Vijay Vaitheeswaran | U.S. business editor for The Economist and leading specialist on China.

Vijay Vaitheeswaran

U.S. business editor for The Economist and leading specialist on China.

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Vijay Vaitheeswaran
Biography

Vijay is the US Business Editor of The Economist. He is also an award-winning book author and an accomplished public speaker. The Financial Times has declared him to be "a writer to whom it is worth paying attention."

He opened his magazine's first Shanghai bureau in 2012 and served as its China Business Editor until mid-2017. His editorial responsibilities ranged from business and finance to technology and innovation. He led the editorial team that launched Economist Global Business Review, a successful app that is the first bilingual product offered by The Economist in its 175-year history.

Vijay joined the editorial staff of The Economist in 1992 as its London-based Latin America correspondent, and opened its first regional bureau in Mexico City in 1994. From 1998 to 2006, he covered the politics, economics, business and technology of energy and the environment. From 2007 to 2011 his portfolio encompassed innovation, global health, pharmaceuticals and biotechnology. He has produced numerous cover stories and won awards for his reporting.

His latest book is Need, Speed and Greed: How the New Rules of Innovation Can Transform Businesses, Propel Nations to Greatness, and Tame the World's Most Wicked Problems. Kirkus Reviews declares it to be "a perfect primer for the post-industrial age" and Amazon named it a Selection of the Month. His previous books have also created a stir, with accolades ranging from lengthy reviews in The New Yorker to shortlisting for the Financial Times Business Book of the Year prize. He wrote The World is Not Flat, a timely and provocative Special Report on the disruptive future for globalisation, multinational firms and supply chains recently published by The Economist.

Vijay is a Life Member at America's Council on Foreign Relations and a Member of the Economic Club of New York. He was on the Adjunct Faculty at New York University from 2005 to 2011. At the invitation of the Dean, he created and taught the first interdisciplinary class on energy & environment offered at the Stern School of Business. He has also served as an advisor on sustainability and innovation to the World Economic Forum/Davos.

His opinion pieces have appeared in leading publications including The Wall Street Journal, The Financial Times, The New York Times and Foreign Policy, and he is a seasoned commentator on such broadcast outlets as CNBC, Bloomberg, MSNBC, BBC and NPR. He has addressed groups ranging from the US National Governors' Association and the UN General Assembly to the TED and Aspen Ideas conferences. He also serves as chairman of a provocative series of Innovation Summits organised by The Economist, held annually in Chicago, Hong Kong and London.

U.S. business editor for The Economist and leading specialist on China, business and technology, innovation, and emerging markets

Vijay Vaitheeswaran
Featured Videos

Current: Executing Innovation

Time 00:55

More Videos From Vijay Vaitheeswaran

Executing Innovation
Time 00:55
Need Speed and Greed
Time 11:52
The Aspen Institute
Time 01:59
CNBC: China's Supply Chain Scramble
Time 03:33

Vijay Vaitheeswaran
Featured Keynote Programs

Energy in Today’s World

With his extensive experience covering energy topics for The Economist, authoring two books on the subject, and chairing the World Economic Forum’s Global Agenda Council on Energy, Vijay tackles the topic of energy. Covering the politics, economics, business, and technology issues, he helps audiences understand what the world’s energy situation is, how it affects their country, and what the future will look like in terms of energy (in)dependence, and how it affects regional strategic partners and geopolitics.

Need, Speed, and Greed
The Future of Global Innovation

Globalization has led to one of the world’s most profound and powerful innovation revolutions. In this presentation, Vijay poses several questions: How can the extraordinary benefits of the innovation revolution be shared more equitably among all of society? What will these changes mean for businesses and societies the world over? What drives human progress and makes companies successful? These challenges demand a more disruptive and swift approach to innovation than ever before. Technology, creativity, and new products all spring from new ways of thinking, from some unlikely sources. Vijay inspires and empowers his audiences to improve their lives, their work, and even the world.

Doing Business in China

Does China have what it takes to transform itself from the cheap workshop of the world to the cutting edge of innovation? Will the country’s stubborn adherence to state capitalism continue to deliver benefits at home that outweigh the growing backlash overseas against ‘China Inc?’ Will America’s crackdown on Huawei and Chinese industrial espionage lead to meaningful protection of intellectual property and a safer business environment – or could it instead unleash a dangerous wave of techno-nationalism? Could Europe, which usually favors soft power, take a harder line against China than America when it comes to ensuring fair rules for trade? Vijay draws from his years as China Business and Finance Editor and Shanghai Bureau Chief to offer audiences sharp and unexpected insights drawn from working on the frontlines of global business.

Vijay Vaitheeswaran
Featured Books

Zoomby Vijay Vaitheeswaran

Zoom

by Vijay Vaitheeswaran
Need Speed and Greedby Vijay Vaitheeswaran

Need Speed and Greed

by Vijay Vaitheeswaran
Power of the Peopleby Vijay Vaitheeswaran

Power of the People

by Vijay Vaitheeswaran

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