AI will reshape knowledge work. What leaders should ask, do and learn now

Software development and software engineering could be the first major economically valuable capability that closes the gap between humans and AI, says Eiso Kant, the CTO of frontier AI company poolside. He shares what these changes mean for technology and the sector, and for knowledge work generally. Eiso stays cautious about tech forecasts and predictions, but breaks down how worry and fear can be a motivator to drive true learning and understanding in a fast-moving era, sharing and questions we should ask and mindsets we should apply to understand how we can uniquely contribute to societies and economies in the years ahead as technologies reshape human roles. This interview was recorded in  January 2025 at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland. About this episode: https://poolside.ai/ Related report: Future of Jobs 2025: https://www.weforum.org/publications/the-future-of-jobs-report-2025/ Related episodes: Radio Davos: Do you need an AI mentor? This tech entrepreneur thinks so Watch here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-I0CNHlS7f4 Read here: https://tinyurl.com/28z7cmtt Listen here: https://tinyurl.com/y7yshdad Meet The Leader: This company launched with $600 a decade ago. How it’s using data and AI to boost yields for millions of small-scale farmers Watch here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IkOu9As6J60 Read here: https://tinyurl.com/bdz69j65Listen here: https://tinyurl.com/bcmj6572

Sustainability goals take more than will -- they take culture change and block and tackle approaches. Microsoft announced a host of big commitments in 2020 for the decade ahead, including a goal to be carbon negative and another to reduce emissions by 55%. Procurement and supply chains played a key role in these goals and former supply chain exec Donna Warton shares the moves that have helped secure leader buy-in, drive proactive thinking and help make sustainability a business imperative and not just a "one-off" project. She’ll also explain the role an internal carbon tax has played in driving incentives, the challenge AI brings in staying on track for emissions goals, and what’s been effective to force the right conversations in product design and at the supplier level to reduce waste and tackle emissions. About this episode: Transcript: https://www.weforum.org/podcasts/meet-the-leader/episodes/microsoft-donna-warton-procurement Related Report: Green Procurement Playbook: The CPO’s Guide to Delivering for People and Planet: https://www.weforum.org/publications/green-procurement-playbook-the-cpo-s-guide-to-delivering-value-for-business-and-planet/ Related episodes: 3 shifts all effective collaborators make https://www.weforum.org/podcasts/meet-the-leader/episodes/3-shifts-all-effective-collaborators-make/ Bridging AI's 'woeful' data gap can save lives and tackle climate change: Gecko Robotics: https://www.weforum.org/podcasts/meet-the-leader/episodes/jake-loosarian-gecko-robotics-data-gap-ai/  

This pioneering researcher-turned-climate activist who died this week reshaped how we see the natural world and how humans understand their place on this earth. We revisit our 2021 interview with Jane and the unique way she approached climate communications to find common ground, broach difficult topics and inspire millions. We also talk to Gill Einhorn, head of the World Economic Forum's 1t.org, who explains how Jane worked with that restoration and conservation initiative, sharing how Jane collaborated and forged connections behind the scenes, what leaders can learn, and how we can take her legacy forward.   Check out all our podcasts on wef.ch/podcasts:  YouTube: - https://www.youtube.com/@wef/podcasts Radio Davos - subscribe: https://pod.link/1504682164 Meet the Leader - subscribe: https://pod.link/1534915560 Agenda Dialogues - subscribe: https://pod.link/1574956552 Join the World Economic Forum Podcast Club: https://www.facebook.com/groups/wefpodcastclub

What’s needed to deliver the carbon removal needed to meet key emissions targets in the years ahead? Charm Industrial CEO Peter Reinhardt helps explain what carbon removal and sequestration are and what’s needed to scale these further – including the incentive gaps that must be bridged for progress. He’ll also share how he and his three roommates from MIT became startup founders together – and how they’ve stayed friends and partners since, and how they leveraged each person’s unique skillsets. He also explains how key moments have helped him sharpen his focus and priorities, and how a CEO coach has helped him develop as a leader.  About this episode:  Charm Industrial: https://charmindustrial.com/ Epsiode transcript: https://www.weforum.org/podcasts/meet-the-leader/episodes/peter-reinhardt-charm-industrial-cabon-capture Related report:  Defossilizing Industry: Considerations for Scaling-up Carbon Capture and Utilization Pathways: https://www.weforum.org/publications/defossilizing-industry-considerations-for-scaling-up-carbon-capture-and-utilization-pathways/ Related episodes:  ‘Do it nearly right, but now’ - How effective leaders navigate change and disrupt sectors: Disruption Report:  Transcript: https://www.weforum.org/podcasts/meet-the-leader/episodes/simon-freakley-alixpartners-disruption-index/ Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/443s16GQ3cBzgI3akxzzIq?go=1&sp_cid=974f0d02895cc3e5dc6ee274371893a7&utm_source=embed_player_p&utm_medium=desktop&nd=1&dlsi=a279d80799654118 A CEO coach shares new leaders’ biggest blindspots (and how to overcome them):Transcript: https://www.weforum.org/podcasts/meet-the-leader/episodes/ceo-coach-shares-new-leader-blindspots/ Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/2YG6HujYmc4IrD3JSGnyOh?go=1&sp_cid=974f0d02895cc3e5dc6ee274371893a7&utm_source=embed_player_p&utm_medium=desktop&nd=1&dlsi=d0d22380bec54bb7  

