2023-11-30
Montréal and Quebec at Web Summit: between outreach and connections
by Startup Montréal
30 November 2023
30 November 2023
From November 11 to 16, 2023, Startup Montréal and numerous Montreal startups attended the Web Summit in Lisbon. Here’s a look back at what happened and the impact of this exceptional week on the international exposure of our ecosystem and, above all, on the advancement of our startups in their mission.
On site, Richard, Naouel and Khatidja were part of the mission, alongside Ville de Montréal, Investissement Québec and Montréal international. All in all, some 50 entrepreneurs and partners showcased our Montreal and Quebec startup expertise.
The main objective of this mission was to position Quebec on the international scene as a benchmark for the creation and development of innovative startups.
Mission accomplished?
Here are some interim results.
One of the key objectives of the trip to Lisbon was to promote our startups and the Montreal ecosystem.
We took part in Tech Fusion, an event organized by the Canadian Embassy in Portugal ahead of the Web Summit, to showcase Canadian ecosystems and build bridges with the Portuguese ecosystem. During the event, two of our entrepreneurs, Alexis Bourson (Axya), and Chloë Ryan (Acrylic Robotics), spoke on the “Soft Landing in Canada” panel.
During Web Summit, 15 startups had official booths, and Startup Montréal also had a booth highlighting our city’s colors to attract curious participants. Stéphane Turbide, COO at Maket, sums it up well here: “It’s an incredible opportunity to showcase our latest innovations with Maket and engage with the vibrant tech ecosystem.”
Over three exciting days, our startups networked with people from around the world. Roxanne Lessard pitched for the first time for Panorama in front of an international jury and a packed room. And she wasn’t the only one!
Chloë Ryan of Acrylic Robotics was selected from among 2,500 entrepreneurs to be one of the 10 startups to pitch on the main stage during the semifinals of Web Summit’s pitch competition: a dream opportunity for her startup and our ecosystem, with over 30,000 people in the audience. It was also a good occasion for her to publicize her first seed round.
Aleo VR, which is developing two virtual reality programs to help dyslexic children learn pronunciation and another for people suffering from concussions, had the opportunity to give demonstrations at the Startup Montréal booth, captivating the attention and arousing palpable interest among attendees.
Our startups also met with potential partners and leads. Alexandre Bouchard of V3Stent booked 12 appointments, and was impressed by the honesty and passion of the on-site discussions (source).
And the benefits don’t stop there. Back in Montreal, Panorama’s Roxanne Lessard had the opportunity to talk about her solution in Les Affaires newspaper.
Read the full article here: Les Affaires
The second major objective was to connect our delegation to as many key international players as possible.
Prior to the Web Summit, the entire delegation was invited to the home of Kunal Gupta, a Canadian tech entrepreneur based in Portugal, to chat with Canadian entrepreneurs about entrepreneurial life in Lisbon. It was a great opportunity for our startups to unveil their innovations in a more intimate setting, and in return, to learn more about life as “digital nomads”.
For three days, the entire delegation was saturated with opportunities to exchange ideas: cocktails organized on the sidelines of the event by foreign ecosystems (French Tech, Luxembourg, Sweden, Startup Genome), captivating masterclasses, dynamic exhibitions at our startup booths, the hunt for potential leads and partnerships.
In short, as Michael Smith, CEO of Zea, so aptly put it:
The Web Summit was a surge of energy over Lisbon, Portugal! 🌍🇵🇹 It brought together startups, entrepreneurs, investors, and all those shaping a collective vision for a transformative future. 🤝✨
A huge thank you to the entire delegation who shared this experience with us at Web Summit! And thank you all for following our adventures on site on our networks.
See you at next year’s Web Summit? 👀
In a nutshell: some figures for the world’s biggest tech event.
Find in this article all the members of the delegation attending Web Summit.