Reimagining Entrepreneurship & Innovation for the 21st Century
As technological disruption, climate change, and geopolitical fragmentation reshape the global landscape, building resilient innovation systems has become a pressing priority. From July 22 to 24, 2025, CAPRI and CAPRI USA are co-hosting a trilateral conference in Copenhagen in partnership with Copenhagen Business School and the University of Virginia. The conference will convene researchers, entrepreneurs, and policy leaders from Asia, Europe, and North America to explore new models of entrepreneurship and innovation tailored to national and local contexts.
To be held at the Carlsberg Akademi, the program will feature an opening keynote by Denmark’s Tech Ambassador, Anne Marie Engtoft Meldgaard as well as six panel discussions, with CAPRI chair, board members, and senior fellows as panelists. Together, these experts will examine how industrial policy, democratic governance, AI regulation, and inclusive financing can support innovation while responding to shared global challenges.
Date: July 22–24, 2025
Location: CBS Executive, Råvarebygningen Rs20, Porcelænshaven 22, 2000 Frederiksberg, Denmark
Opening Keynote
Time: Tuesday, July 22 | 17:00–18:00
Anne Marie Engtoft Meldgaard, Tech Ambassador, Ministry of Foreign Affairs Denmark; Former Lead, Fourth Industrial Revolution for Sustainable Development, World Economic Forum (2017–2020)
Moderator: Dan Wadhwani, Jill Brooks-Garnett Teaching Chair in Entrepreneurship, University of Southern California Marshall School of Business
Panel 1: The Future of Sustainable and Secure Energy
What is the right balance between the roles of the public and private sectors in facilitating innovation and transformation in sustainable energy? This panel will provide insights into how targeted policies can accelerate the green transition, driving global efforts to combat climate change and enhance energy security.
Time: Wednesday, July 23 | 09:00–10:30
Panelists:
Chang-Chuan Chan, Member of the Board, CAPRI; Distinguished Professor, Institute of Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences, College of Public Health, National Taiwan University
Michael Lenox, University Professor, Tayloe Murphy Professor of Business Administration, University of Virginia
Aisma Vitina, Head of APRA Secretariat at the Danish Energy Agency
Moderator: Margaret Foster Riley, Professor, University of Virginia, Public Policy, Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy
Panel 2: Reimagining Industrial Policy for Innovation and Inclusion
From the Asian Tigers attracting investments and promoting exports in the 1970s–80s to the US CHIPS and Science Act of 2022, industrial policies have aimed to boost competitiveness and drive technological progress. This panel will discuss how industrial policy and top-down government interventions can foster innovation without stifling open markets and how policymakers can balance state intervention with dynamic market forces.
Time: Wednesday, July 23 | 11:00–12:30
Panelists:
Mara Rudman, James D. Schlesinger distinguished professor, Miller Center at University of Virginia
Friederike Welter, President, Institut für Mittelstandsforschung Bonn
Joseph Wong, Vice-President, International, Professor, Department of Political Science; Professor, Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy, University of Toronto
Moderator: Scott C. Miller, Research Assistant Professor, Miller Center and Courtesy Appointment, Darden School of Business
Panel 3: Entrepreneurialism and Innovation in Democratic Societies
While capitalist systems foster creativity and enterprise, the push for deregulation and rising inequality can strain the democratic values of accountability and equity. This panel will examine the dynamic relationship between democratic governance and entrepreneurial ecosystems, highlighting strategies to balance economic dynamism with social equity, ensuring that innovation strengthens rather than erodes the foundations of democracy.
Time: Wednesday, July 23 | 13:30–15:00
Panelists:
Alicia García Herrero, Member of the Board, CAPRI; Chief Economist for Asia Pacific, Natixis; Senior Fellow, Bruegel
Andrew Nelson, Professor, Management at the University of Oregon
Isabell Stamm, Professor, Technische Universität Berlin
Moderator: Christina Lubinski, Professor, Department of Business Humanities and Law, Copenhagen Business School
Panel 4: Financing Women-led Entrepreneurship and Innovation
How can policies facilitate equal financing in a male dominated technology startup world? This panel will explore socioeconomic factors affecting the vigorous growth of women-led ventures across regions and identify institutional efforts that could cultivate female leadership and build inclusive ecosystems in which women entrepreneurs can thrive.
Time: Wednesday, July 24 | 15:30–17:00
Panelists:
Syaru Shirley Lin, Founder and Chair, CAPRI; President, CAPRI USA; Research Professor, Miller Center of Public Affairs, University of Virginia
Maija Renko, Professor of Entrepreneurship, School of Business, Aalto University
Sharon Vosmek, CEO & Managing Partner, Astia
Moderator: Caroline Fried, Director of Research, CAPRI
Panel 5: Governing Capitalist Democracies in the Age of AI
How can policymakers develop regulatory frameworks that can adapt to both the opportunities and challenges presented by AI? This panel will explore how private AI entrepreneurship is governed in capitalist democracies. Panelists will discuss approaches to ensure that governance is flexible in the face of future uncertainties while promoting innovation, as well as whether AI-driven entrepreneurship is reshaping of market dynamics and the resilience of the political economies in each region.
Time: Thursday, July 24 | 8:30–10:00
Panelists:
Nikolaj Munch Andersen, Chief AI Advisor, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Denmark
Yu-Che Chen, Director, School of Public Administration and Director of the Digital Governance and Analytics Lab, University of Nebraska Omaha
Mona Sloane, Assistant Professor, University of Virginia
Moderator: Siwei Huang, Director of Engagement, CAPRI
Panel 6: Cultivating Entrepreneurship from Communities to the Global Level
Supported by environments that nurture creativity, innovation, and scalability, community-level innovation can be a powerful engine for broader economic growth. The panel will highlight how grassroots entrepreneurship and talent cultivation can strengthen both community- and global-level resilience and how policies can empower local entrepreneurs and facilitate effective and supportive ecosystems for them.
Time: Thursday, July 24 | 10:15–11:45
Video remarks: Stan Shih, Founder and Honorary Chairman, Acer Group
Panelists:
Audrey Chia, Associate Professor, National University of Singapore Business School
Stephen Cummings, School of Management, Victoria University of Wellington
Nic Lauten, Executive Program Director, Kula Project
Moderator: Sarah Jack, Distinguished Professor in Entrepreneurship, Lancaster University
Closing Plenary
Time: Thursday, July 24 | 12:00–13:00
Speakers:
Sidney Milkis, White Burkett Miller Professor, Department of Politics, University of Virginia
Syaru Shirley Lin, Founder and Chair, CAPRI, President, CAPRI USA; Research Professor at the Miller Center of Public Affairs, University of Virginia
Moderator: Hannah Knox Tucker, Assistant Professor, Copenhagen Business School
