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AI Challenges Take Center Stage at FII Summit in Miami

Public Investment Fund (PIF) Governor and Chairman of FII Institute Yasir al-Rumayyan at FII. (Future Investment Initiative)
Public Investment Fund (PIF) Governor and Chairman of FII Institute Yasir al-Rumayyan at FII. (Future Investment Initiative)
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AI Challenges Take Center Stage at FII Summit in Miami

Public Investment Fund (PIF) Governor and Chairman of FII Institute Yasir al-Rumayyan at FII. (Future Investment Initiative)
Public Investment Fund (PIF) Governor and Chairman of FII Institute Yasir al-Rumayyan at FII. (Future Investment Initiative)

Artificial intelligence was at the heart of discussions at the Future Investing Initiative (FII) in Miami, where participants discussed its challenges amid investor enthusiasm for the technology.

It is the second time the FII "Priority" summit has been held in Miami, US, under "On the Edge of a New Frontier."

About 1,000 attendees at the summit discussed technologies, promoting innovation to invest and improve civil societies, harmoniously integrating technical developments in advanced AI, robotics, healthcare, finance, and sustainability.

Central to the summit's goals is to connect the two Americas to global markets and address critical challenges for a prosperous future in light of Miami's dynamic entrepreneurship and vibrant corporate scene.

PIF Governor

Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF) Governor and Chairman of FII Institute Yasir al-Rumayyan stressed during a panel session at the summit opening on Thursday that the Kingdom is well positioned to be a significant global hub for AI and related industries.

Rumayyan explained that it has many competitive advantages to achieve this goal, including its leadership in clean energy resources, political determination, funding capabilities, and human competencies.

He also addressed PIF's strategy, saying that more than 70% of its investments are local and directed towards the Kingdom's economy, while the public share of international investments has declined to less than 25%.

Rumayyan explained that PIF investments mainly target new sectors under its goal to make a long-term impact by being the economic driver of the transformation journey within Vision 2030, which is distinguished from other international strategic plans by its success in achieving many of its goals before their set timelines.

"The fund invests between $40 billion to $50 billion annually, which will continue until 2025. We look at our investments in the Kingdom and their impact on the gross domestic product, job creation, and local content increase."

"We are looking forward to increasing local revenues generated from investments as per the framework to create a sustainable impact on the Saudi economy and realize the targets of Vision 2030," he said.

On the fund's international investments, Rumyyan said their value continues to rise in terms of volume despite a decline in their percentage compared to local investments.

He pointed out that investments in the US market amount to 40% of the fund's total international investments in the form of investments or purchases, which amounted to more than $100 billion between 2017 and the end of 2023.

Meanwhile, Nvidia's total revenue rose 265% from a year ago, based on solid sales for server AI chips, amounting to $22.1 billion in the fourth quarter. The company is anticipating stronger sales thanks to growing spending on artificial intelligence.

Blackstone

Stephen Schwarzman, co-founder and CEO of Blackstone and an early supporter of AI, was one of several executives at the summit.

He highlighted the ethical implications of artificial technology, warning that countries and leaders need to come together on AI to prevent its misuse.

Schwarzman said he wondered about the "astonishing power of AI" and its effect on the human condition.

He stressed that AI will likely impact society and humanity, especially healthcare.

Accenture

Accenture CEO Julie Sweet said that AI has the potential to bridge North-South divides, exploring the far-reaching impact of AI on addressing global challenges in a panel discussion titled "FII Priority Compass: What matters most to citizens?"

She said: "The question is how much AI can help the Global South and the countries that need help through precision farming, through telemedicine and better healthcare."

Sweet highlighted Saudi Arabia's proactive stance in utilizing artificial intelligence to achieve societal progress and stressed the importance of global cooperation in harnessing the potential of artificial intelligence to address complex issues.

"One of the things that's been great to see is Saudi Arabia taking the lead in many places to think through how AI can help and how can they be a leader," she said, adding, "I think it's really important to always stay focused on what are the opportunities with AI to solve the world's problems."

She also highlighted the efforts of organizations such as the United Nations and stressed the urgent need to understand how to harness technology to avoid widening disparities.

"Regulation needs to be the outcome of a very strong public-private partnership because most governments in the world don't have the access or the talent inside to know it," Sweet said, adding that there have been a few successful examples of governments balancing innovation and safety.

