Jirayut “Topp” Srupsrisopa

Founder and group CEO, Bitkub

What was your purpose for attending the WEF Annual Meeting in Davos this year?

Jirayut “Topp” Srupsrisopa (JS): During the event, we discussed various issues ranging from the global economic outlook to geopolitical updates from around the world. We also spoke about how technological advancements can be scaled to drive resilience and competitiveness while promoting more equitable and inclusive societies.

This was a great opportunity for Bitkub to represent Thailand on the international stage and to continue to connect with business and political leaders across the globe. This will help to lead us towards a future where we stand ready to contribute to Thailand’s digital economy.

The free flow of people, information and capital are cornerstones of a successful digital economy and should be embraced. We are willing to play a pivotal role in the evolution of an open financial web, creating a better transaction network for the entire world—whether it is for currency, assets or anything of value. And WEF has guided us to be a step closer to these goals.

What was your biggest takeaway from the meeting?

JS: We are beyond the point where one can fix all of the issues we’re facing. Public and private partnership is considered uniquely significant. Sustainability and digital wealth remain the focuses of the future along with breakthrough technologies, such as digital assets, blockchain, artificial intelligence and tokenisation, which will help create value for real-world assets and increase productivity. Although there were concerns raised, we are determined to work in tandem with policymakers to launch these technologies in a regulated way.

Domestic digital enterprises are also better positioned to compete in the global market and are crucial to raising the productivity of a nation and sustaining the standard of living of its citizens.

Did you learn anything unexpected during your time at Davos?

JS: There was a larger number of representatives from digital asset companies at the meeting and the topic of digital assets was brought up often which indicated that it has been recognized in terms of technology for the future.

There has been some negative press about the meeting, with a few questioning its relevance. What do you think can be done better?

We are living in a rapidly changing and highly interconnected world, where global issues can arise quickly and without warnings. It requires global cooperation to address such issues. The WEF brings together decision-makers from across society to work on projects and initiatives that make a real difference. 

Huge change takes a great deal of time, but we can start by keeping our game in the right direction.

It’s great that our voices are being heard on an international stage and more importantly, that we have the opportunity to connect with global leaders to help shape the Thai economy in the digital era. I’m happy that more Thai representatives attended this year, but I would love to see more leaders across Thai society being able to take part in the future.

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Matthew Guilford

Co-founder and CEO, Common Health

What was your purpose for attending the WEF Annual Meeting in Davos this year? Is this your first time?

Matthew Guilford (MG): We have a pretty ambitious mission at Common Health: helping the hundreds of millions of people in Southeast Asia with conditions like diabetes and hypertension save money and live longer, healthier lives. So one of my biggest goals for the annual meeting was to engage partners who could help us scale our impact.

It was my first time at Davos and I was hoping that the experience would help to broaden my horizons. I was keen to learn about new topics, meet people doing very different things and hopefully leave with an expanded worldview.

What was your biggest takeaway from it?

MG: Hopefulness, particularly for [the Southeast Asian] region. The theme for this year's meeting was "Cooperation in a Fragmented World," and issues around complexity and competition were everywhere in the headlines. But amid all this, people, organisations and countries are working together on real solutions for everything from climate change to economic inequality. And Southeast Asia is exceptionally well-positioned to drive these collaborations.

Did you gain any unexpected lessons during the trip?

MG: One of my favourite learnings wasn't about geopolitics or macroeconomics, but rather about daily life, about embracing serendipity. I was struck by how open, friendly and engaging the meeting participants were and found that some of my favourite encounters were in the queue for coffee or on the shuttle van back to my hotel. I've resolved to try to build that wide-eyed openness into more of my daily life.

There has been some negative press about the meeting, with a few questioning its relevance. Was there anything that could have been done better?

MG: First, Davos is more relevant now than ever. After two or three years of video calls, people are hungry for human contact and you could feel that energy [this year] in Switzerland. And as we work together across cultures and geographies to try to make a change, there really is no substitute for building relationships face-to-face.

Second, I think people often are mistaken about the relationship between the annual meeting and the World Economic Forum's work overall. Davos is an incredible event, but over the course of the other 51 weeks in the year, members of the WEF community drive change through dozens of initiatives on everything from open data to epidemic preparedness. 

For example, I have been lucky enough to be a member of the forum's Young Global Leaders community since 2019, along with an exceptional group of people from across our region. These types of programmes help to ensure that what happens in Davos doesn't just stay in Davos, but has a positive impact on people worldwide.

See other honourees on the Gen.T List. 

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