Anyone expecting a pugnacious return to the limelight from Web Summit founder Paddy Cosgrave was left sorely disappointed at the event’s opening ceremony in Lisbon on Monday evening.
Apart from a single ‘F bomb’, there was little to worry to the public relations team at Web Summit or send sponsors running for the hills.
No, the Irish businessman kept it light and bright, expressing his happiness at being back in “sunny Lisbon” for the 2024 edition of the annual technology jamboree.
Under the migraine-inducing lights of the MEO Arena, he welcomed the more than 20,000 attendees – including 3,000 start-up companies and a host of well-known figures from the worlds of sports and media – among them his wife Faye Dinsmore and his two children.
He said he was delighted to welcome a particularly large delegation of companies from Brazil to the conference. Perhaps not receiving quite the reaction he expected to that factoid, Cosgrave challenged his audience. “Come on, Brazil. You’re like the loudest motherfuckers ever. Let’s try that again.”
But that – rather tame remark – was about as bolshie as it got for Cosgrave, who spoke for just around seven minutes before introducing the first dignitaries of the night.
[ Paddy Cosgrave addresses Web Summit for first time since resignation and returnOpens in new window ]
No mention was made of the reason for his sudden resignation last year in the teeth of a corporate controversy over his comments on social media platform X about Israel’s retaliation in Gaza for Hamas’s October 7th attack. Nor did the Cosgrave vent his spleen about any of the many topics – including Palestine – he has been happy to pour forth upon in other years.
One might be tempted to ask whether we’re seeing a new version of Paddy since his return to the Web Summit fold in April, just six short months after his resignation last October.
But it’s too early to say. That will be put to the test on Wednesday when Cosgrave speaks to the media at a scheduled press conference.
In the meantime, there is a sense among veteran attendees that the Web Summit circus is just better with its original ringmaster at the helm.
- Sign up for the Business Today newsletter and get the latest business news and commentary in your inbox every weekday morning
- Opt in to Business push alerts and have the best news, analysis and comment delivered directly to your phone
- Join The Irish Times on WhatsApp and stay up to date
- Our Inside Business podcast is published weekly – Find the latest episode here
