The World Economic Forum's (WEF) annual gathering in Davos set the stage for important discussions on global challenges. The theme, "Collaboration for the Intelligent Age," suggests a focus on how technology, innovation and collaboration can drive solutions to complex issues like sustainability, trust and growth. In this context, world leaders convened in the Swiss town between Jan. 20 and Jan. 24. Nearly 3,000 participants from over 130 nations attended, including more than 50 heads of state, as well as numerous top officials.
Given McKinsey’s role as a strategic partner, their involvement could significantly shape how businesses and governments approach these topics. It’s also interesting that the focus on "Investing in People" emphasizes human capital and inclusivity in these global efforts.
The gathering took place amid significant uncertainty in the international system, with new leadership emerging and conflicts continuing in various regions. Leaders from the public and private sectors, along with civil society experts, came together to promote discussions and work on sustainable solutions to shared global challenges.
McKinsey was expected to address several important topics, such as sustainability leadership, technology-driven economic transformation, inclusive growth and diversity, collaboration for global impact and investing in people and skills. These align with current global trends and their ongoing initiatives.
The summit unfolded amid significant political changes and global fragmentation. For each of the five key themes of the event, a single number was selected from discussions and interviews to reflect a broader story. These figures highlight the tough challenges likely to be faced in the year ahead.
Summing up the WEF meeting under just five headlines is challenging, especially in this context. With the world’s largest economy shifting course, governments, businesses and people everywhere are racing to figure out how to adapt. The gathering saw thousands of participants from across the globe attending a variety of sessions – both formal and informal – and each person likely left with different takeaways, numbers or insights. However, certain themes and figures emerged as particularly significant within the five main pillars; reimagining growth, rebuilding trust, safeguarding the planet, industries in the intelligent age and investing in people.
A good intention but a major hurdle. Governments globally have ambitious plans – some aim to develop artificial intelligence capabilities, others seek to revive struggling economies and many want to boost domestic production instead of relying on imports. Some are trying to achieve all of this at once. On a larger scale, most governments are focused on fostering economic growth that transcends basic metrics like gross domestic product (GDP), aiming instead for improved living standards for more people, all in pursuit of stability and sustainability.
However, mounting public debt could jeopardize these goals. The rising levels of public debt were a major topic at Davos, and one figure consistently came up in those conversations: the world's $100 trillion in public debt.
One of the main reasons for gathering so many leaders in one place is to gauge where everyone stands on the most pressing issues and reassure each other that they can rely on one another to make the right decisions. A key concern for participants is the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine, which is now in its third year of devastating impact.
For Europe, the destruction on its eastern border has led to the realization that more must be spent on defense, especially at a time when there is also a need for heavy investment in reigniting economic growth and financial strength. In his special address, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy urged increased defense spending.
“All European countries must be willing to spend as much on security as is truly needed, not just as much as they’ve gotten used to during years of neglect,” he stated. “If it takes 5% of GDP to cover defense, then so be it. 5% it is.”
At this year’s meeting, there was a shared concern that political shifts could open the door to significant profits for businesses worldwide. However, many attendees stressed that it would be disastrous to allow a rollback of regulations that could further harm the planet and undo the progress made in environmental preservation.
The widespread destruction of the environment for farming, mining and other forms of resource extraction has sparked discussions around planetary boundaries – the limits beyond which the damage we inflict cannot be reversed.
In a conversation on the sidelines, Ibrahim Thiaw, the Under-Secretary-General and Executive Secretary of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification, shared a troubling figure regarding the extent of environmental degradation. According to Thiaw, around 40% of the planet’s land has already been degraded, directly impacting approximately 3.2 billion people.
This was a major topic. The theme of the meeting was “Collaboration in the Intelligent Age,” reflecting how rapidly we’ve evolved in harnessing collective intelligence – and how much more dramatic those changes are expected to be in the near future. Companies and governments invest heavily in the chips, data centers, talent and energy resources needed to advance artificial intelligence.
Yann LeCun, Meta’s chief AI scientist, stated during a session at Davos that a “new paradigm of AI architectures” would emerge within the next five years, surpassing the capabilities of existing systems. He explained that the "shelf life" of the current AI paradigm, such as the large language models used for tasks like generating text and images, is limited. “Within five years, nobody in their right mind would use it anymore,” LeCun predicted, “at least not as the core of any AI system.”
Despite shifting focus on DEI (Diversity, Equity and Inclusion), gender parity remains a central concern for many at Davos, as evidenced by multiple sessions and interviews. The most recent Global Gender Gap Report noted that progress in closing the "political empowerment" gap – where women still have fewer opportunities to reach decision-making roles – has been slow.
However, Therese Kayikwamba Wagner, the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s foreign affairs minister, highlighted a positive change during a session. “We have gone from 16% of women in government,” she said, which was below the sub-Saharan African average of around 27%, “to 33% in the government that was formed in 2024.”
As it is a global trend, the WEF meeting concentrated on issues like climate change, economic inequality, geopolitical tensions and technological developments. The discussions likely revolved around the global economic recovery following the pandemic, energy transitions and the need to address social disparities. The panels and collaborations often give us a sense of where leaders plan to direct their countries and industries in the coming years.
However, critics often point out that these talks tend to lack immediate, actionable outcomes and argue that corporate interests can overly influence the agenda. Supporters, on the other hand, see the summit as a crucial platform for cross-sector dialogue that could eventually lead to long-term solutions.
