This spring, The Milken Institute’s 27th annual Global Conference took place in Los Angeles at The Beverly Hilton. Over the course of four fast-paced days and attracting more than 4,500 attendees, it featured panels on everything from the climate crisis to the perils of AI to equitable clinical trials in healthcare. Speakers ranged from Bill Clinton to Elon Musk to ousted House Speaker Kevin McCarthy to Emmy winner Kerry Washington. The ultimate aim? According to Milken Institute CEO Richard Ditizio, the conference hopes to create a space where brilliant people “bring their best thinking to the world’s worst problems.” Worth Media was honored to be a media partner.
Here are some highlights (by subject):
Artificial Intelligence
The biggest takeaway in this sphere, at least when it came to generating headlines, was Musk’s pronouncement that he didn’t see a place for AI in the space exploration arena (yet). But more extensive and substantive conversations were had on the topic, among them: the “AI’s Ethical Frontier: Responsible Regulation…By Whom?” panel. Rapper/producer will.i.am, California Attorney General Rob Bonta, and Undersecretary for Policy at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Rob Silvers discussed whether federal or state regulations were the best path forward when it came to creating policy frameworks. Also discussed was the role of business’s accountability—and in a theatrical but powerful twist, will.i.am engaged a chatbot of his own making to talk ethics and technology.
Sustainability
Protecting the environment is key to the Milken Institute’s mission, and a plethora of panels addressed it. “Climate Outcomes 2035: New Pathways to Accelerate Capital Deployment for Net Zero and Nature” featured Deputy Assistant Secretary of Climate at the Department of the Treasury Adam Wang-Levine and ClimateWorks CEO Helen Mountford talking about options to better reach the Paris Agreement’s goals. The “Rewriting the Rules of Global Conservation” panel featured Jennifer Morris, the CEO of the Nature Conservancy; and Iván Duque Márquez, the President of Colombia, discussing ways in which ecology and economics are intertwined. Also unveiled at the conference was the winner of The Milken-Motsepe Green Energy Grand Prize: the initiative Aftrak. Its solar microgrids and custom tractors have increased farmer income, tripled agricultural yields, and brought electricity to remote parts of Africa. It was awarded $1 million.
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
Again, controversy ruled the day—at least in terms of media coverage. When New York Governor Kathy Hochul was describing her aim to make technology more widely accessible, she said, “Right now we have young Black kids growing up in the Bronx who don’t even know what the word ‘computer’ is.” (The New York Times devoted an article to the gaffe. Hochul said she misspoke and regretted it.) But insight was found in other discussions on the topic. “The DEI Shake-Up: Assessing Progress and Pushback” featured Pershing Square Capital Founder Bill Ackman and Operation HOPE Chairman John Hope Bryant. It approached affirmative action through the lens of data specifically. Also during the conference, the Milken Institute honored the graduates of its Historically Black Colleges and Universities Fellowship program with a ceremony, and featured the panel “Powering Progress: HBCUs as Hubs for Talent and Innovation.”
To be sure, this is the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the 200 panels at the conference. For more information, many can be streamed. In parting, Ditizio again offered words of wisdom to attendees. “When I welcomed you a few days ago, I noted that the only way we’ll be able to tackle these challenges…is by finding partners able to work together,” he said. “[So] don’t buy into the easy pessimism…Challenge yourself with the harder, brighter path of being an optimist. And look for [others]…to walk with you on this journey.”
