Here it is. The speech at the Last Burn.

The video is made by our friends of Interactive Pioneers. The digital brand studio has been developing digital brands and products for +25 years. As in 2022, they thankfully agreed to capture the speech for the last edition as well. 🙏

Below you find the transcript of the speech. It has been slightly edited for better readability.

🗣️

Of course, this is an emotional evening. For me, for the crew, and my kids. Maybe for some of you as well.

This is it. This is the last Burn. It’s happening, it’s not a rumor. There are no surprises in the end.

This evening should be a celebration. It should be about looking back. About connecting and having a good time.

🏴‍☠️

When I received a call a little bit more than a week ago from Odo, and he told me, “Manuel, there’s not going to be fire at the Last Burn,” I had to breathe in and breathe out.

“Okay, why?”

“Because it hasn’t rained for 3 to 4 weeks. We have had too many days of 30 degrees Celsius and higher. It’s just too dangerous.”

I did not have anything to say against that. He was right. There cannot be fire tonight. Because if there is going to be fire, there will be sparks flying, and it might be the last burn for real. The last thing that we need is to set everything on fire.

So I agreed. But I was shocked. For a moment at least.

What gave me hope was that I’ve been working with Odo for eleven editions now. The problem: There was only one week to go until the event.

However, I knew they would come up with something. Something that was going to be cool and epic and PIRATE style. That something is this. It’s not from wood but from metal. It won’t be burnt, but it will burn. So I am told.

Within a week, Odo, Sebastian, and the whole crew have built something they have never built before. They built this man just for PIRATE Summit. I cannot thank them enough. It is truly, truly amazing.

However, it’s a burn-to-relearn moment for me: The Last Burn is not going to be like we have always done it. Which is a little bit ironic. The Last Burn is an experiment. We do not know how it will burn. It has never been done at this scale. Is it going to explode? No, no, no, it’s not. Just kidding. Maybe it will lift off like a rocket. 😉

But there is some stuff in there, apparently, that will burn. Is it going to be as big as we had in the past? I don’t know. Nobody knows.

But it doesn’t matter. It’s an experiment. We’re going to try. And whatever comes out of it, we’re going to make the best of it, just like we always have.

🏴‍☠️

This year I don’t have anything prepared. No big speech. Why?

Because I want this to flow naturally. To flow from the impressions of these days. These two days I walked around here to shake 500 hands. I have not reached 500 yet. If you have not shaken my hand, please do.

Every time I shake someone’s hand, it’s a moment of connection. I am trying to create those at scale today. The shortest ones are just a smile. Or a few words. A moment to understand, “how are you, really?” I had a few longer conversations with people I hadn’t met before. And also with people I dearly missed.

This is what PIRATE Summit is about for me. This is its essence.

🏴‍☠️

During these days, one question came up repeatedly: “How can we spread the PIRATE spirit in the world?”

And I was thinking: What is the PIRATE spirit at all?” To be honest: I don’t know.

But the ambassador team and crew captured it beautifully in their manifesto. I’m really surprised and happy with how it turned out. I couldn’t have done it better myself. We will put it on the PIRATE Summit website until the end of the internet.

And if you want my definition of how to spread the PIRATE Summit spirit, my answer is very simple: There is not one PIRATE spirit. But there are ideas. Some that we put out. Like our yearly themes or our house rules. And also what is written in the manifesto.

These are ideas. You don’t have to agree with all of it. PIRATE Summit and the PIRATE spirit is not a religion. It’s not something you believe in. It’s not something you follow. There are no commandments. Just ideas.

Every year we have burned something here. And maybe what you experienced here – the ideas that were created – sparked a flame in you. Maybe you brought those ideas home and you made something out of them.

These 15 ideas in the manifesto are just like that. Let those ideas that resonate with you spark a flame inside of you. All the others just put them aside for now.

Take the ideas that resonate and make them your own. Think about what they mean to you. Talk about them with others. Sharpen them. Then do them.

In the end, what really would mean the world to me is if you incorporate them into everything that you do. Essentially, you will start to be them. To be PIRATE.

If you are “that”, then, you will spread the fire. You will keep the fire burning. That’s the best we all can do to keep spreading the PIRATE spirit. To keep the fire burning.

So that’s my answer to the question: “What is next?” or “What can we do?” or “How can we keep going?”.

🏴‍☠️

Before we burn, I want to very quickly talk about my kids again.

Every evening, when I bring them to bed, I ask one question. It’s a little bit of a sneaky question, but a profound one: What are you grateful for today?

I’ve done this for many, many years now. And I try to find out, what they like. Over time, some patterns have emerged.

What is the main pattern?

Time spent well. That’s the most important thing. By far! Often just short moments. Not necessarily the hours spent. Short moments, we call them soul moments. Magical moments.

It can be something very simple. Walking to the lake, that dinner, when we laughed at a small joke, when we played that game, when we went outside and played ball. All those small magical moments. We are trying to cultivate them and purposefully create them.

And that’s also what we wanted to create at PIRATE Summit for you.

Think about it, how many magical moments have you had these two days?

Moments that you were grateful for. It’s not necessarily the big things. It can be just looking into the sunset. Or when you look into this burn. When you receive that smile from a stranger.

And I would love to create one magical moment for my kids and all of you.

I’m going to light this burn now for the very, very last time.

Thank you all for being part of PIRATE Summit for all these years.

It really means a lot!

Let it Burn!

Let it Burn!

LET IT BURN!