Europe is entering a defining delivery decade. As influence shifts across geopolitics, technology and capital, the challenge is no longer vision - it is execution. From defence and energy to industrial renewal and AI governance, the choices made now will shape the frameworks followed around the world.
The inaugural Reuters NEXT Europe brings together global leaders at the intersection of policy, markets and industry to navigate rising pressures, tighter constraints and more consequential trade-offs. As growth remains uneven, confidence fragile and technology accelerates change, leaders must act with clarity in a system being reshaped in real time.
Powered by Reuters’ award-winning global newsroom, the summit delivers trusted, decision-grade intelligence across geopolitics, markets, technology and society - making sense of how influence is shifting across systems and borders to build one strategic picture of Europe and the wider world.
This is where Europe moves from intent to delivery - and sets the pace for what comes next.
Europe entered 2026 with a clear mandate: turn strategy into deliverable outcomes amid a more volatile, interconnected world. At mid‑year, the pressure is on to show credible progress across defence readiness and energy sovereignty, AI governance, and climate resilience - all while navigating intensifying geopolitical tensions, economic inequality, and social fragmentation. Reuters NEXT Europe convenes the leaders shaping this response as they forge a path forward.
Europe's economy is at a pivotal moment. Uneven growth, fiscal constraints and shifting trade policies are reshaping how, and where, Europe competes. Inflation pressures are less acute and monetary is shifting to neutral, but financing conditions remain restrictive. Leaders face a delicate mix of weak demand, elevated debt burdens, and confidence that can turn quickly on energy, geopolitics, and policy signals. How can leaders boost productivity, investment, and competitiveness—while maintaining stability and navigating the green and digital transitions in a volatile world?
Europe’s financial system is undergoing a seismic shift. As regulators roll out sweeping reforms and digital disruption accelerates, banks and institutions must rethink how they operate, engage and grow. From AI-driven finance and crypto oversight to rising compliance demands and geopolitical risk, the pressure to adapt has never been greater. Can Europe’s financial leaders navigate transformation by building trust and embracing innovation?
Europe's bid to lead in ethical, trustworthy AI is shifting from vision to implementation, amid intense global competition, limited access to frontier compute, and uneven scale-up funding. As the EU AI Act rolls out in phases, policymakers and tech leaders must turn compliance into a competitive edge while balancing safety with speed, and sovereignty with scale. How can Europe close the innovation gap, build resilient digital infrastructure and unlock the talent needed to lead?
Europe is warming faster than any other continent, and recent years have underscored how costly extreme weather can be for communities and the economy. More frequent heat, floods, drought and wildfire risk, are straining health, infrastructure and supply chains. The challenge is ramping up clean power, grids, and industrial capacity by easing permitting and finance bottlenecks while keeping households and businesses resilient. Can Europe do so fast enough to deliver clear benefits for people, planet, and growth?
Europe's business leaders face sharper, converging pressures: rapid AI adoption, tighter regulation, ongoing energy and supply-chain volatility, and rising stakeholder expectations. As AI moves into everyday decisions, leadership must pair speed with responsibility, agility with trust, and ambition with disciplined delivery. What does best practice look like for leading through constant change?
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Building a better world demands that we re-evaluate our understanding of business, policy, and society today. Co-curated with Reuters’ award-winning newsroom, NEXT Europe will give global leaders, innovators and CEOs the opportunity to think differently about the defining challenges facing business, society and the world at large.
Critical challenges will be tackled on our World Stage in a series of interviews and diverse panel discussions, live broadcast to millions worldwide.
As institutional investors confront structurally higher rates, geopolitical uncertainty, and the rise of private markets, the challenge isn’t just finding yield — it’s building portfolios that are resilient, diversified, and future-ready. Add to that the surge in private credit, ESG as a performance driver, and AI transforming asset management, and the stakes have never been higher.
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Co-located with Reuters NEXT Europe, Investment London brings together the leaders who are making these shifts work — not in theory, but in practice. From capital allocation frameworks that integrate private equity and credit, to AI-driven analytics reshaping investment operations, to ESG strategies unlocking alpha, this is where the major allocators and managers gather to share how they’re turning complexity into opportunity.
Collaborate with your peers through invitation-only interactive roundtables and workshop sessions running alongside the World Stage, led by leading experts and executives. Delve into industry-defining challenges and opportunities on the horizon.Â
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All interactive sessions are held under the Chatham House Rule.
Global investment is entering a more uncertain era, as growth slows, industrial competition intensifies and the balance of economic influence shifts. As head of the European Union's lending arm, Calviño discusses how public capital can shape investment flows, strengthen resilience and accelerate Europe’s capacity to deliver long-term growth and security.
