This session’s debate focused first on the impact of the pandemic on the specific market of venture capital. How is it possible to promote innovation and long-term investment through start-ups? Speakers also discussed how national economies, local businesses, and vulnerable workers and households can be supported in the Post-COVID Era. On the global level, speakers also contributed to the conversation by providing their insights on how trade, commerce, and finance will change in the post-pandemic age.

This session was composed of two conversations:

CONVERSATION 1 | Unlocking society’s benefits through Venture Capital and Start-ups in the Post-COVID Era
13:30 – 15:30 CET

This conversation focused on the impact of the pandemic on venture capital, proposing different ways venture capital can unlock potential benefits for the global economy.

Speakers:

Rudy Aernoudt, Senior economist DG GROW, European Commission

Josh Lerner, Jacob H. Schiff Professor of Investment Banking, Harvard Business School

Luisa Alemany, Associate Professor, London Business School

Pär-Jörgen Pärson, General Partner, Northzone

Ramana Nanda, Professor of Entrepreneurial Finance and Academic Lead of the Institute for Deep Tech Entrepreneurship, Imperial College London

Rob Kaplan, Founder and CEO, Circulate Capital

Thomas Hellmann, DP World Professor of Entrepreneurship and Innovation, Saïd School of Business, University of Oxford

Xabier Goenaga, Head of the Knowledge for Finance, Innovation and Growth Unit, Joint Research Centre of the European Commission

Moderated by Nina Rawal, Partner and Co-Head of Ventures, Trill Impact

CONVERSATION 2 | Reshaping international economic and financial interdependencies in the Post-COVID Era
13:30 – 15:30 CET

Speakers contributed to the conversation by providing their insights into how trade, commerce and finance will change in the post-pandemic age. They provided their informed understanding of this crucial topic by envisioning the future of global markets.

Speakers:

Moreno Bertoldi, Adviser on International Economic and Financial Affairs, DG ECFIN, European Commission

Adam S. Posen, President, Peterson Institute for International Economics

Andrea Conte, Economist, Joint Research Centre of the European Commission

Dalia Marin, Professor of International Economics, TUM School of Management, Technical University of Munich

Eswar Prasad, Nandlal P. Tolani Senior Professor of Trade Policy and Professor of Economic, Cornell University

Guntram B. Wolff, Director, Bruegel

Sven Smit, Chairman and Director, McKinsey Global Institute; Senior Partner, McKinsey & Company

Carlos Arteta, Lead Economist in the Development Prospects Group, World Bank

Moderated by Sandra Phlippen, Chief Economist of Group Economics, ABN AMRO

How can we make the most out of technological advances in the Post-COVID Era? The need for containment and monitoring measures has certainly found an ally in technology: apps, tracking devices and AI-based technologies of all sorts have served the purpose of flattening the curve.

This session was composed of two conversations:

CONVERSATION 1 | Welcoming new ways of working and living and bridging the digital divide
16:00 – 18:00 CET

The debate took a look at how technology is helping societies reshape the way people work and live, without neglecting that access to remote working and distance learning is not equally available to all people. How can we bridge the digital divide, then?

Speakers:

Carlos Zorrinho, Member of the European Parliament, ITRE Committee

Arun Sundararajan, Harold Price Professor of Entrepreneurship and Technology, New York University

Klára Dobrev, Member of the European Parliament , European Parliament

Michael Matlosz, President, EuroScience

Titi Akinsanmi, Policy and Government Relations Lead for West and Francophone Africa, Google

Moderated by Antony Walker, Deputy CEO, techUK

CONVERSATION 2 | Leveraging AI and Big Data to empower people and businesses
16:00 – 18:00 CET

The debate turned to how people and businesses can be empowered by leveraging AI and Big Data in the Post-COVID Era.

