Name: Mastercard CEO Says AI Is Fueling a Cyber Arms Race With Hackers
Uploaded: 2026-01-19T20:16:00Z
Duration: 6 min 40 s
Description: Mastercard CEO Michael Miebach speaks with the WSJ Leadership Institute’s Alan Murray at the World Economic Forum in Davos about how AI is intensifying a cyber arms race—empowering both hackers and defenders—and what he sees ahead for the global economy in 2026.

https://www.barrons.com/client

Topics

Memberships

Tools

Customer Service

Network

Newsstand

For Business

For Education

For Advertisers

Account

About Barron's

bolded

unBolded

"We're trying to build an infrastructure at a pace the world has never seen before," Said Mike Intrator, CEO of CoreWeave. This interview was recorded on Jan. 21, 2026, at the World Economic Forum meeting in Davos, Switzerland.

https://m.wsj.net/video/20260130/9fefeb96-21f1-4462-b112-3aaca3722949/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

CoreWeave CEO on Whether the AI Boom Is a Circular Economy

"The promise of AI is starting to get traction," said Mike Intrator, CEO of CoreWeave. This interview was recorded on Jan. 21, 2026, at the World Economic Forum meeting in Davos, Switzerland.

https://m.wsj.net/video/20260130/d1a78d1d-5153-453e-b4f6-6071639a1866/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

CoreWeave CEO on the Future of the 'AI Economy'

"Nvidia has been an absolutely incredible partner for CoreWeave," said Mike Intrator, CEO of CoreWeave. This interview was recorded on Jan. 21, 2026, at the World Economic Forum meeting in Davos, Switzerland.

https://m.wsj.net/video/20260130/d8bc483e-3a75-466a-8e14-6c1712b12f14/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

CoreWeave CEO on the Company's Relationship With Nvidia

Mike Intrator, CEO of CoreWeave, discussed the company's investments in self-built data centers, as well as third-party infrastructure. This interview was recorded on Jan. 21, 2026, at the World Economic Forum meeting in Davos, Switzerland.

https://m.wsj.net/video/20260130/3116ef6f-8fc2-43d8-a8e5-1c7b2aa839a4/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

CoreWeave CEO on the Company's Data Centers

Mike Intrator, CEO of CoreWeave, explained why the company's relationship with Nvidia is "symbiotic but not equal," the future of the AI economy, and more as part of a conversation with Barron's editor at large Andy Serwer. This interview was recorded on Jan. 21, 2026, at the World Economic Forum meeting in Davos, Switzerland.

https://m.wsj.net/video/20260129/92afbff0-1175-4030-a383-f6a94b7dd910/2/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

CoreWeave CEO on Nvidia, AI, and Building the Cloud

Joseph Dominguez, President and CEO of Constellation, discussed global aspects of the energy business. This interview was recorded on Jan. 20, 2026, at the World Economic Forum meeting in Davos, Switzerland.

https://m.wsj.net/video/20260122/dbf8069d-2eb7-4993-95e2-df86725f078f/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

Constellation CEO on Transmitting Energy Globally

Joseph Dominguez, President and CEO of Constellation, discussed the future of the electric vehicle industry. This interview was recorded on Jan. 20, 2026, at the World Economic Forum meeting in Davos, Switzerland.

https://m.wsj.net/video/20260122/669e068f-d199-4ee5-9376-7eb2e8a83461/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

Constellation CEO Sees Steady Growth for EV Demand

Joseph Dominguez, President and CEO of Constellation, discussed President Donald Trump's call for an emergency power auction. This interview was recorded on Jan. 20, 2026, at the World Economic Forum meeting in Davos, Switzerland.

https://m.wsj.net/video/20260122/52e7ac58-b132-4bcb-b752-a15c6e189bb5/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

Constellation CEO on Trump's Plan to Cut Mid-Atlantic Electrical Bills

This level of energy demand has not been seen "in a long period of time," said Joseph Dominguez, President and CEO of Constellation. This interview was recorded on Jan. 20, 2026, at the World Economic Forum meeting in Davos, Switzerland.

https://m.wsj.net/video/20260122/082972b7-68f3-4df5-978c-7da79ff3fd50/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

