Notable speakers at the event included: Steve Forbes, Chairman and Editor-in-Chief, Forbes Media; Lawrence Wong, Prime Minister and Minister for Finance, Singapore; Anutin Charnvirakul, Prime Minister of Thailand; Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr, President of the Philippines; Ray Dalio, Founder of Bridgewater Associates, Chairman of Dalio Family Office; Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, Founder and Chairperson of Biocon; Chartsiri Sophonpanich, President of Bangkok Bank; Jenny Johnson, CEO of Franklin Templeton; Eduardo Saverin, Cofounder of Meta, Cofounder and Co-CEO of B Capital; Richard Smith, COO, International and CEO, Airline of FedEx; Teresita Sy-Coson, Vice Chairperson of SM Investments Corporation; Forrest Li, Founder and CEO of Sea; Roshni Nadar Malhotra, Chairperson of HCLTech and HCL Group, Trustee of Shiv Nadar Foundation; and Dilhan Pillay Sandrasegara, CEO of Temasek Holdings;
For the full list of speakers, please visit the conference website. Key insights and highlights from the conference can be found below.
A Meeting of Minds: A conversation between Lawrence Wong, Prime Minister and Minister for Finance, Singapore and Steve Forbes, Chairman and Editor-in-Chief, Forbes Media
Singapore aims to tap the AI boom to build new capabilities and create better jobs, Prime Minister Lawrence Wong tells Steve Forbes, chairman and editor-in-chief of Forbes Media, at the Forbes Global CEO Conference 2026 in Singapore.
The country’s semiconductor industry is thriving because of increased demand for AI chips. Global semiconductor companies such as GlobalFoundries and Micron Technology, both U.S.-based, have expanded their manufacturing capacity in Singapore in recent years, investing tens of billions of dollars. “They make memory chips and specialty chips, which are in demand now with the AI boom,” Wong says. “The whole industry is thriving now with the demand for AI, and our economy has been growing at 5% for the last three years including this year.”
Singapore supplies about 10% of semiconductors sold worldwide, according to its Economic Development Board. Wong says the city-state has built an ecosystem around chip making, including precision engineering companies and equipment suppliers. “The AI boom has not just benefited the semiconductor industry,” Wong says. “We are also seeing a positive spillover to other industries, like logistics and professional services.”
In Conversation: Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr, President of the Philippines, talks to Steve Forbes, Chairman and Editor-in-Chief, Forbes Media
The Philippines will push for the signing of the ASEAN Digital Economy Framework Agreement when leaders of Southeast Asian countries meet in Manila next month, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. tells Steve Forbes, chairman and editor-in-chief of Forbes Media, on the second day of the Forbes Global CEO Conference 2026 in Singapore.
The framework, which would give member countries a roadmap for implementing emerging technologies, will likely be agreed upon at the 49th ASEAN summit, Marcos says. It “puts together the different roles that the different countries in ASEAN can play in important developments such as AI,” he says.
Since taking office in 2022, Marcos has traveled the world to encourage foreign companies to invest in the Philippines. Such trips, he reported to the Philippine Congress last July, have attracted about 4 trillion pesos ($70 billion) in fresh investments.
“We have tried to streamline many of the processes for businesses to come in and to make it easier for business and make us a more attractive investment destination,” Marcos says.
To attract foreign investors, the government has lifted foreign ownership restrictions on key industries such as airlines, energy and telecommunications and introduced policies that will make it easier for foreign companies to do business in the Philippines. “If we are to keep up with the rest of the world, it’s a necessary development that we felt the Philippines needed to do,” Marcos says.
In Conversation: Anutin Charnvirakul, Prime Minister of Thailand, talks to Steve Forbes, Chairman and Editor-in-Chief, Forbes Media
Forbes Global CEO Conference 2026: Prime Minister Anutin Seeks To Woo Investors Back To Thailand
Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul is pulling out all the stops to put Thailand back on investors’ radar screens, including a plan to gain membership in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development in the next few years, a move that would validate the country’s economic and legal framework.
During his first year in office, the businessman-turned-politician has conducted roadshows, accompanied by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sihasak Phuangketkeow in more than a dozen countries, including the U.S., China and Japan, to promote Thailand as an investment destination. “I came from the private sector, so I believe in doing roadshows,” he tells Steve Forbes, chairman and editor-in-chief of Forbes Media, at a gala dinner to cap the first of the two-day Forbes Global CEO Conference 2026.
“We travel the globe and assure people, giving them the confidence that Thailand has opened up,” says the prime minister. “Thailand might have been off the radar screen for a while. As we get ourselves back on the screen, we have to accelerate,” he adds.
Fact & Comment by Steve Forbes, Chairman and Editor-in-Chief, Forbes Media
In his speech, Steve Forbes talked about the global economy, rising interest rates, trade wars, geopolitical tensions and the sweeping change happening across businesses as industries increasingly adapt to AI. While the global economy has been buffeted by unpredictable events such as the war in the gulf and rising interest rates, Forbes says “the world has shown extraordinary resilience.” He noted there are some bright spots, with the U.S. economy remaining robust, driven by rising consumer spending and increased business investments in AI. However, he acknowledged that headwinds are on the horizon. “Debt has more than doubled since the crisis of 2008, still going up this year,” he says. “And with rising interest rates, something's going to break on that.”
Publication : Forbes
Author : Forbes Asia Team
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