Few people in the world understand the power of convening quite like Richard Attias. For over two decades, the Moroccan-born entrepreneur has been the architect behind some of the world’s most influential gatherings. As the longtime executive producer of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Attias helped transform the WEF annual meeting into a global stage where presidents, CEOs, and investors debated the future of capitalism.
But after 15 years shaping that dialogue, Attias began to ask a deeper question: what if convening could move beyond conversation and actually catalyze investment and impact?
That question became the seed for the Future Investment Initiative (FII)—a platform he launched in 2017 with the backing of Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund. His vision was simple but radical: to build a new kind of global institution that connects ideas, capital, and action to address humanity’s greatest challenges.
“From the beginning, I wanted FII to be about geo-economics, not geopolitics,” Attias told me. “It’s a place where leaders come not to debate conflicts, but to talk about business opportunities, foreign direct investment, and the future of growth.”
When FII hosted its inaugural conference in Riyadh in 2017, the global press quickly dubbed it “Davos in the Desert.” The label stuck—though Attias has spent years trying to correct it.
“It’s not in the desert—and it’s not Davos,” he said with a laugh. “Riyadh is one of the most modern, futuristic capitals in the world. You can drive for an hour and not see a single trace of the desert. And our focus is investment, investment, and investment.”
Attias credits media pioneer Arianna Huffington—who attended that first event—with offering a more accurate description. “She said it’s not Davos in the Desert, it’s the new Davos,” he recalled. “And she was right. Because this is not about one nation—it’s about creating a global hub for ideas and investors from every corner of the world.”
Indeed, over its first eight editions, FII has become exactly that. Attias proudly notes that more than $170 billion in deals have been announced through FII-related events, spanning sectors from technology and healthcare to infrastructure and sustainability. “We wanted to create a global conversation that helps people understand where to put their money—by geography and by sector,” he said. “That’s our DNA.”
FII’s framework—Think, Xchange, Act—illustrates how Attias has translated his experience at Davos into a model built for a faster, more interconnected era.
– THINK serves as the Institute’s intellectual engine, producing research, indexes, and white papers that capture emerging global priorities.
– XCHANGE encompasses the convening power of the organization—its annual flagship event in Riyadh and satellite gatherings in Miami, Tirana, and soon Tokyo.
– ACT is the most ambitious piece: the investment arm that funds startups, initiatives, and technologies inspired by those conversations.
“This is our supply chain,” Attias explained. “We don’t just talk. We think, exchange, and act.”
The structure ensures that FII’s year-round research feeds directly into the conversations onstage—and that those conversations, in turn, inspire investments that deliver tangible outcomes.
FII’s signature research initiative, the FII PRIORITY Compass, exemplifies this model. Conducted annually across 32 countries and over 60,000 respondents, it asks a deceptively simple question: What is your priority?
“For four years in a row, the answer has not been climate change,” Attias said. “It’s the cost of living—every year, it’s number one. That should be a wake-up call for leaders.”
The results inform the agenda for each year’s conference and provide a data-driven foundation for new FII programs. “If citizens keep telling us the same thing, it’s our duty to act,” he said. “Our mission is impact on humanity—and that starts with understanding humanity’s needs.”
To counter the typical inertia from conversations that start and end at an event, FII created its ACT platform—an investment arm designed to turn insight into execution. “We want to lead by example,” Attias said. “That means funding early-stage companies, supporting innovators in AI, sustainability, and healthcare, and showing that the private sector can make impact scalable.”
Attias has also made waves by challenging how ESG frameworks are applied globally. “ESG was developed by the West, for the West,” he said. “You can’t expect countries in Africa or Asia—still building roads and hospitals—to meet the same standards overnight.”
FII’s solution: an ESG 2.0 framework designed to adapt sustainability and governance principles to local realities. “Just by adjusting the framework, we could unlock two to three trillion dollars of investment into emerging markets,” he said. “That would be a game-changer.”
This year’s flagship conference, FII9, takes place in Riyadh from October 27–30 under the theme “The Key to Prosperity: Unlocking New Frontiers of Growth.”
Attias traces the journey to that theme through FII’s recent history. “During COVID, when every other global event was canceled, we said: we have to keep the conversation alive,” he recalled. “We hosted a hybrid event in Riyadh with 600 people in person and thousands online. That moment defined our resilience.”
Since then, each year’s program has captured the zeitgeist: The New Renaissance in 2021, Invest in Humanity in 2022, The New Compass in 2023, and Infinite Horizons in 2024. “This year, we’re focusing on prosperity,” he said. “Not just financial prosperity—dignity, health, and opportunity. We’re asking, how do we unlock prosperity for all?”
“I want unpredictable conversations,” Attias said. “Not because we want to be provocative, but because disruption leads to new ideas.”
For Attias, prosperity requires patience—and perspective. “Asia thinks long-term,” he noted. “Their short term is three years. In the West, we think in quarters.”
He believes the business world must shift its time horizons. “We need to educate shareholders, analysts, and the media,” he said. “You can’t build peace, a vaccine, or a great company in a day. Real impact takes time.”
That balance—between urgency and endurance, purpose and profit—is the heart of FII’s mission. “Reducing inequality is not utopia,” Attias told me. “It’s absolutely possible if the public and private sectors share the will to act.”
In the end, Attias’s rebuttal to “Davos in the Desert” isn’t about comparison—it’s about evolution.
“We’re not here to compete with anyone,” he said. “We’re here to create a new platform for collaboration—one that listens to people, invests in their priorities, and measures success by the difference it makes in their lives.”
If the FII Institute can make good on that promise, Riyadh won’t just host another global gathering—it will redefine what leadership, prosperity, and purpose look like in the 21st century.