Constellation CEO on What Hyperscalers Mean For the Energy System

At Barron's

"Your 9-5...is just not going to do it," Nick Magguilli, personal finance expert, said on Barron's Streetwise podcast.

https://m.wsj.net/video/20251216/e6897805-d131-4cc4-9c59-ca03b0c0b958/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

How to Scale Your Net Worth

TJ Thornton, Head of Global Research Product Marketing at BofA Securities, talks to Jack Hough about his favorite stocks outside of AI.

https://m.wsj.net/video/20251210/f9c1a95c-5a0e-4349-9fe4-73b3ac53bfb8/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

BofA’s Favorite Non-AI Stocks

Jack Hough talks to TJ Thornton, Head of Global Research Product Marketing at BofA Securities about diversifying stocks to hedge AI risks.

https://m.wsj.net/video/20251210/8e164ff7-1500-4c2f-8713-e891c640a0f4/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

Evaluating Investing Opportunities Beyond AI

Steve Quirk, chief brokerage officer at Robinhood, breaks down the value of tokenizing stocks in different markets.

https://m.wsj.net/video/20251126/f86d65ea-bd8b-4777-b6b0-80f7bb12027e/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

Unpacking Tokenization for Everyday Investors

Jack Hough talks to Steve Quirk, chief brokerage officer at Robinhood, about trends in retail investing.

https://m.wsj.net/video/20251126/a9cbdcc6-f060-4fc9-a15e-396924e25946/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

How Robinhood Reshaped the Trading Landscape for an Entire Generation

Streetwise host Jack Hough sat down with strategist Scott Wren to discuss how the AI-fueled market run stacks up against the dot-com boom.

https://m.wsj.net/video/20251111/bd2e1a5b-1a6e-4543-8133-dcc63f69b5dc/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

AI vs. The Dot Com Bubble

Bank of America’s Haim Israel shares what’s next for Nuclear Energy development.

https://m.wsj.net/video/20250930/ab4fc336-af44-4af2-8e40-9ae6f04a445e/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

The Outlook For Nuclear

Jack talks to Lyft CEO David Risher about growth potential in the company.

https://m.wsj.net/video/20250929/ae62b70e-912b-4ce7-ae63-1b2652628bae/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

Lyft's Ride to Profit

The stock market is expensive. What does that mean for your portfolio? Jack sits down with Franklin Templeton’s Matt Quinlan to talk dividend investing, and whether it’s a good move in a pricey market.

https://m.wsj.net/video/20250911/9c85e132-d710-4458-9467-aa69d4f25ae0/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

Dividends and Capital Appreciation

Barron's Streetwise

Anthea Tjuanakis Cox, Morgan Stanley’s head of financial planning, discusses key trends that advisors should consider when offering clients financial advice.

https://m.wsj.net/video/20260127/2debf803-64bf-4584-81dc-c92da72b7ed3/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

Five Trends ‘Coalescing’ in Wealth Management

Interviews with top wealth management professionals about topics including compensation, hiring, marketing, next-gen, and more.

Advisors who can successfully serve a family with starkly different priorities represents the "alpha" that deepens the value of financial advice, says Anthea Tjuanakis Cox, Morgan Stanley’s head of financial planning.

https://m.wsj.net/video/20260127/2fd71263-ad5a-47f3-b7b8-9f784fd5f557/3/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

Reconciling Divergent Values in Multigenerational Planning

For younger clients, advisors should discuss immediate life goals, not just distant  milestones, says Anthea Tjuanakis Cox, Morgan Stanley’s head of financial planning. “‘Make sure that you bring in the things that are actually relevant now.”

https://m.wsj.net/video/20260127/a12a45bb-eb55-40ec-bdaa-03cf9e74c32c/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

Generational Differences and Advising Digitally Native Clients

Anthea Tjuanakis Cox, Morgan Stanley’s head of financial planning, says that when providing financial planning, advisors should offer multiple scenarios to reduce client anxiety and ensure that all parties involved feel seen.

https://m.wsj.net/video/20260127/ffcd128f-79e9-4cdc-b902-43c7667db536/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

Advisors Should Share ‘Multiple Versions of Reality’ With Clients

“When you are with a prospect, a client, or a center of influence—anyone who has the ability to connect you—use the word introduction or connection,” says Bill Cates, founder of Referral Coach International.

