Governor Greg Abbott on Thursday kicked off an economic development mission to Israel by visiting a startup hub in Tel Aviv.
According to the governor’s press team, Abbott met with leaders of Start-Up Nation to discuss opportunities for Israel and Texas to collaborate on the advancement of the cyber security, energy, and robotics sectors.
He also attended roundtable discussion with Israeli companies already doing business in Texas. Abbott said, “The technology being developed in the Lone Star State is changing the world in which we live. Many businesses and start-ups that have contributed to this unprecedented success originate from the country of Israel and are pertinent to our continued prosperity.”
He added that he would like to attract new investments and “cultivate an economic climate that maximizes opportunity for all who call Texas home.”
Start-Up Nation said in a statement on social media that it was honored to host the Texas governor and that Israeli company GiantLeap presented a live demo to the governor.
GiantLeap makes a “gamified dashboard” for learning and behavioral development screening for children. The system identifies cognitive challenges like dyslexia, dyscalculia, and ADHD. The company is a recent graduate of the medical technology accelerator at the Texas Medical Center in Houston, according to Forbes.
Texas is a significant trade partner for Israel, one of the top three importers of Israeli goods among the U.S. states. In 2018, Texas imported more than $1.5 billion goods from Israel. It also imports $953.5 million in goods from Texas.
The governor’s office says that Israeli-headquartered businesses operate in approximately 60 locations throughout Texas.
Abbott plans to travel to Switzerland after his trip to Israel to attend the World Economic Forum in Davos. This will be the Governor’s second trip to both Israel and Switzerland.