She added: "That's one of the most important things governments must do, particularly because the technology is changing rapidly. And I think the good news is that everyone has agreed that some regulation is needed."

Regarding the AI-related risks in the upcoming US elections, Sweet warned against relying solely on government regulation.

She called for increased cooperation between private entities.

The second and final day of the summit discussed topics related to finance, venture capital, IPO markets, innovation, and others.

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World Breathes Sigh of Relief as Trump Spares Fed, IMF

US President Donald Trump speaks to members of press onboard Air Force One on a flight to Fiumicino Airport near Rome to attend the funeral of Pope Francis, April 25, 2025. (Reuters)
US President Donald Trump speaks to members of press onboard Air Force One on a flight to Fiumicino Airport near Rome to attend the funeral of Pope Francis, April 25, 2025. (Reuters)
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World Breathes Sigh of Relief as Trump Spares Fed, IMF

US President Donald Trump speaks to members of press onboard Air Force One on a flight to Fiumicino Airport near Rome to attend the funeral of Pope Francis, April 25, 2025. (Reuters)
US President Donald Trump speaks to members of press onboard Air Force One on a flight to Fiumicino Airport near Rome to attend the funeral of Pope Francis, April 25, 2025. (Reuters)

Global policymakers gathering in Washington this week breathed a collective sigh of relief that the US-centric economic order that prevailed for the past 80 years was not collapsing just yet despite Donald Trump's inward-looking approach.

The Spring Meetings of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank were dominated by trade talks, which also brought some de-escalatory statements from Washington about its relations with China.

But some deeper questions hovered over central bankers and finance ministers after Trump's attacks on international institutions and the Federal Reserve: can we still count on the US dollar as the world's safe haven and on the two lenders that have supported the international economic system since the end of World War Two?

Conversations with dozens of policymakers from all over the world revealed generalized relief at Trump’s scaling back his threats to fire Fed Chair Jerome Powell, the guardian of the dollar’s international status whom he had previously described as a "major loser".

And many also saw a silver lining in US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent’s call to reshape the IMF and World Bank according to Trump's priorities because it implied that the United States was not about to pull out of the two lenders that it helped create at the Bretton Woods conference of 1944.

"This week was one of cautious relief," Austria's central bank governor Robert Holzmann said. "There was a turn (in the US administration's stance) but I fret this may not be the last. I keep my reservations."

A politicization of the Fed and, to a lesser extent, the hollowing out of the IMF and World Bank are almost too much to fathom for most officials.

Deprived of a lender of last resort, some $25 trillion of bonds and loans issued abroad would be called into question.

NO ALTERNATIVE

At the heart of policymakers' concerns is that there is no ready alternative to the United States as the world's financial hegemon - a situation that economists know as the Kindleberger Trap after renowned historian Charles Kindleberger.

To be sure, the euro, a distant-second reserve currency, is gaining popularity in light of the European Union's newly found status as an island of relative stability.

But policymakers who spoke to Reuters were adamant that the European single currency was not ready yet to dethrone the dollar and could at best hope to add a little to its 20% share of the world's reserves.

Of the 20 countries that share the euro only Germany has the credit rating and the size that investors demand from a safe haven.

Some other members are highly indebted and prone to bouts of political and financial turmoil - most recently in France last year - which raise lingering questions about the bloc's long-term viability.

And the euro zone's geographical proximity to Russia - particularly the three Baltic countries that were once part of the Soviet Union - cast an even more sinister shadow.

With Japan now too small and China's heavily managed currency in an even worse position, this left no alternative to the dollar system underpinned by the Fed and the two Bretton Woods institutions.

In fact, the IMF and the World Bank could scarcely survive if their largest shareholder, the United States, pulled out, officials said.

"The US is absolutely crucial for multilateral institutions," Polish Finance Minister Andrzej Domanski told Reuters. "We're happy they remain."

Still, few expected to go back to the old status quo and thorny issues were likely to await, such as widespread dependence on US firms for a number of key services from credit cards to satellites.

But some observers argued that the market turmoil of the past few weeks, which saw US bonds, shares and the currency sell off sharply, might have been a shot in the arm as it forced a change of tack by the administration.

"When President Trump talked about firing Jay Powell, the fact that markets reacted so vigorously to that ended up being a disciplining reality just reminding the administration that, if you cross that line, it could have some very severe implications," said Nathan Sheets, global chief economist at Citi.