https://m.wsj.net/video/20260113/61e36ad7-2500-42fb-abff-a52ca20310e8/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

Why Advisors Should Embrace the Word ‘Introduction’

Bill Cates, founder of Referral Coach International, explains how advisors can learn more about their clients and build trust in the process.

https://m.wsj.net/video/20260113/ce45e37f-bb13-4b0c-896f-c7068a9e3fa0/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

‘Three Magic Words’ That Advisors Should Say to Clients

“True relevance is all about empathy and really knowing your market and really knowing the people you are trying to reach,” says Bill Cates, founder of Referral Coach International. “That builds trust.”

https://m.wsj.net/video/20260113/85e0ebeb-a785-4705-b6af-5525daba48fd/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

Relevance, Empathy, and Trust

Bill Cates, founder of Referral Coach International, describes how financial advisors can distinguish themselves from competitors.

https://m.wsj.net/video/20260113/bcc0f384-0f4a-4f62-bce9-6526a43e8948/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

What’s Your Differentiator?

Although the northeast is still a “very strong market,” advisors and wealthy clients have been moving to the Southeast since Covid, says Jeff Gonyo, head of Wealth Management at Steward Partners.

https://m.wsj.net/video/20251229/3365335d-5a6e-435b-8ac2-df76d0ebcb93/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

Advisors and Wealth Are Shifting to the Southeast

Barron's Advisor The Way Forward

Emily Green, head of wealth management at Ellevest, discusses the company’s intensive approach to training advisors on alternative investments.

https://m.wsj.net/video/20260122/3a98e5d9-ae20-4526-ae91-8a3df74c93a0/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

How Ellevest Works With Advisors and Alternative Investments

Clients are concerned with the timing of distributions and the after-tax return of a fund and focus more on the value they receive than a fund’s fees, says Emily Green, head of wealth management at Ellevest.

https://m.wsj.net/video/20260122/eef5dc96-9ac0-4f4b-9944-c36951d47e40/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

The Things That Clients Care Most About

Emily Green, head of wealth management at Ellevest, says advisors should “show up” where women are, be sensitive about how they are showing up, and focus on helping clients achieve their goals.

https://m.wsj.net/video/20260122/33e77af3-1032-4891-9284-c455d900f9d2/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

Three Effective Ways for Advisors to Reach More Women

Ellevest’s head of wealth management discusses how the firm is addressing the gender wealth gap and how its advisors are helping female clients with all aspects of financial planning.

https://m.wsj.net/video/20260122/7bcfe251-9b72-47e7-b6d2-46b70f68b77c/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

Emily Green: Women, Investing, and the Great Wealth Transfer

The Ameriprise Financial Services private wealth advisor discusses the centrality of the advisor-client relationship, the shift to holistic planning, and reasons why the financial planning process should be simplified.

https://m.wsj.net/video/20251216/0763524d-fc27-4495-a779-bbb533e16abc/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

Doug Messina: The Importance of Strong Client Relationships

In terms of business continuity, “We don't leave until the client says, ‘yeah, I'm comfortable with so and so now and I know how to reach you if I need you,’” says Doug Messina, private wealth advisor with Ameriprise Financial Services.

https://m.wsj.net/video/20251216/32c51a2b-7ac0-4867-a758-7dd04ed104a1/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

Transitioning Clients to a New Financial Advisor

“If you’re only hyper-focused on what’s happening in the market, it’s not going to do a whole heck of a lot,” says Doug Messina, private wealth advisor with Ameriprise Financial Services.

https://m.wsj.net/video/20251216/d08e7cf8-15b2-4d7b-b911-be1fa6058a65/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

‘You Have to Be Able to Connect With People’

Be honest, be yourself, and “put yourself in the client’s position,” says Doug Messina, private wealth advisor with Ameriprise Financial Services.

https://m.wsj.net/video/20251216/e3bd3c54-c3c9-4856-b27b-52e1f20f96b3/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

3 Pieces of Advice for Younger Advisors

Advisors need to “invest in the younger folks,” says Merrill Lynch private wealth advisor Tony Carpentieri, who asserts that developing “energetic, new, up and coming, and emerging players is the most important part” of succession planning.