Speakers:

Anand S. Rao, Partner, Global AI Lead, PwC

Sinan Kayhan Aral, David Austin Professor of Management, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Stuart Russell, Professor of Computer Science, Director of the Center for Human-Compatible Artificial Intelligence, University of California, Berkeley

Moderated by Mark Purdy, Managing Director of Economic Research at Accenture Research

In what ways will societies differ in the Post-COVID Era? This session will focus on the transformations that societies will experience in the post-pandemic world. The spread of COVID-19 has certainly had an impact on the way people work and live. An increasing amount of social scientific research has looked at the implications of both the COVID-19 pandemic and the quarantine measures that have been implemented.

This session was composed of two conversations:

CONVERSATION 1 | Factoring in the psychological and sociological implications of COVID-19
13:30 – 15:30 CET

Speakers assessed the psychological and sociological effects on populations, notably on vulnerable people.

Speakers:

Elke Van Hoof, Expert in the Superior Health Council of Belgium, European Parliament

Frances MK Williams, Professor of Genomic Epidemiology and Hon Consultant Rheumatologist, King’s College London

Juan C. Palomino, Post-Doctoral Research Officer, Institute for New Economic Thinking (INET) and Department of Social Policy and Intervention (DSPI), University of Oxford

Magda Osman, Lecturer in Experimental Cognitive Psychology, Queen Mary University of London

Sandra L. Shullman, President, American Psychological Association; Managing Partner, Columbus Office

Moderated by Antonis Kousoulis,  Director for England and Wales, Mental Health Foundation

CONVERSATION 2 | Historical and philosophical lessons from post-pandemic societies
13:30 – 15:30 CET

Which historical and philosophical lessons can we draw from post-pandemic societies? Participants addressed the Post-COVID Era from a historical and philosophical standpoint, in an attempt to better prepare for the future by learning from the past.

Speakers:

Alexander Bird, Bertrand Russell Professor, Faculty of Philosophy, University of Cambridge

David S. Jones, A. Bernard Ackerman Professor of the Culture of Medicine, Department of History of Science, Harvard University

Rae Langton, Knightbridge Professor of Philosophy, University of Cambridge

Frank Snowden, Andrew Downey Orrick Professor Emeritus of History, Yale University

Moderated by James Wilson, Professor of Philosophy, University College London

This session explored business concerns in the Post-COVID Era. Speakers thus discussed best practices and innovation strategies that businesses across sectors should implement to tackle the impact of the pandemic.

This session was composed of two conversations:

CONVERSATION 1 | Fostering innovation through public-private partnership and data collaboration
16:00 – 18:00 CET

Innovation was discussed through the lens of public-private partnerships and data collaboration in the Post-COVID Era.

Speakers:

James Eshelby, Vice President & Head of Pfizer Global Public-Private Partnerships and Vice-Chair of Research & Innovation Strategy Group (RIS) at EFPIA

Mike England, COO, RS Components

Miapetra Kumpula-Natri, Member of the European Parliament, ITRE Committee Member

Jessica Espey, Senior Advisor, United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network

Matthew Harrington, Global President and Chief Operating Officer, Edelman

Stefaan Verhulst, Co-Founder and Chief of Research and Development, Governance Laboratory, New York University

Samuel Scarpino, Assistant Professor, Northeastern University

Moderated by Scott David, Executive Director, Information Risk and Synthetic Intelligence Research Initiative, University of Washington (Seattle) 

CONVERSATION 2 | The innovation potential of the Energy sector
16:00 – 18:00 CET

In this conversation, close attention was devoted to the Energy sector and its potential for innovation.

Speakers:

Afnan Hannan, Co-Founder and CEO, Okra Solar

Anes Jusic, Senior Banker, European Bank for Reconstruction & Development

Douglas J. Arent, Deputy Associate Lab Director, Scientific Computing and Energy Analysis, National Renewable Energy Laboratory

Elvira López Prados, Head of CEO Office – Energy, ACCIONA

William Brent, CMO, Husk Power Systems

Moderated by Xiangkun Elvis Cao, Climate & Sustainability Consortium Impact Fellow, Massachusetts Institute of Technology