Successful Technology Clusters in the 21st Century Unleashing Innovation across Startups, Corporates, and Governments

Dr. Christian Hugo Hoffmann is the Managing Director & Founder of Hoffmann Economics, an investment and investment advisory boutique focusing on Venture Capital. He holds a PhD in management from the University of St. Gallen (Switzerland), used to work as Assistant Professor of Finance at the University of Liechtenstein, and submitted a second PhD thesis on the philosophy of AI to the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT, Germany). His thesis deals with exploring the I in AI and was published with De Gruyter in 2022. Apart from being passionate about AI in academia, Christian is a tech entrepreneur by heart with three software startups in Germany, Switzerland, and Malawi under his belt. Moreover, Christian served as Deputy Director of and Head of AI at the Swiss Fintech Innovation Lab in Zurich, as Director of Startup Grind Geneva, and continues to fulfill his role as startup investor, coach, and mentor in various programs (MassChallenge, Vroom, Kickstart Accelerator) and tech startups. ORCID: 0000-0002-9822-5034

Dr. Joachim Jan Thraen is a Senior Advisor on Strategy and Geopolitics, advising senior leaders on geopolitical, regulatory, and strategic developments shaping global markets and corporate decision-making. His professional experience includes leadership roles in strategy and policy at Merck & Co., Johnson & Johnson, and UBS, as well as earlier experience as a consultant at Bain & Company. He is also a lecturer in Geopolitics, China, and global strategy at the University of St. Gallen in Switzerland, Oxford Saïd Business School, and other international institutions. A recognized China expert who lived in Shanghai for two years, he is the author of Mastering Innovation in China (Springer, 2015) and co-editor of Successful Technology Clusters in the 21st Century (De Gruyter, 2026). Based in Switzerland, Dr. Thraen holds a BSc in Economics and Economic History from the London School of Economics, an MA in International Affairs from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy in Boston, and a PhD in Innovation Management from the University of St. Gallen.