Brad Smith. Portugal is a great place for an “initialization” to start life
“I remember when Microsoft started in Portugal, it was part of the early days of Microsoft’s business and life in Portugal“, recalled Brad Smith, when asked about his vision of the country of a company that marks several years in the Portuguese market.
“The first thing I would like to say is that it is remarkable to see how much has changed in Portugal, how vibrant the technology sector has become in Portugal.“, he continued in an interview with Lusa agency, giving the example of the Web Summit, which ends this Thursday in Lisbon.
“See how the Web Summit itself fits in today in Portugal“, highlighted Brad Smith. Currently,”we have 2,000 employees in Portugal and I remember when Microsoft had two“he commented, a smile.
“I think Portugal has become a great place for a ‘startup’ to start their life“considered, note that the country has also become a”great place to hire talented people“
And, added, “it’s not just in Lisbon “but in” multiple cities and towns in Portugal“
Exiting the Pandemic with Portugal
Brad Smith stressed that all countries are trying to figure out how to get out of the covid-19 pandemic and how to adapt to the future.
“How do we adapt to a variety of different economic challenges and those that are present here,” he said.
Nonetheless, “I think if you look at the long term, in a way, the most fundamental ingredient for any country is its talent.“, he stressed.
In this sense, “Portugal has become a place and has a great homegrown talent in terms of people who are born here.“how it became”a welcoming home for talent from the rest of Europe and beyond“, he stressed.
“I think it is a very magical combination for the future of Portugal”, elaborated the president of Microsoft.
Europe must ensure that industries use technology to be competitive
Microsoft President Brad Smith argues that the most important thing for Europe is to “ensure that all industries” in which it is strong “use a technology to become even more” competitive.
“And then think about technology policy through those lenses as well as all the others,” he added, saying lawmakers are already doing.
Compared to Europe and the United States, Brad Smith finds it important to stop and think about technology and the role it plays and the different types of technology companies.
Biden and the technological relationship with China
The Joe Biden administration should be able to pay more attention to technology with China in 2022, after a first year at the White House in which it had to focus on issues such as fighting the pandemic and economic recovery, said Brad Smith.
“I think we’ll see this in 2022, but until we do it frankly we have a substantial amount of uncertainty over time, and some things become more urgent“, he added.
The president of Microsoft classified the recent meeting between the heads of diplomacy of the two countries as a positive step, but added that the company would like to see more progress, in a dialogue that has to move from the conceptual to the concrete.
“We need to have a greater joint understanding of what companies in each country can do in the other. We’re not there yet today, we need more progress“he explained.
Environmental commitments such as those agreed at COP26 are crucial, but better systems are needed to assess progress in sustainability so as not to run the risk of missing targets, Microsoft’s president said.
Smith skipped three encouraging signs he identified at another summit he visited last weekend, the environmental COP26 in Glasgow.
“First, people recognize that they need to do more and do it faster, and I think that’s the first step to really making better progress.“, he said.
Second, the president of Microsoft pointed out that there are increasingly strong commitments, citing a 30% reduction in methane base by 2030, compared to 2020, signed by more than 100 countries, and others around forestry, forestry and reforestation.
“These kinds of promises are essential, but thirdly in a way what encouraged me the most was the less colorful or dramatic aspect, everyone wanted to talk about how we will measure progress“he explained.