Reinforcing its commitment to technology and innovation, yesterday, the 6th of May, Turismo de Portugal inaugurated the largest Technology-Based Incubation Centre (TBIC) aimed at the tourism sector. The event took place on the campus of the Estoril School of Hospitality and Tourism and was chaired by the Minister of Economy, Pedro Reis. In attendance were the Secretary of State for Tourism, Pedro Machado, the President of Turismo de Portugal, Carlos Abade, and the Mayor of Cascais, Carlos Carreiras.
Comprising three fully-equipped floors, the TBIC, which will be co-managed by NEST – Tourism Innovation Centre, has offices, co-working spaces, technology rooms, pop-up rooms, equipment and research laboratories, all to support the creation and training of new companies and new business models for the tourism sector.
In addition to leveraging all the knowledge, research and innovation produced in the Estoril Campus ecosystem, the TBIC will have the ability to interconnect it with the existing network in the region through strategic partnerships in the fields of education, research and innovation, with NEST as one of the most important drivers of the space.
It targets the community of entrepreneurs and their start-ups, with a special focus on recent graduates working towards the development of the sector. By stimulating an entrepreneurial culture, the TBIC's primary goal is talent retention, training future entrepreneurs and subsequently facilitating their integration into the market.
The TBIC represents an investment of 3.4 million euros, with funding of 1.17 million from the Lisbon Operational Programme. It will be an important instrument in the construction of what is the future of tourism in Portugal and in strengthening its competitiveness. Turismo de Portugal is one of the eight founding members of NEST. The others are ANA Aeroportos de Portugal, Brisa Via Verde, Google, Microsoft, Millennium BCP, NOS and BPI.
The session also included the intervention Empowering People with AI, by Manuel Dias, Microsoft National Director of Technology.
Watch the video of the session on Turismo de Portugal's YouTube channel.
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