More than 40,000 people have attended the largest in-person tech gathering to be held in Portugal's capital Lisbon since the outbreak of the pandemic.

Web Summit 2021 is regarded as one the biggest and most important tech events in the world. Among its opening speakers was Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen, whose revelations about the tech giant's inaction against hate speech and its role in promoting toxic content was so damaging to the company.

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Tight Security in Lisbon

The event has been sold out for weeks and is being held amid tight security and thorough checks for COVID-19.

Founded in 2009, Web Summit originally took place in Dublin before moving to its current home, Lisbon in 2016. It's a huge opportunity for people involved in the tech industry to network. And as such, it brings together representatives from big tech companies such as Facebook and Amazon and also the smaller start-ups, allowing them to speak to various investors and industry insiders.

No substitute for face-to-face gatherings

CGTN Europe spoke to Dan Burgar, the co-founder of Shape Immersive, a company that specialises in virtual reality technology. 

He said after the 2020 Web Summit, which was a virtual affair due to the pandemic, going back to an in-person gathering was hugely important.

"Even though I work in virtual reality, I really feel that human connection is not something that you can replace. Being able to chat with someone beside you, have drinks together, being able to connect in a new country together – it's unique, it's something you can't replicate even in the virtual world.”

As well as networking, the other main aspect of Web Summit 2021 is the big names invited to speak at the conference.

In the past, guest speakers have included former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair and U2 frontman Bono.

This year, former soccer World Cup winner Thierry Henry and former UK deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg will be among the keynote speakers.

Tough questions for Facebook

Clegg's speech on Tuesday will be particularly interesting as he is now Vice President of Global Affairs and Communications at Facebook (now rebranded as Meta) and is his opportunity to respond to Haugen's accusations.