iHeartMedia, the No. 1 podcast publisher globally and the Government Communications Office of the State of Qatar (GCO) announced that iHeartPodcasts will be the official podcast partner for the 2025 Web Summit Qatar.
The second edition of Web Summit Qatar is set to gather more than 20,000 technology and business leaders, founders, world-leading investors, media and a record 1,250 startups at the Doha Exhibition and Convention Centre (DECC) from February 23 – 26, 2025.
Top iHeartPodcasts talent, show producers and executives will be in attendance to participate in a range of events including educational sessions, live podcast recordings and Centre Stage content like fireside chats, panel discussions and Q&A sessions.
This year’s Centre Stage sessions will welcome Conal Byrne, CEO of the iHeartMedia Digital Audio Group along with other leading iHeartPodcasts talent including Malcolm Gladwell, best-selling author and co-founder of Pushkin Industries and host of “Revisionist History”; Jay Shetty, global best-selling author and award-winning host of the chart-topping global podcast “On Purpose”; David Eagleman, neuroscientist at Stanford University, internationally best-selling author and host of “Inner Cosmos”; and Jonathan Strickland, Executive Producer for iHeartPodcasts and host of “TechStuff.”
Additionally as part of the partnership, Web Summit Qatar will introduce a new conference offering, the iHeart Podcast Creator Studio, featuring an on-site iHeartPodcasts Recording Studio and attendee lounge for live show taping on the showroom floor.
These experts, from Malcolm Gladwell to Jay Shetty and David Eagleman and others, including Noel Brown and Ben Bowlin co-hosts of “Ridiculous History,” will present multiple podcast courses for attendees at the Creator Studio on the foundations of podcasting. Programming will include discussions and interactive workshops about effective storytelling, technical setup and equipment needs, audio production basics, content strategy and planning, launch and growth marketing, “If I Knew Then” lessons, and finding an audience and sponsors.
“It is wonderful to welcome iHeartMedia and its globally recognized podcast talent to Web Summit Qatar,” said Sheikh Jassim bin Mansour Al-Thani, Chairman of the Web Summit Qatar Organising Committee and Director of the Government Communications Office of the State of Qatar. “There is significant growth potential for the podcast medium across the Middle East and North Africa.
Therefore it is critical that attendees of Web Summit Qatar have direct access to the leading podcast publisher globally. Thanks to this partnership, Web Summit Qatar attendees will be able to learn directly from experts about how to create their own content, incorporate the latest innovations, and grow their platform.”
“At iHeart, we believe in the power of bringing brilliant minds together for interesting and vibrant discussions that lead to innovation and change,” said Bob Pittman, Chairman and CEO of iHeartMedia. “Our partnership with the GCO provides a great opportunity to work together to push the boundaries of podcasting today — and what it can become in the future.”
Shetty and Gladwell will join the Web Summit Qatar lineup that includes tech and VC leaders like Alexis Ohanian, founder of Seven Seven Six and Reddit co-founder; Eduardo Saverin, co-founder of Facebook and B Capital; Laura Chambers, CEO of Mozilla Corporation; and Brian Robbins, CEO of Paramount Pictures. For the full lineup and schedule including session dates and times, please visit https://qatar.websummit.com/schedule/.
