The tracks are all in plain sight for anyone who wants to see them. There is talk of the installation of an AI gigafactory, the development of Europe's largest data center in Sines, an investment pipeline in data centers that could exceed several billion euros in the next decade, Portugal's ability to become an Atlantic hub of connectivity between Europe, the Americas and Africa. The physical infrastructure of the new digital economy is going through submarine cables, renewable energy, cold ocean water and well-placed land. Portugal, for the first time in a long time, is not at the end of the line. It is in the middle of the route.

At the same time, we are witnessing strategic moves in areas of high added value. Companies in the area of digital health and AI applied to rehabilitation are creating global hubs from Portuguese cities. Fábrica de Unicórnios launches a health hub in Rossio, in partnership with pharmaceutical companies, hospital groups, longevity hubs and medical schools. A global remote work platform decides to set up its European office in Lisbon. Portuguese health technology, deep tech and AI companies continue to attract significant investment and scale to several continents.

The numbers presented by Startup Portugal and other entities confirm the trend. More than five thousand active startups, a turnover that is already worth about 1 percent of GDP, average salaries well above the national average, growing exports and dozens of investment rounds per year. Lisbon and Porto remain the main hubs, but cities such as Braga, Aveiro, Leiria and Coimbra are rising on the global innovation map.

At the European level, the European Commission has already realized that it needs to adjust its approach to AI regulation. The AI Act will have to be applied in a more innovation-friendly way, with less bureaucracy and more focus on the real protection of citizens, without killing in the bud the startups that want to assert themselves from Europe. At the same time, Brussels looks at countries like Portugal, which combine clean energy, qualified talent, lower relative cost and great international connectivity, as important pieces in the continent's digital and industrial sovereignty strategy.

But the future is not only built with large numbers, advertisements and buildings full of servers. The real test will be in the country's ability to align various levels of decision-making. Municipalities that reduce bureaucracy and plan for the long term. Schools and universities that train for technology, but also for critical thinking. Governments that create regulatory and fiscal stability. Parties that discuss the country's digital future above the logic of the electoral cycle. Companies that invest in continuous training and salaries that reflect the value created.

If Portugal knows how to take advantage of this window of opportunity, the scenario for 2030 may be very different from the one we have grown accustomed to. Instead of a country that exports talent because it has no way to retain it, we can be a country that imports talent to cross it with ours. Instead of low-paid jobs in low-value-added sectors, we can have an increasing volume of skilled jobs in the areas of AI, engineering, data science, digital health, creative industries and the green economy.

Of course, none of this is guaranteed. There are real risks. From over-reliance on a few large projects to the danger of the digital economy growing alongside a traditional economy that lags behind. There are challenges in housing, mobility, the qualification of the workforce and the balanced distribution of development between the coast and the interior.

But for the first time in many years, the signs all point in the same direction. Portugal is on the map of large technology investors. It has a growing ecosystem of startups, universities that are starting to be more connected to the business fabric, programs to attract international talent that involve partnerships between municipalities, higher education institutions and structures such as Empowered Startups. It has a capital that hosts one of the largest technological conferences in the world and that already has dozens of national and international unicorns installed.

Whether the Web Summit stays in Lisbon beyond 2027 or not is almost a detail. The important thing is that the country has already crossed a point of no return in the way it is seen. From a country of vacation, it became a country of the future. The question now is no longer whether Portugal will change, but how we will ensure that this change reaches everyone and not just a few.

The digital future is happening. The next decade will tell if we knew how to transform this moment into a structural opportunity. I, who was lucky enough to be there to see and hear all this, choose to believe so.