The Web Summit brought together people from 168 countries during three days, in one incredible online event. At the end, the President of the Portuguese Republic Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa made the closing remarks revealing that he is looking forward that Web Summit will return to Lisbon in 2021.

Deepak Chopra (author and physician), Margrethe Vestager (Vice-president of the European Commission), Jane Goodall (activist), Kevin Hart (actor) and Nikolay Storonsky (CEO and founder of fintech Revolut), were some of the speakers this Friday, December 4th.

“The Web Summit in-person is better than online” must have been the most frequently used words in the chat. The lack of personal contact, the dynamics of the event, and the feeling of being tired, and extremely satisfied at the same time at the end of the event, ended up being stronger than the strategies implemented by the organisation to make this edition as interactive as possible.

Técnico students, professors, researchers, alumni and many entrepreneurs participated once again in this event.

More than 800 Técnico students had the opportunity to attend the event. André Luís, Engineering and Data Science MSc student, attended the Web Summit for the fourth consecutive time. “Everything is working quite well in terms of the platform, the speakers are very good, but communicating in person is lost”, said the Técnico student. André Luís shares “Q&A session with Mark Cuban on Wednesday afternoon was very good. I’m a big fan of shark tank, so that was really a must watch”.

According to the Técnico student this event is very important to those who want to build a career in this area: “I think it is important to understand how our future work ecosystem functions, and to see that we can apply our learning to real-life situations”.

“I am enjoying understanding how the different industries are interconnected. Having the opportunity to learn more about the most avant-garde companies and their creators is an inspiring experience”, says Inês Abrantes, Electrical and Computer Engineering student, who won her Web Summit ticket through the Inspire program.

“I thought Ursula von de Leyen’s lecture ‘unmissable’. It helped me understand the purpose of this event and its impact in Europe”, says Inês Abrantes.

Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa: “I am looking forward to seeing you in 2021”

These were the words of Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa. The President of the Portuguese Republic closed the event with a 10-minute speech, highlighting the importance of this technological summit and congratulating Pauddy Cosgrave for his work, encouraging him not to give up. The President promised to be present at the Web Sumit 2021.

“We have all dreamt, at least once in our lives, of a completely digital world. A Web Summit that goes fully online”, said Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa. “We are almost there, but for the worst reasons, the pandemic”, he added. “The Web Summit will return next year in the flesh, in a post-pandemic world, and here in Lisbon”.

Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa also stressed the importance of an event like the Web Summit goes far beyond digitalisation and technology. The Web Summit “is not just about technology. It is about the future of humanity”, he stressed.

“Do not forget that next year the Web Summit will take place in Lisbon, Portugal. I am looking forward to seeing you. See you there”, concluded the President.

The Web Summit returns next year in a hybrid format: half online, half in person. Over the next 2 years, the event will extend with smaller editions in Brazil and Japan.