What is sovereign AI?

As artificial intelligence becomes embedded in mission-critical decision-making, organizations face increasing pressure to safeguard sensitive data, meet evolving regulatory requirements, and preserve strategic autonomy. We help governments and highly regulated industries adopt sovereign AI—AI solutions architected to operate within clearly defined sovereignty, security, and trust boundaries.

At CGI, we believe that sovereign AI solutions give you control over where data resides, how models are trained and executed, what computing resources are used, and the level of vendor dependency you accept—while ensuring responsible AI through transparency, accountability, and strong governance.

Designing, building, deploying, and governing sovereign AI requires end-to-end visibility and auditable control across five critical dimensions:

  • Provenance: Understanding the origin, lineage, and development history of your AI models, algorithms, and training data
  • Compute location: Knowing where your AI workloads are processed and ensuring computational resources reside in trusted jurisdictions
  • Data in transit: Securing and controlling data as it moves between systems, networks, and geographical boundaries
  • Data at rest: Protecting and governing stored data with full visibility into where it resides and who manages the infrastructure
  • Who has access: Maintaining strict control over which users, systems, and third parties can access your AI systems and data

A practical, spectrum-based approach to sovereign AI

Unlike one-size-fits-all AI platforms, we support a full spectrum of sovereign AI deployment models—from fully disconnected edge environments to trusted sovereign cloud architectures. Based on our clients’ strategies, mission-critical requirements, and local regulations, we can deploy:

  • Edge and fully on-premise AI for disconnected or contested environments
  • Hybrid sovereign architectures combining on-prem and trusted domestic services
  • Sovereign cloud configurations leveraging hyperscalers with strict residency, key control, and access governance

Our flexible deployment options allow clients to balance innovation with sovereignty—without being forced into rigid or impractical architectures. As a result, they can advance AI initiatives with confidence and control, while optimizing cost, risk, and long-term sustainability.

With every deployment and at every level, we embed:

  • Responsible AI principles
  • Human oversight and explainability
  • Strong governance and auditability 
  • Security, resilience and sustainability
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Our core sovereign AI offerings 

Sovereign AI advisory

Define your sovereignty requirements and governance model before you build.

We help clients:

  • Assess regulatory requirements and strategic, cost-effective sovereignty options
  • Define target sovereignty levels and operating models
  • Establish AI governance, trust mechanisms, and accountability
  • Identify viable implementation paths across the sovereignty spectrum
Sovereign AI SDLC

Build AI systems with responsibility and control embedded from day one.

We support a sovereign AI software development life cycle (SDLC) that integrates:

  • Responsible AI principles and explainability
  • Secure data pipelines and model management
  • Modular, reusable AI components
  • AI-augmented, sovereign development environments
Sovereign AI infrastructure

Deploy AI on architectures you control and understand.

We design and deliver:

  • On-premise and edge AI environments
  • Private and sovereign cloud architectures 
  • Transparent technology stacks with clear responsibility models
  • Sovereign computing capabilities aligned to national and sector requirements

Proven sovereign AI results

Our sovereign AI solutions are secure, resilient, and proven in high-trust environments, including:

  • Defense and security environments with disconnected and edge AI
  • Financial institutions requiring strict data and model control
  • Legal and notarial services handling sensitive personal data
  • Public sector organizations operating under national regulations

 

Sovereign AI successes

 

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Helping a government agency advance sovereign AI adoption through an innovative AI lab

We’re helping a Swedish government agency establish a sovereign AI foundation that keeps sensitive data, models, and infrastructure fully under the agency’s control. Through an innovative AI lab, we’re providing expertise in AI governance, ethics, and compliance, enabling secure, transparent AI adoption aligned with regulatory requirements. We’re also supporting the development of an internal AI assistant that runs entirely on the agency’s own infrastructure using open-source technology. This sovereign AI approach strengthens security, improves productivity, and creates a scalable, trusted foundation for AI-driven operations.

 

 

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AI at NATO: A strategy with a future

We worked with NATO’s Allied Command Transformation (ACT) to develop and implement its first AI-supported modular “knowledge agent” within the scope of a lighthouse project with a BI-SC NATO SECRET (NS) security classification level. To achieve a scalable solution across 27 NATO locations, the solution is built on CGI AIOps Director, a platform for deploying scalable AI services and cloud technologies, and that also features a secure air-gapped infrastructure.

 

Discover more

 

Why CGI?

 

  • End-to-end accountability from strategy to operations
  • Deep expertise in regulated and national interest sectors
  • Vendor agnostic, transparent architectures
  • Proven ability to operate AI in constrained and high-risk environments
  • Practical, scalable approach to sovereign AI adoption

 

 

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