The World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meeting kicked off in the Swiss resort city of Davos on Monday, with global figures from politics, business, academia and civil society attending the five-day event.
The annual forum that attempts to shape global agendas comes at a time of massive global upheaval.
United States President Donald Trump will attend the annual event along with other global leaders. His attendance comes amid strained US ties with its European allies over his threat to take over Greenland, a semi-autonomous territory of Denmark.
Here is more about the WEF and what to expect at the meeting.
What is the WEF?
The WEF is a think tank and event organiser based in the Swiss city of Geneva. The first summit held in Davos in 1971 was a gathering of business executives. However, over the years, it has expanded in scope, discussing issues as diverse as economic disparity, climate change, technology and global cooperation.
Where is the WEF summit in 2026?
The summit is at the conference centre in Davos, an Alpine town in Switzerland, famous for its ski resort and home to about 10,000 people.
Davos, at a height of about 1,500 metres (nearly 5,000 feet), is located in the Graubunden canton in the eastern Alps of Switzerland.
It has been the venue of the WEF summit every year in January since 1971.
When is the summit at Davos?
The main sessions began on Monday, January 19, and the annual meeting will wrap up on January 23.
Sessions begin at 9am (08:00 GMT) every day.
Who is expected to attend, and who isn’t?
Nearly 3,000 high-level participants from business, government and beyond, plus untold numbers of activists, journalists and outside observers are expected to attend.
Organisers say a record of nearly 400 top political leaders, including more than 60 heads of state and government, and about 850 chairpersons and chief executives of many of the world’s leading companies, are attending.
Headlining the lineup is Trump, who is set to deliver a speech on Wednesday, and several cabinet ministers and top advisers, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and special envoy Steve Witkoff.
Trump also wants to hold a meeting of his ‘Board of Peace’ on Gaza at the annual gathering, according to a report by Bloomberg news.
French President Emmanuel Macron, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani, President Felix Tshisekedi of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, China’s Vice Premier He Lifeng and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy are among the who’s who attending the WEF summit.
Organisers say 55 ministers for economy and finance, 33 ministers for foreign affairs, 34 ministers for trade, commerce and industry, and 11 central bank governors are also expected.
Tech titans scheduled to be on hand include Jensen Huang of Nvidia, Microsoft’s Satya Nadella, Demis Hassabis of Google DeepMind, and Arthur Mensch of France’s Mistral AI.
NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte and World Trade Organization Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala are among several top officials from international institutions.
Who is not attending?
Iran’s foreign minister will not be attending the summit, the organisers said on Monday, stressing it would not be “right” after the recent deadly crackdown on protesters in Iran. Abbas Araghchi had been scheduled to speak on Tuesday.
“The Iranian Foreign Minister will not be attending Davos,” the WEF said on X.
“Although he was invited last fall, the tragic loss of lives of civilians in Iran over the past few weeks means that it is not right for the Iranian government to be represented at Davos this year,” it added.
Israel, accused of committing genocide in Gaza, has also been invited. President Isaac Herzog will represent Israel at the event.
Mozambique President Daniel Chapo cancelled his trip to Davos and will not attend the meeting due to massive flooding in his country. He said on social media late on Sunday that “the absolute priority at this moment is to save lives”.
What is on the agenda?
The theme this year is “A Spirit of Dialogue”. More than 200 sessions will tackle a wide array of issues ranging from geopolitics and artificial intelligence to climate change.
Trump is expected to meet global business leaders on Wednesday, the Reuters news agency reported, citing sources familiar with the matter.
Business leaders, including CEOs in financial services, crypto and consulting, are invited to a reception after Trump’s address to the WEF’s annual meeting, the sources told Reuters on Monday. The agenda was unclear.
What’s different this year?
The geopolitical context has become incredibly complex this year: Trump’s pronouncements and policies on subjects as diverse as Venezuela, Greenland and Iran — not to mention his aggressive tariff policies — have upended the world order and raised questions about the US role in the world.
European Union leaders have dubbed Trump’s threat to slap new tariffs over his Greenland takeover bid a “blackmail”.
The advent of AI – its promise and perils – has also become a hot topic. Business executives will examine how to apply it to boost efficiency and profits; labour leaders and advocacy groups will warn of its threat to jobs and livelihoods, and policymakers will look to navigate the best way forward between regulation and the right to innovate.
Davos conference organisers always trot out buzzwords for the meeting, and this year, it is “A Spirit of Dialogue” – around five themes of cooperation, growth, investment in people, innovation and building prosperity.
Critics say Davos is too much talk and not enough action to rectify the gaping inequality in the world and address troubles like climate change.
