yours, and your privacy is protected by design.

• For people and planet. By eliminating paper-based workflows and replacing them with secure digital collaboration, Connie helps reduce waste, CO₂, and inefficiency.

• For NGOs, creators, and mission-driven organizations. Connie is built for those who cannot compromise on trust — because their work depends on it.

Connie is not trying to be a “next DocuSign” or “another AdobeSign.” It is built as a genuine European alternative to Big Tech software: one that aligns with the values of privacy, sovereignty, and democracy. And we're building it specifically for creators.

A Turning Point

The tide is turning. People are waking up to privacy. Major technology companies are scrambling to emphasize encryption, while regulators push back harder on surveillance models. At the same time, NGOs, foundations, and creative leaders are increasingly asking a crucial question: what tools align with our values?

This is the moment to act. An media company, content creator or influencer cannot credibly preach human rights while relying on tools that undermine them. A creative leader cannot build trust with clients while sending their data into opaque black-box platforms. And a European business cannot hope to compete globally while remaining digitally dependent on foreign providers.

Privacy is not a luxury. It is not an “extra.” It is the foundation of freedom, creativity, and trust.

Contracts Without Compromise

Connie is more than software. It is a statement — a declaration that privacy matters, that data is not a commodity, that Europe deserves its own tools, and that creativity and responsibility belong together.

We call it Contracts Without Compromise.

Because in the end, this is not just about signatures. It is about sovereignty. It is about trust. It is about building a digital future where our tools respect People, Planet, and Democracy.

👉 If you believe in a digital Europe that protects privacy as a human right, join us. Explore Connie, the ethical European alternative to Big Tech.