Getting the right information at the right time is critical for any sector but especially small-scale farming. Losing a yield could mean a farmer has no income for a year while weakening food security and local economies. To bridge these gaps, company Farmerline has created AI-powered tools, including one that acts like a “911 for farmers,” bringing critical information on weather, crop diseases and more on demand to people who need it, all in 34 languages. The company has also developed ways alternative data can be used to develop credit scores for farmers, helping prove the investing opportunity to lenders while connecting them to much-needed financing. With small scale farmers locked out of some of the biggest innovations in the last century thanks to access and affordability, founder Alloysius Attah shares what’s needed to ensure agriculture is future ready – including the power of a database that can create a national pulse on food security for NGOs, governments and the private sector. Attah also shares his company’s founding journey, what he’s learned in the past 10 years - and how global crises like COVID have helped him rethink how he prioritizes as a leader. This interview was recorded in January 2025 at the World Economic Forum’s Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland. Updated statistics can be found in the corresponding transcript.    About this episode: https://farmerline.co/   Transcript: https://www.weforum.org/podcasts/meet-the-leader/episodes/alloysius-attah-farmerline-ai-data-finance   Related episodes: We’re ‘losing the war’ on modern slavery: Tech’s surprising role and what leaders can do - HPE’s John Schultz Read here: https://tinyurl.com/486fhvy9 Listen here: https://tinyurl.com/yewem3s4 Watch here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HlXggC3o08I ‘I’ll show you a real leader’ - Platon, the photographer of power, on finding humanity in all of us Read here: https://tinyurl.com/2s4372wc Listen here: https://tinyurl.com/3r9xrpftfdfc40499c Watch here: https://tinyurl.com/yr44h49y  

Most of the world’s information is stored digitally in a way that’s vulnerable to disappearing without warning thanks to everything from link rot and server changes, to someone not paying their web hosting bill. Some information might even disappear because bad actors have removed or changed it. Civil liberties lawyer and Filecoin Foundation president Marta Belcher explains why the modern standard for how we store information is so vulnerable and why protecting data is a human rights issue. She breaks down a fundamentally new approach (leveraging crypto and decentralized databases to protect information and create new incentives to store it) and how it serves as a sneak peek at how Web3 technologies could bake in new approaches to privacy and civil liberties protections. She’ll share how it’s already being used to protect digital artifacts such as Ukraine war crime evidence and Alexander Graham Bell’s earliest sound recordings, and how it could even be used to improve space communications. Marta, a crypto law pioneer, also shares unique ways she’s driven open-source solutions throughout her life and career and how these lessons can help any leader better collaborate. This interview was recorded in May 2025 at the World Economic Forum Office in New York. About this episode: Filecoin Foundation: https://fil.org/ Not Your Parent’s Web Study, Filecoin Foundation, 2024: https://fil.org/blog/the-web-isn-t-forever-new-research-findings-from-not-your-parents-web-project When online content disappears, Pew Research, 2024: https://www.pewresearch.org/data-labs/2024/05/17/when-online-content-disappears/ Transcript: https://www.weforum.org/podcasts/meet-the-leader/episodes/marta-belcher-filecoin-foundation Related episodes:We’re ‘losing the war’ on modern slavery: Tech’s surprising role and what leaders can do - HPE’s John Schultz Read here: https://tinyurl.com/486fhvy9 Listen here: https://tinyurl.com/yewem3s4 Watch here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HlXggC3o08I ‘I’ll show you a real leader’ - Platon, the photographer of power, on finding humanity in all of us Read here: https://tinyurl.com/2s4372wc Listen here: https://tinyurl.com/3r9xrpftfdfc40499c Watch here: https://tinyurl.com/yr44h49y

