Artificial intelligence is rapidly changing how organisations operate, from improving productivity and customer experience to supporting better decision making. Yet for regulated industries and organisations handling sensitive information, adopting AI is rarely straightforward.

 

Questions around data sovereignty, intellectual property, governance, security and operational control can make it difficult to move AI from experimentation into critical business processes. Organisations need access to advanced AI capabilities, but they also need confidence in how the technology is developed, governed, deployed and operated.

 

This is where Sovereign AI provides a different approach.

 

Telefónica Tech is working with Cosine, which is developing Britain’s first sovereign frontier AI model with support from the UK Government, to create a Sovereign AI offering shaped around the requirements of UK organisations.

 

Through the collaboration, Telefónica Tech brings customer requirements directly into the development of the model, helping define priority use cases, governance requirements and security standards. This means the technology is being shaped around the operational challenges of organisations where security, trust, compliance and control are essential.

Sovereign AI collaboration workshop supporting the development of trusted AI in the UK

What Is Sovereign AI?

Sovereign AI is an approach to developing, deploying and operating artificial intelligence that provides greater control over the data, infrastructure, governance and operational processes supporting AI systems.

 

For UK organisations, this means being able to adopt AI while maintaining greater control over where sensitive information is processed, how models are governed and how AI systems operate.

 

Sovereign AI goes beyond data sovereignty. While data sovereignty focuses primarily on where information is stored, processed and regulated, Sovereign AI considers the wider environment required to develop and operate AI.

 

This includes four key areas.

  • Infrastructure sovereignty – Greater visibility and control over the infrastructure used to run AI systems, including where computing resources are located and how they are managed.
  • Data sovereignty – Ensuring sensitive information is stored, processed and governed according to appropriate legal, regulatory and organisational requirements.
  • Governance sovereignty – Establishing policies, controls and oversight for how AI models are developed, evaluated, accessed and used.
  • Operational sovereignty – Maintaining greater control over how AI systems are deployed, managed, monitored and integrated into your organisation.

 

Together, these foundations enable organisations to adopt advanced AI capabilities while retaining the level of control required for their data, workloads and operating environment.

What Is Sovereign AI and Why Is It Important for UK Organisations?
Aerial view across Westminster and central London representing sovereign AI in Britain

Why Sovereign AI?

AI is moving beyond experimentation. Organisations are increasingly looking to embed AI into core business processes, customer services, employee workflows and operational decision making.

As AI becomes more deeply integrated into organisations, the questions surrounding it become more significant.

 

Where is sensitive data being processed? Who controls the underlying technology? How are models governed? How is intellectual property protected? How much visibility does the organisation have over the AI systems it increasingly depends upon?

 

For organisations operating within regulated industries or managing sensitive information, these considerations can determine whether an AI use case can progress into production at all.

 

Sovereign AI provides an approach that allows organisations to pursue the opportunities created by AI while establishing greater control over the technology, data and infrastructure behind it.

 

Rather than applying the same level of sovereignty to every workload, we help you understand where Sovereign AI is required, which use cases offer the greatest potential value and what controls need to be established around them.

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Britain’s First Sovereign Frontier AI Model

At the heart of our Sovereign AI offering is our collaboration with Cosine, which is developing Britain’s first sovereign frontier AI model with support from the UK Government.

 

The collaboration brings together Cosine’s work developing the sovereign model with Telefónica Tech’s experience helping organisations design, deploy and operate secure data and AI solutions.

 

Telefónica Tech is helping bring customer requirements directly into the development process, contributing insight around priority use cases, governance requirements and security standards.

 

This creates an important connection between the development of the model and the organisations that could ultimately use it.

 

By working directly with customers, we can understand where Sovereign AI could provide the greatest value, the constraints that need to be addressed and the requirements that need to be considered as the model develops.

 

For customers, this creates an opportunity to explore a new generation of UK Sovereign AI while helping shape how the capability develops around practical organisational requirements.

Telefónica Tech UK&I Supports Britain’s Sovereign AI Future Through New Cosine Collaboration

COMING SOON: What’s Included in Our Sovereign AI Service

01 Sovereign AI Infrastructure

Access the infrastructure required to run sovereign AI models, with Telefónica Tech providing the sizing, procurement and hosting expertise needed to create the right environment for your requirements.

