Killarney 2026 - Mona Ozouf in Ireland

A medieval castle in the Irish countryside, a giant tech compagny in the heart of Dublin and one of the richest men in the world, at first sight, these elements seems to have little in common. However, they all illustrate Ireland’s growing relationship with American tech giants. But over the past decades, companies such as Meta, Google and Apple have chosen Ireland as a key location for their European activities. The four documents in the corpus explore different aspects of this relationship. Document A, adapted from BBC news article by Adam Mandeville, focuses on Mark Zuckerberg’s purchase of a castle in country Waterford. Document B focuses siliconrepublic by Vish Gain. Document C is an article by Jessica Trained published in the Dial, takes more critical look at impact of American tech companies on Irish society. Finally, document D, is a cartoon by Harry Burton published in the Irish Examines. At the core of the dossier lies a tension between Ireland’s attractiveness for American tech companies and the consequences of their growing influence. This tension leads to us to question to what extent the presence of US tech giants has really benefited Ireland and it’s people. To answer this question, we will first examine how US tech giants bring economic benefits to Ireland, before looking these benefits aren’t shared equally and we will see why Ireland has too dependent on American companies.

First of all, American tech companies have helped Ireland to develop it’s economy. Document B support the tech giants arguing that they create many jobs particularly thanks to Meta’s headquaters in Dublin. According to document C, companies like Apple, Google and Meta are attracted by low taxes and access to the European market. Their presence brings important tax revenues to the country. Moreover, document A explains that Mark Zuckerberg bought an Irish castle because Meta has it’s international headquarters in Ireland. This shows that Ireland attarcts wealthy americans, even if the castle also represents their personal interest in Irish history.

Nervtheless, not everybody benefits from this situation Document C explains that the advantages of these companies are « rarely felt by the average citizen » Similarly, document D criticizes the privileges of billionnaires. In the cartoon, Mark Zuckerberg asks if this castle « comes with servants, too ». This ironic comment makes fun of his wealth and suggets that rich people expect others to serve them. Document A also shows how wealthy Americans can buy historic castles, which raises question about the difference between rich people and ordinary citizens.

Finally, Ireland’s dependence on American tech giants is a real problem. Document C explains that the country could lose 12% of it’s direct tax income if the ICT sector left. These companies can also threaten to move elsewhere if they find better condition. Document A shows the strong presence of American billionnaire in Ireland, while document D criticizes their power and privileges. Therefore, even if these companies bring money to Ireland, they also have a lot of influence over the country.

  To conclude, American tech giants have contributed to the Ireland’s economic developement but their presence also creates inequalities and dependence. Ireland must find a balance between attracting foreign companies