Latest news with #dataSovereignty
Zawya
22-07-2025
- Business
- Zawya
OmniOps launches Bunyan, Saudi Arabia's first inference as a service platform
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia -- OmniOps, Saudi Arabia's leading AI Infrastructure Technology provider, today announced the official launch of Bunyan بنيان, the Kingdom's first sovereign Inference as a Service platform, following a strategic meeting with H.E. Eng. Abdullah Amer Alswaha, Minister of Communications & Information Technology. This groundbreaking platform delivers cutting-edge AI capabilities with full support for text, vision, and speech applications while ensuring data sovereignty and compliance. Mohammed Altassan, Founding CEO of OmniOps, commented: "Bunyan delivers unprecedented performance improvements that revolutionize how organizations deploy and scale AI applications. The platform has demonstrated remarkable efficiency gains, including doubling inference speed, reducing energy consumption by over 50%, and reducing latency by at least 40%. These achievements position Bunyan بنيان as a game-changing solution for enterprises seeking to optimize their AI infrastructure while minimizing operational costs." Bunyan بنيان offers an end-to-end AI infrastructure stack. From model deployment capabilities, allowing users to create and deploy their own AI models with a few clicks, to hosting on the most advanced AI infrastructure hardware, such as NVIDIA and Groq. With its unified AI model catalog, the platform provides access to large language models (LLMs), speech recognition, and computer vision technologies in a single, integrated platform that supports both public and private models. This enables organizations to accelerate model inference across text, vision, and speech applications with optimized computational resources. The platform allows enterprises to create AI-driven applications to automate business processes, and improve data accessibility and team functionality with agentic workflows, significantly shortening time to value. This could include natural language chatbots that can handle HR queries, intelligent document summarization, and pulling instant insights from unstructured data. Built on OmniOps' AI infrastructure software stack, Bunyan provides GPU-agnostic deployment with simplified large language model hosting. Its deployment flexibility allows organizations to maintain data sovereignty by storing and managing information across virtual and on-premise facilities, regardless of the underlying hardware, with the highest performance output. The platform also ensures sensitive data remains within compliance mandated boundaries while providing access to cutting-edge AI capabilities, directly supporting the Saudi National Strategy for Data and AI across critical sectors including government, energy, aviation, and healthcare. About OmniOps OmniOps is a Saudi AI Infrastructure Technology company founded in 2024, dedicated to accelerating Saudi Arabia's AI-driven future. The company provides cutting-edge AI infrastructure solutions across on-premises, cloud, and edge environments, enabling businesses and industries of all sizes to scale AI workloads efficiently with flexible, high-performance computing capabilities. Whether its generative AI applications and deep learning model deployment to supporting the next major AI breakthroughs, OmniOps empowers organizations to achieve remarkable outcomes and drive forward advancements in AI.
RNZ News
09-07-2025
- Business
- RNZ News
Census overhaul sparks Pasifika 'invisibility' fears
The Pacific Data Sovereignty Network says shifting to an admin-data-first model risks locking in that invisibility for years to come. Photo: RNZ /Dom Thomas Pacific data experts warn reforms to the way the New Zealand government collects community-level data will "fail Pasifika communities". Last month, Stats NZ announced that it was scrapping the five-yearly national census , as it shifts to "targeted" surveys to fill in administrative data gaps. However, the Pacific Data Sovereignty Network (PDSN), a committee of academics, business leaders and other experts, says that the move risks "locking in invisibility" for Pasifika communities if current data systems are not fixed. The Cabinet set its sights on "modernising" the census in March 2024, with a focus on financial sustainability. A briefing from October 2024 noted the 2023 Census cost "approximately $326 million over five years - a significant increase from the 2018 Census ($126m) and the 2013 Census ($104m)." According to the briefing, Budget 2024 set aside less money for the next Census (in 2028), than what it did for 2023, even though costs are trending up. To save money, the government will pursue an "administrative data-led approach" with a smaller annual survey and various "targeted surveys". Stats NZ said this would "increase the flexibility and responsiveness to meet data needs" and "improve data quality over time", while reducing costs. Administrative data is made up of information government agencies collect when doing their normal work, such as health and education records. Various data collection programmes, such as the Household Economic Survey , will fill in these gaps when further insights are needed. That briefing noted that the reforms would carry "an initial reduction in the quality of some census data, particularly regarding some data for smaller population groups (e.g. Pacific people and disability communities)". Last month, Stats NZ announced that it was scrapping the five-yearly national census. Photo: RNZ /Dom Thomas As the government implements these reforms, data from Census 2023 will be relied on until 2030, after which point the new "census" will be released annually. PDSN member Dr Jacinta Fa'alili-Fidow told RNZ Pacific that this is the key flaw that makes Pacific populations "invisible" in the Census. "Shifting to an admin-data first model risks locking that invisibility in for years to come. Unless there is radical improvement in how Pacific data is collected, governed and reported, this approach will fail our communities." Dr Fa'alili-Fidow said other flaws include low trust levels among Pasifika communities, which causes low survey response levels. This links back to the premise that data systems reflect mainstream worldviews, not Pacific models of wellbeing or identity, she said. And due to those broad categorisations, and the fact that Pacific data with those key details are often aggregated, Dr Fa'alili-Fidow said that the approach is doomed to fail without input from Pacific stakeholders. "There is no information being provided from Stats NZ about the surveys that will be needed to cover the flaws in administrative data. "Pacific leadership must sit at the governance table for how this new census model is built and implemented, the social license for the use of administrative data in this way, and the ability to deliver the necessary surveys to cover the gaps." A regulatory impact statement (RIS) from April 2025, shortly before the reforms were announced, stated that the current Census approach fails Pasifika and other minority communities, including Māori. The current approach delivers low response levels from these populations, creating high-risk to data quality, the briefing argued. "Stats NZ did not meet its target response rates for Māori, Pacific peoples, or younger adults in the 2023 Census," it stated. While the new admin-led data approach would solve the timeliness problem, the RIS acknowledged it does not capture key details in its measure of smaller populations, due to the broad categorisations made at the point of collection. "To provide accurate population data for small ethnic communities, including smaller groups of Pacific populations such as Kiribati or Pitcairn Islanders, government agencies would need to consistently collect more detailed ethnicity data." The RIS warned that, without a solve for these issues, Māori and Pasifika populations would be "significantly disadvantaged compared to other groups" in terms of government policymaking. Photo: RNZ / Mark Papalii Statistics Minister Dr Shane Reti told RNZ Pacific that once everything has shaped out, there will effectively be a census every year. "My expectation is that while there may be a small downturn in the data quality initially, that over time builds up." "All the communities, or as many as we can, that may not be well represented in administrative data, I'd like to see our best efforts at picking them up, both through the community attribute surveys and through the targeted surveys." Reti said that those surveys are being worked through, but did not provide a timeline for when that information would be made public. Labour's Statistics spokesperson Lemauga Lydia Sosene told RNZ Pacific that this is her key concern. "Sometimes departments have a system of collecting data that may not necessarily reflect the voice of that community." "They may not have had a resource allocation to allow officials to attend a community event... in terms of Pasifika communities, they will express levels of mistrust because there's only a certain amount of interaction that can take place." Lemauga Lydia Sosene Photo: Johnny Blades Sosene said that as a member of the Pasifika community, her way of collecting data is through attending community events and having deeper conversations. "I'm going to be carefully watching, because the Minister has explained the change as a cost-cutting exercise." Reti said that the Ministry for Pacific People's would be "significantly engaged" in building trust in data collection going forward.
Zawya
07-07-2025
- Business
- Zawya
HCLSoftware launches sovereign AI aimed at Governments and Regulated Organizations concerned with their data privacy
NOIDA, India, HCLSoftware, a global leader in enterprise software solutions, announced today the launch of HCL Domino 14.5. Specifically targeting governments and regulated organizations concerned with their data privacy, HCL Domino 14.5 ushers in significant enhancements to the Domino+ sovereign collaboration portfolio, including the introduction of Domino IQ, a sovereign AI extension to the Domino platform that protects an organization's data privacy and ensures information security. Users of the HCL Domino platform leverage powerful AI to automate tasks, analyze data, and more, by choosing the models that their organization or trusted sources have built. With compliance measures such as the European AI Act aimed at shaping the development and use of artificial intelligence within the EU, Domino IQ enables organizations to have more fine-grained control over AI investments and, additionally, remove their reliance on foreign cloud-based services. 'In an uncertain geopolitical landscape, governments and regulated organizations, such as private banks, are increasingly concerned about their data sovereignty and digital independence', said Richard Jefts, Executive Vice President and General Manager, HCLSoftware. 'The importance of data sovereignty and avoiding unnecessary foreign government influence extends beyond SaaS solutions and AI. Specifically for collaboration - the sensitive data within email, chat, video recordings and documents. With the launch of Domino+ 14.5, HCLSoftware is helping over 200+ government agencies safeguard their sensitive data.' "Today more than ever, true digital sovereignty is the key to Europe's digital future. That's why at IONOS we are proud to provide the sovereign cloud infrastructure for HCL's sovereign collaboration solutions. Our platform is powerful, secure, and – above all – free from foreign access. Together, we are setting an example for responsible innovation and digital self-determination, a key factor for companies and institutions in regulated industries with particularly sensitive requirements," said Achim Weiss, CEO of IONOS, the leading European hosting provider and trusted cloud enabler. Other key capabilities of this Domino+ launch include: BSI certification of Information Security and use of Security Event and Incident Management (SEIM) tools. Compliance with the European Accessibility Act for web-based, business user experiences. Ready to deploy, and enhanced sovereign chat and meetings solutions. About HCLSoftware HCLSoftware is a global leader in software innovation and the software division of HCLTech. We develop, market, sell, and support transformative solutions across various industries, including business and industry, intelligent operations, total experience, data and analytics, and cybersecurity. Our commitment to customer success and our core values of integrity, inclusion, value creation, people-centricity, and social responsibility drive us to deliver best-in-class software products that empower organizations to achieve their goals. With a rich heritage of pioneering spirit, HCLSoftware serves more than 20,000 organizations, including a majority of the Fortune 100 and almost half of the Fortune 500. Learn more about how we can help you achieve your goals. Media Contacts: Jeremy McNeive Animesh Biswas
National Post
25-06-2025
- Business
- National Post
Versa Powers Swisscom's beem: The World's First Sovereign SASE Connectivity Service
Article content Built on Versa Sovereign SASE and Hosted within Swisscom's Network Infrastructure in Switzerland, beem Transforms Enterprise Security, Making it Simpler, Faster, and Safer Article content SANTA CLARA, Calif. — Versa, the global leader in Universal Secure Access Service Edge (SASE), today announced that Versa Sovereign SASE is powering Swisscom's newly launched beem, a converged networking and cybersecurity solution operated entirely within Swisscom's infrastructure. This marks the debut of the world's first telco-delivered, network-embedded SASE solution designed specifically for businesses of all sizes. beem unites security, data sovereignty, and internet connectivity into one seamless offering. Article content Unlike traditional cybersecurity approaches that depend on device-based agents or fragmented multi-vendor solutions, beem delivers integrated security natively through the network itself. This streamlined architecture empowers Swisscom to offer enterprise customers complete data sovereignty, centralized operational control, and end-to-end service level guarantees, ensuring consistent, high-trust protection at scale. Article content 'With beem, Swisscom is redefining what it means to be a telco in the digital era,' said Apurva Mehta, Chief Technical Officer at Versa. 'By integrating Versa's Sovereign SASE natively into the Swisscom network, we're enabling a new model of secure, high-performance connectivity that meets the growing demands for data privacy, regulatory compliance, and digital sovereignty. beem sets a blueprint for how telcos can deliver in-country, secure access services – from Zero Trust and SD-WAN to full-spectrum SSE – while simplifying operations for businesses of all sizes.' Article content 'beem brings together the simplicity of network-based protection with the strategic control of sovereign infrastructure,' said Egon Steinkasserer, Chief Technology Officer B2B, Swisscom. 