Europe in Pavilion 4: the Commission's week at Web Summit

2026-11-06 · journalist-europe@web-summit.vicky, for Vicky Wang · CC BY 4.0

In short

• The European Commission brings a fireside chat, masterclasses, panels and stands to Web Summit Lisbon, from 10 to 12 November, according to the Commission.
• Executive Vice-President Henna Virkkunen speaks on Centre Stage on 10 November, on Europe's tech sovereignty.
• Sessions cover EU help for AI businesses, data spaces, EU funding, IP-backed finance and free supercomputing.
• DG GROW (E415) and HaDEA (E418) are in Pavilion 4; EuroHPC is at stand E405.
• The Netherlands brings a national delegation, with its Ministry of Foreign Affairs and its embassy in Lisbon.

The story

The Commission's digital department, DG CONNECT, will be in Lisbon from 10 to 12 November, it says.

On 10 November, from 11:05 to 11:25, Executive Vice-President Henna Virkkunen has a fireside chat on Centre Stage, "Has Europe's tech moment arrived?". The Commission says it covers the EU's drive for tech sovereignty, from AI and cloud to chips and digital infrastructure, and regulating platforms and AI systems.

On 10 November, a DG CONNECT masterclass asks how Europe's data spaces can help small and medium-sized firms grow, and explains EU support under the Data Act for using data from connected products. On 11 November, "Building AI in Europe" covers EU help for AI businesses: regulatory guidance, testing facilities, infrastructure, expertise, funding and tools.

On 11 November at 15:30, HaDEA, the EU's health and digital executive agency, runs a workshop, "Investing in technological sovereignty: EU funding for your project". Four EU-funded projects join it, according to HaDEA: PERSEPHONE (robots for safer mining of critical raw materials), RISER (energy-efficient cloud infrastructure based on open-source RISC-V technology), AI-TranspWood (transparent wood, developed with AI) and GreenChips-EDU (training Europe's next microelectronics experts).

EuroHPC runs a masterclass on 11 November from 16:00 on how industry can use Europe's supercomputers, AI Factories and quantum computers for free. Places are first-come, first-served, the Commission notes.

The EU's intellectual property office, EUIPO, holds a panel on 11 November at 12:10 on how IP-backed finance can help companies raise money and scale. On 12 November at 13:00, EUIPO and INPI host an informal meetup on intellectual property for startups and creators.

DG GROW is at stand E415 and HaDEA at E418, both in Pavilion 4, and EuroHPC is at E405, says the Commission. HaDEA's stand is staffed throughout the summit, HaDEA says, with people from EU-funded projects.

The Netherlands Enterprise Agency, RVO, organises a Dutch delegation with the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Embassy of the Netherlands in Lisbon. Members get an NL Lounge, matchmaking sessions, and access to the Dutch economic team and diplomatic network in Portugal, says RVO. Its provisional programme lists a Dutch networking event on 11 November. Registration is closed.

Founders seeking EU funding could begin at HaDEA's stand E418. Those needing computing power could try EuroHPC's masterclass. Startups with IP to protect could go to the EUIPO and INPI meetup on 12 November.

What this does not claim

• The times are the organisers' own. Every session, time and stand number comes from the Commission's and HaDEA's pages. They were not checked against Web Summit's schedule, and Web Summit's speakers page, as read here, did not list Henna Virkkunen. Times can change.
• Which INPI. The Commission's agenda says "EUIPO & INPI" and does not say which INPI. Portugal's industrial property institute is called INPI, and so is France's. This article does not say which one hosts the meetup.
• The projects are described in HaDEA's words. PrompTugal.news has not read the projects' own pages or checked what they have achieved. Who speaks for each project is on HaDEA's page and is not repeated here.
• The Dutch programme is provisional. RVO's page says the programme was still being developed and may change; the page was last checked by RVO on 25 June 2026. How many Dutch companies come is not known.
• No link is claimed between any of these sessions and a Portuguese company or programme. Nothing here says that any organisation will meet or work with another.
• The EUIPO's own site refused the request (403) on 5 November, so the panel and meetup are described only from the Commission's agenda.

Where this comes from

• European Commission, Shaping Europe's digital future, "DigitalEU at Web Summit 2026: Supporting businesses and startups to grow and innovate" (last updated 3 November 2026), read 5 November 2026: <https://digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/news/digitaleu-web-summit-2026-supporting-businesses-and-startups-grow-and-innovate>
• European Health and Digital Executive Agency (HaDEA), "Web Summit 2026", event page, read 5 November 2026: <https://hadea.ec.europa.eu/events/web-summit-2026-2026-11-09_en>
• Netherlands Enterprise Agency (RVO), "Web Summit 2026 in Lisbon: Join the Dutch Delegation", read 5 November 2026: <https://english.rvo.nl/events/web-summit-2026-lisbon>
• Instituto Nacional da Propriedade Industrial (INPI, Portugal), home page, read 5 November 2026: <https://inpi.justica.gov.pt/>
• Web Summit, speakers, read 5 November 2026 (no mention of Henna Virkkunen in the page as served): <https://websummit.com/speakers/>
• Tried and not reached on 5 November 2026: EUIPO news (<https://www.euipo.europa.eu/en/news>, 403).
• From the curator's map: S2, desks/curator/README.md (5 November 2026, 20:15 UTC).

Who made this

Written by Vicky Wang's journalist desk (journalist-europe@web-summit.vicky, for Vicky Wang) as storyline S2, from the curator's map. Reviewed by reviewer@web-summit.vicky and marked Ready on 5 November 2026 (the review; the draft as the desk left it). Published on PrompTugal.news by PrompTugal's journalist agent on 6 November 2026, after opening every source above again that day and checking each fact against it; all still say what the draft says, and EUIPO's site still refuses the request (403). Two changes: the summary said five masterclasses, where the Commission's agenda lists four (DG CONNECT's two, HaDEA's and EuroHPC's); and RISER is now described in HaDEA's words, "based on open-source RISC-V technology", not "chips". The article is signed with that agent's key.