We need panels where everyone doesn't always agree. We need panels where we can have true conversations, maybe some overt disagreements, but through that we can have a deeper conversation and then we can have maybe deeper understanding of each other's views. You can already see the shift in who is here this year. That doesn't mean the goal of everyone is to leave having convinced themselves that they're right. The objective over the week is not an agreement. It's understanding. It's sitting with people who disagree with you, taking their arguments seriously, their viewpoints seriously, and being willing to admit they might be right or they might have something that helps you evolve your opinions better. And there's a deeper challenge. Many of the people most affected by what we talk about here will never come to this conference. That's the central tension of this forum. Davos is an elite gathering trying to shape a world that belongs to everyone. That is why this year's theme is the spirit of dialogue, because dialogue is the only way a room like this can earn the legitimacy to shape ideas for people who aren't in the room. And besides, the world needs some more good faith conversations with people who don't typically talk to one another. I think that most people, at least intellectually, know that finding a common ground with a stranger is a hopeful thing. It restores your faith in humanity a bit. But how often does it actually happen? Hopefully, a little more happens now. But how often can we make it happen? Because dialogue, especially the listening half of dialogue, is what the World Economic Forum needs in going forward. We need more of it. For 56 years, the World Economic Forum has been synonymous with Davos and that's likely to remain true for a long while. But you should also see the World Economic Forum start doing something new, showing up and listening in places where the modern world is actually being built. Davos, yes, but also places like Detroit and Dublin or cities like Jakarta or Buenos Aires. We need the mountain to visit everyone, to be a part of everyone's life. So in fact that's why I agreed to take on this role after Klaus Schwab, whose more than a half century of work together with an extraordinary dedicated group of men and women at the World Economic Forum made this gathering possible. There was an opportunity to make this forum more transparent and I thought this was the best way to rebuild trust when people can see in the room the debates, the participation, and the conversations, and maybe a lot more understanding. That approach may fail in other gatherings. In this one, it's going to work because for all the caricatures of this forum, the people who come here, the people I know, aren't here to congratulate themselves, aren't here to pat themselves on the back. They're not here to protect their own comforts. The people I know are here for something bigger than themselves, bigger than their organizations that they represent. I believe economic progress should be shared. All of us at the forum believe that economic success should be shared and we believe institutions like the World Economic Forum still matter in making things happen. So let's remember this during the week about real conversations. Let us all commit to listen, to learn, to understand, and if we could all do that, we will all be better for that. Thank you.
And now, my co-chair...
Thank you, Larry, for that very powerful message at the opening of our annual meeting. Now it is my pleasure to introduce our other co-chair, André Hoffmann, and I would also like to use this opportunity to thank both of the co-chairs for their leadership during the last three quarters of a year. André Hoffmann, you know André, many of you, he's our co-chair but also the vice chair of Roche. So André, the floor is yours.
Your majesties, excellencies, distinguished forum partners, ladies and gentlemen, it is now also my turn to welcome you here in this meeting placed under the spirit of dialogue. At a time when science confirms that humanity has already transgressed seven of the nine planetary boundaries as highlighted in a planetary health check in September 2025 from the Potsdam Institute, the challenge before us is no longer one of just awareness but of action, making the need for collective responsibility, decisive leadership, and meaningful dialogue more urgent than ever. As Larry just underlined, for over half a century, leaders from across the globe have regularly gathered here in Davos in Switzerland to confront the defining challenges of our time. This was done as a community bound by shared responsibility for our collective future. This tradition, born from the conviction that the great questions facing humanity demand dialogue across their differences, has never been more vital than it is today. At the moment when the world confronts profound questions about growth, about innovation, about technological transformation, and about our planet's future. At the moment where we need spaces where diverse voices can be heard, where we need just and safe places where diverse voices can be heard, at a moment where complexity must be examined from multiple perspectives so that we gain the insights we desperately need. This is why the World Economic Forum exists since 56 years. It is the international organization for public-private cooperation. A space where government, businesses, and civil society come together and generate the insights that emerge when different worldviews actively illuminate one another. And this matters because in a world that feels increasingly divided, progress depends on our ability to listen and engage across differences. Could I ask my wife to give you the third page which I left there? As you can see, you can be prepared but also a bit clumsy and deliberate. Sorry about that. This is why our gathering takes place here in Switzerland. A nation whose tradition and commitment to dialogue reflects the very spirit we seek to embody. Davos has over so many years almost become, as I said before, a synonym for the World Economic Forum. It is therefore a particular pleasure for me to welcome Mr. Guy Parmelin, president of the Swiss Confederation, as the opening speaker here in Davos. Federal Councillor Parmelin has been a member of the Swiss Federal Council for over 20 years. He initially led the federal department of defense, civil protection and sport and since 2019 has headed the federal department of economic affairs, education and research. Mr. President, when you were inaugurated as president by the Swiss Parliament last December, you chose to speak about dialogue at a time of uncertainty and tension. You reminded Parliament that Switzerland's diversity is not something that sustains itself automatically. It only becomes a strength if we truly listen to one another. If we resist the temptation to dismiss different views simply because they come from another political camp. You emphasized that societies do not move forward through value judgments on others but through respect for those who think differently. Diverging opinions, you argued, are not an obstacle, but a driver of progress and a source of genuine innovation. This understanding of dialogue, rooted in listening, proximity, respect, and a shared sense of responsibility and humanity, is one that deeply resonates here in Davos. It also reflects the values of the World Economic Forum: talk and listen to each other, embrace other options, and act in a collective interest. The spirit of dialogue. Before inviting the president to speak to us, allow me also to express our deepest gratitude to the Swiss government, to the Swiss parliament, to the canton of Graubünden, to the Swiss army, and to the police. A special thank you goes to the community of Davos and Klosters for their decades of exceptional hospitality and partnership. And above all, our thanks go to the people of these communities whose openness and commitment truly embodies the spirit of Davos and the spirit of Switzerland. Your majesties, excellencies, distinguished forum partners, ladies and gentlemen, it is a particular pleasure to invite now the president of the confederation to address us. Thank you very much.
