EU officials criticize Element Pro, the backup alternative to Teams

The European Commission wants a messenger independent of Microsoft, but its first users complain about ease of use. Similar projects to move away from American tools are also being pursued by France and the Austrian military.

In the summer of 2026, the European Commission deployed the Element Pro messenger as a backup communication channel in case Microsoft Teams fails or becomes unavailable. According to an internal memo obtained by Politico, the tool is meant to ensure business continuity. It does not replace Teams in day-to-day use. However, some officials rate it very poorly.

Politico cites several anonymous statements. One official said they see no added value in the system. Another described it with a vulgar term. A third joked that if the United States switched off its technologies, then judging by the quality of the alternative, it would “immediately win the war.” A fourth defended the deployment. They pointed out that with Teams, the institution only has Microsoft's promise that it does not look into its data. The critical comments concern ease of use, not security.

Element is a British company developing a messenger based on Matrix, an open internet communication standard. The Commission runs the system on its own servers rather than in Microsoft's cloud. Company head Matthew Hodgson responds that initial problems are natural with any deployment, and that changing habits always causes cognitive dissonance. He also points out that NATO and the UN use Element's solutions. Sources do not say how many officials use Element Pro or how much the deployment cost.

The issue of the Commission's dependence on Microsoft is not new. On March 11, 2024, the European Data Protection Supervisor found that its use of Microsoft 365 violated EU data protection rules. Other institutions are taking similar steps. France announced on January 27, 2026, that 2.5 million civil servants will switch from Teams, Zoom and other American tools to the domestic Visio platform by the end of 2027. The Austrian armed forces moved 16,000 workstations from Microsoft Office to LibreOffice. The migration lasted from 2022 to 2025 and required more than five person-years of programmers' work.

For companies considering moving away from Teams, this is a sign that alongside licensing costs, they also need to plan time for training and helping the team get used to the new tool.