Dr. Martin Jacques is the author of the global best-seller When China Rules the World: the End of the Western World and the Birth of a New Global Order. It was first published in 2009 and has since been translated into fifteen languages and sold 400,000 copies. The book has been shortlisted for two major literary awards. A second edition of the book, greatly expanded and fully updated, was published in 2012. A new updated and expanded edition of the book was published in China in April 2016. His TED talk on how to understand China has had over two million views. He is a Senior Fellow at the Department of Politics and International Studies, Cambridge University, and a Visiting Professor at Tsinghua University, Beijing, Fudan University, Shanghai, and the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, Singapore. He is a Senior Fellow at the Institute of Modern International Relations, Tsinghua University and at the China Institute, Fudan University. He also has a TED talk: "Understanding the Rise of China", which can be found here: www.ted.com/talks/martin_jacques_understanding_the_rise_of_china. Martin's personal website is www.martinjacques.com. Martin was a speaker at the 2018 Abu Dhabi Ideas Weekend, where he delivered a talk on how China’s Belt & Road Initiative will change the world.

Julian Gewirtz is a Fellow in History and Public Policy at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government. He is the author of Unlikely Partners: Chinese Reformers, Western Economists, and the Making of Global China (2017), which The Economist called "a gripping read, highlighting what was little short of a revolution in China’s economic thought." His writing on Asia has appeared in publications including the Wall Street Journal, the Washington Post, the Financial Times, Foreign Policy, and Foreign Affairs. A Chinese speaker, he has lived and worked in China and the United States and most recently served as Special Advisor for International Affairs at the U.S. Department of Energy. A Rhodes Scholar, he holds degrees from the University of Oxford and Harvard College. Julian was a speaker at the 2018 Abu Dhabi Ideas Weekend, where he moderated Moonshot 4: “The Modern Silk Road: A new era of globalistaion?”.

In March 2018, the Abu Dhabi Ideas Weekend welcomed some of the brightest and most interesting minds from the UAE and around the world to discuss four of the most important moonshot challenges facing our planet. The event was inspired by the world-famous Aspen Ideas Festival that has been taking place in Colorado since 2005, as a place for scientists, artists, politicians, business leaders, historians and educators to discuss some of the most fascinating ideas of our time. The 2018 Abu Dhabi Ideas Weekend topics included: “Polarisation: Bridging the gaps”, “Cancer: An end in sight?”, “Artificial Intelligence: Our super-intelligent friend?” and “The Modern Silk Road: A new era of globalisation”.