Business Extra

Bloomberg's Justin Smith on the post-Covid agenda

The chief executives of the world’s largest companies are showing a “strong appetite” for in-person conferences taking place in the final three months of the year. Justin B Smith, chief executive of Bloomberg Media, which organises hundreds of events a year, speaking exclusively to The National and the Business Extra podcast, said that the company has "identified a very, very strong appetite for engaging in person again” following a period of mostly online-only conferences amid the Covid-19 pandemic. He also discusses key topics on the agenda for Bloomberg's New Economy Forum in Singapore in November, including China-US relations and climate change.

Business Extra co-hosts Mustafa Alrawi and Kelsey Warner unpack what in-person events could look like post-pandemic, drawing from Mr Smith's insights.

In this episode:
Justin B Smith on demand for live events (1m 15s)
The New Economy Forum's task at hand (5m 53s)
New Economy Forum's view on the China-US relations (11m 27s)
Tech companies and global regulations (13m 13s)
Will in-person events come back? (15m 27s)

Read more on our website:

• Bloomberg's New Economy Forum to be held in Singapore

• ATM 2021: Top travel and tourism players convene in Dubai to map future of industry

• Expo 2020 Dubai is a 'beacon of hope' as thousands of deals to bring the world to the UAE are signed

• World Economic Forum cancels 2021 annual meeting

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Can a busy summer travel season revive the aviation industry?

Heading into summer, airline bookings in April and May were "pretty positive" for domestic travel while bookings for international journeys remained "exceptionally weak" as travel restrictions continued in many countries due to new cases of the Covid-19 virus, according to the International Air Transport Association (Iata).

To determine if summer will provide a lift, a patchwork of issues are in play: a global vaccination effort rallying sentiment in some parts of the world to a devastating spike in Covid-19 cases throughout India and parts of southeast Asia. Meanwhile, can pandemic-era pushes for immunity passports, digitalisation and carbon offsets prove to have staying power?

This week, The National's aviation correspondent Deena Kamel joins co-hosts Mustafa Alrawi and Kelsey Warner to discuss the outlook for travel's peak season.

In this episode:
Can aviation be revived? (2m 26s)
Shifting trends and behaviour changes (5m 46s)
Emirates capacity increase (13m 14s)
Four factors in the future of travel (15m 50s)
The enduring changes (18m 30s)

Read more

• Tourism activity in oil-importing Mena countries expected to bounce back by 2023
• Domestic travel rises globally in March as international passenger traffic remains low
• UAE ambassador: UK travel announcement is 'disappointing for families'
• Air Arabia posts first-quarter net profit despite Covid-19 pandemic
• Will India's soaring Covid infections derail its economic rebound?

Apple in court amid a new era for data

The long-promised new era of technology is taking shape, from the quantum computing race between nations, to the battle over fair competition being fought in a US court between Apple and Epic Games.

 

While the future remains uncertain, developments in recent days and months reveal a path that will change the way consumers and companies interact online and who will be the guardians of our digital lives.

 

This week, host Mustafa Alrawi, assistant editor-in-chief, and co-host Kelsey Warner, Future editor, explain the state of play and the themes to watch: the incoming deep tech wave, the UAE’s investment in cryptographic “sovereignty” and Apple’s new data privacy rules.

In this episode:
The technological shift and awareness of data (0m 40s)

The deep tech wave (2m 06s)

The rise of the hacker (6m 13s)

Apple's stand on privacy (9m 57s)

Apple v Epic Games (13m 44s)

Read more on our website:

• Meet the Abu Dhabi cryptographer keeping your personal data safe

• Apple's 'walled garden' faces Epic attack in app store trial

• What do Apple's new iPhone privacy changes mean for users and businesses?

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Bitcoin's energy problem a lesson amid tide of digitalisation

Bitcoin mining now uses enough electricity annually to power a country equivalent in size to the UAE. Can warnings over cryptocurrencies' carbon footprint challenge - and help us reimagine - how we utilise energy resources? And amid a rising tide of digital assets, what can be learnt from Bitcoin's shift to renewable energy?

