2025 Apex Global Family Office Symposium - Key Takeaways
August 28 2025
The 2025 Apex Family Office Symposium brought together 200 family offices from 17 countries, along with more than 60 experts across various industries and sectors. The event featured discussions on a range of current topics, including markets, geopolitics, artificial intelligence, sports team ownership, and private markets, among others. We hope you find these insights and takeaways from the day valuable.
In the symposium’s opening keynote, David Solomon, Goldman Sachs’ chairman and CEO, struck an optimistic tone about the future. Despite acknowledging the increased short-term uncertainty caused by policy changes and geopolitical tensions, he emphasized that the fundamental economic structure of the world remains largely unchanged. "We live in a moment, but I think very often, and especially when you invest, you have to step out and get out of the moment."
Solomon argued that while there are significant changes taking place in the world, the major drivers of global growth, such as technological advancements and productivity improvements, remain intact and are unlikely to be disrupted in the short term. He encouraged a long-term perspective, suggesting that while there will be speed bumps, the structural trends point toward continued growth and opportunities. "We're incredibly nimble, we're incredibly resilient, and we have an incredible ability as a society, as a system, to kind of self-correct and evolve.“
We're incredibly nimble, we're incredibly resilient, and we have an incredible ability as a society, as a system, to kind of self-correct and evolve.-David Solomon
Sharmin Mossavar-Rahmani, Goldman Sachs Wealth Management’s chief investment officer, also emphasized that despite heightened US economic policy uncertainty, the Investment Strategy Group’s long-held investment themes—US Preeminence and Stay Invested—remain intact.
US Preeminence is built on enduring economic, financial, and geographical advantages, including the US being the world’s largest economy and the wealthiest large nation with a highly productive workforce. These factors are structural and are unlikely to be altered by any one administration, Mossavar-Rahmani explained.
Understanding the dynamics at play driving markets
This year, geopolitics have been top-of-mind for investors as the landscape continues to evolve. Given the complex state of global relations, Jared Cohen, co-head of the Goldman Sachs Global Institute, discussed his views on three primary undercurrents which have been instrumental in shaping the geopolitical environment.
US-China relations
Cohen described the interdependence and competition between the US and China as a new paradigm with the potential for substantial ramifications. "It is unprecedented in history for America's third-largest trading partner to also be perceived as its most formidable adversary," he stated.
Cohen further explained that the shared economic interests of the US and China are used to temper geopolitical tensions between the two. However, post-COVID, domestic circumstances in both countries have started to drive short-term geopolitical thinking, often with medium- and long-term economic consequences. This shift has significant implications, noted Cohen, particularly in the context of trade and tariffs, where economic logic is increasingly overshadowed by political motives.
Resistance to sanctions
On the topic of the war in Ukraine, Cohen said he believed the conflict is likely to persist, precipitating a shift in the nature of the war, saying, "Russia's going to win by not losing and Ukraine is going to lose by not being able to win, defined by a set of expectations and goals that are impossible to meet in the current stalemate."
Additionally, the conflict has fostered a network of countries that are becoming more resistant to sanctions. This network, including China, Iran, and North Korea, represents a new challenge for the West, according to Cohen, as these countries increasingly coordinated to protect their economic interests.
Shifts in the Middle East
Finally, he noted that the Middle East is shifting toward economic statecraft and investment, as demonstrated during President Trump’s visit to Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the UAE in May. The shift in focus has made political goals like normalization between Israel and Saudi Arabia become less urgent. For Saudi Arabia, the focus is on -levelling up human capital and avoiding brain drain, Cohen explained. "Saudi has 33 million people. They want to up-level that human capital. They know it's not going to happen naturally over a generation, which is why they're looking to bring in so much investment."
Navigating market cycles while managing risk
Steve Cohen, chairman and CEO of Point72 Asset Management and owner of the New York Mets, discussed a variety of topics in a keynote address, including the importance of risk management and being highly adaptable. "Markets change. Most of the people I either hired or competed against in the '90s, are not in business today because they didn't adapt.” He shared the view that the hedge fund industry must adapt to and innovate in changing market conditions.
Robust risk management practices—especially diversification—are a big part of adapting and maintaining stability and resilience in volatile market conditions, said Cohen. "We're very well diversified. We're diversified sector-wise, geographically wise, strategy-wise," he explained.
