CEOs Share Tips for Tightrope Walking

The Fortune CEO Initiative rallied business leaders to collaborate on global problems including inflation, geopolitical tension, and the AI revolution.

- MATT HEIMER

GEOPOLITICAL CONFLICT, especially the U.S.-China economic rivalry, and sweeping technological changes presented by, you guessed it, generative AI topped the agenda at this year's annual meeting of the Fortune CEO Initiative. Still, the guests and speakers at the one-day event in Washington, D.C., in October were far more energized than daunted. CEOI is a by-invitation-only forum for leaders who are committed to using their business models to solve social problems; it's the kind of group that leans in when faced with a challenge.

Over the course of the day, more than 100 CEOs and other luminaries, including three U.S. senators and two federal cabinet members, discussed problems around equity, sustainability, and growth, and collaborated on solutions. Some highlights: