- Dates
- November 9, 2026 – November 12, 2026
- Where
- MEO Arena & FIL, Lisbon, PT
- Organizer
- Web Summit
- Official site
- websummit.com
Web Summit is one of the largest tech conferences in the world, and it comes back to Lisbon from November 9 to 12, 2026. It's held at the MEO Arena and the neighboring FIL exhibition halls in Parque das Nações, on the city's waterfront.
At an event this size, you won't run out of people to meet. The challenge is meeting the right ones, and remembering them afterward.
Where the networking actually happens
- The exhibition halls. Startups exhibit on rotating days, so the companies you see on Tuesday may not be there on Wednesday. If there's a startup you want to meet, check which day it's exhibiting.
- Meetups. Web Summit runs organized meetups grouped by topic and industry. They're smaller and more focused than the main floor, and one of the easiest ways to meet people in your field.
- Night Summit. The official evening program moves the conversations into the city. People who were too busy to talk during the day are often happy to at night.
- Between talks. Some of the best connections happen in the queue or the coffee line. If a talk was full, the people waiting outside it care about the same topic you do.
A plan for four days
- Before you go: list 10-15 people or companies you actually want to meet, and reach out ahead of time to suggest a specific slot.
- Day one: walk the halls, get oriented, and confirm your meetings.
- Middle days: do your targeted meetings in the morning and meetups in the afternoon.
- Last day: it's usually quieter, which makes it good for longer conversations with the people you met earlier in the week.
What to bring
- Business cards. With attendees from all over the world, a card is a universal format that works whatever app or network the other person uses.
- Comfortable shoes. The venue is big, and you'll walk between the arena and the halls many times a day.
- A battery pack. Your phone is your map, your ticket, and your contact book.
After Web Summit: turn cards into relationships
Four days of conversations blur together fast. Protect the value of the trip:
- Scan cards every evening at the hotel, while the faces are still fresh.
- Note where you met ("Fintech meetup, Wednesday") and one detail from the conversation.
- Tag everyone with "Web Summit 2026" so you can follow up with them all in one sweep.
- Follow up within a week, before everyone's inbox fills up with post-conference email. See what to do with business cards after a conference for a nightly routine.
uKeep scans a business card into a complete contact, finds the person's LinkedIn for you, and lets you reach out by WhatsApp, email, or phone straight from the card. It's handy when the person you met is in a different country and a different timezone.
Quick facts
- Dates: November 9-12, 2026
- Venue: MEO Arena & FIL, Parque das Nações, Lisbon, Portugal
- Official site: websummit.com
Dates and venue checked against Web Summit's official site as of September 2026. Always confirm details there before you travel.