ith two very different worlds, the MWC and 4 Years From Now (4YFN). In the first, large multinationals display their power with luxurious stands, while in its little brother emerging companies full of enthusiasm appear in search of some great opportunity. For six years they were clearly differentiated because the 4YFN took place in a fairground in Montjuïc, separate from the gigantic Gran Via de l'Hospitalet venue. Now, when the little brother turns ten years old, he shows that he has taken a growth spurt and has grown up, especially since he lives with the MWC, which for its part has already been in Barcelona for 18 years, where he arrived as a small meeting of the employers' association. of mobile telephony and has ended up becoming the great international meeting point of the digital ecosystem.
Although 4YFN is now fully integrated into the MWC, at first it was a parallel activity promoted by Mobile World Capital Barcelona, the foundation created 12 years ago so that the congress would leave a legacy in the city beyond the four days it lasts. As the years went by, 4YFN gained weight and synergies arose spontaneously. Visitors from large multinationals in their suits and ties dropped by the entrepreneurs' lounge when they had some time on the second or third day of the congress to see new perspectives for the future from young people in short-sleeved t-shirts even though it was the end of February. .
The GSMA soon realized the potential, acquired the hall when it had already become a success, and ended up incorporating it into the MWC. The transfer was carried out in an experimental way coinciding with the most decaffeinated edition of the congress, that of 2021, when traveling was impossible and PCR tests were carried out every 48 hours on the attendees, all of them nearby and wearing masks. That strange year, 4YFN clearly became the most dynamic place at the congress. It was then that he earned an irreplaceable place at the MWC, even if things returned to normal. And so it has been.
The motto of the event is very eloquent – “Powering startups” – but what is even more evident is that 4YFN itself has received a good boost. “It will be bigger, better than ever,” celebrates the hall's director, Pere Duran. It will occupy the two floors of pavilion 8 of Fira Gran Via, a space that had never attracted large masses of congressmen until 4YFN was installed on the upper floor. This year it will occupy the upper and lower ones, with more than 800 international startups – in the first edition there were about 150 –, four networking spaces and seven stages designed to bring together the most powerful names in the emerging digital ecosystem.
This year's event is, in a way, the culmination of a decade of growth, a period that has seen 4,500 exhibitors and 180,000 attendees, including entrepreneurs and investors, but also recently graduated students in search of their first job and talent scouts who aspire to make big signings. “We will look to the past to see everything we have learned during these ten years of 4YFN history with the great growth of startups, the emergence of unicorns... and, of course, we will also look to the future, to what has to happen in the next decade,” summarizes Duran.
In this sense, artificial intelligence plays a fundamental role. “It is going to have as much impact as electricity had 100 years ago, and the democratization of technology makes it a basic product that startups from all sectors are benefiting from,” considers Sara Bisbe, co-founder and technical director of AI at Aily. Labs, one of the companies participating in the show, where companies seeking to turn traditional industries around through innovative solutions with investors who will make it possible come together.
Fund representatives looking for innovative proposals also have artificial intelligence between their eyebrows, but not only that. Sébastien Lefebvre, partner at the venture capital company Elaia, also points to large language models and quantum computing, “which as they continue to develop will open up new possibilities for climate simulations and the discovery of new drugs,” he gives as an example.
The coexistence of the MWC and the 4YFN in the same exhibition center favors relations between both worlds, so different, which is also a demonstration of the evolution of the entrepreneurial ecosystem, which can now afford to rub shoulders with large companies. Spontaneous synergies also greatly benefit local companies that come to the congress under the umbrella of administrations, research centers, incubators and associations such as Tech Barcelona. The showcase and the relationships they have with international clients for four days are in many cases decisive for their immediate future.
The talks also play a fundamental role as inspiration for attendees with very diverse profiles. Featured speakers this year range from Nigel Toon, a leading figure in artificial intelligence and CEO of Graphcore, to retired basketball player Pau Gasol in his role as president of the foundation that bears his name, and Gasol16 Ventures, the vehicle that brings together all your business activity.
