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Paddy Cosgrave

Paddy Cosgrave is an Irish entrepreneur best known as the co-founder and CEO of Web Summit, one of the largest technology conferences in the world. He established the event in 2009, initially organizing it from his bedroom. Under his leadership, Web Summit has grown significantly, attracting over 70,000 attendees in recent years and becoming a prominent platform for tech innovation and networking.

In October 2023, Cosgrave resigned from his position amid controversy following a social media post in which he accused Israel of committing war crimes during the conflict with Hamas. His comments led to backlash from several major tech companies, including Google and Amazon, which withdrew from the conference. After a six-month hiatus, during which he reflected on his experiences and the future direction of Web Summit, Cosgrave returned as CEO in April 2024. He expressed a desire to focus on building community and fostering innovation at the event.1234

Highlights

Apr 20 · twitter

We’ve hired 58 people since January 2026, and today we’re announcing another wave of over 50 new jobs in Dublin and Lisbon across our sales, engineering, speakers, investors, growth and startup teams.

We’ve two new incredible offices in Dublin City centre, and are hunting for a third. If you’d like to work in an office with other human beings, travel the world, and help build Web Summit, get in touch.

We’re looking for Mandarin speakers in particular to work in our Dublin and Lisbon offices, and across a range of roles. Oh and any journalist looking for a new role, we’re hiring.

We’ve hired 58 people since January 2026, and today we’re announcing another wave of over 50 new job
Apr 12 · twitter

Let’s not forget, the guy on the right caused fuel costs to spiral. While the guy on the left has done absolutely nothing to address those spiralling fuel costs. https://t.co/oKbphPgCyK

Let’s not forget, the guy on the right caused fuel costs to spiral. While the guy on the left has do
Apr 10 · euronews.com
Web Summit CEO Paddy Cosgrave confirms his return after Israel ...
Apr 8 · aljazeera.com
Paddy Cosgrave returns to Web Summit after resigning over Israel ...
Apr 8 · nypost.com
Paddy Cosgrave back as Web Summit CEO, no comment on Israel ...
Paddy Cosgrave returns as Web Summit CEO after resigning over ...
Apr 8 · reuters.com
Web Summit CEO returns six months after resigning | Reuters
Apr 8 · twitter.com
Paddy Cosgrave on X: "Today I'm returning as CEO of ...

Related Questions

What inspired Paddy Cosgrave to start Web Summit?
How did Paddy Cosgrave's comments about Israel impact Web Summit's reputation?
What are Paddy Cosgrave's future plans for Web Summit?
How did the tech industry react to Paddy Cosgrave's return as CEO?
What changes does Paddy Cosgrave plan to implement at Web Summit?
Paddy Cosgrave
Paddy Cosgrave, photo 1
Paddy Cosgrave, photo 2
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Location

Ireland