Davos a few days apart

Perhaps this is more of a note to myself than an article. Anyway, the start of the year was remarkable in various dimensions - and much of it could be seen in a concentrated form at the World Economic Forum in Davos. So it's worth taking a step back from the hustle and bustle to look at the content and ask: What did I actually take away with me? What was on the minds of the people I met there? What was there to hear from the WEF Annual Meeting and the many presentations around it? Here are a few thoughts, without any claim to generality, world peace or prosperity for all. Five thoughts after Davos. [German version]

Who enjoys trust and who needs to win it back

"Restoring trust" was the motto of this year's Word Economic Forum. So it was fitting that Edelman presented their Trust Barometer 2024 at the Kirchner Museum right at the start. According to this, trust in political authorities is not doing so well, especially in industrialised countries. Even more exciting: when it comes to innovation and new technologies, respondents do not really trust heads of government (45%), journalists (47%), CEOs (51%) or even NGOs (54%). More trust is placed in technical experts in companies (66%) and most in peers ("people like me"), who are on a par with scientists (74%). And who is trusted to integrate innovation into society? Business (59%) more than the state (50%) or the media (48%). Of course, this also gives rise to a responsibility that must be honoured.

https://www.edelman.com/trust/2024/trust-barometer

What's next for AI beyond the hype cycle

The speed at which technology continues to develop is omnipresent in artificial intelligence. It has passed the peak of the hype cycle with breathtaking speed. Fields of application are now being explored, from public news to individual health. The risks have also grown, in the case of GenAI the three "Ds" - disinformation, discrimination, deep fakes. Sam Altman, CEO of Open AI, therefore sees nothing wrong with the fact that people are a little nervous. Society must continue to develop together with technology. Will that happen fast enough? Or is it better to set a framework for the technology, for example with the EU's AI Act? This was the subject of much debate. As a European, especially as a German, you might easily feel like: Better to focus more on the opportunities right now than chasing after the rest of the world later.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HtXdhcvUD1s

What it takes to scale the possibilities

Even if, to paraphrase Christian Lindner, we have had our coffee and are ready to set off - awake and aware of the risks - the optimal use of AI in the company is not a sure-fire success. Robert Solow stated as early as 1987 that billions in IT investments, even the mass adoption of a technology alone, do not guarantee any progress in productivity. After experimenting, it is important to implement it correctly and comprehensively. Oliver Wyman revealed in a study that 69% of CEOs see a broad benefit of AI in their companies today. However, employees are more sceptical about its use in the workplace. It is therefore not enough to issue guidelines for the use of AI: If you want to make major leaps with AI, you need to develop utilisation concepts for scaling and comprehensively empower employees. For many activities, the combination of people and new technology is the best solution, and in the end, people always remain responsible - regardless of the tools they use. This makes AI an urgent issue for the entire management and organisation, and the way it is handled has a formative effect on the corporate culture.

https://www.oliverwymanforum.com/global-consumer-sentiment/how-will-ai-affect-global-economics.html

How the new CSOs are looking at twin transformation

And what about sustainability? Perhaps somewhat sidelined by AI, some might say. COP28 in Dubai was just around the corner, I hear from others. I disagree completely: Sustainability naturally remains a huge topic, and not just on the WEF agenda. In particular, the use of AI for more sustainable solutions, better pattern recognition and, in some cases, the combination with advanced robotics is creating completely new opportunities for more sustainable action and economic activity, for example in the agricultural and forestry sectors, in infrastructure and in healthcare. Digitalisation and sustainability go hand in hand. I was inspired by the dialogue in the CSO community (to be precise: S stands for sustainability) about this twin transformation in particular, as well as the openness to think together about how digital solutions can make the planet a better place: AI for good, tech for good, to speak in hashtags. It was equally important to note in Davos that a significantly increased number of companies consider sustainability to be crucial to their business success - and are now at the latest on the way to not viewing ESG in isolation as a specialised topic, but rather integrating it deeply into their corporate strategy.

https://www.imperial.ac.uk/business-school/faculty-research/research-centres/leonardo-centre-business-society/publications-reports/business-strategy-sustainability/

Why we need a culture of learning in a world of risks

Overall, the pragmatic and optimistic attitude of most participants remains resilient in the face of current geopolitical tensions. The focus is on their own and collective contribution to a more desirable future - and perhaps also on how to do business with it. The risks are not ignored: Looking at the next 2 years, the WEF's annual report sees disinformation through AI at the forefront. In the longer term, with a view to the next 10 years, climate-related risks occupy the top four places. Both AI and sustainability harbour enormous business and social potential. It is crucial for both politicians and companies to take people along on this twofold transformation. Creating a good framework for cultural change can be a first step; giving impetus to the change through visible and comprehensible action and shaping it is a second. However, politicians and companies must do much more than just this to regain trust. And precisely because experts and peers are currently trusted the most: Each individual can make a contribution to ensuring that the twin transformation succeeds. https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2024/01/global-risks-report-2024/

The 2024 annual meeting of the World Economic Forum took place in Davos from 15 to 19 January. Good summaries from very different perspectives can be found at CNBC (the U.S. still strongly represented), McKinsey (10 key takeaways), SRF (nice podcast on AI, in German), Handelsblatt (commentary by Sebastian Matthes, in German), the WEF itself or, of course, at The Nunatak Group, where I work as a Managing Partner.

Picture: World Economic Forum.