Web Summit has announced today that it will host hundreds of curated community meetups in Lisbon this November, powered by its proprietary software, Summit Engine.
This initiative is part of Web Summit’s renewed mission to foster meaningful connections and communities. By bringing people with similar backgrounds, interests and objectives together in community meetups, Web Summit hopes to make the event feel smaller and more intimate for attendees, as it continues to grow and scale across the world. Hundreds of these community meetups will take place alongside signature challenging discussions on how technology is shaping the world.
So far, this year’s top speakers include Yinon Costica, co-founder of cybersecurity powerhouse Wiz, which recently made waves by turning down a US$23 billion offer from Google; Julie De Moyer, LVMH’s recently appointed chief data and AI officer; Lidiane Jones, CEO of popular dating app Bumble, which harnesses AI to improve matchmaking; Cristiano Anon, CEO of Qualcomm, the company working to create bigger, better, and more affordable AI chips; and Meredith Whittaker, president of encrypted messaging app Signal, which is fighting against government measures to scan citizen’s private messages.
Also taking to the stage will be Alibaba.com president Kuo Zhang; Škoda Auto CMO Meredith Kelly; Amazon Web Services VP of AI Matt Wood; Meta’s global head of consumer marketing, Eshan Ponnadurai; Manchester United CEO Omar Berrada, and much more. They will be joined, by world leaders and changemakers, including Germany’s Vice Chancellor, Robert Habeck; Portugal’s minister of youth and modernisation, Margarida Balseiro Lopes, and exiled Venezuelan opposition leader Leopoldo López.
Global tech companies, including IBM, Adobe, Intercom, Samsung Next, and Niantic Labs will exhibit on the floor alongside financial giants such as Visa and American Express. Other notable partners include Novo Nordisk, Bosch, EDP, and KPMG.
New for 2024: Hundreds of curated meetings
Of course, Web Summit isn’t just about the speakers – it’s about the connections. That’s why this November, our curated meetups, powered by Summit Engine, will bring together attendees with shared roles or interests in AI, fintech, crypto, food tech, sustainability, and more.
To do this, Web Summit’s data science team uses in-house software to group attendees who have common interests and backgrounds, helping uncover emerging communities. This technology was tested this year at Web Summit Rio in April, and at Collision in Toronto in June. From data scientists in Uruguay and food tech startup founders and investors to public sector AI innovators, Web Summit wants to make sure that the right people find each other at our events. Attendees can use the Web Summit app to easily connect and stay in touch with those they’ve met long after the event ends in November
“This is going to be our biggest but also our smallest event yet … we aim to host thousands of community meetups at the event and across Lisbon in November. We are evolving from being one large event to becoming a collection of a thousand deep, interconnected experiences,“ said Paddy Cosgrave.
“Over the last 15 years, the world has changed in many ways, and we’ve always been committed to adapting and re-evaluating our mission and goals to meet evolving challenges, ideas, and global circumstances. We’re currently in an especially charged moment in time,” Paddy continued.
“We are bigger than ever, but our mission remains the same – connecting the people, companies and ideas that change the word. Ultimately, the best event experience is when you walk away with a stronger network than you came with,” added SVP of product Brian Flanagan.
Just announced
The full list of speakers at Web Summit is being announced today:
- Lidiane Jones, CEO of Bumble
- Anastasis Germanidis, co-founder and CTO of Runway
- Meredith Kelly, CMO of Škoda Auto
- Sarah Myers West, co-executive chair of AI Now Institute
- Patrick Kluivert, former footballer with Barcelona and The Netherlands
- Paula Goldman, chief ethical and humane use officer at Salesforce
- Omar Berrada, CEO of Manchester United
- Hans Niemann, chess grandmaster
- Meredith Whittaker, president of Signal
- Munya Chawawa, actor and comedian
- Atul Bhardwaj, chief digital and technical officer at The Lego Group
- Smita Hashim, chief product officer at Zoom
- Alex Hirschi, founder of Supercar Blondie
