Case Study: Haute Equipe Tests Sovereign AI in a Proof of Concept with GLBNXT
In the landscape of public sector consulting, Haute Equipe is well known for their expertise in business operations, legal advisory, and the social domain. But like many advisory firms in the public sector, Haute Equipe wrestles with a fundamental question: how can we use AI without sharing sensitive government information with American tech giants?
That question led to a Proof of Concept with GLBNXT's sovereign AI Agent.
The Reality: AI Needs Versus Data Sovereignty
The consultants at Haute Equipe work daily on complex challenges for municipalities and public institutions across the Netherlands. Whether it involves legal issues, subsidy processes, or questions within the social domain, the knowledge and experience required to provide sound advice is immense.
"We watched our colleagues experiment with public AI tools like ChatGPT," says one of the advisors involved. "But we kept stopping ourselves. What if sensitive municipal information accidentally ended up in a prompt? That data would disappear to American servers."
That dilemma is not unique to Haute Equipe. It is a reality for every advisory firm working with public sector organisations in Europe.
Why a Proof of Concept?
Rather than launching a full AI implementation straight away, Haute Equipe deliberately chose a Proof of Concept phase. A realistic approach with a clear objective: to experience firsthand how AI can genuinely support the day-to-day work of consultants operating in the public domain. No grand promises. No unfounded claims. Just practical testing.
The focus was on concrete scenarios:
Searching through complex legislation and regulations
Analysing municipal documentation
Drafting initial versions of advisory notes
Supporting subsidy processes and procurement procedures
The Difference: 100% European Data Sovereignty
The choice for GLBNXT was no coincidence. Where public AI tools like ChatGPT, Gemini, or Copilot route data to American cloud infrastructure, GLBNXT offers something different: a fully EU-hosted AI solution.
What does that mean in practice?
All data remains on European servers, with no transfer whatsoever to American hyperscalers such as AWS, Azure, or Google Cloud. GDPR compliance is not a layer added on top of the technology after the fact, it is fundamentally built into the architecture of the platform. Organisations retain full control over who has access to which data, with no ambiguity about where information goes or who might be able to reach it.
For public sector advisory work, this is not a nice-to-have. It is a must-have. Municipal data, legal analyses, and strategic advice are not the kind of information you want to share with American tech companies that may fall under the CLOUD Act.
Realism: It's About Experience, Not Revolution
What characterises Haute Equipe's approach is a deliberate decision to set aside the AI hype. No sweeping claims about technology that would completely transform the work of consultants, or about dramatic efficiency gains to be realised within months. That realistic mindset is a conscious choice, and it fits the nature of a Proof of Concept: investigate first, then draw conclusions. The goal is an honest exploration:
What does work?
AI can help quickly search through large volumes of documentation
Drafting initial concepts is faster, provided the output is properly reviewed and adapted
Repetitive analyses can be automated
What does not (yet) work?
AI does not replace deep domain knowledge and experience
Legal and strategic judgements require human expertise
Context and nuance remain essential in public sector advisory work
Haute Equipe's approach is defined by realism over hype. No miracles are expected or promised. Instead, the focus rests on a concrete question: can we use AI to relieve consultants of time-consuming but relatively routine tasks? Think of searching through legislation, gathering relevant case law, or producing first draft versions of standard documents.
If that succeeds, it creates space for where advisors truly add their value: the strategic analyses, the nuanced judgement built on years of experience, and the personal advisory relationship that makes a real difference for municipalities and public institutions. That is the genuine promise of AI in professional services, not replacing expertise, but strengthening it.
The Public Sector Context: Why This Matters
For advisory firms working in the public domain, there are additional considerations that come into play:
Confidentiality: Municipalities share sensitive information with their advisors
Compliance: Public organisations must adhere to strict privacy legislation
Transparency: It must be possible to explain how advice is arrived at
Continuity: No dependency on American companies that could suddenly change their terms and conditions
GLBNXT's sovereign approach directly addresses these concerns by offering full control and transparency within European legal frameworks.
More Than a Vendor: A Hands-On Partnership
What distinguishes this Proof of Concept from typical technology implementations is the way GLBNXT and Haute Equipe worked together. This was not a classic vendor-client relationship in which a platform is delivered and the user is left to figure out how it works. GLBNXT was intensively involved from the outset in introducing the AI application within Haute Equipe. That meant not only technical installation and configuration, but also working through concrete use cases drawn from the reality of public sector consulting. What questions do consultants ask every day? Which sources need to be searchable? What does a typical workflow look like?
That practical approach was supported by regular evaluation sessions focused not only on what is technically possible, but above all on what actually works in daily practice. GLBNXT also provided knowledge transfer sessions to help Haute Equipe advisors get the most out of the AI tooling. After all, it is not just about having smart technology, it is about enabling people to use it effectively. This hands-on approach explains why the Proof of Concept did not stall at technical demos, but genuinely evolved into practical applications that consultants use in their day-to-day work.
"Together with the people at GLBNXT, we set out to explore how we could implement AI in our advisory practice in a smart and secure way. That generated valuable insights into what we want, why we want it, and how we can implement it in a way that seamlessly fits our way of working."
Frans Lustermans
Director – Haute Equipe
What Can the Public Sector Learn From This?
The Haute Equipe Proof of Concept holds lessons for many parties in the public domain:
For advisory firms: There is a middle ground between avoiding AI entirely out of fear of data leakage and experimenting indiscriminately with public tools.
For public sector organisations: When working with external advisors, you can set requirements for how they handle your data in AI applications.
For IT departments: Sovereign AI is no longer a theoretical concept, it is a practical solution that is available right now.
Next Steps: From PoC to Practice
The Proof of Concept marks the starting point of a longer journey. Haute Equipe is now taking the time to systematically evaluate what works and what does not. Key questions include: which applications deliver genuine added value for consultants, and where does the AI still fall short and require additional training or fine-tuning?
Equally important is the question of how to integrate this technology into existing work processes without disrupting the day-to-day flow. And ultimately, what matters most is what the consultants themselves experience when actually using the system in their work with municipalities and public organisations. That realistic, step-by-step approach may be less spectacular than the AI stories you read elsewhere, but it is considerably more sustainable and responsible.
Conclusion: Safe AI for Public Sector Advisory Is Possible
The collaboration between Haute Equipe and GLBNXT demonstrates that sovereign AI is not a distant prospect, but a practical solution for organisations that want to benefit from AI technology without surrendering their data sovereignty.
This development comes at a critical moment. As AI is increasingly deployed in sensitive sectors such as public sector advisory, legal services, and public administration, awareness is growing of the risks associated with transferring data to American tech giants. The NIS2 directive, tightened privacy legislation, and rising geopolitical tensions are turning data sovereignty from a nice-to-have into a must-have for organisations working with government information.
For advisory firms and public sector organisations wrestling with the same question, the lesson is clear: you do not have to choose between innovation and security. With the right partner, you can have both. The Haute Equipe case demonstrates that there is no trade-off between staying ahead with technology on one hand and maintaining full control over your data on the other. For many organisations, this means they can now finally move forward with AI initiatives that have been sitting on the shelf for months or even years due to security concerns.
As more advisory firms and public sector organisations take this step, a new normal is emerging: AI that is not only smart, but also safe and trustworthy. That is precisely what the public sector needs to advance its digital transformation without compromising the values at the heart of public service work, transparency, accountability, and the protection of citizens' data.
Acknowledgements
Our thanks go to all the staff at Haute Equipe, who invested their time and energy in this proof of concept. This program was not an endpoint, but an important point of learning, and with that, a valuable step in the continued exploration of responsible, sovereign AI in advisory in the public sector.
Would your organisation like to explore how sovereign AI can help in the public sector? GLBNXT offers Proof of Concept programmes specifically designed for the public sector. Get in touch at www.glbnxt.com.
References
Waarom digitale soevereiniteit nu telt
Soevereine cloud, strenge regels en AI-dreigingen bepalen de agenda van 2026
Gemeente Eindhoven blokkeert ChatGPT na datalek
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