November 2, 2022 – 13:24

The second “post-pandemic” edition of Web Summit Lisboa 2022 sold out and is expected to draw over 70,000 people this week. The conference, classified by some American and European newspapers as “the place where the future is born” and “an event that brings together technology priests from around the world,” always brings the tone of what to expect. Last year, one of the highlights was Frances Haugen, a former employee who denounced Facebook; and Ayo Tomit, co-founder of the Black Lives Matter movement.

In their speeches, both brought provocations about who we will be when we leave here, and what we will do about it – in addition to strengthening the construction of technology on top of the truth, in a world that has just emerged from speeches filled with fake. Vaccine news and one of the most painful moments of modern times.

This Tuesday, the 1st, the first day of 2022 was no different. Paddy, the founder of the event, began by thanking the largest delegation present – us Brazilians – and congratulating us on the recent elections in Brazil. Olena Zelenska, First Lady of Ukraine, capped off the evening with her emotional speech: “I believe that technology should be used to create and save people, not to help destroy the world. I believe that technology is the future (…), but the hardest part is seeing how it is used in the service of horror. By helping Ukraine, you are helping the world move in the right direction. Let’s do it together.”

In front of her, the leaders of Apple, Binance (cryptocurrency exchanges) and the Portuguese government seemed to be repeating the question we heard last year, whether at WebSummit, SXSW or Cannes: in this scenario of an uncertain world, social crisis and ecology, post-truth and uncertainty in the collective future, what is the value of such a conference and what can each of us do with the privilege of being here?

A quick google can find their main directions, but in this article I want to pay attention to what I heard in the halls of the event and looking through the social networks and WhatsApp groups of those who are nearby. There are those who criticize Elena’s arrival (“shouldn’t she be there in Ukraine?”) or say that the opening was “very political”. Did these people really understand the purpose of the event?

There is a general feeling that the latest events are “overwhelmed”, if not with repetitive content. Everyone needs a new term, a last-minute trend, some futuristic insight. It turns out that without the present there is no future, this stamped phrase of millions. We are moving forward in theories, but not in the practice and applicability of discourses.

All the great speakers at these conferences, for at least a year, have emphasized that it is impossible to look at technology unless we consider the responsibility of those behind it and the algorithms. In other words: we. It is impossible to talk about Web3, this transition of the Internet from users to members, without talking about how to create communities, diversity and inclusion. Not to mention us. It is impossible to talk about blockchain, cryptography, and regulations that protect consumers without excluding innovation, let alone… us. Finally, it is impossible to imagine that the ESG agenda has dominated recent events, let alone global warming, collective responsibility and the environment. It’s all about our existence, and existence is political. Sorry to say to those who still don’t understand.

This year’s web summit even opened up a few new fronts for the panels, with one stage for discussing influencer marketing and another for crypto. Got a vision? A stage for those who influence language, communication and sales in today’s world, as well as new ways to talk/use money. In addition, there is an incentive for 50% of the audience to be women thanks to the Women in Tech initiative, and the increase in the number of black speakers has been the focus of curating this year compared to the past. Well, the last ones, it’s not about diversity, but about topics where they are specialists.

So, I leave here an invitation to privileged Brazilian friends who, like me, are mostly white and southeastern, who sit at the table of Europe, which opens its living room, so that we can be inspired in the coming days by the applicability of discourses of innovation and impact. We are very creative people who dominate the Internet and technology like few others, and we have a lot of responsibility for all of this.

Looking at the vocabulary and semantics of the word “politician”, we say that this term means “a person who influences the way society is run”. May we be the people who can influence the building of a better future. Yes, the web summit is political.