Data has become gold in the era of digital transformation. Its potential in the form of benefits is enormous for the economy, business and society. And it can be much greater if it is shared through ecosystems designed in an environment of sovereignty, trust and security. The European Union has opted for this and has placed the development of data spaces as one of the strategic priorities to reinforce its digital sovereignty and competitiveness in the global economy. María González, Secretary of State for Digitalization and Artificial Intelligence, participated in a breakfast organized by EL PAÍS in collaboration with the Ministry of Digital Transformation, where she explained the Government’s position on this purpose. «All sectors are being transformed, the benefits can be extrapolated to anyone; you cannot lose the dimension of data when it is also the basis of better artificial intelligence (AI),» he stated. To date, 400 million have been mobilized in the Plan to Promote Sectoral Data Spaces and more than 80 operational spaces have been created, some already with real use. The commitment in this sense has placed Spain among the European leaders. This is stated in the report on the State of the Digital Decade 2025, where the European Commission ratifies the country’s advantageous position as one of the best in global performance, and highlights the digital skills of citizens, coverage of high-capacity networks and initiatives in ethical and open AI. «One of the keys to success is the effort of the teams, but also the support of the sectors, of the companies, because it would be impossible at the point we are at without that public-private collaboration,» said the Secretary of State. From the point of view of direct incentives for the company, José Luis Martínez, global director of Media and Telecommunications at Hiberus, commented that «initially there would be many concepts of improvement, of being able to collaborate with institutions in innovation and development processes. Also, it will help communication or work between different activities and industries, and can add value in the creation of the product itself and even with monetization options, which could be more direct than what this type of business is now.” Data spaces do not always mean commercialization. «I think it goes much further, with a direct and tangible impact that has to do with strengthening the entire ecosystem of suppliers or partners with whom we work; in the end, if you have much more information everything works much better,» said Manuel Castro, general director of digital business at PRISA Media. “Equally, it has to do with gaining a relevant position within the sector, promoting research and creating a different relationship with clients, more stable and lasting,” he added. According to the Data Space Reference Center (CRED), the most active sectors in eligible data spaces are health, with 22% of the total; sustainable mobility (18%); agri-food (16%); industry (11%), environmental (7%) and tourism, with 6%. The National Health Data Space (ENDS) is an example of what this initiative can cover and provide and which also represents a spearhead in European digital health. The Government has mobilized 78 million for this infrastructure that will improve research, health care and disease prevention. “It is a tangible, direct benefit to citizens,” highlighted María González. Safety and reliability are the pillars that this infrastructure model owes, and Europe has marked the lines of its design. «There is a UNE regulation that defines this; everyone who is on the trusted list complies with it. It is very clear and detailed what they have to do to access, what the governance is like and what permissions are necessary. It is no longer just the data you share, but you have to control who accesses what, and under what conditions; you have to leave traceability of all accesses,» explained Víctor Rodrigo, director of domains, systems and Digital Kit at Red.es. The most problematic part can come from the lack of visibility on the part of companies, especially on the SME side. For Brice Février, from PRISA Media, it is the crux of the matter. “It’s like when you set up a company and start launching a project; if you haven’t defined your use case and made sure that there is demand, in the end it’s of no use,” he said. His recommendation is to «ensure that there is demand, that there is good governance of the entire project within the house, that technologies can help and that there is a sponsor; these are things that must be closely tied at the beginning» to achieve the objectives. For Víctor Rodrigo «an important indicator of maturity would be to develop AI cases based on this data», while José Luis Martínez considers it highly important that «the capacity for interoperability is maintained and that the result is transparent.»
European career
Those attending the meeting agreed that Europe has started the race towards digital transformation at a good pace and that it has a good background against the United States and China. «We cannot compete in volume, but we can compete in a model based on rights, trust, ethics, sustainability and collaboration; there we can be differential, and obviously for this we need institutional support,» commented Manuel Castro. María González pointed out that «the data economy already represents 4% of the GDP in Spain and that it is not only interoperable and secure but based on European values. The Government champions being able to lead responsible ethical technology.» González concluded the meeting by describing technology in the 21st century: «It is democracy, information, relationships, efficiencies, solutions against climate change… and in that dimension of breadth we are being able to design, invest and find the balance of public-private collaboration to make it possible; it is the magic of success.»
