Part 1: A Conversation with His Excellency Waleed Al Mokarrab Al Murhairi

Investment Strategy & Philosophy:

• Mubadala adopts a "conviction-led" investment approach, prioritizing the balance between risk and reward over short-term market volatility.
• The firm views the pandemic as an unprecedented inflection point that accelerates major long-term trends rather than creating new categories.
• Vintage 2020 capital deployments are anticipated to be defining investments, with performance outcomes expected to materialize over a four-to-six-year horizon.
• Mubadala actively deploys capital during uncertainty rather than waiting on the sidelines, citing a recent $1.2 billion strategic position in Indian telecommunications firm Jio as a prime example of this strategy.

Key Investment Themes:

• Technology & E-Commerce: Identified as the primary growth category, specifically targeting venture capital in delivery services, e-commerce, and digital infrastructure.
• Biotech & Life Sciences: A major focus area accelerated by the pandemic, specifically at the nexus of artificial intelligence and healthcare.
• Healthcare Infrastructure: Investing in diagnostic capabilities, with Mubadala assets including a reference lab that has performed over 150,000 tests since the pandemic began.
• Telemedicine: Anticipating an irreversible shift toward "stay-at-home medicine" and remote teleconsultations to reduce hospital load and accommodate patient fear of in-person visits.

Geographic Investment Focus:

• United States: Remains the "epicenter of investment" and the world's deepest market, with continued capital deployment despite political volatility.
• Asia: Specifically targeting Chinese biotech firms and building regulatory expertise to access high-growth sectors previously underserved by Western investors.
• India: Highlighted via the $1.2 billion investment in Jio, leveraging a partnership with Mukesh Ambani to capture outsized returns in telecommunications.
• Western Europe:
  • France: Contributed €1 billion to a BPI France lack fund to acquire positions in undervalued public companies post-COVID.
  • Germany: Targeting small-to-medium enterprises (SMEs) and the Berlin venture capital community for industrial and technology opportunities.
  • Brazil: Viewing current pandemic-related uncertainty as a catalyst for a deep pipeline of investment opportunities.

Sector-Specific Trends & Data:

• Real Estate: While acknowledging a temporary dip in commercial real estate due to remote work adoption, the firm expects technology to reshape asset utility, satellite offices, and campus layouts rather than render them obsolete.
• Data-Driven Decision Making: The UAE's high per capita testing rates (averaging 6,000 tests daily) are cited as a model for enabling leadership to make fact-based decisions regarding economic reopening and public safety protocols.
• Market Dislocation: Investors like Mubadala view the current market environment as a singular dislocation across multiple sectors, offering entry points for companies like Facebook, General Atlantic, and KKR in the same Indian deal.

Challenges & Forward-Looking Outlook:

• Primary Challenge: Managing the dual pressure of global health crises and economic uncertainty over the next 6 to 12 months.
• Risk Mitigation: The firm avoids predicting specific recovery shapes (V-shaped or U-shaped), focusing instead on identifying robust opportunities that can withstand difficult circumstances.
• Vaccine Landscape: Mubadala utilizes an internal vaccine board and partnerships with the Cleveland Clinic (Ohio and Abu Dhabi) to evaluate promising therapeutics and guide capital allocation until a vaccine is widely available.
• Regulatory Environment: Acknowledges increased regulatory scrutiny in the US and Europe (e.g., against tech giants) but maintains that the priority is avoiding "questionable" investments rather than chasing high returns through regulatory loopholes.