Host Mustafa Alrawi, assistant editor-in-chief, and co-host Kelsey Warner, future editor, discuss these issues in this week's episode.

In this episode:
Bitcoin's energy consumption (0m 55s)
What is Bitcoin mining? (2m 24s)
Why is there a market for Bitcoin? (6m 45s)
Bitcoin's role in an energy transition (8m 30s)

Read more on our website:

• Bitcoin's annual energy consumption now exceeds that of the UAE

• Bitcoin breaches $50,000 threshold in downfall

• Tesla’s first-quarter profit surges to $438m on record deliveries

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Did Archegos teach Wall St any lessons?

Archegos Capital Management's spectacular failure over a couple of days in March has cost Wall Street's biggest banks billions of dollars. So far, the losses are being chalked up to one bad apple: the fund’s founder, Bill Hwang.

Mr Hwang’s record-breaking loss of an estimated $20 billion fortune in two days is a cautionary tale. But this is not only about how far any one investor may fall during a historic bull market. The cascade of consequences was limited to a few large firms. But what about next time?

Host Mustafa Alrawi and co-host Kelsey Warner unpack the terms and market dynamics that brought down a whale and ponder the implications of shrugging off a scandal.

In this episode:
Why are people talking about Archegos? (0m 46s)
Bill Hwang's sophisticated financial instruments (4m 05s)
Warnings for Wall Street (8m 18s)

Read more on our website:

• US stock market bulls will crush the bears – again

• UK Chancellor Rishi Sunak told David Cameron he ‘pushed the team’ over Greensil

• Credit Suisse to write down $4.7bn after Archegos implosion

• Global banks brace for Archegos fallout as they may lose more than $6bn

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Can the reality of the electric vehicle market justify the hype?

The year 2020 has been declared a “breakthrough” one for electric vehicles, with sales of EVs up around the world, even in the petrol-happy US.

With tax breaks, new infrastructure plans and Covid-related discounts on zero-emission autos, the market may be at a “tipping point”, according to the World Economic Forum.

But host Mustafa Alrawi, assistant editor-in-chief, says not so fast.
“There’s hype everywhere you look,” he wrote in The National last week, and argued the market is not that much different from other speculative assets such as NFTs, Bitcoin and Spacs.

He and co-host Kelsey Warner unpack the fundamentals of supply and demand, the technology being developed in the broader transport sector and how shareholder value is being affected by EV euphoria.

In this episode:
The hype around EVs (0m 57s)
What is an EV disrupting? (4m 36s)
AVs and EVs (7m 02s)
Buying into the hype (12m 56s)

Read more on our website:

• US stock market bulls will crush the bears – again

• Why GM’s plan to phase out combustion engine cars by 2035 matters

• Intel to manufacture chips for cars to address US shortage

• Cruise to unveil its driverless robotaxis in Dubai in 2023

• The future of the daily commute: how going to work is set to improve city life

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Understanding the life sciences and genomics revolution

More than a century in the making, a genomics revolution is now unfolding. The extent of the Covid-19 outbreak has prompted nations and biotech companies to pour billions of dollars and emergency resources into the field, spurring it to new heights of potential. Within a month of the first novel coronavirus case reported in Wuhan, the 29,903 letters that make up the pathogen’s genome were published online.

Now, more than a year later, researchers around the world are scrutinising the genetic markers of the virus, helping public health workers at nearly every layer of pandemic response, from contact tracing to surfacing treatments. Last month, Abu Dhabi strategic investment fund Mubadala announced it would invest $1.1 billion in UK life sciences businesses to boost the sector after the pandemic.

To explain the science and investment opportunity for the flourishing field, host Kelsey Warner is joined by Damien Ng, a research analyst at Swiss wealth management firm Julius Baer.

