The spring edition of the SHIFTS 2026 conference, held on 28 April at the Clarion Hotel in Prague, will again offer debates on changes in business, medicine and geopolitics. Speakers will include neuroscientist Andrew Huberman, entrepreneur Daniel Křetínský and former NATO commander in Afghanistan John W. Nicholson Jr.
From the brain to macroeconomics
The programme of this year’s edition spans a broad range from neuroscience through business to geopolitics. One of the speakers will be neuroscientist Andrew Huberman from Stanford, whose podcast on human performance is followed by tens of millions of people around the world. In Prague he will open a block devoted to the future of medicine.
He will be followed by, for example, Daniel Křetínský, who will publicly present his HX Clinic project for the first time. Alongside him will be other prominent names from Central European business and finance, for example investor Patrik Tkáč, banker Tomáš Spurný and media manager Didier Stoessel. The geopolitical dimension will be added by General John W. Nicholson Jr., former commander of NATO forces in Afghanistan.
Creators on the edge of the debate, but not on the edge of change
One trend that often stays on the sidelines of such debates is the transformation of the media market with the rise of the creator economy.
While in the US creators already function as an independent economic force, Europe lags behind due to linguistic and cultural fragmentation and still relies more on the advertising model. But this is exactly where tension arises between traditional media houses and a growing generation of independent creators who take attention and income directly.
SHIFTS does not directly target this topic, but it may come up at least in hints, for example within the business debates where Didier Stoessel will speak. That is precisely where the world of traditional media naturally intersects with the pressure of the new distribution models that the creator economy brings.
A conference that does not want to be fast
SHIFTS has long been built on a different principle from most similar events. It does not address current headlines or short-term trends, but tries to map deeper structural changes in the economy, politics and technology.
“Most conferences today offer answers. SHIFTS is built on questions that do not yet have easy, short-term solutions,” explains the conference founder Nikita Poljakov.
It is precisely this emphasis on long-term thinking and analytical debate that has gradually turned it into a platform that goes beyond the Czech context and attracts international audiences too.
A place where influence meets
Over its existence, SHIFTS has established itself as an important forum for strategic debate in Central Europe. People from business, finance, politics and the public sector regularly meet here, typically at senior level.
This year the organisers are again targeting exactly this group: decision-makers who think not only about next quarter, but about what will happen over the years ahead. And if it is true that the biggest changes begin with questions, this approach makes sense.
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