Attending the Semafor World Economy Summit in Washington, D.C. from April 23–25 was a powerful reminder of the importance of dialogue between the public and private sectors and the integral role media outlets can play as a convener. The Summit brought together CEOs, policymakers, economists, and public sector leaders from the state and federal levels to share perspectives on the economy, the future of innovation, the role of responsible leadership, and the need for stronger collaboration across sectors to address today’s complex challenges. I was encouraged to see policy leaders from several states we work closely with including Kentucky, Connecticut, and Illinois.

One of the highlights of my experience was participating in a roundtable discussion on AI and Public Sector. It was an engaging and forward-looking conversation about how governments and private companies are shaping the development of AI to serve the public good. AI is a tool above all else that can be deployed in any number of directions and at Coleridge Initiative, we are embracing this by applying the technology within our secure data environments to strengthen privacy safeguards and streamline research workflows for government partners. As the roundtable wrapped, a consensus emerged around the idea that while AI systems can be impactful it also takes public-private collaboration to build systems that are transparent and beneficial to society. 

Many of the sessions at the Summit were structured as brief 20-minute conversations on focused topics, and I found the format informative and easily digestible. On Thursday afternoon, the session with Ian Bremmer, President and Founder of Eurasia Group and GZERO Media, was a fast-paced, deep dive into geopolitical shifts, emphasizing how global uncertainty is reshaping both markets and policymaking. His remarks highlighted the importance of agility, innovation, and cross-sector collaboration, which align deeply with Coleridge’s approach to building a connected data ecosystem for public impact.

At Coleridge Initiative, we believe that data collaboration across sectors is essential for smarter public policy and that cannot take place without innovation across sectors. Participating in the World Economy Summit affirmed that our mission—to make secure, accessible, and actionable data central to public decision-making—is aligned with the broader movement and ecosystem to build stronger bridges between the private and public spheres to inform decision making.