'Powered by Versa, it allows us to offer integrated internet connectivity and cybersecurity services with full data sovereignty – so Swisscom customers get simple, sovereign, and secure connectivity.' Article content Sovereign SASE: Full Control, Uncompromised Security Article content Versa Sovereign SASE is a deployment model announced in February for the VersaONE platform that enables enterprises, governments, and service providers such as Swisscom to deliver customized, advanced networking and security services directly from their own infrastructure. This 'build-your-own' approach offers a powerful alternative to relying on shared or third-party SaaS environments. As a first-of-its-kind solution, Versa Sovereign SASE is seeing significant customer interest and deployment traction worldwide. Article content Designed to meet the demands of an era defined by stringent data sovereignty requirements, escalating cyber threats, and regulatory complexity, Versa Sovereign SASE provides organizations with complete operational control. It's particularly suited for entities in highly regulated sectors or those managing critical infrastructure, offering the flexibility to deploy an air-gapped or fully in-country architecture that ensures the highest levels of protection and compliance. Article content Why beem Matters Article content Among the several innovations that beem's launch represents include: Article content First of its kind: Swisscom is the world's first telco to deliver SASE services natively embedded into its mobile and fixed networks – eliminating the need for third-party security overlays or add-ons. True sovereignty: beem is operated, hosted, and governed entirely within Switzerland, ensuring alignment with data protection regulations such as GDPR and NIS2 while maintaining full data residency and control. Unified security and networking: Powered by Versa Sovereign SASE, beem consolidates networking and security into a single, modular platform, simplifying architecture, accelerating rollout, and lowering operational overhead. Enterprise security for all: Whether it's a small business, public sector agency, or operator of critical infrastructure, beem scales to meet diverse needs with high-assurance, low-friction access. Easy security for smartphones and IoT: beem enables secure, identity-aware connectivity the moment a device connects – no app, agent, or tunnel needed. Device authentication is built directly into the SIM card for native, zero-trust access control. Article content Industry Impact Article content beem represents a new blueprint for secure, sovereign digital infrastructure, not just in Switzerland but globally. It validates Versa's position as a trusted foundation for national-scale SASE deployments, and it positions Swisscom as a global first-mover and thought leader in secure connectivity. Article content About Swisscom Article content Swisscom is the leading ICT company in Switzerland and, with Fastweb + Vodafone, the strong #2 in the Italian market. The company offers mobile, Internet and TV, as well as comprehensive IT and digital services to private and business customers. Swisscom is the most sustainable telecommunications company in the world and is 51% owned by the Swiss Confederation. Article content About Versa Article content Versa, a global leader in SASE, enables organizations to create self-protecting networks that radically simplify and automate their network and security infrastructure. Powered by AI, the VersaONE Universal SASE Platform delivers converged SSE, SD-WAN, and SD-LAN solutions that protect data and defend against cyberthreats while delivering a superior digital experience. Thousands of customers globally, with hundreds of thousands of sites and millions of users, trust Versa with their mission-critical networks and security. Versa is privately held and funded by investors such as Sequoia Capital, Mayfield, and BlackRock. For more information, visit and follow Versa on LinkedIn and X (Twitter) @versanetworks. Article content Article content Article content Article content Article content Contacts Article content Versa Article content Article content Dan Spalding Article content Article content dspalding@ Article content Article content (408) 960-9297 Article content Swisscom Article content Article content Media Relations Article content Article content Article content
Yahoo
25-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Versa Powers Swisscom's beem: The World's First Sovereign SASE Connectivity Service
