AIAC and AVARA Pharmaceuticals Co-Sponsor Awards Dinner Honoring Bill Gates
New York, NY December 7, 2023 – American Industrial Acquisition Corporation, Avara Pharmaceutical Services, and their invited guests joined with the Economic Club of New York in a special year-end dinner and awards ceremony in New York City to honor Bill Gates, Co-Founder of Microsoft, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and the Bill and Melinda Gates Medical Institute.
Marie-Josee Kravis, Chair Emerita of the Economic Club of New York and Chair of the Museum of Modern Art, presented Bill Gates with the Peter G. Peterson Award for Leadership Excellence. This award was originally inaugurated in 2011 through a gift from the late Peter G. Peterson, former Chair of the Economic Club. Peterson was Co-Founder and Chairman of the Blackstone Group, the world’s largest private equity firm, and the Peterson Institute for International Economics, the Washington DC-based, bi-partisan policy research institution. Past honorees include George P. Shultz, Paul Volcker, Alice Rivlin, Alan Greenspan, Henry Kissinger, Roger W. Ferguson, and Stanley Fischer.
In a fireside chat format, Marie-Josee Kravis then invited Mr. Gates to describe his post-Microsoft journey, exploring the intersection of technology and global development. He also navigated through the intricacies of climate change solutions, and AI applications for improving global health.
Mr. Gates began by expressing grave concern over climate change, stating, “Climate change is a huge challenge. The warming effect is causing severe problems.” Later, he commented on the potential of fission and fusion energy to address climate change and he described his recent investments in this area.
On AI, Mr. Gates stated “AI is the most profound change of this era, even more profound than digitalization,” offering “a gigantic productivity increase.” While expressing concern over the potential for AI misuse in areas such as cybercrime and bio-terrorism, he commented, “I’m optimistic about AI.”
“In healthcare, we’ve made an impact”, he noted, pointing to a reduction in early childhood deaths from 10 million to 5 million per year and a reduction in the per patient costs of gene therapy from $1 million to $1,000.
On improving education, he expressed disappointment in his foundation’s results. He noted, “We have not had dramatic success in education. We are very focused on math.”
On a lighter note, he recounted his “maniacal youth” leading Microsoft in the early years. He admitted to having memorized the license plates of the cars of his employees, so he could determine who was working extra hours. “It was not hard to do. It was only 200 cars”, he said.
He stated that he reads about 50 books a year, which was far less than his son, and noted that a recent interesting book he had read was The End of the World is Just the Beginning.
Bill Gates philosophically reflected on missed opportunities, detours, and disappointments. “Microsoft made a lot of mistakes,” he lamented. However, as to whether he would change anything in his life, given the chance, Mr. Gates concluded that, on balance, he had no regrets and was quite satisfied.
L. M. Levie, Chairman of AIAC and of Avara and member of the Centennial Society and the Legacy Society of the Economic Club of New York, commented, “AIAC and Avara are delighted to join in paying tribute to Bill Gates, the most accomplished entrepreneur, technologist, and philanthropist of our time. The company and the foundations he co-founded boldly transformed our world for the better, by enhancing, enriching, and extending the lives of billions.”
Mr. Levie continued, “I was thrilled to personally greet and congratulate Bill Gates on behalf of AIAC and Avara. During the fireside chat, Bill displayed astonishing candor, intellectual range, compassion, and optimism for the future of humanity. He is a force of nature and a genuine international treasure. The world owes Bill Gates an incalculable debt of gratitude.”
Before and after the dinner event, AIAC and Avara hosted their guests at receptions on the top floor and terrace of the Metropolitan Club of New York.
AIAC and Avara’s guests included:
Bill Isaac, Esq., Chairman, Securia/Isaac and former Chairman of the FDIC under Presidents Carter and Reagan and Chairman of Fifth Third Bank.
Ambassador John Negroponte, Vice Chairman, McClarty Associates and former US Ambassador to the United Nations and Director of National Intelligence.
David Cunn, Vice Chairman of JP Morgan Private Bank and former officer of GE Capital and Merrill Lynch.
Rebecca Patterson, Director, Bretton Woods Committee, former Chief Investment Strategist for Bridgewater Associates and Chief Investment Officer of Bessemer Trust and of JP Morgan Asset Management.
Dennis Flannery, CEO Stone Hill Associates LLP, former Senior Executive or Advisor of the World Bank, the US Treasury, the Trade Bank of Iraq, the Inter-American Development Bank, and Iraq Country Head, Citicorp.
Libby Locke, Esq. and Tom Clare, Esq., partners of Clare Locke LLP.
Dr. Joel Meyers, Founder and CEO of Accuweather and Fellow of the Explorers Club.
Dr. Tina Park, President and CEO, the Park Group and Administrative Director of the Trilateral Commission of North America.
Michelle Caruso-Cabrera, CEO of MCC Productions and CNBC Contributor, and first Latina Anchor and Chief International Correspondent at CNBC.
Margaret Chustecki, MD, Assistant Clinical Professor at Yale School of Medicine, Founder and CEO, Internal Medicine of Greater New Haven.
Patricia Duff, CEO of The Common Good and member of the Council on Foreign Relations and the Board of Advisors for the Georgetown University School of Foreign Service and Board of Trustees for PEN America and the National Harbor Conservancy which oversees Federal Hall
Richard Cohen, Founder and President of Capital Properties and Trustee of the New York Public Library.
Edward Grebow, CEO Lakewood Advisors, former President and CEO of Amalgamated Bank, former President of the Metropolitan Television Alliance (MTVA) and Sony USA.
Faanya Lydia Rose, President Emerita of the Explorers Club, Member of the Board of Trustees of the American Friends of the Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra, and President of Fight for Sight.
Janet L. Walsh, President and CEO of Birchtree Global LLC and Member of the Board of Directors of the Explorers Club.
Mark Vitner, Chief Economist, Piedmont Crescent Capital and former Managing Director and Chief Economist, Wells Fargo Bank.
Gil Roth, President, Pharma, and Biopharma Outsourcing Association.
A full listing of AIAC guests’ bios can be seen by clicking here.
About AIAC
American Industrial Acquisition Corporation (AIAC) is a diversified industrial group with manufacturing and distribution sites in 24 countries in North America, Europe, and Asia. AIAC has acquired and grown non-core subsidiaries and divisions of Boeing, Siemens, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, Raytheon, Johnson Controls, Merck, Pfizer, Astellas, Visteon, Carlyle, Ahlstrom, Tolko, Groupe Suez, Groupe Rexel, and many other leading multinational corporations.
AIAC Corporation manufacturing companies serve companies and governmental entities worldwide in all major sectors, including aviation, space, defense, automotive, truck, rail, marine, petrochemical, solar, nuclear, food, confectionary, beverage, civil engineering and infrastructure, commercial construction, mining, dredging, disaster relief, education, medical devices, and pharmaceuticals. AIAC companies manufacture materials, components, assemblies, packaging, equipment, and finished products. In addition, AIAC companies are exclusive, authorized distributors of leading branded wire and cable, electrical devices, lighting products, plumbing supplies, construction equipment, indoor and outdoor cooking appliances and fixtures, electronics, cameras, and watches throughout Southeast Asia, Australia, and New Zealand.
Of note, AIAC purchased Boeing Canada in 2005, and has produced over 10,000 unique components for every Boeing jet plane ever since, reliably serving Boeing from manufacturing facilities in Canada, the US, and Mexico. A leader in ultra high precision jet engine component manufacturing, AIAC companies also produce 2,200 fan blades and blisks for each jet engine produced by GE, Pratt & Whitney, Rolls Royce, and Honeywell. AIAC companies produce the critical automotive wire and cable for Tesla, GM, Ford, Chysler-Fiat, Toyota, and Honda. In connection with its paper manufacturing interests, AIAC controls and sustainably manages 22 million acres of Manitoba, Canada forestland, an area equivalent in size to the nation of Hungary.
