<p>In this article we introduce a concept of digital preparedness as a critical inroad to the study of politics in the 21st century. Digital preparedness is a hybrid form of governance mobilised to enhance future capacity for emergency response through increased data connectivity and collaboration across domains. It is triggered by a state of exception and works through a dual suspension: of rights and regulations, on the one hand, and of hindrances to innovation in the public sector and health data infrastructures on the other. We develop our concept through an analysis of digital responses to the Covid pandemic in Norway, focusing on the rapid creation of a preparedness registry. This registry integrated previously siloed health databases with mobility, social services, education, and defence data, while simultaneously justifying expansions of Norway’s extensive health data ecosystem. We describe how digital preparedness was used to instigate regulatory and institutional reforms, and to overcome prior ‘barriers’ (such as fundamental rights) to increasingly connect heterogeneous data sources. We conclude by identifying the defining features of digital preparedness as a mode of governance and considering its implications for politics and crisis management.</p>