Built on Versa Sovereign SASE and Hosted within Swisscom's Network Infrastructure in Switzerland, beem Transforms Enterprise Security, Making it Simpler, Faster, and Safer SANTA CLARA, Calif., June 25, 2025--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Versa, the global leader in Universal Secure Access Service Edge (SASE), today announced that Versa Sovereign SASE is powering Swisscom's newly launched beem, a converged networking and cybersecurity solution operated entirely within Swisscom's infrastructure. This marks the debut of the world's first telco-delivered, network-embedded SASE solution designed specifically for businesses of all sizes. beem unites security, data sovereignty, and internet connectivity into one seamless offering. Unlike traditional cybersecurity approaches that depend on device-based agents or fragmented multi-vendor solutions, beem delivers integrated security natively through the network itself. This streamlined architecture empowers Swisscom to offer enterprise customers complete data sovereignty, centralized operational control, and end-to-end service level guarantees, ensuring consistent, high-trust protection at scale. "With beem, Swisscom is redefining what it means to be a telco in the digital era," said Apurva Mehta, Chief Technical Officer at Versa. "By integrating Versa's Sovereign SASE natively into the Swisscom network, we're enabling a new model of secure, high-performance connectivity that meets the growing demands for data privacy, regulatory compliance, and digital sovereignty. beem sets a blueprint for how telcos can deliver in-country, secure access services – from Zero Trust and SD-WAN to full-spectrum SSE – while simplifying operations for businesses of all sizes." "beem brings together the simplicity of network-based protection with the strategic control of sovereign infrastructure," said Egon Steinkasserer, Chief Technology Officer B2B, Swisscom. "Powered by Versa, it allows us to offer integrated internet connectivity and cybersecurity services with full data sovereignty – so Swisscom customers get simple, sovereign, and secure connectivity." Sovereign SASE: Full Control, Uncompromised Security Versa Sovereign SASE is a deployment model announced in February for the VersaONE platform that enables enterprises, governments, and service providers such as Swisscom to deliver customized, advanced networking and security services directly from their own infrastructure. This "build-your-own" approach offers a powerful alternative to relying on shared or third-party SaaS environments. As a first-of-its-kind solution, Versa Sovereign SASE is seeing significant customer interest and deployment traction worldwide. Designed to meet the demands of an era defined by stringent data sovereignty requirements, escalating cyber threats, and regulatory complexity, Versa Sovereign SASE provides organizations with complete operational control. It's particularly suited for entities in highly regulated sectors or those managing critical infrastructure, offering the flexibility to deploy an air-gapped or fully in-country architecture that ensures the highest levels of protection and compliance. Why beem Matters Among the several innovations that beem's launch represents include: First of its kind: Swisscom is the world's first telco to deliver SASE services natively embedded into its mobile and fixed networks – eliminating the need for third-party security overlays or add-ons. True sovereignty: beem is operated, hosted, and governed entirely within Switzerland, ensuring alignment with data protection regulations such as GDPR and NIS2 while maintaining full data residency and control. Unified security and networking: Powered by Versa Sovereign SASE, beem consolidates networking and security into a single, modular platform, simplifying architecture, accelerating rollout, and lowering operational overhead. Enterprise security for all: Whether it's a small business, public sector agency, or operator of critical infrastructure, beem scales to meet diverse needs with high-assurance, low-friction access. Easy security for smartphones and IoT: beem enables secure, identity-aware connectivity the moment a device connects – no app, agent, or tunnel needed. Device authentication is built directly into the SIM card for native, zero-trust access control. Industry Impact beem represents a new blueprint for secure, sovereign digital infrastructure, not just in Switzerland but globally. It validates Versa's position as a trusted foundation for national-scale SASE deployments, and it positions Swisscom as a global first-mover and thought leader in secure connectivity. About Swisscom Swisscom is the leading ICT company in Switzerland and, with Fastweb + Vodafone, the strong #2 in the Italian market. The company offers mobile, Internet and TV, as well as comprehensive IT and digital services to private and business customers. Swisscom is the most sustainable telecommunications company in the world and is 51% owned by the Swiss Confederation. About Versa Versa, a global leader in SASE, enables organizations to create self-protecting networks that radically simplify and automate their network and security infrastructure. Powered by AI, the VersaONE Universal SASE Platform delivers converged SSE, SD-WAN, and SD-LAN solutions that protect data and defend against cyberthreats while delivering a superior digital experience. Thousands of customers globally, with hundreds of thousands of sites and millions of users, trust Versa with their mission-critical networks and security. Versa is privately held and funded by investors such as Sequoia Capital, Mayfield, and BlackRock. For more information, visit and follow Versa on LinkedIn and X (Twitter) @versanetworks. Versa Networks, VOS, the Versa logo, and Versa Titan are or may be registered trademarks of Versa Networks, Inc. View source version on Contacts Versa Dan Spalding dspalding@ (408) 960-9297 Swisscom Media Relations media@ +41 58 221 98 04 Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
