Opening Speech by Craig Bengtson, President of CNBC International.

Singapore sits at the intersection of the world's most important trade and capital relationships. As the city-state navigates the war in Iran, U.S. tariff pressure and an Eastward looking China, Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong addresses CONVERGE LIVE delegates on what the shifting global order means for Singapore.

War in the Middle East is driving a new wave of geopolitical and energy uncertainty, exposing just how fragile the global order has become. At the same time, US-China rivalry is intensifying across trade, technology and security, while protectionism and shifting supply chains are redrawing the contours of globalisation.

In this fireside conversation, Dr Vivian Balakrishnan, Singapore’s Minister for Foreign Affairs, will discuss how Singapore is navigating this more volatile world: engaging major powers without choosing sides, deepening partnerships with like-minded and middle powers, and working to uphold trade, stability and a rules-based international system under strain.

A world navigating significant geopolitical change. Ongoing tensions in the Middle East. A US administration recalibrating the rules of global trade. The long-held assumptions underpinning portfolio construction — around growth, inflation and stability — are facing new tests. A rare conversation with Capital Group CEO Mike Gitlin on the firm's key strategic pivots and shifting market trends — plus an examination of where capital is flowing and how to reposition for what's ahead.

Squeezed by inflation, higher rates and global uncertainty, ASEAN’s consumers are at a pivotal moment. This panel unpacks the real story behind the region’s spending power, from shifting savings patterns and credit trends to changing brand loyalty and digital consumption. We’ll explore how demographics, the tariff battle, AI-related job losses, and government policy are shaping demand across Southeast Asia. For investors, policymakers and businesses alike, understanding the ASEAN consumer has never been more critical — because the region’s growth story ultimately begins in its wallet.

Produced by CNBC Brand Studio

Southeast Asia stands at a $1 trillion inflection point, as it transitions from a high-growth consumer market to a global AI and digital infrastructure hub. We explore the opportunities emerging from this shift, examining the critical infrastructure capital flows and policy frameworks that will define the ASEAN digital economy through 2030.

One year ago, global trade had rules. Today those rules are in tatters. President Trump's tariff war has made policy uncertainty an operating condition. China's record trillion dollar surplus is reshaping global flows, and SEA is caught in the crosshairs. Conflict in the Middle East is squeezing energy routes out further and new shipping lanes are being redrawn in real time. For capital allocators and trade operators the question is who navigates the split, and who gets left behind.

After the SaaSpocalypse forced a brutal reset in valuations, burn rates and growth-at-all-costs strategies, venture capital is recalibrating. Yet even as late-stage funding tightens and exits remain elusive, AI has unleashed a new wave of conviction — and competition. From infrastructure and foundation models to vertical AI and enterprise reinvention, where are VCs truly placing bets? Is this disciplined deployment or another momentum trade? This panel unpacks how VCs are repricing risk, backing founders in a tougher market, and identifying the companies that could build — or destroy — the next trillion dollars in value.

Produced by CNBC Brand Studio

From financial hubs like Singapore to manufacturing powerhouses such as China and innovation leaders like South Korea, organizations are navigating a high-stakes environment defined by rapid adoption, geopolitical tension, and evolving consumer expectations. In this discussion, industry leaders will unpack how businesses are rethinking their operating models to compete in AI-first markets—balancing speed with responsibility, localization with scalability, and innovation with regulation.

The Middle East Conflict has given energy security an urgency that no forecast could have predicted. Singapore imports almost all of its energy, and it's feeling the pressure now. Residents are being urged to conserve power. Supply chains are coming under strain. And the government is making long-term bets on nuclear, regional power grids and new supply partnerships that will define Singapore's energy future for decades. Minister Tan See Leng speaks candidly about managing the immediate crisis, while strategising for the long game.

AI is moving beyond the lab and into the real world of healthcare delivery. From improving clinical trial design and streamlining biologics manufacturing to supporting surgical decision-making and tracking patient outcomes, it is beginning to reshape how therapies are developed, delivered and measured. What were once siloed stages are becoming increasingly connected through data. This panel examines whether AI can meaningfully improve outcomes at scale, who owns the patient relationship in this new ecosystem, and where real value, both clinical and commercial, will ultimately be created.

Lea Salonga, Tony Award winner, the singing voice of Disney's Jasmine and Mulan, and this year the first Filipino to receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, has spent four decades building one of the most recognisable creative identities in global entertainment. Now AI is putting that kind of identity at risk. Deepfakes, voice cloning, synthetic content at scale, the technology moves faster than the rules. We find out what artists are doing to protect their voice, their likeness and creative legacy in a digital world that can replicate all three.

The music industry spent two years fighting AI. Now it's cutting deals with it. Universal, Warner, and Sony have all settled with the major AI platforms and signed licensing agreements. Catalogues are becoming training data. Back catalogues are being monetised in ways that didn't exist even 3 years ago. Spotify is already positioning AI generated derivatives like covers and remixes as an untapped revenue stream for artists. We talk through the new sounds of music.

DBS spent a decade becoming one of the world’s most digitally advanced banks. Now under its first female CEO, the harder question is what comes next. With AI already reshaping how the bank serves customers and competes globally, Tan Su Shan is pushing beyond digitalisation toward a bank where technology and purpose move together. She joins us to discuss what this transformation will take, and where the edge goes from here.

Join us for networking drinks at the Petal Garden from 4PM onwards.

End of Day 1