The 2025 TIME100 Summit convened a diverse group of influential figures to discuss pressing global issues, ranging from human rights and climate justice to the future of currency. Speakers included human rights advocate Yulia Navalnaya, Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, comedian Nikki Glaser, climate justice activist Catherine Colman Flowers, and Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos. That wasn’t the only performance at the summit, as Nicole Scherzinger took to the stage as well. Conversations ranged from the perspectives of business, health and science, AI, and culture.

The summit addressed critical financial and economic issues, including the stability of the U.S. dollar and the rise of digital currencies. Worries over the future of the U.S. dollar have reached a fever pitch. Indeed, with the Turkish lira recently falling to a six-month low against the Euro, it has garnered renewed concern. Trade weighted, the ICE U.S. Dollar Index measured that the dollar recently declined to its lowest level since March 2022. This unprecedented drop fueled discussions about impending shifts in the global financial order.

Hedge fund manager and Bridgewater Associates founder Raymond Dalio described the tariff war as a symptom of a deeper monetary problem. He made clear that one underlying objective is for the United States to improve its competitiveness and increase global demand for the dollar.

Right now, the United States needs to improve competitiveness and demand for dollars. It needs to improve technology competitiveness. - Raymond Dalio

Along the way, Dalio raised some important questions about what money itself is, and what the best way to store wealth might be.

I think the question is ‘What is money?" - Raymond Dalio

What is going to be a store-hold of wealth that is going to be exchangeable internationally, recognized internationally? - Raymond Dalio

Jeremy Allaire, co-founder, CEO, and chairman of Circle, a sponsor of the 2025 TIME100 Summit, suggested that the challenges facing the U.S. dollar have spurred exploration into digital currencies.

U.S. Senator Kirsten E. Gillibrand addressed the need for regulatory clarity in the cryptocurrency space to protect consumers and prevent illicit financial activities. She emphasized the need for lawmakers to come together in setting standards so they know how to approach cryptocurrency.

What Congress must do is get their head out of the sand and do the work to regulate this industry so that we can continue to be the center of the world financial markets, the use of cryptocurrency, the use of blockchain, the use of stable coins. - Kirsten E. Gillibrand

Our summit brought together innovators, policymakers, and practitioners who are shaping new paradigms that will help us lead into an increasingly dynamic future. Civil society conversations highlighted the linkages between the challenges faced around the world and the need for merged, collective solutions.