Latest Interviews
Showing 76–90 of 121 interview transcripts.
Clear all filters- Milken Institute34 min
Opening Plenary | Part 1: A Conversation with IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva
Kristalina Georgieva, Michael Milken
Governments, the IMF, and the private sector engaged in unprecedented collaboration to deploy $17 trillion in fiscal and monetary support, providing financial lifelines to 70 nations and establishing a debt moratorium for the world's poorest countries. Despite this rapid crisis response, the IMF warns that economic recovery will be slower than anticipated, accompanied by record-high debt levels and risks of widening inequality unless investments prioritize sustainability and social inclusion. Policymakers are urged to maintain agile strategies to address non-banking financial vulnerabilities and prevent complacency, ensuring the rebuilding of an inclusive, low-carbon global economy.
- Milken Institute20 min
Part 1: A Conversation with His Excellency Waleed Al Mokarrab Al Murhairi
Waleed Al Mokarrab Al Murhairi, Hadley Gamble, His Excellency Waleed Al Mokarrab Al Muhairi
Mubadala's investment strategy leverages the pandemic as a catalyst to deploy $1.2 billion in strategic positions, such as its stake in India's Jio, while targeting long-term growth in technology, biotech, and healthcare infrastructure across the US, Asia, and Europe. The firm's conviction-led approach prioritizes balancing risk and reward over short-term volatility, with recent capital commitments designed to yield returns within a four-to-six-year horizon as market dislocations create entry points for major partners. By focusing on data-driven decisions and navigating regulatory scrutiny, Mubadala aims to capitalize on irreversible shifts in e-commerce, telemedicine, and industrial sectors despite global economic uncertainty.
- Milken Institute35 min
A Conversation with Tim Scott, US Senator, South Carolina
Senator Tim Scott leverages his background of overcoming poverty to advocate for individual responsibility, private capital investment through Opportunity Zones, and education reform via charter schools as solutions to systemic disparities. While acknowledging personal encounters with racial profiling and significant poverty rates in minority communities, he argues that attributing these issues solely to racism undermines agency and calls for redirecting resources from removing statues to building infrastructure and schools. Scott concludes that true prosperity requires faith-driven resilience, a free-market approach to job creation, and a focus on empowering the poorest children to maintain the nation's global standing.
- Milken Institute34 min
A Conversation with SoftBank Vision Fund CEO Rajeev Misra
The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated a global digital transformation that fundamentally reshaped supply chains, finance, healthcare, and education by replacing physical infrastructure with data-driven alternatives like dark kitchens and telemedicine. This shift empowered small businesses and consumers through frictionless digital payments, democratized access to credit and education, and forced a strategic pivot toward regional self-sufficiency in manufacturing and technology. As major firms like SoftBank curtailed experimentation to focus on survival, the event highlighted a geopolitical realignment where East-to-West technology transfer and national infrastructure security now supersede global scale.
- Milken Institute27 min
A Conversation with FDA Commissioner Stephen Hahn
Dr. Hahn and the FDA are managing an unprecedented 250-treatment pipeline and 170 vaccine candidates while maintaining regulatory independence amid a surge in applications. The agency has authorized specific therapies like remdesivir and dexamethasone based on robust data analysis and is implementing clinical trial flexibilities to ensure diverse demographic inclusion. Despite the high stakes, FDA officials emphasize that safety and evidence-based decision-making remain paramount as they navigate supply chain logistics and monitor real-world outcomes for public health.
- Milken Institute26 min
A Conversation with Muriel Bowser, Mayor of Washington, DC
Muriel Bowser, Ryan Shadrick Wilson
Mayor Muriel Bowser guides Washington D.C. through Phase 2 of reopening while launching a strategic economic recovery plan led by Susan Rice and Michael Chertoff to retain jobs and address severe health disparities affecting African American residents. The administration has simultaneously fortified food security networks, confronted federal overreach during protests, and advanced D.C. statehood momentum by drafting a constitution modeled after Tennessee. These multifaceted efforts aim to balance public health safety with long-term social equity and financial stability following an initial $800 million budget gap caused by pandemic shutdowns.
- Milken Institute33 min
A Conversation with Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis President and CEO James Bullard
St. Louis Fed President James Bullard explains that the U.S. economy is adapting to pandemic risks through endogenous behavioral changes rather than broad lockdowns, projecting output recovery to 90% of normal levels despite historical quarterly declines. Bullard contrasts his view of a new steady state with host Josh Barrow's concern over permanently lower living standards, while addressing the dual policy challenge of balancing business preservation with market dynamism. Furthermore, Bullard highlights the strategic necessity of preventing a secondary financial crisis and identifies eliminating racial unemployment gaps as a critical metric for ideal monetary policy outcomes.
- Milken Institute35 min
How COVID-19 Tests Will Help Reopen America - Conference Call Series
Esther Krofah, Gina Raimondo, Adam Schechter
Rhode Island Governor Gina Raimondo outlined a strategic "SOS" testing framework and a phased economic reopening plan designed to expand daily testing capacity from 3,000 to 20,000 while prioritizing equity for vulnerable populations. LabCorp CEO Adam Schechter detailed the company's rapid scaling of PCR and antibody testing capabilities to 150,000 and 300,000 daily tests respectively, emphasizing high accuracy rates while noting that antibody presence does not yet guarantee immunity. Together, the state officials and industry leaders highlighted the critical role of contact tracing and continued safety protocols in preventing a combined flu and coronavirus surge in the fall.
