Web Summit Opening Ceremony - Where the tech world met humanity
First time at Web Summit and Press on Security is completely hooked, especially by the opening ceremony that took place on November 4th at the Center Stage of Altice Arena.
The right time to find investors
The evening opened with several technology start-up companies that delivered brief yet engaging pitches about their business and how can everyone benefit from their services and products.
The ALPHA programme gives the early-stage start-ups the opportunity to attend Web Summit and connect to the world’s most influential companies, investors, and media.
From building a global welfare on the internet to change the world's borders and immigration process to sending letters to kids everywhere or helping experts who are developing satellites, rockets or fusion reactors, around 20 start-up founders and CEOs took the stage and excitedly presented us their ideas about engineering the future.
GDPR is a paper tiger
Edward Snowden, a former computer analyst for the NSA, was definitely the most controversial speaker in the grand opening. He spoke live from Russia, which granted him temporary asylum after he released classified information from the US’ National Security Agency in 2013.
During the discussion, Snowden primarily focused on data protection and the future of the internet.
Regulations are not the only ones that can protect you, technology is not the only one that can protect you. The only ones that can protect us is us. And the only way we can protect one of us is by protecting everyone.
Edward Snowden, Web Summit 2019
Asked what is his opinion on the General Data Protection Regulation, the NSA Whistleblower mentioned the actual problem is not data protection, but data collection, and called GDPR a paper tiger. Although he agrees this is definitely a good start, there is still a lot of work to be done. More importantly, Snowden believes that the basic system of connectivity to the internet needs to be changed.
"It is not data that is being exploited, it is people that are being exploited," Snowden argued, pointing out that the current generations do not own any data anymore and that all the browsers, websites and internet service providers are institutions of power that people should not trust.
Saving the planet, one drop at a time
Another fascinating discussion was the one that included Jaden Smith, Gary White and Paul O'Callaghan, who talked about saving the planet by delivering water and sanitation to the world.
Jaden Smith further spoke about the role of activism and innovation in addressing water challenges. He also discussed why he launched 501cTHREE and JUST Water to spark change and provide a solution to a challenge closer to home in Flint, Michigan.
Check out the Brave Blue World documentary for more information on what is the team currently doing and how we can all help.
Web Summit is already on its 4th edition in Lisbon, Portugal, after it was initially held in Dublin, Ireland. The technology conference was founded in 2009, by Paddy Cosgrave, David Kelly and Daire Hickey.
Looking forward to the next 3 days at Web Summit. Stay tuned for more articles and updates!