About AIAC Philanthropy
AIAC and the AIAC Foundation support a wide range of nonprofit, nonsectarian, bipartisan organizations which promote international conflict resolution, disaster relief, economic development, and environmental sustainability. These nonprofit organizations include the following: the Appeal of the Nobel Peace Laureates Foundation Inc., the Asia Society, the Atlantic Council, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation - Gates Philanthropy Partners, the Bretton Woods Committee, the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, the Carter Center, the Council on Foreign Relations, the Economic Club of New York, the Explorers Club, the Foreign Policy Association, the Institut Française des Relations Internationales, the International Committee of the Red Cross, the International Crisis Group, the International Rescue Committee, the Japan Society, the JFK School of Government of Harvard University, the Peterson Institute for International Economics, the Richardson Center for Global Engagement, the Royal Institute of International Affairs (Chatham House), the Sierra Club, and the Trilateral Commission, among others.
For more information, see:
https://www.aiac.com/our-values
About Avara Pharmaceutical Services Ltd.
With large-scale manufacturing campuses in Puerto Rico, Norman, Oklahoma, and Liscate, Italy, Avara Pharmaceutical Services Ltd. produces critical prescription and nonprescription medications delivered to 40 countries. Avara manufactures both oral solid dose and injectable pharmaceuticals. Avara is a trusted supplier to major multinational clients including Aspen, Astellas, AbbVie, Cumberland, Bausch & Lomb, Genentech-Roche, Merck, Organon, Pfizer, Sagent, and SK Life. During the Covid-19 global pandemic, Avara was the manufacturer of the key active pharmaceutical ingredient for the production of Gillead Science’s Remdesivir, a leading treatment of the disease.
For more information, see: www.avara.com
About Bill Gates
As co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Bill Gates shapes and approves foundation strategies, advocates for the foundation’s issues, and sets the organization’s overall direction. He works with grantees and partners to further the foundation’s goal of improving equity in the United States and around the world.
Bill co-founded Microsoft Corporation in 1975 with Paul Allen and led the company to become the worldwide leader in business and personal software and services. In 2008, Bill transitioned to focus full-time on the foundation’s work. Through his private office, Gates Ventures, he pursues his work in climate change and clean energy innovation, Alzheimer’s research and other healthcare issues, interdisciplinary education, and technology. He is also the founder of Breakthrough Energy, which works to address climate change by supporting the next generation of entrepreneurs, big thinkers, and clean technologies.
In 2010, Bill, Melinda French Gates, and Warren Buffett founded the Giving Pledge, an effort to encourage the world’s wealthiest families and individuals to publicly commit more than half of their wealth to philanthropic causes and charitable organizations during their lifetime or in their will.
Bill grew up in Seattle with two sisters. His late father, William H. Gates Sr., was an attorney and civic leader who served as a co-chair of the foundation from 2000 to 2020 His late mother, Mary Gates, was a schoolteacher, University of Washington Regent, and Chair of United Way International. Bill has three children and one grandchild.
For more information, see:
https://www.gatesfoundation.org
About the Economic Club of New York
Founded in 1907, the Economic Club of New York is the premier forum for discussion on a wide range of issues facing New York City, the United States, and the world. The Club welcomes preeminent thought leaders from across the globe and from the public and private sectors to speak on complex issues ranging from public policy and economic regulation to tech disruption. Nonpolitical, nonpartisan, and nonprofit, the Club promotes no agenda and takes no sides on issues, encouraging speakers and members to engage openly in thoughtful discussions.
The Economic Club members include the senior leadership of the corporate and financial organizations based in the New York Metropolitan area. The Club has hosted speakers who are experts in their respective fields and who drive the conversations that shape the future world. Past speakers include leaders of Fortune Global 500 companies, and multiple U.S. presidents, including Woodrow Wilson, William H. Taft, Herbert Hoover, Dwight D. Eisenhower, John F. Kennedy, Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan, and George H. W. Bush. International heads of state such as Winston Churchill, Mikhail Gorbachev, Indira Gandhi, Margaret Thatcher, and Yitzak Rabin have addressed the Club.
For more information, see: www.econclubny.org
Media Contact:
Isabel Carro Toro, Vice President
American Industrial Acquisition Corporation
+34 689 295 827 (Spain)
+ 1 787 244 3175 (USA)
icarro-toro@aiac.com
www.aiac.com
