Agenda

Connect with fellow leaders, exchange ideas, and fuel up for the day ahead. Use this time to meet someone new, strengthen an existing connection, or join an Executive Briefing for an intimate, thought-provoking discussion. These informal moments are where new perspectives emerge—and where the Summit’s most meaningful connections begin.

Go beyond the headlines with our Executive Briefings—focused, interactive conversations on the issues shaping Washington today. Held in 20-minute intervals during networking breaks, these small-group discussions offer a chance to engage directly with experts, ask questions, and explore a specific issue in greater depth.

Spaces are limited and available on a first-come basis—arrive early to secure your place!

The New American Defense Economy: Who Will Build the Arsenal of the Future?

Recent conflicts, from Ukraine to Iran, have exposed a hard truth: victory depends not only on innovation, but on the ability to build, replenish, and scale military capabilities quickly. This briefing convenes leaders from defense, technology, and policy to examine how America can accelerate the production of rockets, drones, autonomous systems, and other technologies critical for national security objectives.  

Location: Meeting Room 2

Brianne Todd | Professor of the Practice, Near East South Asia Center for Strategic Studies, National Defense University

Alek Jovovic | Deputy Director, Center for the Industrial Base, Senior Fellow, Defense and Security Department, Center for Strategic and International Studies

Leading in the Age of AI

Artificial intelligence is reshaping how individuals and institutions interact with information and make decisions, yet many senior leaders in both the public and private sector are still learning how to use these tools effectively. This briefing brings together practitioners from the classroom, the technology sector, and government to explore what it takes to build AI literacy among decision-makers. Drawing on lessons from Meridian's Tech Labs training curriculum for government and diplomatic staff, the conversation will examine some of the technical basics of AI that underpin big questions about its deployment, laying the groundwork for leaders to move from understanding AI and its future capacity to applying it responsibly, strategically, and at scale.

Location: Library

Speakers:

Dr. Elizabeth Newbury | Senior Director, Center for Technology, Innovation and Space, Meridian International Center

Natalie Buda Smith | Chief Artificial Intelligence Officer, Library of Congress

Speakers:

David Bohigian | CEO, Meridian International Center

As America marks its 250th anniversary, its influence abroad is being redefined. New powers are challenging established assumptions, technology is reshaping the instruments of influence, and alliances and economic relationships are being tested. But America’s influence has never come from a single source. It has been built through the combination of economic strength, military capability, technological innovation, diplomacy, alliances, and the relationships the United States has cultivated around the world. At 250, how those sources of influence are brought together may be as important as the strength of any one of them.

This session will examine how American power has evolved and how the United States can translate its enduring strengths into influence in an increasingly competitive world. Panelist will consider what will be required to sustain American influence for the next generation. 

Speakers:

Peter Bergen | Vice President for Global Studies & Fellows, New America

Lt. Gen. (Ret.) Keith Kellogg | Former Assistant to the President and Special Presidential Envoy for Ukraine; Advisory Board Chair, BGR Group

Congresswoman April McClain Delaney | U.S. Representative (MD-06)

Ross Perot, Jr. | Chairman of The Perot Companies; Chairman of Hillwood; Chairman of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors

Kylie Atwood | National Security Correspondent, CNN (Moderator)

As trade, technology, and geopolitics become increasingly intertwined, commercial diplomacy has become a key foundation of U.S. foreign policy and global influence. This session explores how government and business can work together to advance American economic interests, strengthen strategic partnerships, and shape the global economic order. Against the backdrop of the G20’s efforts to strengthen economic cooperation amid geopolitical uncertainty, the discussion will examine how leaders are navigating sanctions, realigning supply chains, advancing friendshoring, and harnessing emerging technologies—and how commercial engagement can translate economic strength into strategic influence.

Speaker:

Joshua Walker | Senior Vice President, Chief International Affairs Officer, U.S. Chamber of Commerce

Conor McQuaid | Chairman & CEO, Pernod Ricard North America

Steve Morrissey | Vice President, International Regulatory and Policy, United Airlines

Cally Baute | Chief Commercial Officer, POLITICO (Moderator)

Awardee:

Conor McQuaid | Chairman & CEO, Pernod Ricard North America

Speaker:

Deborah Lehr | Chair of the Board of Trustees, Meridian International Center

Come for the conversations—and stay for the connections. Across the Summit, you’ll have opportunities to meet new people, exchange ideas, and spark partnerships that can extend well beyond the day. Strike up a conversation with someone new, reconnect with a familiar face, or join an Executive Briefing for a deeper, more intimate exchange.

Go beyond the headlines with our Executive Briefings—focused, interactive conversations on the issues shaping Washington today. Held in 20-minute intervals during networking breaks, these small-group discussions offer a chance to engage directly with experts, ask questions, and explore a specific issue in greater depth.