In this episode:
The life sciences and genomics revolution spurred by Covid-19 (0m 40s)
What is genomics? (2m 16s)
What are the investment opportunities? (5m 10s)
Health data and privacy (15m 50s)

Read more on our website:

• UAE and UK sign £1bn deal to invest in life sciences

• Coronavirus: why quickly mapping the viral genome was ‘extraordinary’ and what's next

• Coronavirus explained: Why experts say more countries need to search for new Covid-19 mutations

• Omics gene-sequencing lab in Abu Dhabi to revolutionise health care

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How to build and keep trust post-Covid-19

Attitudes of trust towards governments, employers, chief executives, the traditional media and social media companies have been in flux over the past 12 months. Globally, employers have become more trusted than any other institution, according to the 2021 Edelman Trust Barometer index.

In the UAE, government is the most trusted. For all, however, the experience of Covid-19 has included increased and more consistent communication to get us through the health crisis safely. This has set a new benchmark, and for those who want to build trust – or those who want to maintain high levels – they will need to keep up with heightened expectations from people who have been through a lot.

Host Mustafa Alrawi, The National's assistant editor-in-chief, and co-host Kelsey Warner, Future editor, discuss changing attitudes to trust with Edelman's Middle East chief executive, Omar Qirem.

In this episode:
Tracking trust this year (0m 48s)
Who ranks the highest on the Edelman Trust Barometer? (2m 01s)
Saving lives with communication (5m 08s)
Tactical advice for CEOs on building trust (11m 42s)

Read more on our website:

• Covid-19 vaccine acceptance rate in UAE one of the highest in the world, new survey shows

• Public trust in government drops during era of ‘information bankruptcy’

• Amid coronavirus, public trust will be a company's most precious commodity

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How TikTok is capitalising on its own 15 seconds of fame

"We want to inspire creativity and create joy." That's what it's all about at TikTok, according to Shant Oknayan, general manager for the Middle East, Turkey, Africa and Pakistan region at the social media platform's parent company ByteDance.

As the wildly popular short-form video sharing app grows, Mr Oknayan tells The National it has no plans to grow up. The joyful content its users generate is big business for advertisers. He says influencers have a major role to play for companies looking to sell products, and audiences are growing rapidly here in the Middle East. Top TikTok influencers in the GCC increased their follower count by an average of 65 per cent between February and August 2020, according to data analytics company Anavizio.

Mr Oknayan also answers questions about how the platform is moving on from lockdown, how TikTok seeks to differentiate itself from other social media companies and how user privacy and disinformation is addressed.

In this episode:
TikTok's journey (0m 35s)
Why is TikTok different? (3m 12s)
How are advertisers using TikTok? (5m 05s)
TikTok and content moderation (12m 01s)
The evolution of TikTok (14m 38s)

Read more on our website:

• Risky behaviour rapped as Gen FinTok gets caught up in investment mania

• How to use Instagram Reels: new feature has launched in the Middle East

• Tesla founder Musk denies technology in company's cars would be used for spying

• Veronica Etro on the future of fashion: 'Now it's about doing less, but doing it better'

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Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi CEO on Covid-19 vaccines and return to 'normal'

Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi has been on the front line of the capital’s pandemic response and is at a critical juncture as it appoints a new chief executive. Dr Rakesh Suri, the hospital’s current CEO, hands over the reins this month to his chief of staff, Dr Jorge Guzman. Dr Suri will return to Ohio to head up Cleveland Clinic’s international operations.

They both join co-hosts Mustafa Alrawi and Kelsey Warner to talk about what they have learnt from the pandemic and the future vision for the hospital. Dr Suri shares advice on Covid-19 vaccines and Dr Guzman predicts when a sense of “normal” might return.

In this episode:
Cleveland Clinic's leadership transition (0m 51s)
Dr Suri's reflects on the past year (1m 57s)
Acceleration of high-end medical care (4m 50s)
Dr Guzman's ambitions as the new CEO (9m 15s)
When will we go back to pre-COVID normal? (17m 54s)

Read more on our website:

• Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi appoints new chief executive

• Coronavirus: How Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi is fighting Covid-19

• UAE wants Emiratis to have their genes sequenced to help health fight

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