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European Investment Bank President Nadia Calviño
This session is hosted by a Reuters journalist under the Trust Principles.
As global consumer priorities evolve and pressure builds across supply chains, regulation and public health expectations, brands are competing not just on products but on trust and relevance. Licht discusses what it takes to scale responsibly in an increasingly complex landscape where influence is always shifting between companies, consumers and regulators.
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Reckitt Chief Executive Officer Kris Licht
Moderator: Reuters Chief Companies Correspondent Alexander Marrow
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This session is hosted by a Reuters journalist under the Trust Principles.
Reuters senior editors and correspondents discuss how we are covering the Russa/Ukraine war and whether an end to the conflict is in sight. We look at the broader challenges for European security and how the region is facing up to the prospect of taking on more responsibility for its own defence from the United States.
Moderator: Reuters Europe Editor Rachel Armstrong
Persistent disruption, from geopolitical shocks to technological acceleration, is exposing the limits of legacy supply chain models. Resilient logistics solutions require digitally enabled intelligent operations, AI-literacy and upskilling, as well as scalable operating models. What are the risks and benefits of investment in these areas, and how will flexible models absorb future shocks?
GXO Chief Technology Officer Nizar Trigui
Moderator: Event Moderator Fionnuala Sweeney
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This session is in partnership with GXO.
Telecoms is entering a defining new phase, as operators race to invest in next-generation networks, capture the opportunities of AI and digital services, and navigate tougher competition and regulatory scrutiny – all while control over connectivity becomes a source of strategic influence. Della Valle discusses the outlook for connectivity, consolidation, investment - and the role telecoms will play in shaping the foundations of Europe’s digital economy.
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Vodafone Group Chief Executive Margherita Della Valle
Moderator: Reuters Senior Correspondent Paul Sandle
This session is hosted by a Reuters journalist under the Trust Principles.
One of the world's most iconic diamond companies is reinventing itself amid shifting consumer expectations, new technologies, and mounting ESG scrutiny – as influence shifts across generations, values and supply chains From provenance and lab-grown competition to partnerships in producer countries, we explore what it takes to protect brand value and trust in a market where relevance, transparency and ethics increasingly define competition advantage.
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De Beers Group Chief Executive Officer Al Cook
Moderator: Reuters EMEA Mining Correspondent Clara Denina
This session is hosted by a Reuters journalist under the Trust Principles.
As Europe’s population ages and dependency ratios rise, mounting pressure on public finances is narrowing fiscal space – reshaping how capital is allocated and risk is shared. Scaling energy transition investment will require greater reliance on both private capital and policy reform. Long-term savings, in public and private systems, will be a stabilising force, but face growing scrutiny on returns, risk and allocation. We discuss how stewards of long-duration capital reconcile intergenerational fairness with capital discipline, how sustainability, security and performance converge – and which trade-offs are becoming acceptable in financing Europe’s transition.
Allianz Chief Investment Officer Ludovic Subran
Zurich Insurance Chief Executive Officer, Life, Health, & Bank Distribution, Alison Martin
Natixis Wealth Management Chief Investment Officer Benoît Peloille
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This session is in partnership with event sponsors.Â
Consumer businesses are being tested by a more demanding environment, with shoppers seeking value, convenience and quality as inflationary pressures and shifting habits continue to reshape retail. Machin discusses how M&S is navigating this shift across food and fashion - from brand reinvention to digital growth – what it takes to stay relevant and competitive as consumer expectations evolve at speed.
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Marks and Spencer Chief Executive Officer Stuart Machin
Moderator: Reuters UK Retail Correspondent James Davey
This session is hosted by a Reuters journalist under the Trust Principles.
The eurozone economy is navigating a delicate phase, as policymakers balance slowing inflation, uneven growth, persistent global uncertainty and fragile confidence. As policy choices in Europe ripple across global markets and capital flows, Lane discusses the ECB’s approach to monetary policy, the outlook for prices and demand, and the challenges ahead.
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European Central Bank Member of the Executive Board Philip Lane
Moderator: Reuters Chief Correspondent Balazs Koranyi
This session is hosted by a Reuters journalist under the Trust Principles.
Consumer goods brands are navigating a profound reset, facing the most demanding and unpredictable consumer in recent memory as cultural influence shifts and new generations redefine value. Inflation, trade tensions and volatile markets are testing supply chains and pricing models, turning brand strategy into a series of high-stakes decisions, often made with incomplete information. How do companies reinforce brand strength and deepen consumer loyalty when certainty is limited and trade-offs are everywhere?
