The case for sovereign hosting is usually argued on principle. The case I want to make is engineering: that where a system runs and who has compelled access to it are properties of the system, not properties of the contract. This piece will walk through how that perspective shaped the design of Petrichor Labs and why a Canadian-incorporated, Canadian-hosted, Canadian-staffed posture turned out to be the only honest answer for our customers.
It will also cover the trade-offs we accepted: smaller talent pool, fewer regional points of presence, harder vendor lock-in to avoid. Sovereignty isn't free.
— Planned outline —
- What the CLOUD Act actually requires of US-controlled providers.
- Jurisdiction as architecture, not deployment afterthought.
- Why Canada — the boring, useful answer.
- Vendor selection when 'sovereign' is on every pitch deck.
- The promises we deliberately don't make.