More than 53,000 people from 166 countries, among them 15,000 companies, 7,000 CEOs and 700 investors, flocked to Lisbon for the techie world’s most highly-anticipated event.
It ran from Monday to Thursday and is thought to have generated as much as €175 million in revenue for Lisbon.
Despite a few early-on teething problems the outcome was hailed a success and promises are that the mega event will return to the Portuguese capital in coming years bigger and better.
The initial glitches – namely traffic congestion, a strained Metro and a particularly red-cheek moment when Web Summit co-founder and chairman Paddy Cosgrove’s Wi-Fi connection failed during his opening presentation at the Meo Arena – did little to dampen the overall enthusiasm for the event.
However, a few thousand participants were left frustrated when they were forced to miss Monday evening’s opening ceremony after failing to follow instructions and arrive early to secure a place inside the venue. They instead had to watch the speeches via streaming on large screens outside the Arena.
Summing up Lisbon’s hosting of the event, Chairman Paddy Cosgrave said on Wednesday that the choosing of the Portuguese capital was the “right decision”, and admitted he was “in love” with the city.
“Three words: I love Lisbon”, he summed up in comments to Lusa News Agency, also revealing ideas to expand next year’s event in the Portuguese capital to 80,000 participants.
The Web Summit will remain in Lisbon until 2020, and could be extended by a further two years.
Dubbed by Bloomberg as the ‘Davos for Geeks’, the event was established in Ireland in 2010 with the objective of bringing together entrepreneurs and start-ups with investors.
Among the many speakers at the event were Facebook CTO Mike Schroepfer, CEO of Renault-Nissan Alliance Carlos Ghosn, and Sean Rad, Co-Founder and CEO of popular dating app Tinder.
Speaking earlier this week, on Monday, ahead of the Web Summit’s official opening, Portuguese Prime Minister António Costa said the State plans to provide €200 million in co-investments for innovative companies that need venture capital.
“The state will provide €200 million but the people who will decide how to use it are the international or national investors that select the best companies, the best projects, which require venture capital to launch and develop their business”, Costa explained at the opening session of the Venture Summit, an event that is part of the Web Summit.
The PM said the scheme had been created because, “many companies in Portugal, particularly in more innovative and disruptive sectors, from robotics to technology, have found it difficult to secure financiers that have the wherewithal and are able to understand the new challenges and new opportunities of new businesses.”
His comments came after it was disclosed in August that 2015 was a record year for Portuguese start-up businesses, with an impressive 35,500 new companies being launched in this country over the course of last year, signalling the best twelve months ever for entrepreneurship.
Key ideas showcased by the national contingent at the Lisbon Web Summit are new technologies to help support refugees in Portugal, a pet care app for animal owners, and a digital card that gives the capital’s entrepreneurs access to a workspace when abroad.
On Monday evening at the official opening ceremony, Prime Minster António Costa offered a speech in English to the many thousands of participants, in which he described Portugal as “a dynamic country that is open to progress, innovation and business.”
In preparation for the huge event a dedicated area was set up for participants at Lisbon airport and a special public transport travel pass created for the week.
Hotels in Lisbon came close to selling out, giving a booster start to the month of November in terms of tourism.
Addressing the deal to bring the Web Summit to Lisbon, Portugal’s President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa said the arrangement is an example to be followed.
He said the agreement to bring the Summit to Portugal “was only possible because a centre-right government prepared the way for a centre-left government to follow through.”
“The event is only in Lisbon because the previous government prepared the way and because this government knew how to receive and carry the baton from the government before it.”