https://m.wsj.net/video/20251204/b5efe5ba-edf5-4dc7-9040-2739b43dd9c4/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

The ‘Most Important’ Part of Succession Planning Today

Barron's Advisor Next Generation

Will Nvidia and other technology companies keep powering the stock market in 2026? We'll speak with two veteran money managers about their views on tech and their favorite stocks for the coming year.

https://m.wsj.net/video/20251212/5683d7a0-ed1f-4e3c-b913-bb3367ea3abd/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

Finding Bargains in a Pricey Market

Explore what could go right for investors, and what could go wrong, in a year that will see the AI trade evolve, the Fed's leadership change, and global competition for resources increase in this 2026 Outlook.

https://m.wsj.net/video/20251212/573f5954-c4ab-43e9-804d-f1ea93fbb70c/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

Meeting the Challenge

Stocks are expensive, risks abound, and AI is about to change the world. Other than that, building a calamity-proof retirement portfolio should be a cinch. Tune in as two veteran money managers size up the markets and share their investment ideas.

https://m.wsj.net/video/20250211/17a5e7d6-7c36-44b0-a35e-bf5ac3a24194/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

Saving for a Sunny Day

Research shows that people greatly underestimate the healthcare costs they’ll face in retirement. Learn from experts how to estimate those costs, prepare for potential long-term care needs, and manage healthcare expenses in retirement.

https://m.wsj.net/video/20250211/e7c022d9-badf-4e95-8e7c-0b6fce9f7823/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

Are You Fiscally Fit?

Surging power demand, new energy sources, and growing competition have spurred the utility industry to become more innovative than ever before. Our panelists will unpack the changes afoot and explore what lies ahead for companies, customers, and investors.

https://m.wsj.net/video/20240917/001ea098-1fcc-4da5-9f0e-a3b149bbb2fb/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

Not Your Father's Utility

Modernizing America's grid will take creativity and money -- lots of money. Learn how players across the power sector can achieve their electrification goals and serve new customers without breaking the bank for consumers.

https://m.wsj.net/video/20240917/bd6bd43a-bb07-4b7f-9d1c-6ae04220bea9/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

Ready for a Revamp?

The launch this year of Bitcoin ETFs has made it easier for investors to buy and trade the cryptocurrency. But is that a wise move, and if so, how much crypto should you own?

https://m.wsj.net/video/20240529/cbb77f15-ef70-445d-85ae-5f02c24ea1ef/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

Investing in Cryptocurrencies

Bitcoin and other digital currencies reside on software networks that aim to revolutionize everything from finance to art. Barron's talks to industry experts about the outlook for blockchain technology and its potential uses.

https://m.wsj.net/video/20240529/8f60a5ea-6de4-4c3c-b7c2-12b11aaa99f3/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

Is Crypto Really a Game-Changer?

Persistent inflation means retirement savings don't go as far as they once did. We discuss the best inflation hedges, and how retirees can benefit from higher-for-longer interest rates.

https://m.wsj.net/video/20240429/69577ad6-cbaf-4d34-96f1-c42136e26aa2/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

Protecting Your Nest Egg from Rising Prices

Barron's Roundtable

Whether you're leading a transition, building a scalable team, or just trying to stay ahead of the curve, this episode will give you practical insights to lead smarter and grow stronger.

https://m.wsj.net/video/20251010/fd26d60b-d1e6-409b-b51b-101da4aaa368/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

Next-Gen Leadership Meets Smart Innovation

Electric vehicles sales are growing but not at the pace some expected. Some would-be buyers worry about the range of EV charging, and others are swayed by politics. But innovators from Detroit to Silicon Valley still envision a dramatic shift in how we get around. What’s going on and what’s next?

https://m.wsj.net/video/20240603/5784fa60-791c-47ad-9740-42e4553de5c4/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

Forces Shaping EV Adoption and the Future of Driving

Success in improving the power grid to accommodate the electricity demands of the future will be a boon for companies doing the work and utilities that succeed. Explore the investing risks and opportunities.

https://m.wsj.net/video/20240522/2b825c69-2687-4d88-923b-0c8f523a2f67/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

