Uruguay strengthens its position as an innovation hub in Brazil

For the second year, Uruguay was present at Web Summit Rio, one of the leading technology events in Latin America. A delegation of more than 20 Uruguayan companies, with the support of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Uruguayan Chamber of Information Technology (CUTI), Uruguay Innovation Hub, and Uruguay XXI, created a new opportunity for the region to discover and learn about the benefits of developing their business in Uruguay, the business and innovation hub of Latin America. 

A few weeks after participating in South Summit Brazil with a delegation of more than 25 companies and startups, Uruguay redoubled its bet on the South American giant and returned to a world-class event with almost fifty participants. This delegation was one of the largest at the event and marked the importance of innovation, both in the public and private sectors. Over 40 Uruguayan companies disseminated their technological solutions between both participations. 

The number of inquiries received from Brazilians and entrepreneurs of other nationalities underlined the excellent positioning of the Uruguayan brand abroad as a reliable investment destination and innovation hub.

“Uruguay has established itself as the ideal gateway for Brazilian companies seeking to internationalize and explore international markets. Our legislation, business climate, openness to innovation, and global mindset of being born thinking about exporting are very attractive and have fostered an environment conducive to collaboration and establishing strong business ties with Brazil,” said the executive director of Uruguay XXI, Sebastián Risso. 

Participation in Web Summit Rio allowed the country’s institutions to consolidate their link with the organizers through a meeting of the Uruguayan delegation, which included the CEO of Web Summit, Paddy Cosgrave. Subsequently, Risso met with Web Summit’s Country Manager for Portugal and Brazil, Artur Pereira. 

Uruguay has participated in Web Summit activities since 2019, with events in Lisbon, Rio de Janeiro, and Toronto.

This year, Rio de Janeiro hosts the G20 summit, and in this context, the Startup20 initiative emerged. This working group is dedicated to promoting collaboration in technology and innovation among G20 countries. Organized by ABStartups, the Brazilian startup association, Startup20 represents a joint effort, and Uruguay was invited to participate in its meetings.

To increase inter-institutional cooperation, Uruguay XXI and InvestRío signed a Memorandum of Understanding to strengthen relations and create reciprocal investment opportunities through the internationalization of Uruguayan and Carioca companies.