Modal

Serverless GPU compute platform for AI model training, inference, and data pipelines

Nebius AI

European GPU cloud and LLM inference platform built for AI-native businesses

Modal

Caution

9/25

Nebius AI

Strong

20/25

Score Breakdown

DimensionModalNebius AI

Data Residency

Where is your data stored and processed?

Modal: US-only infrastructure. No EU data centre options. Not suitable for GDPR personal data processing without SCCs and TIA.

Nebius AI: Data centres located in Finland and the Netherlands—both EU member states. Inference and compute workloads remain within EU borders. Strong data residency story for European AI builders.

1/5

US-only infrastructure. No EU data centre options. Not suitable for GDPR personal data processing without SCCs and TIA.

5/5

Data centres located in Finland and the Netherlands—both EU member states. Inference and compute workloads remain within EU borders. Strong data residency story for European AI builders.

Legal Jurisdiction

Which laws govern the company and your data?

Modal: Delaware incorporation, US jurisdiction, CLOUD Act applies. Basic GDPR privacy documentation. No EU subsidiary.

Nebius AI: Incorporated as Nebius Group N.V. under Dutch law. EU legal jurisdiction applies, with no CLOUD Act exposure. Corporate history as Yandex spin-off warrants due diligence on ownership structure, but current governance is EU-based.

2/5

Delaware incorporation, US jurisdiction, CLOUD Act applies. Basic GDPR privacy documentation. No EU subsidiary.

4/5

Incorporated as Nebius Group N.V. under Dutch law. EU legal jurisdiction applies, with no CLOUD Act exposure. Corporate history as Yandex spin-off warrants due diligence on ownership structure, but current governance is EU-based.

Data Retention & Training

Is your data used for model training?

Modal: Customer compute workloads are isolated and not used for shared training. Workload outputs are customer-controlled. Data governance documentation is lighter than enterprise-focused providers.

Nebius AI: Customer inference requests and training data are not used to train shared models. Tenant isolation architecture. GDPR-compliant data processing posture with configurable retention for enterprise customers.

3/5

Customer compute workloads are isolated and not used for shared training. Workload outputs are customer-controlled. Data governance documentation is lighter than enterprise-focused providers.

4/5

Customer inference requests and training data are not used to train shared models. Tenant isolation architecture. GDPR-compliant data processing posture with configurable retention for enterprise customers.

Certifications

ISO 27001, SOC 2, Cyber Essentials, etc.

Modal: No published independent certifications. Developer-focused startup with self-attested security practices. Not yet suitable for regulated industry enterprise procurement.

Nebius AI: ISO 27001 certification in place. As a relatively new independent entity, the broader certification portfolio (SOC 2 Type II, ISO 27701) is still developing. Expect maturation over 2025-2026.

1/5

No published independent certifications. Developer-focused startup with self-attested security practices. Not yet suitable for regulated industry enterprise procurement.

3/5

ISO 27001 certification in place. As a relatively new independent entity, the broader certification portfolio (SOC 2 Type II, ISO 27701) is still developing. Expect maturation over 2025-2026.

Regulatory Fit

Suitability for regulated industries and professional services

Modal: Suited to AI developers and startups building non-personal-data workloads. US jurisdiction and absence of certifications limit suitability for regulated EU industries. Good for R&D and prototyping contexts.

Nebius AI: Excellent fit for European organisations building AI applications and needing EU-sovereign inference infrastructure. Dutch incorporation, EU data centres, and GDPR-compliant DPA make this suitable for most regulated EU use cases. Financial services and healthcare organisations should review specifics with Nebius.

2/5

Suited to AI developers and startups building non-personal-data workloads. US jurisdiction and absence of certifications limit suitability for regulated EU industries. Good for R&D and prototyping contexts.

4/5

Excellent fit for European organisations building AI applications and needing EU-sovereign inference infrastructure. Dutch incorporation, EU data centres, and GDPR-compliant DPA make this suitable for most regulated EU use cases. Financial services and healthcare organisations should review specifics with Nebius.

Total Score

9/25

20/25

Best For

Modal

Best for teams on a tight budget.

