CNBC’s Spriha Srivastava stood in line for 90 minutes to be in the room to hear Trump speak at Davos.
Spriha Srivastava | CNBC
This week in Davos has been about many things: AI, geopolitics and markets. But President Donald Trump has been firmly at the front of everyone’s mind.
His much-anticipated address at the World Economic Forum drew thousands, with attendees queuing for hours to get into the Congress Hall.
I was one of them. I stood in line for more than an hour and a half. Even Blackstone Group CEO Steve Schwarzman had to wait in line with the rest of us. I finally cleared security and found a seat — lucky, given that many were refused entry to the hall.
As the crowd packed in, the atmosphere began to resemble something closer to a star- studded concert than a policy forum. The audience included Apple CEO Tim Cook, European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde, World Bank President Ajay Banga, as well as senior political and business figures such as Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney.
The queue outside Donald Trump’s 2026 special address at the World Economic Forum.
Spriha Srivastava | CNBC
There were some lighter moments before the speech began; Cook greeting Banga with a tight hug, Lagarde exchanging warm hellos with European officials — small, human interactions before the room shifted into anticipation.
Trump was met with loud applause as he took the stage for what many billed as the most closely watched speech of this year’s Davos.
He opened by saying it was good to see so many friends and “some enemies,” drawing laughter from the crowd. From there, he leaned heavily into self-assessment, describing himself as the most successful president and pointing to what he said were his major achievements accomplished in just one year.
“People are doing very well and are happy with me,” Trump said, prompting a mix of laughter and applause.
U.S. President Donald Trump attends the 56th annual World Economic Forum (WEF), in Davos, Switzerland, January 21, 2026.
Denis Balibouse | Reuters
The tone oscillated between humor and provocation. Trump took aim at several figures, including a swipe at French President Emmanuel Macron’s sunglasses, asking: “What the hell was that?”
He also directed a number of comments at Carney. A CEO seated nearby told me, on condition of anonymity, that Carney took it in good humor, smiling and nodding along.
Greenland and groans
After more than an hour, Trump turned to the topic many in the room had been bracing for. “Would you like me to talk about Greenland?” he asked, drawing a loud “yeah!” from the audience. Around me, some attendees shook their heads. One person seated behind me, who said they were Danish, muttered: “This is ridiculous.”
“I am seeking immediate negotiations to once again discuss the acquisition of Greenland by the United States,” Trump said.
The room fell noticeably quieter. “This is scary,” one attendee in front of me said, exchanging uneasy glances with others.
“So they have a choice. You can say yes, and we will be very appreciative. Or you can say no and we will remember,” Trump said on Greenland, although he did, for the first time, say he would not use force — resulting in a collective sigh of relief.
Trump also kept referring to Greenland as a “piece of ice” and appeared to confuse it with Iceland — another European country altogether.
The president also criticized Europe more broadly, saying parts of the continent had become “unrecognizable,” and described former Swiss President Karin Keller-Sutter as “difficult.”
“She kept saying the same thing over and over. She rubbed me the wrong way,” he said.
The address was followed by a fireside chat with WEF President Børge Brende, but by then — after well over an hour — some of the audience had begun to drift out.
As I left, I asked a few attendees what they thought. One tech CEO summed it up succinctly: he wasn’t sure whether to laugh or feel nervous, a sentiment echoed by several others.
“Yes, we laughed,” one politician told me. “But it’s also frightening to think he might actually try to execute some of this.”
