First stop: Austin, Texas. † © IF
Sofie Bracke (Open VLD), Ghent Alderman’s Board Member for Economics, is in the US this week on an inspiring journey with entrepreneurial organization Voka.
Burt Stace
The Flemish East Division of Foca has traveled to Silicon Valley in the United States on its annual ‘technical trip’. It is an “inspirational journey” through a series of companies, universities and institutions. The tour group travels from Texas to California’s Silicon Valley.
On board: Fifty entrepreneurs, people from UGent, Imec and UZ Gent, Alderman Sophie Brack, one of her special attaches and a government employee from the Department of Economics. Company visits, networking events, and visits to Stanford and Berkeley universities are planned, as well as a meeting with the mayor of Austin, Texas.
“Ghent wants to become the tech capital of Europe and that is why we have partnered with Voka for several years,” says Bracke. “This year we want to see Austin as new Technology City It deals with challenges such as talent, housing, and space for companies. In Palo Alto, we visit several health tech and biotech companies, some of which show a concrete interest in Ghent.”
The trip cost the Ghent delegation 9,500 euros per person and was approved by the city council last month.
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