Austria
EDRIX Score
5.97
EOTRIX Score
4.38
Tier
Specialized Contender
Overall Assessment
Austria is a mid-tier performer whose relatively healthy grassroots adoption and digital infrastructure are undermined by a lack of a strong, coherent national policy on digital sovereignty and open source.
Sobering Reality
2020 Baseline
In 2020, Austria was an "emerging" player with a solid strategic and security agenda but less-developed open-source software policies.
2024 Progression
Austria has taken steps to embrace OSS, with the 2022 establishment of an open source working group and the 2023 Digital Austria Act. A key move is the collaboration with Germany on the OpenDesk initiative.
2025 Data-Driven Analysis
The data reveals a significant downgrade from its 2020 qualitative assessment. Austria's Public Policy score is very low (2.50). Its strengths lie in Grassroots Adoption (6.46), supported by a high Open Source Browser Share (19.15%), and healthy public/private sector domains. The lack of a strong government strategy is its primary weakness.
Strengths
- Grassroots Adoption: A high rate of adoption for open source and sovereign browsers.
- Public/Private Sector Resilience: The national digital infrastructure shows a good level of sovereignty.
Weaknesses
- Public Policy: A very low score indicates a lack of a mature, cohesive, and binding national strategy for digital sovereignty.
Outlook
Austria is currently punching below its weight. It has the societal buy-in and a solid infrastructure base to be more resilient, but this potential is unrealized due to a weak policy framework. Formalizing its strategy and giving more power to its open source working group could significantly improve its standing.