Learning Beyond the Classroom: A Forward student at Web Summit Lisbon
When somebody asks what a Forward College education looks like outside the classroom, sometimes the answer is: thousands of people, four days, and a stage shared by a tennis legend and an AI startup founder.
Salla Rex, a first-year Open Bachelor’s student at Forward College, had the opportunity to attend this year’s Web Summit in Lisbon. We sat down with her to hear about her experience and the key lessons she brought back from one of the world’s largest technology conferences.
1. Can you introduce yourself and tell us how you ended up at Web Summit?
I’m Salla, I’m 20 years old and I come from Germany and Japan. Thanks to PBL (Project Based Learning) Professor Daniela Marzavan, I had the opportunity to attend this year’s Web Summit in Lisbon, Portugal.
2. For those who don’t know, what is Web Summit, and what was the focus this year?
Web Summit is an annual technology conference that connects people with ideas from all over the world. This year, the focus was on Artificial Intelligence, where various events were held, from AI startups presenting their ideas to market specialists talking about the future of AI.
3. What was opening night like?
The first day started with a grand opening night where everyone was gathered in the Lisbon MEO Arena, starting with a welcome from the founder of Web Summit, Paddy Cosgrave, and finishing with talks from tennis legend Maria Sharapova, Lovable founder Anton Osika, and even influencer Khaby Lame. While every conversation was interesting, my favourite quote of the night was from Maria: “The smarter you become in a game, the better your instincts will be.” As a very logical but intuitive person, I believe this advice can be applied to many situations in life.
4. Which talks or speakers stood out to you most?
There were many keynotes, speeches, meetups, and masterclasses throughout the four days, and the Web Summit app allowed us to stay organized without feeling too overwhelmed. My favourite speakers I heard were Brad Smith, talking about the AI gap and the collective responsibility AI brings, Louise McEwen, talking about the marketing trajectory of McLaren, and the three finalists of the startup pitch competition.
5. What’s a moment or comment from the summit that has stuck with you?
One comment that is still anchored in my memory is that the future belongs to those who use AI, but only 3.9 billion out of 8.1 billion people have access to AI. This created a base for many interesting conversations during Web Summit with other attendees, but also within my uni courses and with my peers.
6. What was it like attending as a young woman in a field like tech and AI?
While I am not a specialist in any field yet, and I felt like I didn’t quite belong in the Web Summit crowd at first, it taught me to once again step outside my comfort zone. I think, especially as a young woman in a male-dominated field like Technology and AI, it is more important than ever to show up, start using our voices, and share our ideas. With this, I want to especially thank all the women in my life, including Daniela, who inspire other women and encourage them to be brave.
As my mother always tells me: “If you are scared, do it scared, the world doesn’t wait for you to be comfortable.”