How to Invest in Initiatives to Bolster the Power Grid

Joanna Rotenberg, Fidelity's president of personal investing, discusses ways to make investing more accessible and how to bolster your own financial security.

https://m.wsj.net/video/20231025/8ad733df-ac90-41fd-9655-7761b3e0532c/2/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

Mind the Gap: Demystifying Investing

Reshma Kapadia sits down with Cozy Wittman of College Inside Track to discuss how to tackle all things college, from what admission officers are seeking today, to navigating the different ways to funding higher education and evaluating the ROIs.

https://m.wsj.net/video/20230515/b7229011-05cc-42ec-9c16-1d7752ec668d/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

Decoding the College Search and Financing Puzzle

Nicole Webb, financial advisor and SVP at Wealth Enhancement Group, shares ways to navigate the real estate market this spring whether you are a first-time buyer, a retiree downsizing or someone who is relocating or looking for a second home.

https://m.wsj.net/video/20230424/93eb00e1-caf0-4e83-9fc7-b502a57dc546/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

Pro Tips on Buying and Selling a Home

Reggie Fils-Aimé, former president and COO of Nintendo of America, joins Barron's deputy editor Alex Eule to discuss his unlikely rise to the top, and the risks he took once there to beat the odds and achieve success.

https://m.wsj.net/video/20220630/61e2296d-ab1a-4216-ae65-24676447c616/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

How Nintendo's Former President Disrupted the Gaming Industry

2050 Wealth Planners co-CEO Lazetta Rainey Braxton, Sequoia Financial Planners vice president Elizabeth Scheiderer, and MoneyZen founder Manisha Thakor offer tips on how to prepare for recession, inflation, caregiving needs.

https://m.wsj.net/video/20220617/a71025ce-518b-49b9-b098-21417863f8ce/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

Financial Advice for the Inflation-Weary

Families and advisors have a lot to navigate when it comes to generational wealth transfer. Add sustainable investing to the list. Examine strategies to help close the generational divide. From the Dow Jones Energy & Sustainability event series.

https://m.wsj.net/video/20230210/85cbf3f9-b5ab-4bfa-93c6-f8e8a247d386/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

Sustainable Investing and the Wealth Transfer

Barron's Events

Level Up

Barron's Explains

Back to Business

Great Investors

MarketWatch

Video Center - Barron's home

Mastercard CEO Michael Miebach speaks with the WSJ Leadership Institute’s Alan Murray at the World Economic Forum in Davos about how AI is intensifying a cyber arms race—empowering both hackers and defenders—and what he sees ahead for the global economy in 2026. Photo: Michael Claudio/WSJ

https://m.wsj.net/video/20260119/ee8565fa-7cc7-4520-bd95-ac032eec3c88/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

Mastercard CEO Michael Miebach speaks with the WSJ Leadership Institute’s Alan Murray at the World Economic Forum in Davos about how AI is intensifying a cyber arms race—empowering both hackers and defenders—and what he sees ahead for the global economy in 2026.

Mastercard CEO Says AI Is Fueling a Cyber Arms Race With Hackers

I am here with Michael Miebach, the CEO of MasterCard, who has a beautiful pavilion right in the center of Davos this year. Nice location.

Yes. Exactly right on a promenade. Welcome to the home of MasterCard here at the WEF.

Great to be here. What's the message you're trying to get across at WEF this year?

So when you think about where we are in the world, you see, yeah, a lot of countries focus on self-sufficiency, a little bit of fragmentation, but you know, when you look across with a lot of the rising technologies, we're still opening up new divides. So part of the message is let's leverage that technology and make sure we build a digital economy that works for everybody. AI being a big part of it, but more importantly, so even cybersecurity being a real part of it 'cause these days, you know, with some of the political fragmentation, the hackers, the frauds, as the scams are taking advantage of that and that is not discussed enough, and we will make sure that during this week, this is on the table.

Yeah. I wanna come back to AI and cybersecurity, but I'd like to start where you started. Borge Brende, who is the president of the World Economic Forum said that the geopolitical situation this year is the most complex it's been since 1945.

Right.

You've got conflicts in all parts of the world, rising nationalism. How do you run a global company in a world that's de-globalized?

