Technology and innovation are happening across the globe, and Peachtree Corners and Curiosity Lab are tapped into the latest developments. City and Lab leaders regularly travel and meet with new and interesting companies, generating national and international interest in economic development opportunities that will drive economic growth and development for the Peachtree Corners community.
Just recently, representatives from the City and Lab were invited to Tel Aviv, Israel as part of a U.S. trade delegation to the 2022 EcoMotion Week conference, where Peachtree Corners City Manager Brian Johnson was also invited to speak about Peachtree Corners and our smart city ecosystem. He discussed why Peachtree Corners is a great gateway for new startups to enter the U.S. market.
EcoMotion Week is one of the most respected mobility weeks in the world. EcoMotion is a joint venture of several organizations, including the Israel Innovation Institute (NGO), the Smart Mobility Initiative in the Ministry of Transport and Road Safety, the Ministry of Economy, and the Israeli Automotive and High-Tech industries.
The trade delegation from the Peachtree Corners community included Brian Johnson, City Manager of Peachtree Corners and Vice Chairman of the Board at Curiosity Lab, and Seth Yurman, Assistant City Manager and Chief Development Officer at Curiosity Lab.
Tel Aviv is consistently ranked as one of the top ecosystems for startups and innovation in the world. One of the reasons is the country’s Municipal Innovation Center, which fosters technology with city governments, akin to what Peachtree Corners does with Curiosity Lab.
Left to right: Orlie Gruper, general partner at Mobiltech Capital and Johnson on stage at 2022 EcoMotion Week
“We have to be a little bit bullish when pursuing new partnerships for Peachtree Corners and Curiosity Lab. It does not just happen organically,” said Johnson when speaking about the event and the City’s efforts to attract international partners. “Israel was specifically chosen as one of our trips because of the significant amount of Israeli startups that have already come through Curiosity Lab and the partnerships we have already made with Israeli technology companies. The face-to-face conversations at this event will help us generate new opportunities for our smart city environment.”
Curiosity Lab’s event booth and the bustling event show floor
Peachtree Corners and Curiosity Lab already have a great connection with Israel. The City recently hosted a visit by Anat Sultan-Dadon, Consul General of Israel to the southeastern United States. The Israeli Consulate, located in Atlanta, has worked closely with Peachtree Corners and Curiosity Lab to provide a launching pad for Israeli tech and mobility firms to expand into the United States and across North America.
Additionally, the City partnered with Israeli startup ACiiST – Smart Networks (ACiiST), manufacturer of SD-LAN network solutions optimized for connecting outdoor cameras and sensors through a robust networking system. This partnership provides Peachtree Corners with connected infrastructure network solutions via fiber that allow various mobility technologies on Peachtree Corners’ smart city streets to communicate with minimal digging, saving the city and residents time and money. At EcoMotion, Johnson and ACiiST CEO and Founder Sagi Gurfinkel were interviewed together about Peachtree Corners’ unique smart city environment and why these two organizations have decided to partner.
Left to Right: Johnson and Gurfinkel at the 2022 EcoMotion Week
Johnson, left, meets with the Municipal Innovation Center
The Peachtree Corners team also ventured outside of the conference facility to meet with innovative companies and organizations. For example, they met with the Municipal Innovation Center to see how this organization is using technology to become smarter. As part of the trip, the delegation met with over 35 companies and governmental organizations to explore potential collaborations that could further enhance Peachtree Corners’ smart city environment and spur economic development in the community.
The companies represented a variety of technology sectors including smart city and connected technologies, finance, cybersecurity, manufacturing, finance, and artificial intelligence. Additionally, the group held meetings with the Israel Export Institute, Israel Innovation Authority, and the European Institute of Innovation and Technology.
Johnson, at a local vehicle test track.
Also, while in Tel Aviv, the group was able to visit a local vehicle test track. Watch the full video about a visit to a local vehicle test track.
Brian Johnson, center and others at the Ashdod Port
The team met with Ashdod Port, one of Israel’s top ports. The Ashdod Port has a startup program for companies in the maritime community who want to move goods through the port quicker and save time, money and effort. Although the Port of Savannah is on the other side of Georgia from Peachtree Corners, the team at Ashdod are thinking about technologies they can test at Curiosity Lab to make them adoptable to ports around the globe.
Keep up with our latest trips and innovations
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