Thousands of investors, corporations, startups and technology experts from around the globe will convene in Barcelona in November for the Barcelona Deep Tech Summit, a three-day summit that promotes science and technology-based entrepreneurship.
Taking place on November 4-6 at Fira de Barcelona’s Gran Via venue, the summit will be held alongside the Smart City Expo World Congress, one of the world’s largest urban innovation conferences.
Barcelona Activa, which promotes the city’s economic development which includes a number of programs geared at next generation entrepreneurship, will host Deep Tech Summit which aims to connect innovative startups with forward thinking investors and corporate partners.
Furthermore, deep tech ecosystem influencers from countries such as Canada, Sweden, Portugal, France, and Italy, among others, will also be in attendance, linking the city’s vibrant technology ecosystem to the broader global scene.
In recent years, as international trade dynamics have upended traditional technology sources, Europe is increasingly making a play to be a competitor in deep tech, including artificial intelligence.
In April, the European Commission presented its AI continent action plan, which included an investment of 200 million euro to boost AI development.
In line with broader European goals, the Barcelona Deep Tech Summit aims to help make the city a hub for innovation in southern Europe. The summit counts an advisory board chaired by Raquel Gil, the Fifth Deputy Mayor of Barcelona, and comprises 14 representatives from the world of investment, technology transfer, technology-based entrepreneurship, and leading institutions from Spain, France, Italy, Portugal, the United Kingdom, and the European Commission itself.
What can you see at Barcelona Deep Tech Summit 2025?
Organizers have brought together a host of speakers to debate themes like securing the future of life on our planet, computing and technological sovereignty, and bringing leading-edge innovations to mass markets.
They’ve brought together over 90 internationally recognized technology and business experts from the private, public and academic sectors.
A few keynote speakers include:
Michael Jackson, Venture Capitalist: Originally from the United States, Michael Jackson is an entrepreneur and investor based in Paris. He serves as a venture partner at Wilbe, Multiple Capital, and sits on advisory boards at QAI Ventures and Redstone.
Zayna Khayat, Health Futurist: As an Adjunct Professor and Executive in Residence for Health Sector Strategy at the University of Toronto’s Rotman School of Management, Zayna Khayat is helping to envision the future of healthcare technology. With decades of experience helping promote innovation in healthcare, she also serves as Health Futurist in Residence for Deloitte, and as Chief Program Officer and Managing Director for the History & Future of Healthcare programme from AMS Healthcare, one of Canada’s largest health non-profits.
John Elkington, Author & Entrepreneur: Known as a global authority on corporate responsibility and sustainable capitalism, John Elkington has authored over 20 books including the Green Consumer Guide and The Power of Unreasonable People: How Social Entrepreneurs Create Markets That Change the World. He is also the founder of Volans, a consultancy that helps corporations become more sustainable. A visiting professor to universities including Imperial College and University College London (UCL), Elkington is also a member of the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) Council of Ambassadors.
Alicia Asín Pérez, co-founder, Libelium: From Zaragoza, Spain, Alicia Asín Pérez is the co-founder of Libelium, which has designed a platform to coordinate sensors, communications protocols, and other inputs related to IoT on the cloud. She’s also a member of the World Economic Forum’s Council on Connected World (former Global IoT Council), and is also an advisor and author on the subject of connectivity and digital footprints.
Robin Wauters, founder, startup icon: Robin Wauters is the founder and CEO of Profoundo, a boutique strategic communications agency servicing European deep tech companies and investors. He was earlier an editor at TechCrunch and TheNextWeb, and founded Tech.eu, a media house covering technology news from the continent. Wauters is a former member of the World Economic Forum’s Digital Leaders of Europe, and a founding member of Syndicate One, which invests into early-stage Belgian startups.
Barcelona as a tech hub
As the EU aims to decrease its dependence on critical technologies like AI and semiconductors, it is increasingly looking to its own technology hubs to step up.
In this context, deep tech is emerging as a strategic sector with high potential for global transformation, and Barcelona enjoys a privileged environment with some of the most robust ecosystems in Europe.
The city features five high-level universities, such as the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (UPC), the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB), the University of Barcelona (UB), the Universitat Pompeu Fabra (UPF), and the Barcelona International University of Catalonia (UIC).
It also counts research centers such as the Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology (composed of seven research centers), the Barcelona Supercomputing Center, the Alba Synchrotron, the National Center for Genomic Analysis, the Barcelona Science Park, and more than 340 deep tech startups that have raised €544 million between 2019 and 2024, positioning the city as the leading European hub for funding in this sector.