A record of over 500 people attended the fourth edition of the Algarve Tech Hub Summit, held on November 6 and 7 at Hotel Vila Galé in Lagos.
“We welcomed a record number of participants,” said Joaquim Nascimento, president of Algarve Evolution, one of the event’s organisers. “Some of them came to Portugal for the Web Summit but ended up coming here on purpose to take part in our event, which makes us very proud to be able to put the Algarve on the European technology map”.
The two-day event focused on a wide range of topics, from science, health, education and sports to tourism, agrifood, blue economy, energy, the digital world, art and culture. As Efigénio Rebelo from Algarve STP, another of the event’s organisers, explained: “The event aims to be a platform to explore the latest tendencies of innovation in each of these fields.”
Around 100 speakers shared their insights at the summit, most notably Paddy Cosgrave, co-founder of the Web Summit.
“This event positions the Algarve as a hub for knowledge and the future, promoting dialogue between the academic world, companies and society, and stimulating the creation of synergies that bolster the sharing of knowledge and technology,” said Paulo Águas, rector at the University of the Algarve – also among the event’s organisers, as well as Algarve Tech Hub. He added that the Algarve Tech Hub Summit provides a “unique opportunity to strengthen the link between the university and the regional, national and international ecosystem of innovation, entrepreneurship and sustainable development.”
The event’s success was also praised by the mayor of Lagos, Hugo Pereira, who described hosting the summit as a “source of pride” and said it plays an “extremely important” role in showcasing Lagos’ investment in entrepreneurship.
“Hosting this great event has very associated our municipality very significantly to the theme, showing Lagos’ work and dynamism in this matter to all the players of this great market,” Pereira added.
Jéssica Costa, executive director at Algarve STP, added that the event serves as a meeting point for all those who want to “continue to transform the Algarve into a smarter and more sustainable and innovative destination – a true destination for the future in the areas of technology, entrepreneurship and innovation. In other words, to make the Algarve a destination for everyone.”
The Algarve Tech Hub Summit will return in 2026, though the date and location have yet to be disclosed. Hugo Pereira has already confirmed that Lagos is “available to host the event for the next and future editions, if the organisers decide to do so.”
