Eric Schmidt: The Age of Agents, Superintelligence, and Why Europe Is Falling Behind

Artificial intelligence marks a historic shift in human capability, functioning as a platform that accelerates innovation across math, science, and business. This revolution is defined by "agentic" systems—AI capable of autonomous reasoning and tool use—which are rapidly compressing business cycles and flattening organizational structures. While the United States and China dominate this landscape through massive compute investment and rapid development, Europe faces significant hurdles due to restrictive regulatory frameworks and insufficient venture capital. Beyond economic competition, AI poses profound risks to democratic stability through misinformation and the potential for autonomous systems to escape human control. Navigating this era requires leaders who can manage extreme time compression and make high-stakes decisions, as the technology fundamentally alters how society handles everything from national security to the treatment of human disease.