As 2025 comes to an end, I keep coming back to one thing: this ecosystem grows because people show up. Founders who push through uncertainty, mentors who give without expecting anything back, and a community that keeps raising the bar year after year.

We’ve had our share of challenges, but we’ve also seen ideas mature, teams evolve, and connections turn into real momentum. That’s the part that makes this work meaningful.

2026 is already shaping up to be a year of bold bets and new opportunities. Let’s carry forward the creativity, collaboration, and ambition that define this community and keep building the ecosystem we want to see.

I’ll be back on January 6 and until then, I hope this holiday season brings rest, joy, and a bit of inspiration to you and your loved ones. And because this is a time for meaningful gestures, I want to finish with a few Christmas ideas for a gift with purpose and small actions that support founders, creators, and the communities that make this ecosystem stronger.

• 🎅 Productized Lisbon 2026 | Tickets on Sale starting December 16th, and to celebrate the season, with an exclusive 50% Christmas Discount

• 🎅 Purrmi 🐱 launched a Xmas Surprise Box. For each Box sold, one meal will be donated to Associação Animais de Rua

🎅FLAMAID Personal safety grenade with 110 dB alarm and real-time GPS

🎅Nariz Vermelho

🎅Associação Salvador

🎅Associação de Portadores de Trissomia 21 do Algarve

🎅CasaQui

🎅Comunidade Vida e Paz

🎅and why not send your favorite Newsletter to a friend?

Together, as a startup or individual, we have the power to amplify the reach and impact of these incredible efforts, creating a season that will truly be unforgettable.

Let’s take action together!

💡This questionnaire from a PhD researcher from a Catolica-Lisbon seeks to understand the local innovation ecosystem in Portugal and identify the needs, challenges, and opportunities. Please take a few minutes to complete it, your input matters.

Keep following Adamastor to stay up to date with our ecosystem.

See you at the next event

✍ Quote of the week

“We make a living by what we get. We make a life by what we give”

Winston Churchill

Highlights of the week

• 🔷 Como negociar uma ronda de investimento? by Angels Way this Wednesday

• 🔷 LisboaJS Christmas Edition: JS Under Pressure

• 🔷 LisboaUX Christmas Dinner this Friday

• 🔷 Portugal & USA: Learnings from an Operator with João Camarate, Dec 19 @UPTEC

Congrats

• 👏 sheerME has been spotted by Sifted a Financial Times company as the Fastest Growing Consumer Startup in Southern Europe

• 👏 351 Portuguese Startup Association was awarded the “Rising Star” recognition, by International Chamber of Commerce (ICC)

• 👏 ApneaScreener distinguished by SheLeads Ventures

• 👏 Coreflux raised 1.2M

• 👏 FlashGuard project won the 3rd edition of the Business Acceleration Program – LISPOLIS IGNITE

Something to read, listen and watch

📚Reforma do Estado avança com Estratégia Digital e Agenda para a Inteligência Artificial

📚O dinheiro faz nascer startups. Os anjos certos fazem-nas voar by Bruno Gutman

📚The Startup Ecosystem in the region of Porto

📚Lisboa Startup Ecosystem Report

📚Deloitte Technology Fast 50

📚The Revolut Investors Who Won Big by Guillermo Flor

📚AI as a partner to unlock human creativity in business by Joana Guimaraes

📚Lab Data is the Missing Rail for Longevity: Inside OpenHealth Technologies’

📚Cloud Sovereignty Framework

• 🎧 AI: a tool or the enemy w/ Jake Seid

• 🎧 CEO of Original ChopShop, discuss the brand’s unique fast casual offerings and growth strategy

• 🎥 Pensamento Critico na Inteligência Artificial. Num mundo que, em breve, promete ser dominado por algoritmos, será que ainda sabemos questionar? Pode a máquina substituir o discernimento humano? No Sociedade Civil.

• 🎥 Nuno Loureiro | On Failure

• 🎥 The future of intelligence | Demis Hassabis (Co-founder of DeepMind)

💡Looking for your next spark of inspiration or connection? Discover what’s happening in the ecosystem—check out the Adamastor Events Calendar and find the perfect event that fits your goals, your vibe, and your stage. From founder meetups to investor talks, there’s something for everyone.