Hamas’s attack on Israel on October 7 and Israel’s subsequent retaliation have resulted in the loss of numerous civilian lives over the past week and a half. The violence shows no signs of subsiding. While much of the public conversation has revolved around the devastation and casualties on both sides, one CEO has taken a definitive stance: Paddy Cosgrave, the CEO of Web Summit, firmly opposed Israel’s actions (although he has since clarified his position).
On October 7, Cosgrave shared a graphic on X (formerly Twitter) comparing the number of Palestinian and Israeli deaths from 2008 to 2023. However, he failed to include a disclaimer indicating that the graphic did not account for the fallout from Hamas’s attack. The post has since been deleted. Nearly a week after the horrific attack, Cosgrave expressed “shock” at world leaders who refused to denounce Israel’s “war crimes.” US President Joe Biden, for example, stated that Israel has the right to respond and pinned that tweet to his page. However, Yaron Samid, the founder and chief of TechAviv, likened Cosgrave’s omission of Hamas’s brutality to “forgetting to mention 9/11 when condemning the US for killing civilians when retaliating against Al Qaeda.” Additionally, it’s important to note that Hamas, the ruling party in the Palestinian territory, is designated as a terrorist organization by the US, the UK, and other countries.
Nine days after the attack and likely succumbing to public pressure, Cosgrave referred to Hamas’s actions as “outrageous and disgusting.” However, within hours, he reaffirmed that he would not stop calling out Israel’s “war crimes.” On October 17, he issued a comprehensive apology, acknowledging the profound hurt caused by his words. He expressed deep regret that his statements hurt Web Summit’s friends in Israel and the country’s tech firms. He clarified that Web Summit has a longstanding partnership with Israel and its tech industry.
Nevertheless, the damage may have already been done. Over the past week, LinkedIn and X have been flooded with posts about founders and investors dissociating themselves from Web Summit, a 70,000-person flagship tech event set to take place in Lisbon next month. Members of Israel’s significant tech industry, which accounts for one-fifth of the nation’s economic output, are severing ties with the conference. For instance, Ori Goshen, the co-founder and co-CEO of Tel Aviv-based AI21 Labs, announced on LinkedIn that he would not “give the keynote” at the event due to the “indecency and moral bankruptcy” he perceives. Dor Shapira, the ambassador of Israel to Portugal, informed the mayor of Lisbon that Israel will not participate in the event. He mentioned that dozens of companies have already canceled their participation, and more are being encouraged to follow suit.
International tech community members are also withdrawing from the event in solidarity. Ravi Gupta, a partner at venture capital firm Sequoia, decided against attending, while California-based payroll provider Deel withdrew as a sponsor. Some have declared their intention to avoid the Web Summit not only in 2023 but indefinitely. Notably, longtime fintech entrepreneur and former Meta executive David Marcus shared that he would never attend, sponsor, or speak at another Web Summit event.
Keith Rabois, a partner at Founders Fund and entrepreneur, went a step further by stating that he would “refuse to work with anyone who speaks at this conference in Qatar for the rest of my career.” It is worth mentioning that the event in question will take place in Qatar. Josh Kopelman, the founder of First Round Capital, created a public spreadsheet to track Cosgrave’s liked tweets about Israel’s “mass murder” strategy and more. He suggested that Cosgrave may be acting as a mouthpiece for a Middle Eastern government. Kopelman shared a screenshot of an email from Cosgrave discussing the Qatari government’s involvement in the February 2024 Qatar conference, implying that the government is getting its money’s worth from Cosgrave. This revelation prompted Garry Tan, the head of Y Combinator, to cancel his appearance at the Web Summit.
On the day of Hamas’s attack, Cosgrave was in Doha, the capital city of Qatar, where a Web Summit conference is scheduled for February next year. Qatar has longstanding ties to Hamas. In 2012, the emir of Qatar became the first head of state to visit the Gaza Strip since Hamas took control in 2007 and pledged $400 million for infrastructure development. Two years later, Qatar was accused of harboring Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal in a US House hearing, which claimed that Qatar had openly financed Hamas.
Cosgrave acknowledged his connection to Qatar in his October 17 apology, highlighting US Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s gratitude to Qatar for their support during the crisis and in broader regional issues.
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