Lisbon Aims to Become Europe's AI Capital with Groundbreaking Week-Long Event

Lisbon AI Week: A Hub for Innovation and Collaboration

From November 1 to 9, Lisbon will transform into a central meeting point for entrepreneurs, tech leaders, and AI enthusiasts during the inaugural Lisbon AI Week. This ambitious event is the brainchild of a dedicated volunteer team, sparked by an idea from Leo Xavier, Chief Technology & Innovation Officer at Observador, and brought to life with Pedro Rodrigues, an AI Engineer at Supabase. The project began informally over a meal, as Ana Matos, a Growth Associate at Google Ireland, recalls, highlighting how many Portuguese ventures start at the dinner table.

The core mission is to unite the technological, artistic, and scientific communities around Artificial Intelligence (AI), aiming to showcase Lisbon and Portugal as hubs of extraordinary talent and innovation. Malik Piara, a Product Manager & Design Engineer, emphasizes their goal to affirm the city's place on the global tech map through this collaborative effort.

Diverse Events for All Interests

Attendees can choose from a wide array of activities, including conferences, demonstrations, hackathons, informal meetups, and themed parties designed to foster dialogue and spark new ideas. Key highlights include:

• AI Agent Demo Night by PostHog, kicking off the week at Tribe Social Club in Chiado.
• A programmers' gathering on November 5 at Cloudflare's offices in Alcântara.
• The MCPconference Lisbon on November 7 at O Clube – Tazte Secret Spot in Monsanto, featuring a 24-hour hackathon led by students from NOVAe at the AI Hub in Alvalade.
• The Lisbon AI Hackathon presented by Supabase from November 8-9 at Kube Coworking Space.
• A pre-Web Summit party at Unicorn Factory Lisboa – Beato Innovation District to close the week.

Inspirations and Inclusivity

Inspired by previous initiatives like the Lisbon AI conference, the organizers expanded the concept into a week-long festival to democratize access to AI. Leo Xavier explains, "We wanted to move beyond a purely professional setting and show the diverse impacts of AI on people's lives." The team includes members from Observador, such as Daniela Correia and João Gaspar, who bring fresh perspectives to branding and design.

Daniel Zaltsman, an event organizer from PostHog who recently moved from New York, sees Portugal as a potential top European tech hub. He believes the event can benefit everyone, from the curious and skeptical to the highly enthusiastic, by offering tailored experiences.

Collaborative Model and Community Engagement

The Lisbon AI Week operates on a co-creation model, with around 30 events curated from approximately 60 proposals submitted through the initiative's website. This ensures a mix of technical and practical AI applications, reflecting the multidisciplinary nature of the organizing team. As Pedro Rodrigues notes, "We're not just about tech; we're about real-world impact."

The organizers of Lisbon AI Week, photographed in Alvalade, Lisbon, on October 23 (Daniel Zaltsman was unable to join the group photo).

Conferences, demonstrations, informal meetups, and themed parties aim to promote dialogue and stimulate new ideas among diverse communities.

Join the Conversation

This event invites all—curious minds, creators, programmers, and thinkers—to participate in a broad conversation about the future. It's an opportunity to discover, share, and co-create in an environment where technology intersects with culture. As the event's slogan states, "This isn't just a week of AI; it's Lisbon rewriting the future, one idea at a time."

Most events are free, with some paid options, and no expertise in AI is required. The full schedule, supported by Observador, is available on the Lisbon AI Week website.