- Milken Institute21 min
Public Health Response to the Coronavirus
Dr. Christopher Morris of George Washington University assesses the early trajectory of the novel coronavirus outbreak, noting over 45,000 confirmed cases and 1,100 deaths while questioning the transparency of Chinese data reporting. He identifies two primary outcomes: the virus either becoming a severe seasonal pathogen or triggering a global pandemic, a scenario compounded by a lack of sustained funding for coronavirus research. Morris further highlights the WHO's enforcement delays and the urgent need for rapid diagnostic technologies, as vaccine development remains a minimum one-year process.
- Milken Institute23 min
Lunch Program | Part 1: A Conversation with Alex Azar, Secretary, US Department HHS
The HHS, led by Secretary Alex Azar, outlined a 2017 healthcare strategy prioritizing affordability, patient choice, and quality through three pillars: financing reform, value-based payments, and targeted interventions. Key initiatives include a 5% decline in opioid overdose deaths driven by the $400 million Healing Communities Initiative, a shift from center-based to home dialysis via the KidneyX program, and a Medicare risk-sharing pilot affecting one-quarter of beneficiaries. Despite noting progress in reducing ACA premiums and expanding plan availability, the administration maintains that systemic flaws persist, aiming to replace fee-for-service models with incentives focused on prevention and long-term outcomes for the entire US population.
- Milken Institute33 min
The New Age of Consumerism
Dan Murphy, Mohammed Alshaya, Mike Novogratz, Mohamed Alshayer
Mohamed Alshayer outlines Alshaya Group's $5 billion investment strategy in Saudi Arabia, emphasizing a pivot toward experiential retail and health sectors to capitalize on Vision 2030's rapid liberalization and shifting consumer behaviors. Concurrently, Mike Novogratz argues that Bitcoin's value rests on its narrative as a digital store of value, predicting institutional adoption will drive its valuation toward $10 trillion. The dialogue highlights how both legacy retail giants and emerging digital assets must reinvent their trust-based social constructs to survive in a market prioritizing speed, ethics, and immediate gratification.
- Milken Institute39 min
A Conversation with Rajeev Misra
SoftBank's Vision Fund and Vision Fund 2 manage a diversified global portfolio of 88 investments, with recent strategic pivots toward Life Sciences and Financial Services utilizing AI to reduce healthcare costs and disrupt regulated lending. The firm distinguishes its value proposition through mid-stage capital, extensive ecosystem synergies like cross-selling between Grab and Ping, and operational support derived from SoftBank Mobile, which drove a portfolio valuation surge from $240 billion to approximately $300 billion. As the funds mature, the team has shifted focus to 75% portfolio management, celebrating eight IPOs and major exits including Uber and Flipkart while preparing for the economic impact of 5G adoption via the Sprint-Deutsche Telekom merger.
- Milken Institute34 min
A Conversation with Strive Masiyiwa and Michael Milken
Strive Masiyiwa, Michael Milken
With Africa's population projected to reach 4 billion by 2100 and 12 million young entrants joining the workforce annually, the continent faces a critical imperative to modernize its fragmented economy and address high unemployment rates like the 29% in South Africa. Global tech giants and investors are capitalizing on unique innovations such as mobile money and blockchain to unify 54 currencies, while infrastructure projects connect the continent from Cape Town to Cairo alongside rapid 5G deployment. Strategic partnerships led by figures like Strive Maseiwa aim to train government leaders and expand private enterprise networks, positioning Africa as a primary future market despite capital shortages and the need to replace nearly 500 million traditional jobs.
- Milken Institute25 min
Mic'd Up - Part 1: Public Health Response to Coronavirus
This expert panel discusses the emerging COVID-19 outbreak, noting its official WHO naming to prevent stigmatization, approximately 45,000 confirmed cases primarily in China, and the critical lack of international access due to data transparency concerns. Speakers analyze divergent future scenarios ranging from endemic circulation to a global pandemic with a 2% fatality rate, while critiquing delayed WHO leadership and insufficient vaccine development timelines that may exceed a year. The discussion further addresses necessary public health strategies, including social distancing over universal masking, the economic risks of draconian travel restrictions, and the urgent need for rapid diagnostic deployment amid funding cycles that previously hampered preparedness.
- Milken Institute23 min
A Conversation with Paul Ryan
Former House Speaker Paul Ryan outlines a legislative agenda for a potential second Trump term focused on extending tax cuts, reforming healthcare, and modernizing infrastructure while navigating a consensus on technological decoupling with China. He attributes the 2017–2018 surge in bipartisan output to the administration's deregulatory approach and projects continued economic growth despite ongoing trade uncertainties. Ryan, now a university professor and policy founder, argues that economic stagnation drives current political polarization and warns against the erosion of meritocracy in favor of identity-based politics.