The World Economic Forum will convene more than 500 leaders and experts in Dubai from October 13 to 15 for its inaugural Annual Meeting of Global Future Leaders, with discussions focused on technological disruption, economic uncertainty, geopolitical shifts and climate challenges.
The gathering, organised in collaboration with the UAE government, will include 15 ministers and nearly 150 chief executives and chairs, bringing together emerging leaders and established decision-makers from government, business, academia, science and civil society.
The programme will examine how artificial intelligence and other emerging technologies are reshaping employment and economic opportunities, alongside responses to geopolitical uncertainty, climate risks and changing global trade patterns.
Alois Zwinggi, president and chief executive of the World Economic Forum, said the meeting would bring different generations together to develop practical ideas for the decades ahead.
“The decisions we make today will shape the world the next generation inherits. Emerging leaders should have a voice in those decisions, not just live with their consequences,” Zwinggi said.
UAE Minister of Cabinet Affairs Mohammad Al Gergawi said the meeting reflected the partnership between the UAE government and the forum, as well as their shared commitment to international cooperation and global dialogue.
The event will be co-chaired by Montenegro Prime Minister Milojko Spajić, UAE Minister of State for Government Development and the Future Ohood Bint Khalfan Al Roumi, Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor and entrepreneur Fadel Adib, Dubai Future Foundation Chief Executive Khalfan Belhoul, and BlackRock Switzerland Chair Mirjam Staub Bisang.
Sessions will cover six broad themes: geopolitical uncertainty, technological disruption, economic resilience and prosperity, leadership, science and innovation, and climate and nature. Topics include the implications of agentic AI, human-machine collaboration, changing trade patterns and economic policy in an uncertain environment.
The forum will also launch Future20, an initiative bringing together 20 emerging leaders working on growth, innovation and resilience.
New research released during the meeting will examine youth perspectives, leadership, AI applications for sustainable development in the Middle East and North Africa, and data-centre infrastructure optimisation. The findings will contribute to the forum’s ongoing work ahead of its 2027 annual meeting in Davos-Klosters.
