Sergei Shcherbakov: TData Can Help Global South Countries Avoid Others’ Mistakes

The platform is TData’s data management platform and a trusted hardware and software complex (HSC) developed in partnership with other companies within Rostelecom’s IT cluster. Can these products fully replace foreign alternatives and compete successfully in Global South markets? Sergey Shcherbakov, Director of Government Relations at TData, spoke to ITRussia about the company’s plans.

– Sergey Valeryevich, why is it important for TData to take part in the Global Digital Forum, and what are you working to accomplish here?

– The GDF is a platform where the export of technological sovereignty moves from declarations to concrete agreements. We brought our products here and are looking for partners to enter new markets with us. This year, the forum is expected to bring together participants from more than 110 countries.

Our main task here is to showcase the Russian TData data management platform and trusted HSC. The platform covers the full data lifecycle, from loading and storage to analytics and AI.

TData products are listed in the Russian software registry and are expected to receive Class 4 information security certificates from the Federal Service for Technical and Export Control (FSTEC) soon. They are already replacing Oracle, Cloudera, Teradata and Informatica. But we position them not as import-substitution alternatives, but as independent technology products ready for international markets.

– Can the Russian data management platform fully replace foreign solutions?

– Yes, it can, and TData has already demonstrated that on major projects. T2 moved its web traffic analytics from a foreign vendor’s cluster to our platform. That involves nearly one petabyte of data and 100 terabytes per day, with savings expected to reach about 250 million rubles [$2.7 million – ed. note] over five years.

At Rostelecom, TData powers a central data warehouse of more than 10 petabytes. Instead of four federal data warehouses, there is now one, while moving away from third-party software has saved about 600 million rubles [$6.5 million– ed. note].

The trusted HSC we developed with Signaltek is a ready-to-deploy and, most importantly, secure complex built from Russian hardware and software. It can be deployed up to four times faster than comparable solutions. But replacement is only the first step. The next is to have data that people can trust and use to make decisions, as is the case at the United Aircraft Corporation (UAC).

– How can TData use its data expertise to cooperate with Global South countries?

– TData can help Global South countries avoid others’ mistakes: instead of building data lakes just to produce an Excel report, they can turn data into decisions from the start. Our first priority is to build an export model, rather than simply sell licenses. For a data management platform, that means more than delivering software. It means transferring expertise through localization, training specialists, integrating with local infrastructure and providing support at every level. President Vladimir Putin has explicitly spoken about mutually beneficial alliances and support for foreign partners using Russian technology platforms. We have already tested this model in Russia, including in partnership with Postgres Professional and IT holding company T1, where we are building a full stack “from source to analytics” with comprehensive support.

It is important to align the export agenda with emerging international standards for digital sovereignty. The world is moving toward a multipolar digital architecture in which each country wants control over its data and infrastructure. We are not simply participants in this process. We provide the “key technological competence” President Vladimir Putin has spoken about: we need to “have our own technological keys to all industries that are fundamentally important to the economy, to improving people’s lives and, of course, to ensuring the security of the state,” and share those keys with partners on equal terms rather than under conditions of dependence.

With its experience in critical information infrastructure, FSTEC certifications and products deployed across telecom, oil and gas, and the public sector, TData provides a ready-made technology foundation for such alliances.

– How strong is demand for Russian data technologies abroad, and which markets look most promising for TData?

– There is demand. Many countries do not want their data to depend on solutions that could be switched off at any moment. Russian technologies, including TData, have been tested precisely under those conditions, with high security requirements and no reliance on foreign components. That is a strong argument. And TData’s place within Rostelecom’s IT cluster gives partners confidence in the scale and long-term viability of our solutions.

For TData, the most promising markets are those where governments and large businesses are building their own digital infrastructure, including CIS and SCO countries. We are entering these markets not with a standalone license, but with a ready-made solution, all the way to a hardware and software complex that can be installed and launched. We are also working with local systems integrators, because the market is always best understood by those who work in it.

– What will have the biggest impact on the data market: generative AI, new architectures or technological sovereignty?

– At TData, we see generative AI and new architectures as technological drivers, while technological sovereignty is the political and economic framework that determines which of those drivers will actually reach Russian customers. And if the question is what will change the market most, the answer is not “either/or,” but “both” – with a clear hierarchy. AI and architectures are what the market wants. Technological sovereignty is the policy that determines what the market gets.

The winners will be those who bring together mathematics, technological capability and security. That is exactly what TData is working toward.