Nebius AI

Best for EU-headquartered organisations needing maximum data sovereignty; regulated industries (CNIL, BaFin); privacy-conscious teams who need strong data retention controls; enterprises requiring SSO integration.

Detailed Comparison

Modal vs Nebius AI: Trust & Compliance Comparison

Modal (Modal Labs, US) scores 9/25 overall with a Review Required (Caution) trust badge. Serverless GPU compute platform for AI model training, inference, and data pipelines. Nebius AI (Nebius, NL) scores 20/25 with a Silver (Strong) trust badge. European GPU cloud and LLM inference platform built for AI-native businesses.

Dimension-by-Dimension Breakdown

#### Data Residency

Nebius AI leads with 5/5 vs 1/5.

●Modal (1/5): US-only infrastructure. No EU data centre options. Not suitable for GDPR personal data processing without SCCs and TIA.

●Nebius AI (5/5): Data centres located in Finland and the Netherlands—both EU member states. Inference and compute workloads remain within EU borders. Strong data residency story for European AI builders.

#### Legal Jurisdiction

Nebius AI leads with 4/5 vs 2/5.

●Modal (2/5): Delaware incorporation, US jurisdiction, CLOUD Act applies. Basic GDPR privacy documentation. No EU subsidiary.

●Nebius AI (4/5): Incorporated as Nebius Group N.V. under Dutch law. EU legal jurisdiction applies, with no CLOUD Act exposure. Corporate history as Yandex spin-off warrants due diligence on ownership structure, but current governance is EU-based.

#### Data Retention & Training

Nebius AI leads with 4/5 vs 3/5.

●Modal (3/5): Customer compute workloads are isolated and not used for shared training. Workload outputs are customer-controlled. Data governance documentation is lighter than enterprise-focused providers.

●Nebius AI (4/5): Customer inference requests and training data are not used to train shared models. Tenant isolation architecture. GDPR-compliant data processing posture with configurable retention for enterprise customers.

#### Certifications

Nebius AI leads with 3/5 vs 1/5.

●Modal (1/5): No published independent certifications. Developer-focused startup with self-attested security practices. Not yet suitable for regulated industry enterprise procurement.

●Nebius AI (3/5): ISO 27001 certification in place. As a relatively new independent entity, the broader certification portfolio (SOC 2 Type II, ISO 27701) is still developing. Expect maturation over 2025-2026.

#### Regulatory Fit

Nebius AI leads with 4/5 vs 2/5.

●Modal (2/5): Suited to AI developers and startups building non-personal-data workloads. US jurisdiction and absence of certifications limit suitability for regulated EU industries. Good for R&D and prototyping contexts.

●Nebius AI (4/5): Excellent fit for European organisations building AI applications and needing EU-sovereign inference infrastructure. Dutch incorporation, EU data centres, and GDPR-compliant DPA make this suitable for most regulated EU use cases. Financial services and healthcare organisations should review specifics with Nebius.

Certifications at a Glance

Certification	Modal	Nebius AI
ISO 27001	No	Yes

Overall Verdict

Nebius AI has a clear trust advantage, scoring 20/25 compared to Modal's 9/25. Nebius AI particularly excels in data residency, legal jurisdiction, data retention & training, certifications, regulatory fit.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is better for EU compliance, Modal or Nebius AI?

Modal has a TrustKit score of 9/25 while Nebius AI scores 20/25. Nebius AI currently rates higher across data residency, legal jurisdiction, data retention, certifications, and regulatory fit.

How do Modal and Nebius AI compare on data residency?

Modal scores 1/5 for data residency (US-only infrastructure. No EU data centre options. Not suitable for GDPR personal data processing without SCCs and TIA.), while Nebius AI scores 5/5 (Data centres located in Finland and the Netherlands—both EU member states. Inference and compute workloads remain within EU borders. Strong data residency story for European AI builders.).

Are Modal and Nebius AI GDPR compliant?

Both tools are assessed across five compliance dimensions. Modal has a regulatory fit score of 2/5 and Nebius AI scores 4/5. Check the full comparison above for a detailed breakdown.

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