The strong Brazilian presence has drawn attention at the Web Summit, Europe’s largest technology conference, which brings together more than 70,000 people in Lisbon this week. There are about 300 entrepreneurs and at least 60 startups on display, in addition to many participants in the audience.
Founder and CEO of the event, Irishman Patrick “Paddy” Cosgrave highlighted the phenomenon at the beginning of his opening speech, on the first night of the meeting.
“Sometimes, in previous editions, people were surprised by the amount of Brazilians at the Web Summit. Now there are those who say: wow, it’s a Brazilian invasion!”, he told the Sheet.
The popularity made the conference cross the Atlantic and win a special edition in Brazil, which takes place for the first time in May 2023.
“Brazil is one of the fastest growing startup markets in the world. That’s very clear and it’s been very constant. What’s driving all this? I don’t know. The important thing is that it’s happening.”
The Brazilian branch of the conference will take place in Rio de Janeiro. The city beat São Paulo, Porto Alegre and Brasília, which had also applied to host the meeting. The Rio experience with holding major events, such as the Olympics and the World Cup final, played a role in the decision.
“The event is not just to bring together the Brazilian technology ecosystem. We want to bring together the global technology ecosystem, this great community, and bring Brazil”, he adds.
The edition in Rio, which should be annual, does not change the “headquarters” of the Web Summit in Lisbon, which has already guaranteed the holding of the main conference until at least 2028.
Despite the public success, this year’s edition sold out two weeks before the opening, the conference is usually classified as elitist. The normal value of tickets can exceed 850 euros (about R$ 4,200).
According to Paddy Cosgrave, the organization has been carrying out a series of programs to include minorities and underrepresented groups, ranging from discounts of over 90% to the distribution of free tickets.
“We have a team that works hard for inclusion,” he said. “For example, at our event in Toronto, we worked with indigenous groups in Canada. The event is opened by the indigenous community,” she lists.
According to the creator of the Web Summit, the inclusion policy will also be extended to the Rio edition of the event. On the official website, the cheapest tickets, sold at R$795, are already sold out.
In addition to the Brazilian event, Web Summit also holds events in Hong Kong and Canada throughout the year. The idea, according to the CEO, is to also settle in China and in an African country.
Asked whether the model of large face-to-face conferences will still make sense in the future, at a time when there is growing concern about carbon emissions linked to air travel, Paddy Cosgrave thinks so.
“I think a conference is a way to minimize the carbon footprint. By going to the Web Summit, you can avoid flying to 20 cities by simply meeting people from all those places in one city. It’s highly efficient and minimizes the carbon footprint.” of travel”.
Even with the confirmation of the edition in Rio, the Lisbon conference remains on the rise among the technology sector in Brazil, which this year has a record delegation.
Already present in previous editions, the Brazilian stand was expanded, including its own stage. There are at least 60 Brazilian startups on display at the fair, and many others represented by partners or collaborators.
The conference was also the occasion for the formalization of an agreement to facilitate the internationalization of Brazilian startups, signed between Sebrae (Brazilian Service to Support Micro and Small Enterprises) and its Portuguese counterpart, Iampei (Agency for Competitiveness and Innovation).
According to the president of Sebrae, Carlos Melles, the idea is to bring Brazilians closer to the main representatives of Portugal’s innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem. “We will support the international expansion of these Brazilian companies so that, in fact, the internationalization is successful,” he says.
Sebrae also took a delegation of 280 startups to the event, on an internationalization mission. Chambers of commerce and business associations also organized delegations.
With so many Brazilians, political polarization could not be left out. In the opening event of the conference, the CEO of Web Summit mentioned the victory of Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) in the presidential elections in Brazil. Part of the public present was divided into demonstrations for and against the result.
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