This week on the roundup: collaboration, interviews, chats, charity dinners, French souls, testimonials, meaningful discussions, opportunities to connect, resilience, new episodes, multinationals, confirmations, performances, national programs, and more.

But first, here are the IPBN Highlights of the week:

We thanked everyone who joined us last Thursday for a very special event entitled “Housing After the Storm: Regulation, Resilience & Sustainable Living”. We brought together members from across the housing value chain for a focused discussion on what comes next — and how Ireland–Portugal collaboration can help shape smarter, more sustainable housing solutions. And you can find pictures of the event here. 

We shared the interview of GM Arnold Delville on behalf of the Ireland Portugal Business Network— thank you, Ellis Dixon, for the editing— published this week in Link to Leaders in Portuguese. “As duas economias são amplamente complementares: a Irlanda é forte em exportações de elevado valor acrescentado e serviços; Portugal com competências reconhecidas na indústria transformadora, agroalimentar e em programas de apoio ao crescimento de start-ups e captação de investimento, o que cria oportunidades naturais de colaboração”, avalia Arnold Delville, General Manager da Ireland Portugal Business Network. Click here for the full, and quite long, interview.

We reminded everyone of this Thursday Conversation with a Leader event in Porto featuring António Rios de Amorim, President and CEO of Corticeira Amorim—a global leader in cork production and innovation! More about it next week.

And now...

IPBN member Tribulum Restaurant shared, "We recently hosted a charity dinner at Tribulum Restaurant on 29th April, which raised €10,000 for prostate cancer research." Check the press release here.

IPBN member Fiona Disegni posted, "Sunset Fado Experience at Ando Living Rooftop - Fiona French Fadist. Wednesday, May 20  from 2000 to 2230. Experience Fado like never before - authentic Portuguese singing with a French soul, in an exclusive rooftop immersive experience. Discover a rare and intimate Fado holistic experience in Lisbon, far from tourist formats, at Ando Living, one of Lisbon’s most beautiful venues of Lisbon." Register here.

IPBN member Lisbon Heritage Hotels posted, "Thank you to our guest Christy W for sharing such a special testimonial with us. We look forward to welcoming her again, among peacocks, history, and peaceful mornings. Check out the testimonial here."

IPBN member Filipe Costa from IN2 Engineering said, "It was an honour to attend the Ireland Portugal Business Network Conference, "Housing After the Storm" last week in Lisbon. A great event with valuable insights and meaningful discussions around housing, sustainability, resilience, and regulation. It was particularly interesting to see how much Ireland and Portugal can learn from each other when addressing similar housing and infrastructure challenges. It was also a fantastic opportunity to connect with key stakeholders across the Portuguese housing sector, including developers, insurers, architects, legal experts, and innovators.

IPBN member Miguel Reynolds Brandão posted, "Everyone celebrates resilience. Few understand surpassion — the psychological leap where mastery stops being a fight and becomes a flow. This article breaks the old narrative of struggle and introduces a new paradigm for human performance. If you’ve ever felt that “overcoming” wasn’t the full story… you were right."

IPBN member Saros Consulting said, "AI is moving fast. But are we preparing people fast enough? Declan Bright, CTO and AI Officer at Oneview Healthcare, closes Episode 8 of Saros Insights with a thought that goes beyond technology and lands somewhere far more important. The real risk is not adopting AI too slowly. It is deploying it without preparing the people who have to live with it every day. Watch the full episode to hear everything Declan had to say about AI governance here."

IPBN member Alice Dowling from Glandore shared, "After 25 years supporting businesses across the island of Ireland, this week at Glandore we're proud to launch the inaugural Glandore Pulse Survey 2026 capturing insights from 200 business leaders across SMEs, scaling companies, and multinationals operating across our locations in Ireland & Northern Ireland. The findings paint a clear picture of how work, growth, and talent are all evolving. AI also emerged as a major trend shaping business strategy, with 62.8% identifying AI & automation as the dominant force influencing the future of work." Discover more insights here. 

IPBN member Jose Nunes posted, "This is what real industrial transformation looks like. I just watched the CNN Inovação feature on CIMPOR — and it confirms something I’ve been seeing from the inside for the past 2+ years: This is not a cement company trying to innovate. This is an industrial system being rebuilt from the ground up. Projects like X-Clinkers and the Central Lab are not just R&D initiatives — they are signals of a deeper shift: from heavy industry to data-driven, technology-enabled operations."

IPBN member Sam Marchetti said, "We've been analysing our performance to date since launching eTenders.AI. Currently at an 87.5% win rate across 8 tenders, we've secured over €5 million for our clients across Digital, Coaching, Recruitment, Social Enterprise & Creative projects. Click the #PQQ button in the doc below for a complimentary tender assessment and #B2G Roadmap." 

IPBN Academic partner UAlg TEC Campus posted, “Do you have an AI startup? This is for you! The START Rise Challenge arrives in UALG TEC CAMPUS on May 18, with one of the regional stages of this national program that travels the country in search of the most promising startups. Throughout the circuit, the best teams are selected for the national final in Lisbon, on May 29, where they acquire even more visibility and access to the ecosystem. Join to gain visibility, mentoring, and real-world pilot opportunities.” Applications are open until May 7th!" Registrer here. More information can be found here.