01 Sovereign AI Infrastructure
Secure
02 Deployment and Commissioning

Our specialists deploy and configure the sovereign model within your environment, providing the technical expertise needed to move from infrastructure to a working AI capability.

02 Deployment and Commissioning
03 Model Adaptation and AI Development

We help adapt the model around your priority use cases through post-training, application development and the creation of AI agents that connect the model to specific organisational needs.

03 Model Adaptation and AI Development
Professional Services
04 Managed Sovereign AI

Operate Sovereign AI with an end-to-end managed service covering the underlying infrastructure, data centre hosting and ongoing operation, supported by defined service levels.

04 Managed Sovereign AI
05 Ongoing Support and Optimisation

Once operational, we provide ongoing support and optimisation to help your Sovereign AI capability evolve as your use cases and requirements develop.

05 Ongoing Support and Optimisation
London skyline and the Gherkin representing UK sovereign AI and technology

Benefits of Sovereign AI

Greater control over sensitive data

Maintain greater control over how sensitive information is accessed, processed and used by AI systems, helping you introduce AI into environments where public services may not be appropriate.

 

AI designed around UK requirements

Explore Sovereign AI capabilities being developed around the requirements of UK organisations, including the governance and security considerations associated with regulated and sensitive environments.

 

Stronger AI governance

Introduce clear controls and accountability across the AI lifecycle, from use case selection and model evaluation through to deployment, monitoring and ongoing operation.

 

Accelerate AI adoption

Address security, governance and sovereignty requirements earlier so that viable AI use cases have a clearer route from initial exploration into production.

 

Protect intellectual property

Create greater control over how proprietary data, organisational knowledge and intellectual property interact with AI systems.

 

Build trusted AI

Increase confidence in how AI is being used by establishing greater visibility over the data, technology, governance and operational processes behind it.

Why Choose Telefónica Tech for Sovereign AI

Britain’s first sovereign frontier AI model

Cosine is developing Britain’s first sovereign frontier AI model with support from the UK Government, creating a new Sovereign AI capability designed around the needs of UK organisations.

Shaped around customer requirements

Telefónica Tech brings customer use cases, governance requirements and security considerations into the development of the model, helping shape the capability around practical organisational needs.

From model to deployment

We bring the Data and AI expertise needed to turn the model into an operational capability, from data and governance through to architecture, integration and deployment.

End to end expertise

From identifying high value use cases through to deployment and ongoing optimisation, we help organisations adopt Sovereign AI with the security, control and governance they require.

Start Your Sovereign AI Journey

Sovereign AI creates an opportunity for organisations to rethink the relationship between advanced AI capabilities and the control they need over their data, technology and operations.

 

Through our collaboration with Cosine, Telefónica Tech is helping shape Britain’s first sovereign frontier AI model around the requirements of UK organisations while helping customers identify where Sovereign AI could deliver meaningful value.

 

Whether you are exploring your first Sovereign AI use case or considering how sovereign models could fit within your wider AI strategy, we can help you determine the right starting point.

 


Frequently Asked Questions

Sovereign AI is an approach to developing, deploying and operating artificial intelligence that gives organisations greater control over their data, infrastructure, governance and AI models. It enables organisations to adopt advanced AI while maintaining the security, compliance and operational control their workloads require.

A sovereign AI model is developed and operated within defined national, regulatory or organisational requirements. This can provide greater control over how the model operates, how data is handled and how the technology is governed.

Cosine is developing Britain’s first sovereign frontier AI model with support from the UK Government. Telefónica Tech is collaborating with Cosine to bring customer use cases, governance requirements and security considerations into its development.

Cosine is developing the sovereign frontier AI model, while Telefónica Tech is working with organisations to identify priority use cases and understand their governance, security and operational requirements. Together, we are creating a Sovereign AI offering shaped around the needs of UK organisations.

Data sovereignty focuses primarily on where and how data is stored, processed and regulated. Sovereign AI is broader, considering the data, AI models, infrastructure, governance and operational control surrounding an AI system.

Sovereign AI is particularly relevant for regulated industries, public sector organisations and businesses managing sensitive data, intellectual property or critical services where greater control, security and governance are required.

Together with Cosine, we help organisations identify high value Sovereign AI use cases, establish data, security and governance requirements, evaluate the sovereign frontier AI model and move validated use cases towards deployment and ongoing operation.

Aerial view of Westminster and the River Thames in London representing UK sovereign AI