Tianjin, People’s Republic of China, 25 June 2025 – The 16th Annual Meeting of the New Champions opened today in Tianjin with a keynote address by Premier Li Qiang of the People’s Republic of China. The plenary reinforced the Forum’s theme this year, “Entrepreneurship for a New Era,” spotlighting the role of innovative leaders in shaping more inclusive, sustainable and resilient economic futures.
Børge Brende, President and Chief Executive Officer of the World Economic Forum, highlighted the meeting’s central themes: “The challenges we face from AI governance to supply chain resilience, from great transitions to skills for the future, cannot be addressed in silos. They require us to move beyond competition to co-creation, and from fragmentation to collaboration. China has long been a vital partner in this effort,” Brende said. “This is really the essence of the New Champions: dynamic enterprises and leaders who are shaping the future of the global economy through agility, purpose and cooperation.”
In a forward-looking speech, Premier Li emphasized China’s commitment to openness, innovation and shared prosperity amid a rapidly evolving global landscape. He stressed the need for proactive, long-term cooperation: “Division and disruption often originate from short-sighted calculations. What we need are more bridges.”
Premier Li called for dialogue grounded in mutual respect. “When we do business, we often say, ‘harmony makes good business.'"
Highlighting new initiatives, Premier Li noted that China is “intensifying efforts to implement the strategy of expanding domestic demand by launching special initiatives to boost consumption. This will make China a mega-sized consumption powerhouse, on top of being a manufacturing powerhouse, and provide more market space for enterprises around the world.”
He also pointed to the country’s growing leadership in green energy, AI and advanced manufacturing. Premier Li added that China continues to be a vital driver of global growth: “Over the past years, the Chinese economy has contributed around 30% of global growth.” In the first quarter of 2025, China’s GDP growth hit 5.4%, with further momentum building in the second quarter.
Gim Huay Neo, Managing Director of the World Economic Forum, opened the session by encouraging participants to “embrace the spirit of Davos — be generous and candid in sharing your views... and welcome vigorous debate. It is through the power of dialogue that we foster rich connections and achieve progress.”
Addressing the plenary meeting, Mayor Zhang Gong of Tianjin offered an invitation to global partners: “We hope more and more New Champions will work together with Tianjin, start businesses here, and foster innovation. Let us inject more certainty into this complex era and drive a more resilient and sustainable future.”
About the Annual Meeting of the New Champions 2025
The 16th Annual Meeting of the New Champions will take place from 24 to 26 June 2025 in Tianjin, People’s Republic of China, under the theme “Entrepreneurship for a New Era”. The meeting will convene over 1,700 leaders from business, government, civil society, academia, international organizations, innovation and media to explore entrepreneurial solutions to global challenges.
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