Cohen reflected on how the markets and his firm have evolved since he founded it in 1992, noting a shift from higher-risk strategies to more conservative ones as another way to weather volatility. "We're much more conservative now. We run long/short very tight, and the business is much more scalable because of that," Cohen said.
Dawn Fitzpatrick, CEO and CIO of Soros Management, also highlighted the importance of agility, but with a focus on leaning into volatility. She emphasized the importance of high-conviction investments during market dislocations, particularly for family offices that do not face the same constraints as other investors. "As long as you define the risk you're taking and are really clear about what a mark to market drawdown can look like, you should be able to lean into those dislocations in ways that hedge funds actually are not designed to," she said.
Fitzpatrick discussed potential impacts and opportunities driven by an evolving regulatory landscape. Fitzpatrick shared that she is watching for tax changes proposed for US endowments and foundations, which could prompt an increased supply of private assets on the secondary market.
Built to last: Creating a legacy
Whether for an organization or an individual, building a lasting legacy requires a strong vision for the future, dedication, and a thorough understanding of your brand and audience.
In order to build a strong brand, according to Jens Grede, co-founder and CEO of SKIMS, you need to be a genuine fan and consumer of what you create to bring that vision to life. “Rather than trying to figure out what people want, we create for ourselves. We try to make ourselves excited — it’s ‘Wouldn’t that be cool.’”
Understanding and fully embodying your mission can help you stay the course through uncertainty. Despite market fluctuations, including pressure from tariffs, Grede shared he keeps his focus for SKIMS on the future. “We are really working proactively at making the right decisions not for the short term, but the right decisions for where we want to go long term.” This included having a brick-and-mortar retail presence, even when some competitors focused solely on e-commerce. Ultimately, he said, young people can’t afford to have significant sums tied up on credit cards each month as they buy online, try on, and then return. Physical shopping—which made up 80% of retail—was, by contrast, “instantly gratifying. It's entertainment.”
We are really working proactively at making the right decisions not for the short term, but the right decisions for where we want to go long term.-Jens Grede
Timing is also key, both for business ventures and anticipating your audience. Greg Maffei, former president and CEO of Liberty Media, stressed the significance of leveraging data and adapting to changing environments to make informed decisions and enhance customer experiences. After Liberty Media’s purchase, Formula 1 became a global entertainment phenomenon, in part because of responsiveness to customer needs. "We went from a world where we literally had no social media to where we had 110 million followers. So, Lewis Hamilton went from a world where he had zero social media followers to where he's three times Tom Brady."
Excitement and questions around artificial intelligence
While the potential impact of artificial intelligence (AI) on economies and society is becoming evident, many speakers acknowledged that questions remain about the full extent of its influence. "It's everyone's favorite question these days, AI. It's going to change everything in ways that none of us truly understand," said Marc Stad, founder and managing partner of Dragoneer Investment Group.
It’s everyone’s favorite question these days, AI. It’s going to change everything in ways that none of us truly understand.-Marc Stad
Stad and several other speakers emphasized the potential for AI to enhance existing businesses, significantly improving efficiency and profitability, which opens the door for attractive investment opportunities. "There's a lot of private [AI] companies that are being developed today. I mean, it's amazing you hear about these companies that are ramping up revenues incredibly quickly. And so clearly these companies are attacking problems and creating solutions," said Steve Cohen. “This is a technology cycle that’s probably going to be long-lasting and going to have a massive effect on how we live our lives.”
Despite the rapid rate of development, Stad cautioned against rushing into investments and highlighted the importance of being patient and selective. He drew a parallel to the early days of the Internet, where many investors made poor choices, leading to the dot-com bubble.
Josh Wolfe, co-founder of Lux Capital, also shared excitement and questions regarding the next wave of AI. He was particularly interested in how AI could be applied to robotics and biology—areas with a significant gap in data—as well as how it could revolutionize sensory experiences and other traditionally challenging areas. He highlighted the scarcity of training data in these domains, questioning "Where are you going to train your next robot from? Where's the dataset for that?"
Wolfe also raised questions about the hype around large language models (LLMs) and if their applications in text, voice, and image generation are fading. “Many of these models on the open-source side are nearly as performative as the closed models.” Wolfe explained that performance and increased adoption makes open-source models a threat to industry incumbents.
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