Valcon and Databricks work to boost European data sovereignty with Disconnected Data Platform

Databricks has worked with experts from Valcon to develop a new ‘Disconnected Data Platform’ for highly secure environments. The system has already been adopted by BAE Systems, with other clients to follow as organisations work to ensure European data sovereignty.

Developed by Valcon , a European consultancy specialising in AI and data-driven transformation, and Databricks, Disconnected Data Platform (DDP) is an “on-premise, air-gapped data solution - to customers operating in highly sensitive or regulated environments”. Looking ahead, the technology aims to allow organisations to securely adopt modern AI and analytics capabilities without compromising on security, regulations, governance, sovereignty or operational stability.

The DDP can be deployed by European and UK organisations in the public sector, defence, financial services and national critical infrastructure, which require sovereign, secure and resilient on-premises environments. The objective is to help organisations modernise complex data environments by leveraging Databricks for cloud-based workloads and the DDP for more sensitive workloads that require data on-premise.

The DDP has already been used to help accelerate BAE Systems’ enterprise data platform programme of work.

Dr Johanna Hutchinson, group chief data officer at BAE Systems , commented, “Modernising data estates while maintaining security, governance and sovereignty is one of the defining challenges of today’s technology landscape. I’m always pleased to see work being done in this area, helping organisations unlock the benefits of AI and analytics while maintaining the controls and resilience required for their most sensitive workloads.”

According to a release from Valcon, the partnership will give users like BAE Systems “seamless access to Databricks’ leading platform experience between cloud and on-premise”, while also leveraging Valcon’s expertise in delivering enterprise level data solutions for European and British organisations operating in highly regulated and security sensitive environments.

Simon de Timary, UK head of data at Valcon, added, “Organisations in Europe and the UK are under growing pressure to modernise their data estates and adopt AI driven capabilities while also meeting increasingly complex security, governance and operational requirements. These organisations might be in a situation where they are not quite ready to move to the cloud, or they might have to keep some of their data on premise or on EU/ UK Sovereign Cloud, or they might simply want an off-ramp or disaster recovery plan from their cloud estate. Our partnership with Databricks will help these organisations to bridge these gaps by enabling them to access a modern, secure and scalable on-prem air-gapped platform approach.”