For years, global hyperscalers have been the backbone of cloud infrastructure for UK businesses. Their scale, reach, and performance made them the default choice. But as geopolitical uncertainty grows and concerns around data governance deepen, the cracks in this model are beginning to show.
UK organizations are waking up to a simple truth: vendor lock-in is no longer just a technical limitation; it’s a strategic vulnerability. And in an age where digital sovereignty is rising fast up the boardroom agenda, businesses are being forced to reassess the true cost of their cloud dependencies.
The hidden costs of cloud dependency
Our latest whitepaper, The Digital Sovereignty Revolution, highlights how vendor lock-in remains a pressing concern, despite some progress. While 60% of organizations have moved beyond a single-provider model, many are still tied to platforms they don’t fully control. In practice, this means their data, operations, and compliance posture are still shaped by external forces, including foreign laws and shifting international policies.
This lack of control is more than inconvenient. It exposes businesses to operational risk and undermines their ability to respond to regulatory changes, security demands, or global tensions.
Unsurprisingly, this is becoming a strategic priority. Organizations increasingly recognize that true resilience and flexibility can’t be achieved while relying on a single provider or one operating under an incompatible legal framework.
How UK businesses are responding
In response, many companies are restructuring their cloud strategies. Two major trends are emerging: multi-cloud adoption and hybrid infrastructure models. Both approaches are designed to restore control, reduce single points of failure, and enhance resilience.
Multi-cloud allows businesses to distribute workloads across different providers, while hybrid setups blend public and private cloud environments to improve adaptability. These approaches are not only gaining traction, they’re becoming essential.
Our research shows that businesses are taking action:
- 29% are pursuing multi-cloud strategies, spreading workloads across several providers.
- 31% are embracing hybrid models, blending public and private infrastructure to regain flexibility.
- 58% aim to reduce reliance on any single provider, minimizing the risk of vendor lock-in or foreign jurisdictional control.
- 65% want to enhance resilience and flexibility, ensuring they can adapt to future regulatory, political, or operational shocks.
These aren’t just tactical shifts; they reflect a broader movement toward digital autonomy and infrastructure independence.
A critical moment for UK cloud strategy
As sovereignty becomes a strategic imperative, UK businesses are at a turning point. The question is no longer whether to mitigate vendor lock-in, but how quickly and how effectively they can do it.
The companies that act now by diversifying providers, embracing sovereign cloud alternatives, and embedding flexibility into their infrastructure will be better equipped to weather future shocks. More importantly, they’ll retain the ability to shape their own digital futures, rather than being dictated by the limitations of a single provider.
Learn more by reading the full Digital Sovereignty Revolution whitepaper here.
