Abstract This article acts as a conclusion to the special section in this issue of International Affairs. It draws on the articles included in the special section and the broader research project behind it, which seeks to offer a reading of power and pluralism in the post-liberal era, building on the concept of a ‘multiplex world order’ first introduced in Acharya's 2014 work The end of American world order. The article presents four key dimensions of multiplexity: political-economic, technologi