Hurree returns to Web Summit to make the case for human expertise in AI

By Hurree team 🕒 2 min read

Founder and CEO Aaron Gibson heads back to one of the world's biggest tech summits in Lisbon, joined by Nudge podcast host Phill Agnew and creator Dani Verdari.

Northern Ireland will once again have a voice on one of the world's biggest technology stages this November, as Belfast-based data company Hurree returns to Web Summit in Lisbon. Founder and CEO Aaron Gibson will speak at the conference for the second year running, bringing a message every business wrestling with AI needs to hear: the technology is only as good as the people using it.

Hurree made its Web Summit debut in 2025, when Aaron delivered a masterclass alongside Dan Bennett, Global Lead of Behavioural Science at Ogilvy Consulting UK, on how AI analytics and behavioural science can drive smarter decision-making. This year, the company returns with a bigger programme and a sharper message: a keynote, a masterclass with one of the UK's best-known marketing podcasters, and a special podcast recording with a creator followed by 5.5 million people.

Web Summit 2026 runs from 9 to 12 November at Lisbon's MEO Arena and FIL, and is expected to bring together more than 70,000 founders, investors, policymakers and international media.

On Tuesday 10 November, Aaron will lead a 45-minute masterclass fireside with Phill Agnew, host of Nudge, the UK's #1 marketing podcast. Phill has interviewed some of the biggest names in behavioural science and marketing, from Rory Sutherland to Chris Voss, and is known for turning complex psychology into ideas people can use straight away. Together they will explore the human advantage in marketing: why people still value effort, authenticity and honesty, and how brands can use AI without losing what makes them worth choosing. Attendees can expect real examples and practical takeaways they can bring straight back to their own teams.

On Wednesday 11 November, Aaron will deliver a keynote on "The Intelligence Paradox: Why greater AI power makes human expertise more valuable." His argument is simple: the race to collect the most AI tools isn't the one that will set companies apart. The organisations pulling ahead are the ones doing the unglamorous groundwork that others skip, choosing tools carefully, training their people properly and keeping human expertise at the centre of every critical decision. For anyone who has felt the pressure to "do something with AI" without a clear plan, the session offers practical answers: where most AI rollouts go wrong, and what the few companies getting it right are doing differently.

While in Lisbon, Aaron will also record a special Web Summit edition of Hurree's podcast, SaaSy AF, with Dani Verdari, founder and CEO of Slay House. Her studio creates animated content for Gen Z and Gen Alpha, and she has built a TikTok following of 5.5 million. With content cheaper and faster to make than ever, the pair will ask whether brands can still be trusted when anyone can make anything, and why "AI-made" isn't the problem but "fake" is. The episode will be released after the event, so anyone can tune in, whether they make it to Lisbon or not.

Aaron Gibson, founder and CEO of Hurree, said:

"We can't wait to get back to Lisbon. Last year we went to talk about how AI and behavioural science can help businesses make better decisions. A year on, most companies have the tools. What a lot of them are missing is the groundwork: the training, the judgement and the people who can tell when the output is wrong. That's the part nobody finds exciting, but it's the part that decides who actually gets value from AI. If someone leaves one of our sessions with one thing they can change in their business on Monday morning, we've done our job.

"I'm incredibly proud to be representing Northern Ireland on that stage again. We have brilliant people here, a tech community that punches well above its weight, and a no-nonsense way of looking at things that the AI conversation could do with a lot more of. Standing on a stage that size and saying 'this is coming out of Belfast' never gets old."

Those who can't make it to Lisbon can follow Hurree's Web Summit journey on its social channels and catch the SaaSy AF episode after the event.

About Hurree
Founded in Belfast, Hurree is a smart data platform for marketers. It brings data from tools such as Salesforce, HubSpot, Google Analytics and Stripe into one place, so teams without in-house data specialists can see what's working and act on it. At its core is Riva, a conversational assistant that lets teams ask questions of their data in plain English. www.hurree.co