New Web Summit boss dismisses suggestion of Paddy Cosgrave’s influence on company

Web Summit chief executive Katherine Maher has dismissed suggestions that former chief executive and cofounder of the company Paddy Cosgrave retains any influence in the company. Addressing her first press conference at Web Summit in Lisbon on Wednesday, Ms Maher said her contact with Mr Cosgrave this week had been limited.

“Paddy has stepped back from the board and the CEO duties. He is not involved in the operations or governance of Web Summit,” Ms Maher said. “The only thing that I heard from Paddy this week is that he thought I’d done a good job. I haven’t otherwise spoken with him.”

Ms Maher said she met the former chief executive “exactly twice” before taking up the job as the head of the company. These meetings were during her previous appearance at the Lisbon event in 2019.

“The implication that there was some sort of personal relationship that would have allowed me to come into this role was frankly offensive and somewhat misogynistic,” Ms Maher said.

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She described a letter that Web Summit sent earlier this month to some Irish publications, seen by The Irish Times, regarding questions asked of the appointment process as a “reminder of obligations”.

[ AI the focus on first full day of Web Summit ]

The new chief executive emphasised the chance for a “fresh start” for the company, but Mr Cosgrave remained a topic of conversation at the event.

Ms Maher took over as chief executive of Web Summit at the end of October, shortly after Mr Cosgrave stepped down following comments he made on social media about Israel’s actions in Gaza. A number of high-profile sponsors pulled out of the event in the wake of the comments, including Intel, Siemens, Google and Amazon Web Services. Several speakers also withdrew, leaving the company with several holes to fill in its schedule.

However, Ms Maher rejected suggestions that the Lisbon event could not attract as many “relevant and meteoric speakers” as it had in previous years. “I think the number of individuals that are here this year, the amount of energy and excitement speaks to the relevance of Web Summit,” she said.

The former head of the Wikimedia Foundation, Ms Maher’s appointment has assuaged some of the concerns held by partners and attendees over Mr Cosgrave’s role in the company, in which he retains an 81 per cent stake. At the press conference, she said Mr Cosgrave had resigned because the matter had become a distraction from the event.

Ms Maher said the company had “conversations” with a number of partners, some of whom had reconsidered decisions to withdraw from the event.

“What we heard from those partners was that they felt as though the company had taken the right steps, had moved quickly, had appointed a new CEO that they had confidence in, and that meant that many of those who had initially expressed concerns are here on the floor today,” she said. “A few also determined that they were going to come back after telling us that they would pull out.”

However, she did not provide any names of the companies, citing confidentiality. Ms Maher said the company would also welcome the return of other previous partners, should they decide to re-engage with Web Summit.

“The line is always open, we’ve had really strong relationships over the past few years,” she said.