Ireland's Enterprise Minister Richard Bruton, TD, with Dublin Web Summit founder Paddy Cosgrave
The Dublin Web Summit reckons it will contribute €12m to the Irish economy over the two days it takes place at Dublin’s RDS as well as the F.ounders event on Friday.
Dubbed the ‘Davos for Geeks’, founder Paddy Cosgrave said the event will host a mix of 4,000 Irish and international delegates.
Over the next two days, hundreds of venture capitalists, managing billions of dollars in funds, will hold 500 meetings, while 500 start-ups will take part in what is now the largest gathering of start-ups outside of the US.
Keynote speakers at the Dublin Web Summit include Niklas Zennström, founder of Skype; Mike McCue, founder of Flipboard; Victoria Ransom, founder of Wildfire; Michael Acton Smith, founder of Mind Candy/ Moshi Monsters; Paul Sciarra, founder of Pinterest and now entrepreneur in residence at Andreessen Horowitz; and Barry Sonnenfeld, director, Men In Black. In addition, the summit will also feature speakers from Microsoft, Google and Facebook.
Over the next two days, investors from Google Ventures, KPCB, Accel, Atomico, Andreessen Horowitz and Greylock will meet with Irish and international start-ups.
“We’ve given start-ups the best possible platform, these funds manage billions of dollars and they’re all looking to invest. The summit is a great opportunity for start-ups,” added Cosgrave.
Ireland’s Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation Richard Bruton, TD, commended Cosgrave and his team on putting together the world standard event.
“The technology sector is a hugely important part of the transformation that is occurring in the Irish economy, and over 5,000 new jobs have been added in the sector since March 2011,” Bruton said.
