At the World Economic Forum in Davos, conversations about global challenges often focus on speed, scale, and disruption. This year, West Health helped elevate a more fundamental — and deeply human — question: How do we ensure people can live better as they live longer?
That question shaped West Health’s presence at Davos and its leadership in launching V-LAB, a new social laboratory created in partnership with Gallup and Gates Ventures. Introduced at the World Economic Forum, V-LAB was designed as a space for action — one that brings together diverse perspectives to close the growing gap between technological potential and human vitality.
A Platform for Collaboration and Action
V-LAB was intentionally designed as a different kind of convening. It brought together leaders across health, artificial intelligence, sport, business, and faith to explore how innovation, collaboration, and values can work together to improve lives across the lifespan.
Across the week, conversations examined how vitality, velocity, victory, and virtue intersect to shape leadership, resilience, and impact in a rapidly changing world. By convening voices from multiple sectors in a shared, purpose-built environment, West Health helped create space for meaningful exchange, new relationships, and forward momentum — reinforcing its role as a trusted convener and catalyst for progress.
Leading With Purpose
West Health CEO Shelley Lyford played a central role throughout the week, helping guide conversations that challenged traditional narratives around aging. Early programming opened with a powerful dialogue with leaders from the Vatican, grounding the week in discussions of moral leadership and human dignity.
Shelley, alongside West Health President Tim Lash and Chief Strategy Officer Jon Zifferblatt, joined partners to emphasize a core belief echoed across V-LAB: longevity alone is not enough — vitality must be the goal. As demographic change accelerates globally, they underscored the need to evolve systems of health, work, and care to support well-being, participation, and purpose at every stage of life.
Shelley also hosted a focused discussion with leaders from Aon and eMed, examining how GLP-1–based therapies may influence women’s health, workforce participation, and economic inclusion — highlighting how advances in health can shape opportunity and equity beyond clinical settings.
Advancing the Conversation on Brain Health
V-LAB convened timely discussions on the brain economy, bringing together leaders from Rice University, The Kennedy Forum, McKinsey Health Institute, Blue Zones, and the Davos Alzheimer’s Collaborative to explore how discovery, diagnostics, and care delivery can better connect to support brain health at scale.
The week also featured a standout conversation between Bill Gates and Bernd Montag, CEO of Siemens Healthineers, focused on innovation and the future of health — reinforcing the importance of aligning technological progress with access, trust, and human needs.
Building What Comes Next
As Shelley Lyford shared in her opening remarks:
“The mission of V-LAB is to be a living laboratory for the next era of human vitality — where insight turns into action and aging is reframed as an opportunity to be seized.”
West Health’s time at Davos underscored a clear truth: the future of vitality will not happen by accident. It will be shaped through collaboration, leadership, and a shared commitment to ensuring that innovation in health improves lives for all.
West Health is grateful to the partners and participants who brought urgency, expertise, and purpose to V-LAB — and who helped demonstrate the power of bringing great minds together to build a healthier, more vital future.
