Investors only · Wed 11 Nov

Web Summit got rained out. Wet Summit is on.

The storm may have closed the venue. It hasn't closed the conversation. A group of investors is taking over a room in Lisbon for one honest, unscripted day: you pitch the topics, the room picks them, small groups dig in, and everyone reports back.

Wed 11 November10:00–19:00Garagem da Vizinha by WOTELSBusiness casual
Claim a seat See the day

Not a conference hall. A room full of people who write cheques, talking about what they actually think.

Three days of panels can tell you what people say on stage. This is the other part: the conversation after the panel, with the people who were in the audience.

It runs as an unconference. Nobody is booked to speak. Anyone can pitch a topic in sixty seconds, the room votes, and the board becomes the day. We work in small groups, then each group gives the whole room five minutes: what we concluded, where we disagreed, and what we'd do differently on Monday.

When
Wed 11 Nov10:00 to 19:00. Come for the morning topic market; that's where the day is decided.
Where
Garagem da Vizinhaby WOTELS, Rua Pedro Nunes 10, Lisbon (Saldanha). Open in Maps
Who
Investors onlyAngels, VCs, LPs, family offices and corporate investors.
Format
UnconferenceTopic market, three rounds of small groups, five-minute read-outs, drinks.
Dress
Business casualAnd a raincoat.
How it works

You bring the agenda

  1. Pitch a topic

    Sixty seconds, one card. A question you're wrestling with, not your fund or your portfolio.

  2. The room votes

    Three dots each. The most wanted topics become the board: three rounds of parallel groups.

  3. Work it in a group

    Five to eight people, sixty minutes, one scribe, one presenter. Move groups whenever you like.

  4. Five honest minutes

    Every group reports back: conclusion, disagreements, three takeaways, one open question.

Anchor topics

Six questions to start the board

Taken from Web Summit's own programme, most of them scheduled for Wednesday. They're on the wall when you arrive. Pick them, merge them, or pitch something better.

The 10-person unicorn

If the next hire isn't human, what are we actually underwriting at pre-seed and seed: the team, distribution, data, or speed?

From the agenda: "The 10-Person Unicorn: Who Builds It First?" · Wed 10:15

Moats after the next model

Which AI companies get better when the model gets better, and which get eaten? Is AI flattening the market or concentrating it?

From the agenda: "Is AI flattening the tech market or concentrating it?" · Wed 14:40 · "Rethinking risk, moats, and value in VC" · Tue

The DPI drought

Exits take longer and LPs want cash back. Secondaries, continuation funds, earlier M&A: what's working, and what does it mean for angels?

From the agenda: "Where capital is flowing in 2026, and why" · Wed 13:45 · "Your exit starts now" · Tue

Capital beyond equity

Robotics, chips and industrial AI need capex that venture can't fund alone. Debt, grants, sovereign money, customers as financiers: who funds Europe's hard tech?

From the agenda: "Capital beyond equity" · Wed 14:45 · "Putting the silicon back in Silicon Valley" · Wed 13:30

Angels together

Syndicates, community funds and angel networks: how do individual investors get access, share diligence and stay disciplined?

From the agenda: "Community-driven investments meetup" · Wed 13:30 · "Redefining what is investable" · Wed 14:00

Zero-billion-dollar markets

What industries don't exist yet but will by 2030, and how do you back a market before it has a name?

From the agenda: "Investing in zero billion dollar markets" · Wed 10:50

The day

Wednesday, 10:00 to 19:00

  1. Doors and coffeeName tags carry a first name and one question you came with.
  2. WelcomeWhy we're here, the house rules, how the day works.
  3. Topic marketSixty-second topic pitches, then a dot vote. The six anchors are already on the wall.
  4. The board goes upTopics become groups. Each group picks a scribe and a presenter.
  5. Round 1Sixty minutes in small groups.
  6. Lunch at one long tableThe best conversations happen here anyway.
  7. Round 2New topics, new groups.
  8. Break
  9. Round 3Last round. Pick the topic you've been arguing about at lunch.
  10. Prepare the read-outsOne page per group: what we concluded, where we disagreed, three takeaways, one open question.
  11. Read-outsFive minutes per group, two minutes of questions. Strict clock.
  12. DrinksThe board stays up. Sign up to carry a topic forward after Lisbon.
  13. Close
House rules

Five, and we mean them

  1. Pitch topics, not companiesIdeas only. Nobody sells their fund or their portfolio today.
  2. Chatham HouseUse everything you hear. Never say who said it.
  3. Say what you actually thinkDisagreement is the point. Polite consensus is a wasted hour.
  4. Law of two feetNot learning or contributing? Move to another group. No offence taken.
  5. Leave with one takeawayEvery group reports back. Every guest leaves with the read-outs.
Who's in

People who write cheques

  • Angels
  • Angel networks & syndicates
  • VCs
  • LPs & funds of funds
  • Family offices
  • Corporate investors

Founders, not this time. We love you, and that's why there are no pitches today. Places are limited by the room, so sign-up asks which fund or network you invest through.

Questions

Fair questions

What if Web Summit opens after all?

The hosts will message everyone who signed up on Luma before 08:30 on Wednesday to say whether we're still on.

Do I need to prepare anything?

One question you'd like a room of investors to help you think through. That's your topic pitch, if you want to give one. Pitching is optional; joining is not.

Can I come for part of the day?

Yes, but be there at 10:45 if you can: the topic market decides the day. The read-outs from 16:20 are the other part worth not missing.

Is it recorded?

No. Chatham House rule. The groups' one-page read-outs are shared with attendees afterwards, without names.

Can I bring a colleague?

If they're an investor, ask them to sign up on Luma too. Places are limited, so every guest needs their own sign-up.