Hi, this is Ava from Vanta. In today's digital world, compliance regulations are changing constantly,

and earning customer trust has never mattered more. Vanta helps companies get compliant fast and stay

secure, with the most advanced AI automation and continuous monitoring out there. So whether

you're a startup going for your first SOC 2 or ISO-27,001, or a growing

enterprise managing vendor risk, Banta makes it quick, easy and scalable, and I'm not to say

that because I work here. Get started today at banta.com. So I just got back from the Austrian Alps.

Not a vacation.

Let me assure you, I was moderating several panels at the European Forum Alpba.

It's a late summer gathering where a postcard pretty Torolian village turns into a cross

between a political gab fest and a pop-up university campus.

But like, on the set of the sound of music.

Since the 1940s, it's brought politicians, CEOs,

students and scholars together to talk about Europe's big ideas.

Not only in conference rooms, but also on Outbox's famous hiking trails.

So I had to skip the hikes this year, actually, due to a minor foot injury.

I didn't want to be limping along behind the pack.

But speaking of limping along, that's how one of my guests describes the

EU's current status. Limping along in a world of rising pressure, not realizing its potential

and at times getting sidelined or even bullied by bigger players.

That concern sharpened in Albaugh earlier this week, when Washington rolled out a fresh threat.

Countries with digital rules, seen as unfair to U.S. tech giants, could face tariffs and even penalties.

That news was pretty jarring because it landed just weeks after Brussels and Washington agreed to a trade deal. That agreement was supposed to bring

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