Joy Zhang

I was delighted to take part in this year’s ‘Summer Davos’, also known as the World Economic Forum’s Annual Meeting of the New Champions in Dalian. This year’s theme was ‘Innovating at Scale’ and I had the pleasure of contributing to two sessions during the meeting.

On 24 June, I chaired the live-streamed session, ‘Why Biomanufacturing Is a Big Deal’, featuring Janka Oertel and Massimo Portincaso. Our discussion explored what it will take for biomanufacturing to fulfil its promise as a driver of both economic growth and global sustainability. We considered the capabilities and industrial ecosystems needed to scale biological innovation, as well as the importance of international collaboration and enabling policy environments. A replay of the session is available here: https://www.weforumasia.cn/meetings/annual-meeting-of-the-new-champions-2026/sessions/why-biomanufacturing-is-a-big-deal/

On 25 June, I had the pleasure of joining Matthew Chang for a session on synthetic genomics. It was a real delight to share the stage with Matthew. My contribution focused on how regulatory approaches and public engagement are evolving alongside advances in genome-writing technologies. As the scientific frontier continues to advance, governance must evolve with it—not only through adaptive regulatory frameworks, but also through meaningful public dialogue that enables societies to shape the trajectories of these transformative technologies.

Beyond the formal programme, I particularly enjoyed the smaller discussions that make meetings like this so valuable. Conversations over dinner on navigating today’s geopolitical and geoeconomic realities offered rich opportunities to exchange perspectives across sectors and regions, while the Women Leaders dinner was a wonderful chance to connect with inspiring women from around the world.

A heartfelt thank you to the World Economic Forum colleagues for the thoughtful discussions before and throughout the meeting. What an enjoyable and stimulating three days!