So MasterCard is a truly global company. We're literally everywhere other than sanctioned territories. So, you know, for us to run a global company effectively, really need to understand the local needs. It's not like off the shelf one size fits all. So financial services, the digital economy works in a very different way in Africa. Everything's mobile based. If you look into China, it's the big apps, it's the super apps, it's in Europe, you know, you have a lot of account to account kind of technology. So it's all very different. For us, it's really about engaging with governments in every country with the private sector understanding what are you trying to do, what is your specific problem? Financial inclusion is one in emerging markets, for example. So what we have done-

That's a massive challenge.

It is a massive challenge, but technology comes to the aid. We've rearchitected our network about five years ago. Basically, we can run everything anywhere today so that we can be the operating system of the global digital economy. Yeah, it feels like globality is a little bit kind of like waning, but we don't see it like that because commerce value exchange happens everywhere. It just happens in different nuances and those are the kind of choices that we provide.

So it's still happening, but it's happening in a different way and it's happening more locally.

Right, I think that's true. That's a fair statement. But coming back to cybersecurity, there are certain things that, you know, they are just, you know, attackers don't care about borders.

Yeah.

So we have to make sure that we don't create digital islands, which become more vulnerable. So that is the one thing that I can see where we need to put more focus in again this week. To talk cybersecurity is a really important opportunity.

And the threats are obviously on the rise. The tools that the hackers have are getting more sophisticated.

Right, yeah.

How do you keep up with that?

Well, it's an arms race. You said it. You know, AI is enabling the good guys and it's enabling the bad guys. So for us, as a company, massive investments into cybersecurity, $11 billion since 2018 that we put into this. Generative AI as of late, the last two, three years, is helping us to ensure that we detect threat signals that are out there somewhere in our digital world. Bring that closer to our customers, banks, and large merchants to ensure that they can react ahead of time. So we're arming up so the fraudsters-

Are we winning the arms race? Are we-

So here's the thing is if we were to, if I were to sit here and say, "Well, you know, MasterCard is solving all of this," of course, that's not happening. You need government at the table. You need clear and predictive regulation. You do need other private sector players coming together. You need the enforcement of law enforcement capabilities, all of this together. And I think here we have a significant opportunity to share threats much quicker. Half playbooks that are very specific and they cut across industries and verticals. And yet again, this will be on the table here in Davos. But going back to the geopolitical tensions-

Right.

How much of the cyber threat is driven by state actors, by countries as opposed to-

Yeah. So, you know, the threat landscape, you see new actors rising. So state actors, there's certainly part of that. You see criminal consortiums. It's a wide range. The tools of defense are largely the same. So you gotta have the full data, you gotta have the playbooks, you gotta part, work together and make sure you share the threat intelligence so you can react quickly.

So it doesn't matter from your perspective, whether it's a state sponsored actor or an independent actor,

It does matter. But it matters more to countries and political leaders. For us, it's really, do we have the tools to deal with all of these threats?

Yes.

And that's what we're investing in.

The other thing about MasterCard as a global company is you have data from everywhere. You know what's going on better than most of us. So what does the economy look like from your data right now?

You know, we just closed 2025, it feels in the distant past somehow. But if I just took a look back and then look forward into 2026, what we're seeing is an economy that despite everything that's going on, has adjusted remarkably well.

Yeah.

You see resilience here. So why is that? You know, if you take a look back and see what is going on as the big trends through the backend of 2025 is continuous investment in technology. In particular, AI, it keeps the global economy dynamic. There's a lot of spend on it. And the second thing is really the health of the consumer and the health of the household balance sheets. And that is globally true. That happens in Europe, it happened in the United States. So we see a fairly healthy consumer. We see continuous investment and all of that and able the digital economy to the overall economy, which is largely the digital economy today to adjust. So as we look into 2026, what we're seeing is, you know, an overall GDP growth, MasterCard's economic Institute estimated at 3.1%, it was 3.2 last year. So positive, fundamentally positive on the economic, continued economic expansion.

Yeah. Optimistic message for the beginning of the year. Michael Miebach, thank you very much. I hope you have a great week in Davos.

Thanks, Alan.

Join Alan Murray, President of the WSJ Leadership Institute, at the World Economic Forum for insights executives need to lead through 2026. He speaks with the biggest names and decision-makers shaping the business world—and all of our lives.