From Idea to Impact by API Portugal
Most AI pilots never make it past the pilot.
They get funded, they get built, they demo well — and then they quietly stall somewhere between the proof of concept and anything a business actually runs on. The problem is rarely the model. It's everything around it: how the pilot was scoped, who agreed to what, and whether anyone planned for what happens when it works.
This evening is about that gap, from both sides of it — the commercial side and the delivery side.
Land, Prove, Expand: The Commercial Strategy Behind AI Pilots
Filipe Macedo — Founder, API
How to scope and sell a pilot that has somewhere to go. Filipe walks through the commercial architecture behind AI projects that expand instead of ending: landing the first engagement, proving value in a way the client can defend internally, and building the case for what comes next.
From Pilot to Scale: How to Actually Deliver Your AI Projects, Fast and Safely
Marta Silveira — Solutions Engineering Manager, LTPlabs
The other half of the problem. Marta covers what it takes to move an AI project from a working prototype to something running in production — moving quickly without accumulating the kind of technical and organisational debt that kills the second phase.
Two talks, then questions and time to stay and talk to people.
This event will be moderated by Marta Fonseca, Product Designer & Community lead
Event structure
5:30 PM – 6:00 PM — Welcome: API & Porto AI Week
6:00 PM – 6:25 PM — Filipe Macedo — Land, Prove, Expand
6:30 PM – 6:55 PM — Marta Silveira — From Pilot to Scale
7:00 PM – 7:30 PM — Marta Fonseca — Roundtable & Q&A
7:30 PM – 8:00 PM — Networking
Who this is for
Founders, product and engineering leads, consultants and data teams — anyone with an AI pilot that's stuck, or about to start one they'd like to survive contact with a real organisation.
About API
API is an AI community born in Porto, built on one simple idea: AI should be practical, accessible, and useful for everyone. Not conference-stage AI — the kind you can take back to work on Monday.
https://api.com.pt/?utm_source=luma
Part of Porto AI Week
Porto AI Week runs 14–18 September. For one week, the whole city becomes the venue: dozens of independent events, hosted by the communities, companies and studios that already make Porto work. No main stage, no single lineup. Just a lot of rooms, open at the same time.
Free to attend.
Space at LACS Porto is limited, so register if you're planning to come.