By Judie Jacobson  |  Photos courtesy of Office of the Governor

NEW HAVEN, Connecticut – It was billed as an “economic development mission … focused on building and strengthening connections between Connecticut and members of Israel’s innovation ecosystem.”  

And so it was.

But, according to Ned Lamont, the Connecticut Governor’s recent week-long trip to the Jewish state – in which he and representatives from the state’s public and private sectors met with venture capitalists, incubator, accelerators and thought leaders –  turned out to be just that…and so much more.

“Israel really rolled out the red carpet for Connecticut. I was so impressed,” said Lamont upon his return to Hartford on Thursday, February 24.

The Governor attributed the state delegation’s especially warm welcome by Israeli leaders at least in part to a special connection between Israel and Connecticut that makes them kindred spirits.

“President Herzog said to me, ‘You know, you’re small and innovative and punching above your weight class just like Israel, so we should do more together,” Lamont said,  noting the “fun fact” that in his youth, Israel’s Prime Minister Naftali Bennett attended summer camp in the New Haven area. He also proudly noted that Connecticut is the first U.S. state to send an official mission to Israel in two years.

The trip wasn’t all about business.

Lamont also made a stop at Afula-Gilboa, Connecticut’s sister city. And he was especially moved by his first visit ever to Yad Vashem: The World Holocaust Remembrance Center, Israel’s national memorial to the victims of the Holocaust, located in Jerusalem. 

“It put a face on the victims and it gave a the voice to the six million who perished,” he told the Ledger. 

On Feb. 22, at Yad Vashem, he participated in a lighting ceremony of the Eternal Flame. Following his tour and a wreath laying ceremony, he gave brief remarks about the importance of remembering our shared history so that atrocities and genocide, like the Holocaust, never happen again. Lamont’s comments at Yad Vashem can be viewed on YouTube at HERE.

Sewing the seeds of collaboration 

At a news conference in New Haven held on Monday, Feb. 28, just four days after Lamont’s return home, the Governor discussed some of the highlight’s of his trip, in which he was accompanied by a delegation that included representatives from Raytheon, Hartford HealthCare, Digital Currency Group, the Jewish Federation Association of Connecticut, the University of Connecticut, the Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development, and Connecticut Innovations.

The Governor and the delegation met with partners and founders from Strauss Group, Viola, Vintage and OurCrowd and attended several roundtable discussions with Google. The trip culminated with a VentureClash event led by Connecticut Innovations, the state’s venture capital arm and featured six pitches from companies looking to expand to the United States.

In addition to meeting with business leaders, he met with several Israeli officials, including Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, Foreign Minister Yair Lapid, President Isaac Herzog, and Dr. Salman Zarka, Israel’s chief COVID-19 officer. Interim UConn President Dr. Radenka Maric and representatives from Technion also led a session around their clean energy initiative.

As for the mission’s goal – to meet with business leaders and learn more about the innovation ecosystem in Israel – the Governor described it as a great success.

“In addition to meeting with more than a dozen businesses in Israel, we also met with leading investors, incubators, accelerators, and thought leaders in the country. From those meetings, we have already established next steps and additional opportunities to work together in the future,” he said.

“When it comes to attracting businesses to our state, the first and best people to tell our story are Connecticut’s business people,” he told the Ledger. “So, for example, we got a senior member from Pratt Whitney –you know, they do jet engines– and we put that person in front of Israel’s leading military purchasing guys. They had an hour and a half talk about how they should set up some Israeli defense centers here in Connecticut, alongside our helicopters, alongside our jet engines. So we have better collaboration there. That was very interesting.” 

Lamont found several areas in Israel’s innovation ecosystem especially interesting. Consider FinTech – an emerging industry that uses technology to improve activities in finance. 

“We brought with us the Digital Currency Group – one of the biggest FinTech companies in the country. [Digital Currency Group is a venture capital company focusing on the digital currency market]. The company happens to have just moved to Stamford. And so, we had had the 12 leading young financial tech entrepreneurs in Israel around the table. Now, when they think about where they want to expand – they used to be just New York and New Jersey – they’re saying, ‘Hey, there’s a real advantages to Connecticut.’ So, the financial tech guys were very interested. 

The same goes for food tech (Israel recently announced production of a chicken and beef product that they grow in a petri dish, with Lamont has tasted and declared “pretty good.”) and other industries. 

Lamont expects that many of these Israeli entrepreneurs will be visiting Connecticut in the near future with an eye towards forging collaborations and the like. 

“You know, there’s two and a half times more venture capital money being invested in Israel today than there was a year and a half ago. That’s a sign of optimism and people believing in the future,” Lamont told the Ledger. 

“From a political standpoint, they’re really working hard to show that Israel is governing itself and moving forward – and the business community is really leading the way. And that’s great,” he added.

That sense of optimism is shared by others in the Connecticut delegation.

“We had an incredibly productive trip to Israel,” Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development Commissioner David Lehman said. “The Governor led delegation meetings with high-growth Israeli companies, venture firms, established companies, and the Israeli government.  Our meetings were singularly focused on how to increase collaboration between our two economies and mutually beneficial direct investment. I am optimistic about the future of the Connecticut-Israel economic relationship.”

Main Photo: During his recent trip to the Jewish state, Governor Lamont made his first visit to Yad Vashem, where he participated in a wreath laying ceremony and gave brief remarks about the importance of remembering atrocities and genocide, like the Holocaust.