he 2025 World Economic Forum (WEF)’s Annual Meeting in Switzerland focuses on the so–called ‘Intelligent Age’ and how global society can best harness rapid technological development. The Intelligent Age is an era marked by the fast, ever–evolving development of technology—especially AI, quantum computing, and blockchain. In this era, society could harness these technological advancements to greatly improve life, provided we can successfully position society to work with constantly evolving technologies rather than letting the technology disrupt. The Intelligent Age calls for global cooperation in creating regulations, infrastructure, and large databases to best harness the power of this new era. To better examine challenges with the advent of the Intelligent Age and thereby better ways to meet them, this year’s theme is broken down into five thematic sub–themes. Diplomatic Courier is reviewing these ahead of WEF to give you an idea what conversations may be happening.
Rebuilding Trust: “How can stakeholders find new ways to collaborate on solutions internationally and within societies?”
The central theme from last year’s WEF was “Rebuilding Trust,” so its presence as a sub–theme this year is telling. As humanity grapples with an increasingly complex, rapidly changing, and often dangerous world, people seek to reaffirm their identities. In the Intelligent Age where neighborhoods don’t necessarily equate to neighbors, societal fragmentation is both a problem in its own right but also a hindrance to collaborations, internationally and within societies. Cooperation can help rebuild trust, and trust is vital to spurring cooperation, so one challenge at WEF will be looking for ways ‘in’ to break the cycle.
From how city governments can encourage trust and collaboration among local start–up ecosystems or community–based approaches for tackling climate change to initiatives for better data sharing globally, there are some exciting ideas for what collaboration can look like in the Intelligent Age. But at a time when an unhealthy digital information ecosystem makes it seem the world is divided into ever more fractious tribes, the challenge will be finding ways to connect with those we disagree with about the fundamental, and important, things we do agree on.
Reimagining Growth: “How can we identify the new sources of growth in this new global economy?”
Growth will look different in the Intelligent Age. It’s an age of rapid innovation, which will spur growth across sectors both familiar and new, and these innovations will be central to not only recovery of the global economy but building in resilience to future disruptions. To successfully manage this, we must reimagine growth. But where will we find new sources of growth in this changing economy?
One area for growth could be the space industry, with a forecasted global growth of $1.8 trillion by 2035. Many countries have already begun using space to improve their societies, like Peru’s use of space technology to expand internet access to rural areas, Ukraine’s focus on the potential of space technology to impact geopolitical crises, and Saudi Arabia’s harnessing of technological growth to fuel its economy. The healthcare industry will also see massive change as AI and growing databases will be used to improve the quality of care. Notably, a value–driven healthcare system would rely on global cooperation and a unified databank. Even some failing industries like the taxi industry could see a resurgence with the Intelligent Age, as taxi companies could become a hallmark of resilience if their adaptation focuses on sustainability, technologically secured data, and inclusivity in their solutions.
Investing in People: “How can the public and private sectors invest in human capital development and good jobs that contribute to developing a modern and resilient society?”
As technology transforms industries, so must people adapt alongside it. In the Intelligent Age, investing in people gains new urgency, as both professional and personal life increasingly require new skills to navigate successfully. Successful investment in our workforce of the future requires a multistakeholder approach where companies, academia, civil society, and governments work together to encourage collaboration, create job displacement safety nets, better match employers to employees, and focus on employee growth rather than simply success. Similarly, leadership will need to evolve to exemplify the resilience, growth–mindset, and innovation necessary to successfully create a sustainable workforce. Investing in people today needs to be more tailored to modern needs, as well. For instance, investment in the care economy would not only improve lives but would also bring the caregiving sector more accurately into GDP and other economic calculations.
Safeguarding the planet: “How can we catalyze energy, climate and nature action through innovative partnerships, increased financing and the deployment of frontier technologies?”
The world is not on track to meet targets for fighting climate change, but tools made available by the advent of the Intelligent Age could help us turn around. One of the core difficulties involved in the energy transition is the so–called “energy trilemma”—how to ensure energy supplies that are affordable, secure, and sustainable. But technology on the market today is already capable of getting us a long way toward our global emissions reductions goals, while also helping build climate change resilience and protect our ecosystems.
