Teneo Insights Podcast

With the 2026 U.S. midterm elections approaching, the balance of power in Congress remains uncertain, with significant implications for Washington and corporate America. In this episode, host Kevin Kajiwara is joined by Trey Gowdy, former U.S. Representative (R-SC), and Joe Kennedy III, former U.S. Representative (D-MA) and U.S. Special Envoy to Northern Ireland for Economic Affairs, to assess the electoral landscape and what could follow. They discuss the outlook for the House and Senate, the lame-duck session and how a new Congress could reshape oversight, investigations and the broader operating environment for business.

Shayan Mohanty, Thoughtworks’ Chief Data and AI Officer, and Sparky Zivin, Teneo Research’s global lead, explore AI’s shift from experiments to enterprise transformation. They discuss open versus closed models, token costs, vendor dependence and model portfolios. The conversation also examines agentic AI, cybersecurity, political backlash, data-center resistance and how companies can redesign workflows while building trust.

In a special edition of Teneo Insights, Kevin Kajiwara is joined by Bill Bratton, Executive Chairman of Risk Advisory at Teneo and former New York City Police Commissioner, to reflect on how 9/11 reshaped the city, our communities, and the relationship between law enforcement, government and corporate America. Bratton explores the importance of collaboration, information-sharing and institutional resilience and considers what the lessons of the past 25 years can teach leaders confronting a new generation of risk.

The conflict between the U.S. and Iran is entering a new phase, with global concerns on regional escalation. In this timely conversation, Kevin Kajiwara is joined by General Frank McKenzie, former CENTCOM Commander and Teneo Senior Advisor, and Emily Stromquist, Teneo Managing Director, to assess the latest military, geopolitical and economic outlooks. They examine the strategic choices facing Washington and Tehran, how the conflict is reshaping the regional security landscape and what the next phase of the crisis could mean for global markets and business.

With the 2026 U.S. midterm elections fast approaching, the outlook for control of Congress is coming into sharper focus—and so are the implications for business. In this episode of Teneo Insights, Kevin Kajiwara is joined by Nate Tamarin, Head of Teneo’s Washington, D.C. office, and Rory Cooper, Teneo Senior Managing Director, to examine the state of the race and what it reveals about the political landscape taking shape in Washington. They discuss how the election could influence the balance of power, the governing agenda and the operating environment for companies as business leaders prepare for the next phase of the administration.

As conflict in the Middle East, Russia’s war in Ukraine and growing strategic competition between the U.S. and China continue to reshape the global landscape, business leaders are confronting a more volatile and fragmented operating environment. In this episode of Teneo Insights, Kevin Kajiwara is joined by Sir Richard Moore, former Chief of MI6 and Teneo Senior Advisor, to examine how shifting geopolitical dynamics, emerging technologies and evolving security threats are changing the way governments and companies assess risk. They explore how these trends are redefining the relationship between geopolitics, national security and business, and what leaders should be watching as the global risk landscape continues to evolve.

As conflict in the Middle East roils global energy markets and raises fresh concerns about supply shocks, a historic disruption is forcing leaders to confront just how fragile the system remains. In this episode of Teneo Insights, Kevin Kajiwara is joined by Dan Gabaldon, Teneo Vice Chair of Management Consulting and Head of Energy, and Emily Stromquist, Teneo Managing Director, to unpack the geopolitical and economic implications of the war with Iran and the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz—triggering the largest oil supply disruption in history. Together, they explore how this crisis fits into the broader, already complex energy transition shaped by geopolitics, policy, climate and market forces and what to watch as industry leaders convene for CERAWeek.

Emily Stromquist, Teneo political risk and energy markets specialist. Morgan Muir, former intelligence official and national security advisor. Dennis Ross, veteran U.S. diplomat on Middle East policy. They discuss Operation Epic Fury, Tehran’s leadership transition, risks of miscalculation and proxy escalation. They examine U.S.-Israel and Gulf alignments and the near-term impacts on global markets and corporate operations.

Ryan Cox, Teneo’s Global Head of AI, guides firms on AI strategy and implementation. Sparky Zivin, Global Head of Teneo Research, leads AI-driven analytics and authored the CEO survey. They discuss why AI returns lag investments, early efficiency wins versus customer-facing revenue, agentic AI beyond chatbots, workforce reskilling, national AI sovereignty, energy and chip constraints, and regulatory and reputational risks.

With Venezuela thrust into crisis after the abrupt removal of Nicolás Maduro, what comes next and what does it signal about the world in 2026? In this episode of the Teneo Insights Series, host Kevin Kajiwara is joined by Teneo Managing Directors Nicholas Watson, Carsten Nickel and Emily Stromquist, alongside Nick Zimmerman, Senior Advisor at WestExec Advisors and former White House National Security Council Director for Brazil and Southern Cone Affairs, to assess how the operating environment is evolving and what to watch across the government, military, opposition and interested international parties. The conversation then widens beyond Venezuela to consider how geopolitics and a fragmented trade environment are reshaping great-power competition, straining Europe’s strategic position and raising the stakes for democracies and corporate leaders navigating uncertainty in the year ahead.