SAP and OpenAI to deliver sovereign AI solutions in Germany
SAP and OpenAI have launched OpenAI for Germany, a partnership that pairs the former’s enterprise application expertise with the ChatGPT maker’s advanced AI capabilities to serve Germany’s public sector.
OpenAI for Germany aims to deliver AI functionality through SAP’s subsidiary Delos Cloud, utilising Microsoft Azure infrastructure.
The arrangement is structured to meet German requirements for data sovereignty, security, and regulatory compliance.
The service is scheduled for rollout in 2026. It will target government departments, administrative bodies, and research institutions.
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said: “Germany has long been a pioneer in engineering and technology, so it’s no surprise that millions of Germans already use ChatGPT to make their lives easier, drive scientific breakthroughs, and build new businesses.
“With OpenAI for Germany, we’ll work with local partners to extend this potential to the public sector—helping to improve services and ensuring that the benefits of AI are shared across the country and doing so in line with German values of trust and safety.”
The plan involves embedding AI agents directly into existing public sector workflows, automating processes such as records management and administrative data analytics.
According to the companies, this approach is designed to enable public sector employees to use AI tools safely while maintaining compliance with local legal standards.
SAP has stated its intention to scale Delos Cloud’s infrastructure up to 4,000 graphics processing units (GPUs) for dedicated AI workloads within Germany.
Future expansion will depend on uptake, with SAP indicating that it may increase investment into AI capacity through both its own infrastructure and collaborations with co-location providers or other partners.
The parties also noted that the sovereign AI platform could be extended to further sectors and European markets depending on demand and regulatory developments.
SAP CEO Christian Klein said: “Applied AI is what truly creates value. As a Business AI company with decades of experience serving public sector organisations, we believe OpenAI for Germany represents a huge step forward.
“We’re bringing together SAP Sovereign Cloud expertise with OpenAI’s leading AI technology to pave the way for AI solutions that are built in Germany, for Germany.”
The announcement of this project aligns with several ongoing national initiatives. Germany’s Federal Government High-Tech Agenda is targeting a 10% GDP contribution from AI-related activities by 2030.
The “Made for Germany” initiative, supported by 61 companies including SAP, has made financial commitments totalling more than €631bn ($742.2bn) to support growth in digital and technological sectors.