Robots that fold our laundry might sound futuristic, but don’t justify a new way of operating. And AI that reads our email or searches the web in new ways, won’t tackle the world’s biggest problems. Jake Loosararian, Gecko Robotics Co-founder, explains how technologies such as AI and robotics could do more to tackle stubborn challenges – such as infrastructure failure, to protect lives and prevent catastrophes – if only they had the right data. He breaks down: how big data gaps have held back innovation for the physical world, and how smarter approaches to infrastructure can improve efficiency and safety in sectors like manufacturing or mining, all while reducing emissions. He also offers key questions leaders can ask to better understand what information has informed their AI and why that's critical to continued trust in the technology. Lastly, he takes us through the moment he knew he needed to start Gecko Robotics, the sleepless nights he pushed through to bootstrap it in its early days, and the unique way he has merged worklife and family life to spend more time with his wife and four children. This interview was recorded at the Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland, January 2025. About this episode: Gecko Robotics https://www.geckorobotics.com/ Episode transcript: https://www.weforum.org/podcasts/meet-the-leader/episodes/jake-loosarian-gecko-robotics-data-gap-ai/ Future of jobs report https://www.weforum.org/publications/the-future-of-jobs-report-2025/ Meet the Leader - Adam Grant: Future leaders won't succeed without this key trait Watch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=buVVIpttzUA Listen: https://tinyurl.com/ys2dtftj Read: https://tinyurl.com/fbym95jy Radio Davos - Tech poised to change the world: Top Ten Emerging Technologies 2025 Watch: https://youtu.be/QVTprDQdrZE Listen: https://tinyurl.com/2nb3c246 Read: https://youtu.be/QVTprDQdrZE Check out all our podcasts on wef.ch/podcasts: YouTube: -    / @wef   Radio Davos - subscribe: https://pod.link/1504682164 Meet the Leader - subscribe: https://pod.link/1534915560

Forecasts say we’ll need to double food production by 2050 - a tall order given 40% of the earth’s land has been degraded over decades by mining, unsustainable farming and climate change. The head of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) Ibrahim Thiaw takes us through this complex issue that impacts economies, human well-being and global security. He breaks down what’s needed to restore 1.5 billion hectares of land and the policies and technologies that can make a difference. He also shares how drought devastated his family and community when just a child and how the destruction and despair he witnessed inspired him to dedicate his life to environmental issues. As he closes out his role as executive secretary this summer, he shares how leaders can sharpen their focus on the issues that matter most. About this episode:  https://www.unccd.int/ Transcript: https://www.weforum.org/podcasts/meet-the-leader/episodes/ibrahim-thiaw-unccd-land-restoration-climate Related report: Business on the Edge: Building Industry Resilience to Climate Hazards Related podcasts: How one global health leader prepares teams for the toughest scenarios: Gavi CEO The 'triple strength' leaders must develop to drive a sustainable future: OMV CEO We’re ‘losing the war’ on modern slavery: What business leaders can do - HPE’s John Schultz

Former gymnast and current USA Gymnastics CEO and president Li Li Leung joined the organization after after a turmoil-ridden period marked by an abuse scandal, bankruptcy and rapid leadership turnover. She talks to Meet The Leader about what she did in her first days to rebuild trust with athletes, coaches and gymnastics communities across the country and build new policies that met their needs. She also shares what’s needed for psychological safety and the slate of new mental health resources created at the organization, from therapists to emotional support dogs, that are supporting both athletes and coaches.  Lastly, she shares what the sport has taught her about discipline and accepting feedback, and what’s key to coaching teams on results that matter. About this episode: USA Gymnastics https://usagym.org/ Future of jobs report https://www.weforum.org/publications/the-future-of-jobs-report-2025/ Related Podcasts: Meet the Leader - Ballerina Misty Copeland: Unlocking potential and a leader’s most ‘vital’ role https://tinyurl.com/yd7zc3yc Radio Davos - How sport can save lives: Homeless World Cup https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MsXULphhSzo Meet the Leader - Adam Grant: Future leaders won't succeed without this key trait https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=buVVIpttzUA Check out all our podcasts on wef.ch/podcasts: YouTube: -    / @wef   Radio Davos - subscribe: https://pod.link/1504682164 Meet the Leader - subscribe: https://pod.link/1534915560

Big change can come with big fallouts and big feelings. Cisco's chief customer experience officer Liz Centoni runs a team with tens of thousands of employees and has 25 years of experience making the tough calls needed to drive needed technological change and earn critical buy-in and support. She shares what she's learned about tackling team fears and frictions head on and the importance of breaking down complex shifts into manageable ‘chunks’ to bring people along. She explains why she recommends leaders embrace the 'power of the pause’  -- and wait to speak in meetings -- and what's needed to get truly honest feedback in pivotal moments. Learn more about her approach –  and the empowering lessons she learned about transformation from books like ‘The Courage to be Disliked’ and the famed psychologist Viktor Frankl.  About this episode:Cisco: https://www.cisco.com/ Episode Transcript: https://www.weforum.org/podcasts/meet-the-leader/episodes/liz-centoni-cisco-tough-decisions-big-change Referenced in this episode: Book recommendation - The Courage to Be Disliked, by Fumitake Koga and Ichiro Kishimi: https://www.amazon.com/Courage-Be-Disliked-Phenomenon-Happiness/dp/1501197274 World Economic Forum Research - Future of Jobs Report:  https://www.weforum.org/publications/the-future-of-jobs-report-2025/ Related podcast:  7 women leaders on the books that shaped them https://tinyurl.com/vuketc78 How one global health leader plans for the unexpected: Gavi https://open.spotify.com/episode/0Sj2YMTzpZj54Q0DMhHVrr