Barcelona, the city to host the biggest mobile technology event every year since 2006, has reportedly become the first global city to receive Biosphere Platinum certification and has recently been named the official home of the Mobile World Congress (MWC).  As reported, the city is stepping up its marketing efforts to attract more tourists from around the world.

According to the event's organizer GSMA, the MWC will continue to be hosted in Barcelona at least till 2030, for which a new agreement has been signed between the city and other pertinent authorities in June 2022.

Many consider Barcelona to be the Silicon Valley of Southern Europe and it has emerged as one of Europe's entrepreneurial and technology hubs.

According to a 2021 survey by CBRE, the city offers the highest number of technology jobs in Europe, and bags maximum foreign investment, and it is regarded as the third-best European city for a startup.

Since 2016, the Catalan startup community has expanded by 75%, and in 2020, over 18% of European entrepreneurs picked Barcelona as the base for their companies. These firms collectively generate €1.71 billion ($1.7 billion) in revenue while employing over 19,300 people.

There are over 1,900 startups in Barcelona currently, many of which, like Glovo or Wallbox, were established there. Other promising unicorns, like Redpoints or HolaLuz, have also been launched in the city.

The Barcelona Supercomputing Center, which houses Southern Europe's first quantum computer and will eventually serve as the home of the next-generation European chip, is just one of the significant projects that the city has at its core.

Several ground-breaking initiatives have also been launched in Barcelona, including MWCapital's Intelligent Connectivity and the 5G Barcelona initiative, which is the driving force behind more than 25 5G pilot programs and has turned Barcelona into the 5G capital of Southern Europe.

The Barcelona City Council has also established the International Welcome Desk, a one-stop solution for overseas talent with registration with regional authorities, enrollment of children in school, and finding housing.

Source credit: https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/tech/2022/09/133_336011.html