The World Is Watching: Why the EU Is Getting Tech Right and the U.S. Is Getting It Wrong
- Michael Routhier
- Jun 24
- 7 min read
There is a quiet but consequential battle happening right now. Not fought with weapons, but with laws, executive orders, and lines of code.
On one side, the European Union is building what may be the world's most robust framework for protecting ordinary people in the digital age. On the other, the United States appears to be racing in the opposite direction; prioritising speed, dominance, and deregulation over the safety and privacy of its own citizens.
If you are 55 or older, this is not abstract. This is about who controls your medical records, your bank account, your private messages, and whether any government or corporation can access them without your knowledge or consent.
The world is watching. And the gap is widening.
Quantum Computing: The Threat Nobody Is Talking About
In early 2025, President Trump signed two executive orders designed to fast-track American quantum computing development. One focused on acceleration, directing the federal government to partner with private industry to "initiate the era of quantum-enabled scientific discovery". The second, titled Securing the Nation Against Advanced Cryptographic Attacks, acknowledged the very real danger this technology poses to existing cybersecurity systems.
Here is what that means in plain language; quantum computers, when fully realised, will be powerful enough to break the encryption that currently protects everything; your online banking, your emails, your health records, your passwords. Google has publicly warned that this could happen as early as 2029, urging banks, governments, and technology companies to begin upgrading their security systems now.
But here is the problem. The Trump administration is simultaneously pushing to accelerate quantum computing development while dismantling the privacy oversight frameworks that would protect citizens from it. That is like fitting a more powerful engine in a car while removing the brakes.
Even more alarming is a threat already underway called "harvest now, decrypt later". Hostile actors, foreign governments, criminal networks, are right now collecting and storing your encrypted data, waiting for quantum computers to become powerful enough to crack it open. The data being generated today could be exposed tomorrow. This is not speculation. Cybersecurity analysts and Europol have both confirmed this threat is active and growing.
The U.S. Is Moving Backwards on Privacy, Just as AI Accelerates Forward
While the quantum threat looms, the United States is simultaneously deregulating artificial intelligence at a breathtaking pace.
In December 2025, President Trump signed an executive order preempting state-level AI regulations, effectively blocking individual states from enacting their own consumer protections. The White House's AI Action Plan explicitly promotes a "minimally burdensome" framework, which in practice means less accountability for the companies collecting and monetising your personal data.
Meanwhile, the AI industry is racing ahead with its own agenda. OpenAI is aggressively expanding the reach and power of its models while patching vulnerabilities reactively after deployment. Patching bugs after the fact is not responsibility. The question of who governs these systems, and who they ultimately serve, remains dangerously unanswered in the United States.
The contrast with Europe could not be starker.
The EU Is Treating Privacy as a Human Right, Not a Product Feature
The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) has been in force since 2018, and it remains the most comprehensive data privacy framework in the world. Under GDPR, companies must obtain your explicit, informed consent before collecting your data. You have the right to access it, correct it, and demand it be deleted. Violations carry fines of up to 4% of global annual revenue, not a slap on the wrist, but a consequence that changes corporate behaviour.
The EU AI Act, now entering its most consequential phase, goes even further. As of August 2, 2026, AI systems must identify themselves as AI, deepfake content must be labelled, and high-risk AI systems; those influencing your credit, employment, or healthcare, face strict oversight requirements. This is not bureaucracy for its own sake. This is what it looks like when a government treats its citizens as people to be protected, not data points to be harvested.
The philosophical divide is clear; the EU treats privacy as a fundamental human right. The U.S. treats it as a consumer protection issue, and even that framing is eroding under the current administration.
The Virtuous Machine Question
What is this technology actually for?
I ask it about every piece of technology we cover on this platform. And the honest answer, when you look at the current American approach to AI and quantum computing, it is deeply uncomfortable.
The technology is being built for speed. For dominance. For market share. For national competitive advantage. Those may all have legitimate places in the conversation. But when they consistently crowd out the question of what happens to ordinary people, to the 70-year-old in Stuttgart whose bank account relies on encryption that could be broken by 2029, to the retired teacher in Lyon whose medical records are stored on a server accessible to a foreign government under American cloud law, something has gone badly wrong with the priorities.
Marcus Aurelius wrote, "The first rule is to keep an untroubled spirit. The second is to look things in the face and know them for what they are."
Look at this clearly. The EU is not perfect. But it is doing something rare and genuinely important; putting citizens ahead of corporations in the digital age. Its AI Act, its GDPR enforcement, its scrutiny of Big Tech, and its investment in sovereign cloud infrastructure, all signal a commitment to building a digital future where people are protected, informed, and in control.
The United States, under its current administration, is making a very different bet.
What This Means for You - Wherever You Live
If you live in Europe, you enjoy some of the strongest digital protections in the world. But those protections depend on continued political will, and on ordinary citizens understanding what is at stake and using the rights they have been given. The EU AI Act gives you real, enforceable rights starting August 2, 2026. Use them. We have written a full breakdown of exactly what those rights are and how to exercise them, link below.
If you live in Canada, the U.S., or elsewhere, your data rights are more fragile. There is no federal equivalent to GDPR. There is no national AI Act. The patchwork of state laws, California's CCPA being the strongest, leaves most people with far fewer protections than they realise.
And for everyone, the quantum computing race adds a ticking clock. Data you share today may not be safe tomorrow. The encryption protecting it may be obsolete within years. What governments do right now; who they fund, what they regulate, who they hold accountable, will determine how exposed you are when that moment arrives.
What You Can Do Today
You do not have to wait for your government to catch up. There are practical steps you can take right now.
Switch to encrypted email. Proton Mail (Switzerland) stores your emails with end-to-end encryption that no government can access without your key. It is free to start and works exactly like Gmail. proton.me
Use a private search engine. Qwant (France) or Ecosia (Germany) do not build a profile on you or sell your searches. qwant.com
Understand your rights under the EU AI Act. Starting August 2nd, you have legal rights over AI systems that affect your job, your credit, and your health. Know what they are.
Talk to your elected representatives. Ask them, in writing, what their government's plan is for post-quantum cryptography. If they cannot answer, that is the answer.
Come and learn more. Tech 4 Grown-Ups exists specifically to help adults 55 and over stay safe, stay sharp, and stay in control in this rapidly changing digital world. Everything is in plain language. No jargon. No judgement. Just honest, practical help.
We Are Here for You
At Tech 4 Grown-Ups, we help people 55 and over not only stay safe online, we empower them to understand the digital world on their own terms.
The issues in this post are real. The threats are real. But you are not helpless, and you are not behind. You have wisdom, perspective, and now, the information you need to ask the right questions and demand the right answers.
Our free digital safety course is built specifically for adults 55+ who want to understand what is happening in technology and take back control. It covers privacy, AI, scam protection, and the practical tools that actually make your digital life safer. It is free, it is clear, and it was designed for you.
👉 Start the free course: tech4grownups.com/free-course
Tech 4 Grown-Ups Assets
🎓 Free Digital Safety Course: tech4grownups.com/free-course
💬 Join the Free Community: tech4grownups.com/community
🎙️ Tech 4 Grown-Ups Podcast: tech4grownups.com/podcast
📖 Read: What the EU AI Act Means for You
External Sources & Further Reading
📰 Google warns encryption could be broken by 2029 - The Guardian: theguardian.com
📰 Quantum computing threat and the "harvest now, decrypt later" attack - Euronews: euronews.com
📰 Google calls on governments to prepare for quantum-era cybersecurity - The Quantum Insider: thequantuminsider.com
📰 Trump executive orders on quantum computing acceleration - Gizmodo: gizmodo.com
📰 EU vs. U.S. data privacy: a comparative analysis - UCLA Law Review: uclawreview.org
📰 EU AI Act full text and timeline - European Commission: digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu
📰 Data privacy and AI laws in 2026 - Pearl Cohen: pearlcohen.com
📰 Privacy laws: EU vs. U.S. approaches compared - Dastra: dastra.eu
📰 U.S. tech and internet laws 2026 - The Verge: theverge.com
🔒 Proton Mail - encrypted email: proton.me
🔍 Qwant - private European search: qwant.com
🌱 Ecosia - private search that plants trees: ecosia.org
Michael Routhier is the founder of Tech 4 Grown-Ups, a digital literacy platform for adults 55 and over. The Virtuous Machine is a series exploring the ethics, power, and human cost of artificial intelligence. Find everything at tech4grownups.com.
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