Cities have been a big part of resilience building. Beijing can serve as a case study for how effective climate action can benefit the economy. By drastically cutting air pollution, Beijing fostered technological innovation while improving public transportation and air–monitoring systems, and increasing regulation. San Francisco, meanwhile, has successfully worked to restore urban biodiversity. By preserving and restoring ecosystems, San Francisco drastically increased green space, benefiting mental health during the pandemic and fostering a sense of community to continue to protect these ecosystems. Similarly, San Francisco’s focus on urban biodiversity highlights the success of finding natural solutions to combating the climate crisis. In recent years, space has entered into the sustainability conversation. As society continues to develop space technology, global unified action will be necessary to create regulations and a databank to safeguard our planet and beyond.
Industries in the Intelligent Age: “How can business leaders strike a balance between the short–term goals and long–term imperatives in transforming their industries?”
For industries in the Intelligent Age to thrive, they need to be more adaptive and resilient to rapid change than ever. Companies and industries must stop retroactively addressing concerns like adoption of AI or addressing climate change and instead develop long–term solutions to foster growth and sustainability. Data sharing and collaboration are necessary to do so, allowing businesses to improve their decision–making processes. Alongside data sharing, global regulations, such as global extended producer responsibility (EPR) regulations, must be created. In the short–term, this would prove more costly, but looking forward to the future, becoming sustainable will address the climate crisis and improve the economy. However, global cooperation is necessary to prevent manufacturers from simply changing their location to circumvent regulations and to allow developing countries the financing to improve waste management. Ultimately, businesses, industries, and society face complete disruption in the Intelligent Age if they cannot become resilient and adaptive. But by understanding global megatrends, fostering innovation, and relying on collaboration, this era could welcome a healthy, resilient world.
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What to expect at the 2025 World Economic Forum
Davos, Switzerland at night. Photo by Steffen Lemmerzahl on Unsplash
January 13, 2025
The theme at this year’s World Economic Forum is “Collaboration for the Intelligent Age.” But what does that mean for WEF’s agenda? Stephanie Gull explores.
T
he 2025 World Economic Forum (WEF)’s Annual Meeting in Switzerland focuses on the so–called ‘Intelligent Age’ and how global society can best harness rapid technological development. The Intelligent Age is an era marked by the fast, ever–evolving development of technology—especially AI, quantum computing, and blockchain. In this era, society could harness these technological advancements to greatly improve life, provided we can successfully position society to work with constantly evolving technologies rather than letting the technology disrupt. The Intelligent Age calls for global cooperation in creating regulations, infrastructure, and large databases to best harness the power of this new era. To better examine challenges with the advent of the Intelligent Age and thereby better ways to meet them, this year’s theme is broken down into five thematic sub–themes. Diplomatic Courier is reviewing these ahead of WEF to give you an idea what conversations may be happening.
Rebuilding Trust: “How can stakeholders find new ways to collaborate on solutions internationally and within societies?”
The central theme from last year’s WEF was “Rebuilding Trust,” so its presence as a sub–theme this year is telling. As humanity grapples with an increasingly complex, rapidly changing, and often dangerous world, people seek to reaffirm their identities. In the Intelligent Age where neighborhoods don’t necessarily equate to neighbors, societal fragmentation is both a problem in its own right but also a hindrance to collaborations, internationally and within societies. Cooperation can help rebuild trust, and trust is vital to spurring cooperation, so one challenge at WEF will be looking for ways ‘in’ to break the cycle.
From how city governments can encourage trust and collaboration among local start–up ecosystems or community–based approaches for tackling climate change to initiatives for better data sharing globally, there are some exciting ideas for what collaboration can look like in the Intelligent Age. But at a time when an unhealthy digital information ecosystem makes it seem the world is divided into ever more fractious tribes, the challenge will be finding ways to connect with those we disagree with about the fundamental, and important, things we do agree on.
Reimagining Growth: “How can we identify the new sources of growth in this new global economy?”
Growth will look different in the Intelligent Age. It’s an age of rapid innovation, which will spur growth across sectors both familiar and new, and these innovations will be central to not only recovery of the global economy but building in resilience to future disruptions. To successfully manage this, we must reimagine growth. But where will we find new sources of growth in this changing economy?
One area for growth could be the space industry, with a forecasted global growth of $1.8 trillion by 2035. Many countries have already begun using space to improve their societies, like Peru’s use of space technology to expand internet access to rural areas, Ukraine’s focus on the potential of space technology to impact geopolitical crises, and Saudi Arabia’s harnessing of technological growth to fuel its economy. The healthcare industry will also see massive change as AI and growing databases will be used to improve the quality of care. Notably, a value–driven healthcare system would rely on global cooperation and a unified databank. Even some failing industries like the taxi industry could see a resurgence with the Intelligent Age, as taxi companies could become a hallmark of resilience if their adaptation focuses on sustainability, technologically secured data, and inclusivity in their solutions.
Investing in People: “How can the public and private sectors invest in human capital development and good jobs that contribute to developing a modern and resilient society?”
As technology transforms industries, so must people adapt alongside it. In the Intelligent Age, investing in people gains new urgency, as both professional and personal life increasingly require new skills to navigate successfully. Successful investment in our workforce of the future requires a multistakeholder approach where companies, academia, civil society, and governments work together to encourage collaboration, create job displacement safety nets, better match employers to employees, and focus on employee growth rather than simply success. Similarly, leadership will need to evolve to exemplify the resilience, growth–mindset, and innovation necessary to successfully create a sustainable workforce. Investing in people today needs to be more tailored to modern needs, as well. For instance, investment in the care economy would not only improve lives but would also bring the caregiving sector more accurately into GDP and other economic calculations.
Safeguarding the planet: “How can we catalyze energy, climate and nature action through innovative partnerships, increased financing and the deployment of frontier technologies?”
The world is not on track to meet targets for fighting climate change, but tools made available by the advent of the Intelligent Age could help us turn around. One of the core difficulties involved in the energy transition is the so–called “energy trilemma”—how to ensure energy supplies that are affordable, secure, and sustainable. But technology on the market today is already capable of getting us a long way toward our global emissions reductions goals, while also helping build climate change resilience and protect our ecosystems.
Cities have been a big part of resilience building. Beijing can serve as a case study for how effective climate action can benefit the economy. By drastically cutting air pollution, Beijing fostered technological innovation while improving public transportation and air–monitoring systems, and increasing regulation. San Francisco, meanwhile, has successfully worked to restore urban biodiversity. By preserving and restoring ecosystems, San Francisco drastically increased green space, benefiting mental health during the pandemic and fostering a sense of community to continue to protect these ecosystems. Similarly, San Francisco’s focus on urban biodiversity highlights the success of finding natural solutions to combating the climate crisis. In recent years, space has entered into the sustainability conversation. As society continues to develop space technology, global unified action will be necessary to create regulations and a databank to safeguard our planet and beyond.
Industries in the Intelligent Age: “How can business leaders strike a balance between the short–term goals and long–term imperatives in transforming their industries?”
For industries in the Intelligent Age to thrive, they need to be more adaptive and resilient to rapid change than ever. Companies and industries must stop retroactively addressing concerns like adoption of AI or addressing climate change and instead develop long–term solutions to foster growth and sustainability. Data sharing and collaboration are necessary to do so, allowing businesses to improve their decision–making processes. Alongside data sharing, global regulations, such as global extended producer responsibility (EPR) regulations, must be created. In the short–term, this would prove more costly, but looking forward to the future, becoming sustainable will address the climate crisis and improve the economy. However, global cooperation is necessary to prevent manufacturers from simply changing their location to circumvent regulations and to allow developing countries the financing to improve waste management. Ultimately, businesses, industries, and society face complete disruption in the Intelligent Age if they cannot become resilient and adaptive. But by understanding global megatrends, fostering innovation, and relying on collaboration, this era could welcome a healthy, resilient world.
