Hundreds of influential CEOs, policymakers, and world leaders gathered at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Global Summit to address global commercial challenges and opportunities — and how business is charting the future.
This invitation-only event took place alongside the World Bank/International Monetary Fund spring meeting in Washington, D.C., and opened on the 113th anniversary of the founding of the Chamber, an organization that serves as the chief commercial diplomat for the U.S. business community and works daily to connect and support American businesses across the nation and around the world.
“We all share a vision for the future—one where our industries and our countries continue benefiting from the growth and opportunity that comes from global engagement," said U.S. Chamber President and CEO Suzanne P. Clark, who delivered the opening keynote address.
Clark described the major questions that businesses are facing, such as how to bolster certainty, the rule of law, and international order, how to minimize ripple effects of regional economic slowdowns, foster sustained global growth, and how to meet growing demand for electricity driven by AI and technology.
“There are no easy, obvious answers to these questions,” Clark said. “Which is why we have brought together key leaders from the public and private sectors to help us chart the way forward. We have a measure of control over the future. As we shape that future, we should aim for one where we remain interconnected.”
Clark highlighted the extensive work of the Chamber’s engagement around the globe, including over 30 bilateral business councils and 130 American Chambers of Commerce overseas (AmChams). The Chamber regularly hosts heads of state, conducts commercial trade missions, and facilitates investments and dialogue in every corner of the world. The Chamber’s Global Intelligence Desk generates insights from top thinkers and analysts through weekly episodes of The Call. In fact, the Summit included an in-person session of The Call with Wall Street Journal reporter Lingling Wei on the complex U.S.-China relationship.
Coming just a few months after the Chamber’s 2025 State of American Business, which showcases how all business and policy is local, the Global Summit also featured three U.S. governors — Andy Beshear of Kentucky, Wes Moore of Maryland, and Glenn Youngkin of Virginia — in addition to a robust group of diplomats and foreign ministers. The governors discussed how reliant each of their states is on foreign direct investment, and how vital global trade is to local economies.
Local Leaders at the Global Summit
The summit also addressed the growing geopolitical risks and uncertainties that businesses face today. "The world is becoming less predictable; the world is becoming more volatile," Clark said, underscoring the need for businesses to remain resilient and adaptive. She emphasized the importance of business-led solutions, stating, “We know businesses are tracking these risks carefully, and all of us are trying to think about how to plan and how to form strategy for the future.”
Chamber Foundation President Michael Carney moderated a session on "Navigating Geopolitics," where uncertainty and risk were key themes. “The big blind spot right now is that we are in the midst of such radical change that we're not really able to comprehend that things aren't going to be the same," said Beth Sanner, Director of Geopolitics and Strategy at International Capital Strategies. "We don't know where it's going, but we do know that things are really different.
“The biggest risk for businesses is that everybody is going to be driven by the hope that it's all just going to be fine. [They hope it is] all going to go back to be the way that it was, and it's not,” Sanner added.
Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis President and CEO Neel Kashkari discussed how the uncertainty is affecting the economy, saying that for the dollar to remain the world's reserve currency, then America has to remain the safest and most desirable environment for investing. “Policy choices have led to uncertainty—and policy choices can relieve the uncertainty,” he said.
Participants at the two-day summit engaged in discussions on a range of topics, including global risk management, the future of technology, and energy security. Clark urged attendees to approach these discussions with optimism, asserting that "solving problems is what businesses do best." She called on them to work together to create solutions for a brighter future, emphasizing the power of free enterprise to drive progress.
"We believe that free markets and economic liberalization have delivered a level of prosperity unparalleled in the history of the world," she said, reinforcing the Chamber's commitment to expanding free and fair trade and global engagement. Clark recently returned from India, where she met with Indian officials and business leaders in Delhi and Mumbai and discussed the need for a new trade deal with India that will improve access for U.S. businesses.
"The surest way to spur growth and opportunity is through new trade deals – not trade wars," she wrote in an op-ed for Fox News. "And nowhere is the opportunity greater – or more elusive – than with India."
Growing Focus on Global Risk
Geopolitical risks are no longer a distant concern for businesses—they are a top-tier strategic and financial challenge. From supply chain disruptions to shifting regulations and market volatility, global instability now shapes investment decisions, corporate strategy, and economic security.
Global leaders at the summit included H.E. Hadri Badri, CEO of the Dubai Economic Development Corporation, H.E. Jovita Neliupšienė, European Union Ambassador to the United States, and the Rt. Hon. Lord Peter Mandelson, British Ambassador to the United States, spoke about the shared benefits that come from U.S. investment abroad and the need for trade policy certainty that will ensure investments continue.
Despite the risk and uncertainty in today’s world, participants took solace in Clark’s words.
“We have to strike a balance—contending with the issues of the moment and not forgetting to look forward and have a long view,” she said. “This institution has done that for over a century. Many of our members have been with us that entire time. These companies had to deal with incredible risks during the 20th century. ... They juggled business as usual and planned for the future, even as the world transformed around them and a new global order emerged.
“They demonstrated an incredible ability to imagine the world as it could be—and should be. And they laid the plans and led the innovations to make it so.”
