REINHOLD M.
KARNER.

Reinhold M. Karner, FRSA, is an entrepreneur, strategic business adviser and keynote speaker who helps business leaders make better decisions—for lasting success.

He is Senior Entrepreneur-in-Residence at HOK University of Applied Sciences, Austria; Senior Advisor – Strategy & Innovation at IMP, a five-time Hidden Champion consultancy operating across Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Brazil; and a member of the Harvard Business Review Advisory Council (OI), USA. He teaches entrepreneurship, strategy, artificial intelligence, quantum computing and DeepTech at European universities, writes for the Times of Malta, and is a Life Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, UK.

Based in Malta, Karner brings nearly five decades of international experience building, leading and transforming businesses. He has advised hundreds of companies and mentored more than 300 founders and start-ups. He combines a keen eye for emerging technologies with the judgement to assess their wider economic and societal implications.

His advisory work and keynotes connect technological change with business strategy, competitiveness and long-term resilience. He challenges assumptions, broadens perspectives and brings clarity to complex decisions, drawing on practical experience across industries and successive generations of technological change.

At DTF 2026, “From Algorithms to Megawatts” examines how AI is reshaping technology, energy and the global economy—and the implications for industry leaders and policymakers.