DAVOS, Switzerland — Amid geopolitical tensions and growing skepticism toward public institutions, Nikhil Kamath and historian Yuval Noah Harari discussed the foundations of global cooperation and the impact of artificial intelligence during a conversation recorded at the World Economic Forum in Davos.
The discussion focused on structural challenges facing modern institutions, including shifting alliances and internal pressures on democratic systems. Harari said large-scale human cooperation relies on shared belief in institutional frameworks rather than force alone. Financial systems, nation-states, legal structures and international agreements function because people collectively accept underlying narratives, he said.
“Humans control the world not because we are stronger than other animals, but because we cooperate better. And cooperation depends on storytelling,” Harari said.
A key theme was the shift from institutional loyalty to personality-driven politics. Harari said democracy depends not only on elections but also on trust in processes, shared facts and institutional continuity. When political commitments center on individuals rather than systems, long-term agreements can become less stable, he said.
The conversation also addressed the implications of artificial intelligence for governance and information. Beyond economic disruption, the speakers discussed how AI systems that generate information and narratives could affect human agency and shared understanding.
Kamath compared financial markets and geopolitics, describing both as systems built on confidence.
“If trust is the foundation of finance, it is also the foundation of geopolitics,” Kamath said.
