Singapore's global moment, with President Tharman Shanmugaratnam
Sat Jan 31 2026
How does a small country like Singapore, strategically positioned between the US and China, navigate a world of growing uncertainty? On the GZERO World Podcast, Ian Bremmer sits down with Singapore’s President Tharman Shanmugaratnam to unpack a global order in flux. For a small country at a global crossroads, managing the current geopolitical moment isn't an abstract concept. It is central to its survival. Despite "radical uncertainty," the city-state has continued to flourish as a global hub for finance, trade, and technology.
From the sidelines of Davos, Bremmer and Shanmugaratnam look at the rapidly changing global order. Shanmugaratnam says the challenge is not to sit back and “be intimidated” but to realize that most issues no longer require leadership by a “single, dominant power.” Take AI. Despite its relatively small size, Singapore has become a global leader. With some of the most advanced real-world adoption of artificial intelligence in the world, the government is working to future-proof its economy by investing in lifelong learning and skills upgrading so that its workforce, especially white-collar workers, can adapt and thrive in the AI future.
Host: Ian Bremmer
Guest: Tharman Shanmugaratnam
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How does a small country like Singapore, strategically positioned between the US and China, navigate a world of growing uncertainty? On the GZERO World Podcast, Ian Bremmer sits down with Singapore’s President Tharman Shanmugaratnam to unpack a global order in flux. For a small country at a global crossroads, managing the current geopolitical moment isn't an abstract concept. It is central to its survival. Despite "radical uncertainty," the city-state has continued to flourish as a global hub for finance, trade, and technology. From the sidelines of Davos, Bremmer and Shanmugaratnam look at the rapidly changing global order. Shanmugaratnam says the challenge is not to sit back and “be intimidated” but to realize that most issues no longer require leadership by a “single, dominant power.” Take AI. Despite its relatively small size, Singapore has become a global leader. With some of the most advanced real-world adoption of artificial intelligence in the world, the government is working to future-proof its economy by investing in lifelong learning and skills upgrading so that its workforce, especially white-collar workers, can adapt and thrive in the AI future. Host: Ian Bremmer Guest: Tharman Shanmugaratnam Subscribe to the GZERO World with Ian Bremmer Podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your preferred podcast platform, to receive new episodes as soon as they're published. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.