A new American presidency, geopolitical risk and all things AI – these are the main themes expected to keep world leaders, leading business figures and journalists busy over the next few days in Davos at the 55th annual meeting of the World Economic Forum. Primarily, the start of Donald Trump’s second term as US president is a clear break with the administration of Joe Biden. Mr Trump’s inauguration ceremony today falls on the first day of the annual meeting. From global tariffs to energy policy, the US president will significantly affect many of the industries and leaders gathered in the Alpine resort. Multiple sessions on the official programme are dedicated to deciphering what the next four years will be like, and while Mr Trump will not be present, he will give a virtual address to those attending later this week.
Linked to the election of Mr Trump is the geopolitical state of the world. In the annual Global Risks Report issued by the World Economic Forum last week, geopolitical risk was named as the top concern for chief executives and leaders from the world of politics, media and business who participated in a survey about risk perception. The perception that conflicts could become worse or spread was the primary immediate concern – with the Middle East and Ukraine top of mind. The fact that the Gaza ceasefire came into force on the eve of the meeting is undoubtedly a positive development but the level of uncertainty and fear of war prevails.
One unexpected turn of events was the downfall of the Assad regime in Syria, not factored in at the time of conducting the survey. While the former Syrian government did not participate in Davos, its successors will be represented by the acting Foreign Minister Asaad Al Shibani, who will address those attending on Thursday. A key message is expected to be that of reopening Syria for business, requiring the removal of international sanctions and the trust of the new authorities in Syria. The forum will also see the return of a once-regular delegate of Davos, Iran’s Vice President Javad Zarif, who will also address the event after several years of absence. However, for most European delegates, the biggest issue remains that of Ukraine. While Mr Trump is expected to limit some of the support that Ukraine has enjoyed since 2022, Kyiv is still getting ample support in Davos. Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is expected to attend Davos, while “Ukraine House” is hosting a series of events outside the main congress centre. The space hosting “Ukraine House” is decked with a banner stating “Your Country First. Win with us”, capturing the nationalistic sentiment that appears to be growing among countries.
The third issue that is top of mind for most of those attending, particularly those not engaged immediately in geopolitics, is that of artificial intelligence. The topic of AI this year is not one speaking to the future, rather, very much the present. A short walk along the famous Davos Promenade is quite telling, with advertising from companies claiming to have the answer for AI adoption. Cisco boasts “Making AI work for you”, while Salesforce claims its “Agentforce” is “what AI was meant to be”, and Intel advertising “AI inside for the New Era”. G42 has joined forces with several leaders, including Microsoft, to host a building renamed “AI House”, with a full programme dedicated to AI.
The confluence of these issues, with a backdrop of climate change that has melted much of the snow off the mountains surrounding the meeting, promises to make this year’s forum as important as ever.
F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League last-16, second leg:
Real Madrid 1 (Asensio 70'), Ajax 4 (Ziyech 7', Neres 18', Tadic 62', Schone 72')
Ajax win 5-3 on aggregate
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
So what is Spicy Chickenjoy?
Just as McDonald’s has the Big Mac, Jollibee has Spicy Chickenjoy – a piece of fried chicken that’s crispy and spicy on the outside and comes with a side of spaghetti, all covered in tomato sauce and topped with sausage slices and ground beef. It sounds like a recipe that a child would come up with, but perhaps that’s the point – a flavourbomb combination of cheap comfort foods. Chickenjoy is Jollibee’s best-selling product in every country in which it has a presence.
More coverage from the Future Forum
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
New Zealand 57-0 South Africa
Tries: Rieko Ioane, Nehe Milner-Skudder (2), Scott Barrett, Brodie Retallick, Ofa Tu'ungfasi, Lima Sopoaga, Codie Taylor. Conversions: Beauden Barrett (7). Penalty: Beauden Barrett
Mica
Director: Ismael Ferroukhi
Stars: Zakaria Inan, Sabrina Ouazani
3 stars
Sheikh Zayed's poem
When it is unveiled at Abu Dhabi Art, the Standing Tall exhibition will appear as an interplay of poetry and art. The 100 scarves are 100 fragments surrounding five, figurative, female sculptures, and both sculptures and scarves are hand-embroidered by a group of refugee women artisans, who used the Palestinian cross-stitch embroidery art of tatreez. Fragments of Sheikh Zayed’s poem Your Love is Ruling My Heart, written in Arabic as a love poem to his nation, are embroidered onto both the sculptures and the scarves. Here is the English translation.
Your love is ruling over my heart
Your love is ruling over my heart, even a mountain can’t bear all of it
Woe for my heart of such a love, if it befell it and made it its home
You came on me like a gleaming sun, you are the cure for my soul of its sickness
Be lenient on me, oh tender one, and have mercy on who because of you is in ruins
You are like the Ajeed Al-reem [leader of the gazelle herd] for my country, the source of all of its knowledge
You waddle even when you stand still, with feet white like the blooming of the dates of the palm
Oh, who wishes to deprive me of sleep, the night has ended and I still have not seen you
You are the cure for my sickness and my support, you dried my throat up let me go and damp it
Help me, oh children of mine, for in his love my life will pass me by.
The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
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Know your Camel lingo
The bairaq is a competition for the best herd of 50 camels, named for the banner its winner takes home
Namoos - a word of congratulations reserved for falconry competitions, camel races and camel pageants. It best translates as 'the pride of victory' - and for competitors, it is priceless
Asayel camels - sleek, short-haired hound-like racers
Majahim - chocolate-brown camels that can grow to weigh two tonnes. They were only valued for milk until camel pageantry took off in the 1990s
Millions Street - the thoroughfare where camels are led and where white 4x4s throng throughout the festival
The Facility’s Versatility
Between the start of the 2020 IPL on September 20, and the end of the Pakistan Super League this coming Thursday, the Zayed Cricket Stadium has had an unprecedented amount of traffic.
Never before has a ground in this country – or perhaps anywhere in the world – had such a volume of major-match cricket.
And yet scoring has remained high, and Abu Dhabi has seen some classic encounters in every format of the game.
October 18, IPL, Kolkata Knight Riders tied with Sunrisers Hyderabad
The two playoff-chasing sides put on 163 apiece, before Kolkata went on to win the Super Over
January 8, ODI, UAE beat Ireland by six wickets
A century by CP Rizwan underpinned one of UAE’s greatest ever wins, as they chased 270 to win with an over to spare
February 6, T10, Northern Warriors beat Delhi Bulls by eight wickets
The final of the T10 was chiefly memorable for a ferocious over of fast bowling from Fidel Edwards to Nicholas Pooran
March 14, Test, Afghanistan beat Zimbabwe by six wickets
Eleven wickets for Rashid Khan, 1,305 runs scored in five days, and a last session finish
June 17, PSL, Islamabad United beat Peshawar Zalmi by 15 runs
Usman Khawaja scored a hundred as Islamabad posted the highest score ever by a Pakistan team in T20 cricket
ADCC AFC Women’s Champions League Group A fixtures
October 3: v Wuhan Jiangda Women’s FC
October 6: v Hyundai Steel Red Angels Women’s FC
October 9: v Sabah FA
'Shakuntala Devi'
Starring: Vidya Balan, Sanya Malhotra
Director: Anu Menon
Rating: Three out of five stars
