Meet the 25 Leaders Shaping the Future of American Influence
From artificial intelligence and critical minerals to sports and culture, Meridian's inaugural New Architects of American Influence are strengthening America's partnerships, competitiveness, and global reach.
The people shaping America's future on the world stage are not all diplomats. They are building technologies that define global industries, strengthening supply chains critical to national security, opening new markets for American businesses, and connecting millions through sports and culture.
On October 16, Meridian International Center announced its inaugural New Architects of American Influence at the 15th Annual Meridian Summit, recognizing 25 leaders whose work is changing how the United States competes, collaborates, and builds relationships around the world.
Selected from more than 200 candidates, the honorees were recognized for demonstrated impact, meaningful international connections, and contributions that extend America's global engagement beyond traditional diplomacy.
The inaugural class reflects the many ways American leadership translates into global impact.
Dr. Kiran Musunuru, Physician-Scientist & Professor at the University of Pennseylvania, is proving how precision medicine can move from scientific possibility to lifesaving care by developing a personalized CRISPR treatment for an infant with a rare genetic disease. Megan O'Connor, co-founder and CEO of Nth Cycle, is developing technologies to recover and refine critical minerals, helping reduce American dependence on foreign supply chains. Patrick Mahomes represents the global reach of American sports, connecting international audiences through a shared passion that transcends borders. Adena Friedman, Chair and CEO of Nasdaq, led Nasdaq past $5 billion in annual revenue for the first time in the companies history by helping modernize the market infrastructure that connects American companies and capital to the world. As commander of the 2025 Axiom-4 mission, Dr. Peggy Whitson helped advance commercial human spaceflight and demonstrate the growing role of private enterprise in America’s space leadership.
Their achievements span different industries, but their significance extends beyond commercial success or individual recognition. Decisions about technology, investment, and culture influence how countries work with the United States, where economic opportunities emerge, and how American leadership is perceived abroad.
Turning Global Reach Into Diplomatic Impact
This is the foundation of Meridian's vision of Open Diplomacy: recognizing that American influence is exercised through a broad network of leaders and institutions whose international relationships complement traditional government diplomacy.
The opportunity is not simply to expand America's global presence, but to make that engagement more intentional. A company's investment decisions can strengthen economic partnerships. Scientific collaboration can help shape international standards. Relationships cultivated by governors and mayors can attract foreign investment and create jobs in American communities.
These connections are powerful because they are built through independent institutions, shared interests, and sustained engagement. Yet their diplomatic potential often goes unrecognized.
Meridian's Open Diplomacy Playbook offers practical guidance for leaders to understand that influence and build more durable international partnerships. At the state and local levels, the Subnational Diplomacy Toolkit connects global engagement to tangible economic opportunities for American communities.
The New Architects of American Influence put this vision into practice, highlighting leaders whose work demonstrates what purposeful international engagement can achieve.
Shaping America's Next Chapter
"The inaugural cohort reflects the breadth of American influence today. Its members are advancing critical technologies and scientific research, strengthening energy and mineral supply chains, expanding U.S. businesses and financial markets internationally, and building connections through sports, entertainment, and global media. They are joined by those shaping America’s role through state leadership, infrastructure investment, commercial spaceflight, and international health innovation. Together, they illustrate how U.S. competitiveness and global partnerships are shaped by leaders across sectors, not government alone,” said The Honorable David Bohigian, CEO of Meridian International Center.
As the United States marks its 250th anniversary, the question of how America sustains its influence abroad carries renewed significance. The inaugural New Architects of American Influence demonstrate that the country's competitive advantage extends beyond government, drawing on the innovation, enterprise, and international relationships of leaders across American society.
Their recognition at the 15th Annual Meridian Summit underscores a central priority for the next era of diplomacy: connecting these strengths to advance American leadership and build lasting partnerships around the world.
Meet the 2026 New Architects of American Influence
The inaugural class demonstrates how American leadership translates into tangible global impact—from pioneering medical breakthroughs and strengthening strategic supply chains to building financial infrastructure and international partnerships.
Lisa Atherton, President & CEO, Textron Systems, is advancing America's aerospace and defense technologies that underpin American security and industrial strength.
Brendan Bechtel, Chairman & CEO, Bechtel, is bringing American engineering expertise to the global AI race through major U.S. semiconductor infrastructure projects.
Christopher Bohn, President & CEO, CF Industries, is reinforcing the foundations of American food security by breaking ground on the world’s largest low-carbon ammonia production, making fertilizer more affordable and available.
