Web Summit places Portugal at the centre of the digital revolution
Already on its 4th edition in the Portuguese city of seven hills, Web Summit is one of the largest and most exciting technology conferences in the world.
Although, at this moment, the organizers have not revealed the final numbers, it is estimated that the 2019 edition has gathered more than 70.000 participants from 163 countries, and over 2.000 start-ups who came to Lisbon looking for an opportunity to grow their ideas and businesses.
Where the tech world meets, indeed!
Web Summit brought together the people and companies that are redefining the global tech industry. The main topics that have been tackled at the conference focused on existing technologies, emerging technologies and venture capitalism. Speakers have included a mix of CEOs, subject-matter experts, celebrities, and politicians, all willing to share their ideas, experiences, best practices and advice on how we can jointly build the world of tomorrow using technology.
Some of the high-profile speakers who have addressed the audience include Margrethe Vestager, EU Commissioner for Competition at European Commission (EC), Michel Barnier, Chief Negotiator on Brexit at EC, former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair, Revolut Founder Nikolay Storonsky, Werner Vogels, CTO at Amazon, Katherine Maher, CEO at Wikipedia. Many other ICT experts and technology enthusiasts were welcomed on more than 20 separate tracks that took place during the 3-day event.
Humanity working in harmony with technology
If I were to describe the Web Summit 2019 edition in just a few words, it would have to be "united in diversity". Coincidentally, or not, this is also the motto of the EU, which first came into use in 2000. Even though there was no general subject that stood out, speakers have all managed to focus their sessions and panels towards the idea of using technology for good.
Addressing some of the current buzzwords in the tech world, such as privacy and cybersecurity, artificial intelligence and robotics, etc., many of the speakers and start-up owners have presented solutions and ideas that aim to solve humanity's growing challenges through technology.
From joining hands to solve the water problem to re-imagining the transport system and building flying taxis, everyone came to Web Summit with a proposed solution to a world problem. Whether they want to save the planet, reduce traffic congestion or prevent crashes, business owners, CEOs and domain experts are all trying to make sure technology is working for humanity rather than the other way around.
All technology is an echo of the wishes of whoever built it - Wish responsibly, Cassie Kozyrkov, Google
On her talk about what's next for decision intelligence, Cassie Kozyrkov, Chief Decision Scientist at Google, highlighted 4 principles of safe and effective AI we should all keep in mind when building cognitive technologies.
- Wise objective to optimize
- Relevant datasets
- Well-crafted statistical tests
- Prudent reliability engineering
Elaborating on the idea of humans being in harmony with technology, Thomas Reardon, Co-founder and CEO of CTRL-Labs, discussed about the device they are currently developing that is capable of translating electrical muscle impulses into digital signs. Does this herald the merging of man and machine?
If you want to learn more about this amazing technology, check out their website.
Another point of interest was the panel discussion about whether or not robots should have rights. When it comes to AI and robotics, we are currently in a phase where we swing backwards and forwards between the benefits and the risks we might face. We are constantly debating and trying to find ways to protect humanity from advanced artificial intelligence.
Yet, few of us have actually considered the idea that humans might become a threat to a robot. Roboticist Fouzia Adjailia, Founder and CEO of SingularityNET Ben Goertzel, Associate Professors of Philosophy Steve Petersen and John Basl, have joined in a riveting talk about robots' possible rights and obligations.
They argue that until we have consciousness in robots, we cannot talk about giving them rights. Or obligations. What is your take on this?
Apart from attending the presentations, checking company booths and discussing with excited entrepreneurs, Web Summit participants could also enjoy the Night Summit. For 3 nights in a row, those who wanted to network, have fun or close business deals outside the Altice Arena, had the chance to do so in some of Lisbon's most iconic hubs.
Web Summit is not necessarily the type of conference where you go to take notes or learn more about a specific subject. Web Summit is where ideas sparkle, connections are made, business plans are settled. It's where technology, enthusiasm and passion for building a better world come to greet us.
Web Summit is an experience you should not miss, whether you're the owner of a young company, an excited geek with thousands of ideas and no money or direction to implement them, an experienced developer looking for a great project to work on or an investor looking to fund a promising start-up.
Looking forward to what the 2020 edition has in store for us! Until then, stay close to Press on Security for more event coverage and articles on your favourite topics.
If you're interested about artificial intelligence and would like to read more on this, you can also find me on Strongbytes.
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