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Carlsberg Breweries Chief Financial Officer Ulrica Fearn
This session is hosted by a Reuters journalist under the Trust Principles.
The EU’s mobilisation of €200 billion for AI factories, data spaces, and skills-building will spur wide-scale adoption. But competitiveness will be decided by execution: what ships, what scales and what becomes trusted. A focus on the physical and intellectual AI-infrastructure will naturally advance AI-powered fintech solutions, cybersecurity approaches, and decision-making capabilities, while raising hard choices on sovereignty standards and speed. Which solutions are ahead of the curve, and how can they contribute toward a competitive Europe? How might private capital complement investment across industries?
LSEG Group Co Head, Data & Analytics, Gianluca Biagini
Starling Bank Group Chief Executive Officer Raman Bhatia
Rolls-Royce Group Chief Digital Information Officer Kaveh Pourteymour
Moderator: IMD World Competitiveness Center Director & Professor Arturo Bris
This session is in partnership with LSEG.
The construction sector is under pressure to decarbonise while delivering the infrastructure needed for Europe’s growth and resilience. As demand rises across housing, energy and urban development, companies must balance cost, scale and sustainability. Gutovic discusses how Holcim is advancing low-carbon materials and circular construction, and what it takes to deliver at scale while aligning growth with competitiveness and climate targets.
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Holcim Chief Executive Officer Miljan Gutovic
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This session is hosted by a Reuters journalist under the Trust Principles.
As artificial intelligence reshapes how music is created, discovered and monetised, what does that mean for artists, rights holders and audiences, and for where influence sits in the creative economy? Industry power players explore how generative tools are changing the creative process, and the opportunities and risks for labels and platforms as regulators, platforms and creators define the rules of engagement in real time. We examine the emerging models for rights, revenue and attribution, and what responsible innovation looks like when algorithms can compose and personalise music at scale.
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Warner Music Group Executive Vice President & Chief Digital Officer Carletta Higginson
IFPI Chief Executive Officer Victoria Oakley
Moderator: Reuters UK & Ireland Bureau Chief Kate Holton
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This session is hosted by a Reuters journalist under the Trust Principles.
More information coming soon.
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This session is hosted by a Reuters journalist under the Trust Principles.Â
Is AI supporting or harming Europe in its quest to be secure, competitive and sovereign? In this Chatham House Oxford-style Debate, participants will argue how AI does or does not support European defence in response to increasing threats, geopolitical tensions, and private sector growth.
Microsoft Senior Director, Cybersecurity Policy and Diplomacy, Kaja Ciglic
Zurich Insurance Chief Executive Officer, Life, Health, & Bank Distribution, Alison Martin
European Roundtable for Industry Secretary General Anthony Gooch-Galvez
Moderator: IMD World Competitiveness Center Director & Professor Arturo Bris
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This is an open interactive session, held under the Chatham House Rule.
How can leaders build resilience in a post-VUCA world, and what does this mean for the experience of leadership today? Where VUCA (Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity, Ambiguity) defined the environment leaders operated in, a newer perspective is BANI (Brittle, Anxious, Nonlinear, Incomprehensible), which describes systemic and emotional realities for people operating amid contemporary global disruption. In 2026, this articulation of world events, markets, and geopolitical challenges is crucially relevant.
This is an open interactive session, held under the Chatham House Rule.
As the Iran conflict disrupts global fossil energy flows, faster deployment of clean power is seen by many as the best way of enhancing energy security. This circle examines the barriers holding back an acceleration of the energy transition and the strategy changes policymakers and companies can make to mitigate the risk.
• Structural barriers: from physical infrastructure to capital, policy, and supply chain constraints
• Energy transition strategies: what’s working across a range of sectors and what needs to change
Moderator: Reuters Sustainable Finance Editor Simon Jessop
This is an invitation-only interactive session for Chief Sustainability Officers, held under the Chatham House Rule.
Global portfolios remain deeply dependent on U.S. assets—yet political volatility, stretched valuations, and uncertainty around the dollar are forcing even the most sophisticated allocators to reconsider how much exposure is too much. At the same time, UK pension schemes face growing pressure to invest domestically, challenging long held diversification principles.
This discussion, hosted by Reuters Breakingviews, will interrogate the limits of U.S. dominance, map credible replacement growth engines, and confront the UK’s home bias debate head on.
Moderator: Reuters Columnist Liam Proud
This is an invitation-only interactive session for C-suite leaders, held under the Chatham House Rule.