Ángel Cabrera, Former President, Georgia Institute of Technology; Incoming President and CEO, Aspen Institute, is advancing America’s research capacity by helping Georgia Tech expand research spending and grow its economic impact to $6.3 billion.
Lyor Cohen, Global Head of Music at YouTube, helped expand American influence through culture. By extending YouTube’s reach through major international music partnerships, Cohen helps American artists and culture find audiences across borders.
Megan O'Connor, co-founder and CEO of Nth Cycle, is commercializing technology to recover and refine critical minerals from recycled materials and industrial waste, building domestic processing capacity and reducing America's dependence on foreign supply chains essential to advanced manufacturing, defense, and clean energy.
Governor Spencer Cox of Utah is advancing American influence through state-level diplomacy. His administration secured agreements with Quebec on AI development and regulation, New Zealand on geothermal energy, and Australia's New South Wales on critical minerals—building partnerships that strengthen strategic industries, expand economic opportunities, and deepen ties with international partners.
Jane Fraser, Chair & CEO of Citi, is delivering record revenues across all five core businesses of Citi Group in 2025, and helping reshape one of America’s most globally connected financial institutions.
Adena Friedman, Chair & CEO of Nasdaq, is helping modernize the market infrastructure that connects American companies and capital to the world.
Jack Fusco, Chairman, President & CEO of Cheniere Energy, is expanding America’s role as a leading LNG supplier by turning America’s domestic energy production into a strategic asset for allies and global markets.
Roger Goodell, Commissioner of the NFL, is pushing America’s most recognizable sports league toward a genuinely global future with nine international games on the NFL’s 2026 schedule.
Jensen Huang, Co-founder & CEO of NVIDIA, is shaping the next wave of technological change by developing the Rubin AI platform, underscoring America’s role in creating the new standard for building, deploying and securing the world's largest and most advanced AI systems at the lowest cost.
Michele Kang, Founder & Owner of the Washington Spirit, is helping turn women’s sports into a growing force in American culture and global competition through major investments in women’s soccer and the development of the Women’s Institute
Dr. Reshma Kewalramani, President & CEO of Vertex Pharmaceuticals, is expanding the reach of a landmark advance in genetic medicine by making CRISPR-based therapy CASGEVY available to children as young as two.
Fei-Fei Li, Founding Director, World Labs, is pushing the frontiers of AI and American technological leadership by raising over $1 billion in 2026 to advance spatial intelligence.
Patrick Mahomes, NFL Quarterback for the Kansas City Chiefs, is proving how American athletes can shape business, culture, and connections well beyond the game by investing in community initiatives and representing American sports through diplomacy.
Dr. Kiran Musunuru, physician-scientist at the University of Pennsylvania, helped develop the world's first personalized CRISPR gene-editing treatment for an infant with a rare genetic disease—advancing American leadership in precision medicine and establishing a model that could transform treatment for patients worldwide.
Christopher Nolan, Filmmaker, is expanding America’s cultural export by bringing American storytelling to a global audience through ambitious, large-scale filmmaking that draws audiences from across the world.
Ryan Petersen, Co-Founder & CEO of Flexport, is working to make trade more resilient in an increasingly uncertain world by building technology that helps companies navigate global shipping and supply-chain disruption.
Linda Rottenberg, Co-founder & CEO of Endeavor, is helping American founders scale businesses that connect markets and create opportunity across borders through Endeavor’s global entrepreneur network and investment platform.
Goli Sheikholeslami, CEO of POLITICO Media Group, is shaping how policymakers and influential audiences understand world affairs by expanding POLITICO’s international footprint, including its presence in Australia.
Gwynne Shotwell, President & COO of SpaceX, is helping make American commercial space power a defining force in the global economy by helping SapceX reach a record 165 Falcon launches as Starlink expanded to more than 10,000 satellites connecting people around the world.
Governor Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan is using state leadership to strengthen America’s industrial base and global competitiveness by attracting major investment to Michigan’s advanced manufacturing and mobility sectors.
Dr. Peggy Whitson, commander of the 2025 Axiom-4 mission, led astronauts from India, Poland, and Hungary to the International Space Station—demonstrating how American commercial spaceflight is expanding access to space while strengthening international scientific cooperation and U.S. leadership in the emerging space economy.
Mike Wirth, CEO of Chevron, is expanding America’s global energy portfolio with Chevron’s $53 billion acquisition of Hess, securing a major stake in Guyana’s booming offshore oil industry, helping shape the supply, infrastructure, and investment decisions that underpin economic security worldwide.
