01
What we’re trying
Eight programs for documents, spreadsheets, presentations, forms, reports, email, social media planning and PDF. They run on your own computer, save to open files and need neither an account nor a cloud.
Only a few years ago, a project like this would have been out of reach for a small team. A word processor that opens Word files cleanly, a spreadsheet with formulas, an email client: each of these used to take large departments.
02
How easy was it?
“Easier than we expected.”
Not effortless: nobody makes the decisions about file formats, design and privacy for you, and every feature has to be checked. But the part that used to take the most time – rebuilding features that exist elsewhere – goes many times faster with today’s AI coding tools.
We compare each app with its role model, feature by feature, and close the gaps. How well that holds up in the end is exactly what this experiment is meant to find out.
03
The irony
These tools come largely from American companies. The same industry whose software has shaped Europe’s offices for decades now supplies the means to rebuild that software – quickly, with small teams.
For a long time, the big office suites had three advantages: breadth of features, habit and file formats. The features can now be caught up on. The formats are largely documented. What remains is habit.
Breadth of features
can now be caught up on
File formats
largely documented
Habit
remains
04
Why European customers want to switch at all
It’s rarely about features. It’s about who can access your data if it comes to it – and under whose law.
- 01
The US CLOUD Act lets US authorities demand data from US providers, even when it is stored on servers in Europe.
- 02
In June 2025, Microsoft France’s legal director told the French Senate under oath that the company cannot guarantee French citizens’ data won’t be handed to US authorities. According to him, no such request had been made so far.
Source: The Register: Microsoft admits it ‘cannot guarantee’ data sovereignty (25.07.2025) ↗ - 03
The US and the EU are openly at odds over Europe’s digital rules. The US government calls the Digital Services Act censorship and has imposed visa bans on Europeans involved in enforcing it, including former EU commissioner Thierry Breton. The European Commission called this unjustified.
Source: TechRepublic: US Imposes Visa Bans on Five Europeans Over Alleged Pressure on Tech Platforms ↗
05
What this could mean for the future
A few theses we’re putting up for discussion – not as certainties:
- Thesis 1
Features are no longer a moat.
If an established application’s scope can be rebuilt in a short time, competition shifts – away from “what can the software do?” towards “who do I trust with my data?”.
- Thesis 2
Dependence moves one layer down.
The applications can be built in Europe. The AI models used to build them currently come mostly from the US. Anyone talking about digital independence has to talk about that layer too.
- Thesis 3
Building isn’t running.
Writing a program is one thing. Maintaining, securing and supporting it for years is another. That’s where it will be decided whether European alternatives last.
- Thesis 4
Open formats matter more than brands.
When software becomes easier to replace, what counts most is whether your data comes along.
06
Try it – with care
The apps are there to be tested. Expect bugs, missing features and changes to the file format. Please don’t keep anything important only in them, and back up regularly. We welcome feedback at contact@balane.tech.