Digital Sovereignty Made in Switzerland: HIN Becomes a Global Red Hat Success Story
A Swiss Success Story with Global Impact
When we originally published the HIN (Health Info Net) success story at VSHN, we already knew this project was something special.
Now, the story has reached a global stage: Red Hat officially published the modernization of HIN as a global customer success story and announced it during Red Hat Summit 2026 in Atlanta on May 11, 2026.
For us, this is far more than just another reference project. It is a strong validation that sovereign, open, cloud-native infrastructure is no longer a niche topic – it is becoming a strategic requirement for critical industries such as healthcare.
And it also highlights something important: Switzerland is no longer only discussing digital sovereignty in theory. It is actively building it.
Why HIN (Health Info Net) Matters
HIN is one of the most important digital healthcare platforms in Switzerland.
More than 50,000 healthcare professionals use HIN services, and over 90% of relevant actors in the Swiss healthcare ecosystem are connected through the platform. Secure communication, digital identities, and trust are at the core of the Swiss healthcare ecosystem – and HIN plays a central role in enabling this infrastructure.
This makes HIN far more than a typical IT platform. It is part of Switzerland’s critical digital infrastructure.
Modernizing such a platform is therefore not simply about upgrading technology. It is about resilience, security, operational flexibility, long-term independence, and trust.
From Legacy Infrastructure to a Sovereign Cloud-Native Platform
Like many established organizations, HIN faced the challenge of evolving a proven and highly trusted platform while preparing it for future requirements.
The goal was not change for the sake of change. The objective was to build a modern operating model that increases flexibility, automation, scalability, and security – without compromising stability and reliability.
Together with Red Hat and VSHN, HIN modernized its platform using Red Hat OpenShift and cloud-native technologies.
The result:
- A more flexible and scalable platform architecture
- Increased automation and operational efficiency
- Stronger security segmentation and Zero Trust principles
- Greater portability and long-term independence
- A modern foundation for future healthcare services
One particularly important aspect was avoiding unnecessary vendor lock-in.
Digital sovereignty does not mean isolation. It means maintaining strategic control over critical infrastructure, data, operations, and future decisions. Open standards, Kubernetes, and Open Source technologies are key building blocks for achieving this.
Security and Sovereignty Go Hand in Hand
Healthcare platforms are among the most demanding environments when it comes to security and compliance.
The HIN platform therefore consistently applies Defense in Depth and Zero Trust concepts – including network microsegmentation, clear workload segmentation, and modern authentication mechanisms.
This is an important point that is often overlooked in sovereignty discussions:
Open infrastructure and digital sovereignty are not in conflict with security – they can significantly strengthen it.
Cloud-native architectures enable highly automated, resilient, and observable systems while still maintaining strong control over where and how workloads operate.
Recognition Beyond Switzerland
This project has now received recognition on multiple levels.
Earlier this year, VSHN received the Red Hat Partner Award 2025 for Platform Modernization for the joint success with HIN.
Now, Red Hat has further elevated the story through an official global success story announcement during Red Hat Summit 2026 in Atlanta.
For us, this recognition is not only about VSHN. It highlights the growing importance of sovereign digital infrastructure across Europe and Switzerland.
And it shows that Open Source, Kubernetes, and cloud-native operating models are no longer purely technical topics. They are increasingly becoming strategic foundations for critical industries and public trust.
A Blueprint for Sovereign Digital Infrastructure
We believe the HIN story represents far more than a single modernization project.
Organizations across Europe are currently rethinking:
- dependencies on hyperscalers
- operational resilience
- data sovereignty
- supply chain risks
- long-term platform strategies
- digital sovereignty requirements
In healthcare, these challenges become especially tangible.
HIN demonstrates that modern sovereign infrastructure is already possible today – with Open Source, strong ecosystem partnerships, and cloud-native operating models.
And perhaps most importantly: digital sovereignty can be practical, operationalized, and production-ready.
Not as a future vision.
But as infrastructure already running today.
Projects like this are not built by technology alone. A huge thank you to the entire HIN team for the excellent collaboration and trust – and to all VSHNeers whose incredible dedication made this project possible.
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Markus Speth
Marketing, Communications, People