Spaces are limited and available on a first-come basis—arrive early to secure your place!

Space as Strategic Infrastructure: Allies, Industry, and National Security

For decades, the strategic and defense dimensions of space operated largely beneath the surface of public discussion; today, they are moving squarely into view as space becomes central to national security, economic resilience, and global influence. This executive briefing will examine the evolving U.S. national security space sector: who shapes it across government, the military, industry, and research; how allies are working with the United States to strengthen shared access, awareness, and deterrence; and why commercial providers are increasingly central to missions once handled almost entirely by government. As recent developments underscore growing attention to resilient satellite communications, missile warning, space domain awareness, launch capacity, commercial data, and allied interoperability, the conversation will frame space as strategic infrastructure that protects modern economies, supports military readiness, and helps define America’s competitive edge in a more contested international environment. 

Location: Meeting Room 2

Dr. Brian Weeden | Director of Civil and Commercial Policy, Center for Space Policy and Strategy

Theresa Hitchens | Senior Space Reporter, Breaking Defense

Reglobalization: Building Resilient Supply Chains in a New Era of Global Commerce

Amid evolving geopolitical dynamics, shifting trade patterns, and growing economic interdependence, resilient supply chains have emerged as a critical driver of national competitiveness and global stability. As governments and businesses navigate an increasingly complex operating environment, trusted networks that move goods, data, and services efficiently across borders are becoming essential strategic assets. This discussion will explore how public-private collaboration can strengthen supply chain resilience and foster international cooperation. From infrastructure investment and workforce readiness to digital visibility and cross-border trade facilitation, this 20-minute Executive Briefing will examine how resilient supply chains are shaping the future of competitiveness and global growth.

Location: Meeting Room 3 & 4

Speakers:

Lance D. Mangum | Vice President, Government Affairs, FedEx Corp.

Mahnaz Khan | Vice President of Policy for Critical Supply Chains, Silverado Policy Accelerator

Daniel Desrochers | International trade reporter, POLITICO (Moderator)

Technology is changing how countries compete, build influence, and enhance economic and national security. The countries that lead innovation and adoption in artificial intelligence, dual-use technologies, biotechnology, advanced manufacturing and other strategic technologies will help shape the global architecture of the next century.

This session will examine how technological capacity becomes national influence and what it takes to advance American values, partnerships, and leadership through the systems and innovations that will define the future. Panelists will discuss how the United States can strengthen the ecosystem that turns scientific discovery and technological innovation into durable advantage. The conversation will also examine the role of trusted institutions, markets, and partnerships in accelerating breakthrough innovations, building resilient supply chains, and ensuring the secure deployment, scale, and diffusion of critical technologies.

Speakers:

Combiz Abdolrahimi | Vice President and Global Head of Government Affairs and Public Policy, ServiceNow

Kim Majerus | Vice President, US Public Sector Education, State & Local Government, Amazon Web Services (AWS)

T.H. Harry Coker, Jr. | Secretary, Maryland Department of Commerce

Rick R. Suárez | Senior Vice President, US President and Head of US  BioPharmaceuticals Business Unit, AstraZeneca

Kellee Wicker | Vice President of the Center for Technology, Innovation, and Space, Meridian International Center (Moderator)

As the global landscape shifts, the United States faces new questions about how it advances its interests, works with partners, and exercises leadership abroad. Ambassador Mike Waltz brings experience at the United Nations and the highest levels of U.S. national security policy to the challenges shaping American foreign policy today. This fireside conversation will examine priorities ranging from renewed engagement in the Western Hemisphere and strengthening alliances to managing strategic competition and persistent security challenges. The discussion will also explore how diplomacy and multilateral engagement can advance U.S. objectives and strengthen American influence around the world.

Speakers:

Ambassador Mike Waltz | U.S. Representative to the United Nations

Deborah Lehr | Chair of the Board of Trustees, Meridian International Center (Moderator)

The race for the technologies of tomorrow is also a race for the resources that make them possible. Critical minerals and rare earths underpin everything from AI and advanced manufacturing to batteries, robotics, and autonomous systems, yet access to these materials is increasingly shaped by concentrated supply chains and geopolitical competition. This session will examine the strategies the United States and its partners can pursue to secure reliable access, reduce strategic dependencies, and strengthen the mineral supply chains at the foundation of the next era of technological and economic competition.

Speakers:

Congressman Ami Bera, M.D. | U.S. Representative (CA-06) 

Dr. Alina Polyakova | President & CEO, Center for European Policy Analysis

H.E. Birgitta Tazelaar | Ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to the United States of America 

Joe Quinn | Executive Director, Center for Strategic Industrial Materials, SAFE (Securing America's Future Energy) (Moderator)

Speaker:

Ross Perot Jr. | Chairman of The Perot Companies; Chairman of Hillwood; Chairman of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors