Broadcom: "Why Europe is so extremely vulnerable"
Just how important this independence is became clear in 2024: In four months, Anexia broke free from its dependence on a U.S. software company and built its own open-source solution.
Anyone searching for a European AWS alternative or a European cloud provider without Cloud Act exposure quickly runs into a central question: what happens when the technological foundation of your own infrastructure is controlled by a non-European corporation – and that corporation changes the rules? Anexia's case offers a concrete answer.
The trigger: a contract terminated two days before Christmas
Like many European cloud providers, Anexia relied on VMware – a virtualization software vendor that many cloud infrastructures are technically built on. VMware itself is not a cloud provider, but delivers the software foundation for one – practically without alternative in the market. In 2023, Broadcom, a US technology corporation ranked among the ten largest in the world, acquired VMware. Two days before Christmas 2023, Broadcom terminated existing, long-term VMware contracts – effective May 1, 2024. New terms brought price increases of up to twelvefold. A three-year contract, payable in advance, would have multiplied costs eightfold. For Anexia's customers, this would have meant additional annual costs in the millions.
Most affected companies paid. Anexia did not.
The achievement: a solution of its own instead of a costly compromise
Instead of negotiating, the entire organization – around 400 employees at the time – committed to a single task: building a solution on open-source technology by the end of April. Without dependence on any single vendor. Without exposure to leverage.
A dedicated emergency team coordinated the migration alongside ongoing operations – with no disruption for customers. On April 30, 2024, at 11:46 p.m., the migration was complete: 14 minutes before the deadline, after roughly 100,000 work hours.
European sovereignty is irreplaceable.
— Alexander Windbichler, Anexia Group CEO
Why this case matters for European businesses
Anexia's case answers a question many companies face when choosing a cloud provider: which European cloud provider is credible enough to remain independent in a critical moment?
Three factors make the difference:
- Infrastructure, not just software usage. Sovereignty doesn't come from a "cloud region in Europe" – it comes from control at the infrastructure level. Anexia now operates its cloud services independent of that software foundation.
- European legal jurisdiction as a core principle. As an Austrian technology company, Anexia operates exclusively under European law – not the US Cloud Act.
- Technological independence as a principle. Anexia builds its infrastructure to avoid critical dependencies.
Conclusion
Anexia shows what a European technology company can achieve by consistently building on its own, open infrastructure instead of depending on a single vendor. Digital sovereignty is not an abstract demand here — it's practice, proven in four months, 100,000 work hours, and a 14-minute margin.
The full interview with Alexander Windbichler was published in the Kleine Zeitung.
