WEF 2026: What global leaders said
You’ve probably seen it on LinkedIn already: the 2026 World Economic Forum delivered some big headlines. Every January, Davos becomes the stage where global economic, political, and tech priorities are laid out. And this year, one thing was clear: startups and artificial intelligence are at the center of the game.
At Bcombinator, we closely follow these conversations because we know how important it is for any entrepreneur to understand where the future is headed. We’ve selected six key quotes that are shaping the roadmap for those building ambitious projects right now.
Spoiler: if you’re building, you’re in the right place at the right time.
1. Europe makes a move to compete in innovation
In her Davos speech, Ursula von der Leyen announced the creation of EU Inc., a new legal framework designed to let startups operate across Europe without current barriers.
With this, the European Commission aims to reduce regulatory fragmentation that forces many startups to look outside the continent to scale. The goal is clear: turn Europe into a market as agile and competitive as the U.S. or China.
2. Small companies can now scale faster than large ones — thanks to AI
Satya Nadella, CEO of Microsoft, delivered a clear message: AI is leveling the playing field.
“…Unless and until your rate of change keeps up with what is possible, you’re going to get schooled by someone small being able to achieve scale because of these tools.”
Size is no longer the advantage. Agility and smart use of AI are what matter now. For entrepreneurs, this is a call to action: with the right tools, you can now compete—and win—with fewer resources.
3. What if we no longer needed programmers?
Dario Amodei, CEO of Anthropic, put it bluntly:
“I have engineers who don’t write code anymore. They just let the model do it. […] We might be 6 to 12 months away from AI doing almost everything.”
Programming as we knew it is changing. Technical barriers are falling, and launching a tech startup no longer requires knowing how to code.
4. Having AI isn’t enough—you need to make it yours
Alex Karp, CEO of Palantir, was clear:
“If you just buy large language models off the shelf, it won’t work. […] You have to build a software layer that speaks the language of your enterprise.”
It’s not just about having AI—it’s about integrating it well. For entrepreneurs, this means adapting tech to your context, not the other way around.
5. Robotics + AI = an economic explosion
Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, spoke of a future driven by AI and robots:
“If you have ubiquitous AI that is essentially free or close to it and ubiquitous robotics, then you will have an expansion in the global economy that is truly beyond all precedent.”
It may sound like science fiction, but to Musk, it’s imminent. Abundance will come from automating everything, opening the door to entirely new business models—or rethinking everything.
6. Capital has made its choice: AI-native startups dominate
Jensen Huang, CEO of NVIDIA, was straightforward:
“2025 was one of the largest years in VC funding ever. Most of it went to AI-native companies.”
The investment wave is here. Funds are betting on startups with AI at their core, from healthcare to finance. If you’re building in this space, now is the time.
Are you building a startup in this new era?
Europe has a real opportunity to lead the next tech wave.
At Bcombinator, we’re already supporting the founders taking advantage of it. More than just an accelerator, we’re an ecosystem where entrepreneurs—like those at Solfy or Tattoox—are building global companies with AI.
It’s time to build from here. The moment is now.
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