Any ideas about the largest national trade partners for the state of Arizona? Obviously, Mexico and Canada would be number 1 and 2. But coming in third, surprisingly, we see the Netherlands. No wonder Sandra Watson, President and CEO of the Arizona Commerce Authority, chose the Netherlands and Flanders for the state’s current trade mission. Watson and her delegates – some thirty representatives from companies, government agencies, and knowledge institutes – visited Eindhoven on Tuesday as an essential part of the trip. It follows a successful exchange last year when Dutch leaders visited Arizona, setting the stage for a growing partnership.
Watson emphasized continuing this cross-continental relationship, particularly in the semiconductor, aerospace, and defense industries. “We’re here to foster that relationship,” Watson said, highlighting Arizona’s opportunities for global partnerships. “In the semiconductor industry alone, we’ve seen over $100 billion in investment in just the past few years. This is alongside other growing industries in our state, like aerospace and defense.”
Hotbed for semicon
Watson shared that Arizona has a long-standing history of fostering growth in these sectors, dating back to the 1940s. “Motorola began building operations in Arizona around 1948, followed by defense companies that have grown over many decades,” she said. “The semiconductor industry expanded further when Intel established its operations in 1979. Today, we have key partners like ASML and NXP, indicating immense potential for collaborative expansion.” Arizona also has big TSMC and Intel plants within its borders, making it a hotbed for semicon.
Watson sees a lot of similarities between her state and the Netherlands, not only because of the focus on industries like semicon but also because of a way of operating. She praised the ecosystem in Eindhoven, where government, industry, and academia work in unison. “This ecosystem aligns with Arizona’s approach to economic development,” Watson noted. “These relationships are essential for advancing our economies and meeting private sector needs.”
The Dutch-Arizonan group used panel discussions, matchmaking sessions, and informal chats over drinks and bitterballs to develop the already existing ties. Watson expressed her enthusiasm for the initiatives organized by the Brabant Development Agency (BOM). “We are committed to leveraging opportunities that benefit both Arizona and the Netherlands,” she concluded, promising continued efforts to foster this dynamic relationship.
SMEs and startups
Brigit van Dijk – Van de Reijt, managing director of the Brabant Development Agency, added that this drive for collaboration not only concerns governments, the big corporates and knowledge institutes. “Especially here at the High Tech Campus, we talk a lot about these more familiar names. With good reason! But it’s crucial to note that it’s not just the big names. What is also very important are the SMEs and the startups. Here at High Tech Campus, it combines all that, including the knowledge institutions. That’s really what drives innovation and entrepreneurship. Only here in this region, in the Brabant region, over the last four years, we’ve seen a huge increase in startups, more than 20%. And again, it’s based on that cooperation. We need young startup companies to drive that innovation and growth. To succeed, we’ll also need capital and cooperation with large institutions and companies here in this room, from Arizona and the Brainport region.”
Panel discussions
In two panel discussions led by the executive chairman of Holland High Tech, Marc Hendrikse, the Dutch delegates clarified the highlights of the local opportunities in semicon and aerospace & defense. They discussed the enormous talent challenge, especially knowing that ASML’s expansion will create at least 60,000 new jobs in the next five or six years. Also, a lot of emphasis was on the crucial collaboration between companies like VDL, NXP, and ASML with knowledge institutes like TU Eindhoven. A special position in that relationship was for TNO, traditionally the connection between business and research. The specific opportunities in technologies like quantum and integrated photonics got the attention of attendees from both groups – not only during the panel discussions but also in the matchmaking afterward.
Two regions, both proud to be at the heart of the semicon industry, found each other – again. Based on the results of the matchmaking sessions, delegates from both sides of the Atlantic concluded that this was just the beginning of the (continued) collaboration.
Collaboration
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