Davos 2026: Amid Greenland tariffs, Donald Trump to give speech on 21 January — Here's who is going and who's not

Davos 2026: Amid his Greenland-related tariffs and Gaza Peace Board proposal, United States President Donald Trump is scheduled to give a speech at the World Economic Forum (WEF 2026) tomorrow, 21 January.

As many as 3,000 high-level participants are expected to descend on the Swiss resort town of Davos for the annual WEF, including world leaders, business leaders, journalists and activists, as per an AP report.

What is the World Economic Forum?

• The WEF is a think tank and event organiser based in Geneva whose main event — the annual meeting — debuted in 1971 in Davos.
• Davos is a ski resort town of about 10,000 residents at a height of about 5,000 feet in the Alps of eastern Switzerland.
• The first edition, hosted by forum founder Klaus Schwab, featured a gathering of business executives.
• Since then, the meeting has swelled into a catch-all conference on issues as diverse as economic disparity, climate change, technology, and global cooperation — as well as competition and conflict.
• More than 200 sessions will tackle a wide array of issues.

Who will attend WEF 2026 in Davos?

According to the organisers, a record 400 top political leaders, including more than 60 heads of state and government, and nearly 850 chairs and CEOs of many of the world's leading companies will be in attendance.

• The headliner is Donald Trump, who will be joined by several Cabinet ministers and top advisers, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and special envoy Steve Witkoff.
• Other world leaders in attendance include French President Emmanuel Macron, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, Congo's President Felix Tshisekedi, China's Vice Premier He Lifeng, and Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky.
• Organisers say 55 ministers for economy and finance, 33 ministers for foreign affairs, 34 ministers for trade, commerce and industry, and 11 central bank governors are also expected, the report added.
• Among the big business names to be in attendance are Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, Microsoft's Satya Nadella, Google DeepMind's Demis Hassabis, and Mistral AI's Arthur Mensch (France).
• From international institutions, the banner names include NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte and World Trade Organization (WTO) Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala.

Who is not attending WEF in Davos this year?

Notably, among those not attending the World Economic Forum in Davos this year are Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping, CNBC reported.

Further, Italy’s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer are not on the WEF list, CNBC said, adding that both are, however, reported to be attending the event.

Will Donald Trump steal focus at Davos this year?

This WEF meet is happening amid seismic geopolitical developments. A big chunk of these can be attributed to Trump — Venezuela, Greenland and Iran, plus his global tariffs, including the most recent Greenland-related duties on eight European allies.

Further, artificial intelligence is expected to dominate the discussion. The AP report said that the advent of AI — its promise and perils — will be a hot topic among business executives. They are likely to examine how to apply it to boost efficiency and profits; labour leaders and advocacy groups will warn of its threat to jobs and livelihoods, and policymakers will look to navigate the best way forward between regulation and the right to innovate, it added.

Davos conference organisers always trot out buzzwords for the meeting, and this year's is “A Spirit of Dialogue” — around five themes: cooperation, growth, investment in people, innovation and building prosperity.

Critics say Davos is too much talk and not enough action to rectify the gaping inequality in the world and address troubles like climate change.

(With inputs from AP)