CTalk
ELNET: German business leaders “are looking with admiration and respect towards the Startup Nation”
Carsten Ovens, CEO, European Leadership Network of the Berlin Office (ELNET) speaks to CTech at Calcalist, CTech and Bank Leumi’s Mind The Tech conference in Berlin.
Carsten Ovens
(Photo: Encore)
This year marks 60 years of diplomatic relations between Germany and Israel. Speaking to CTech at Calcalist, CTech and Bank Leumi’s Mind The Tech conference in Berlin, Carsten Ovens, CEO of the European Leadership Network’s Berlin office, reflected on the significance of the partnership for him and for ELNET. As a German citizen, Ovens described what exists today as “a unique partnership and a close friendship between like-minded democracies that share common interests and values and that are also on the economical perspective very complementary.”
ELNET’s role is best described as that of “a bridge builder,” Ovens said. “ELNET was established back in 2007 as a policy organization and network to foster and strengthen the Europe-Israeli relations between several countries in Europe where we have offices today and Israel.” He added that, particularly since October 7, German business leaders are looking “with admiration and respect towards the Startup Nation,” or what he said is now more accurately “the Tech Nation,” commending Israel’s “vast and immense innovation ecosystem.”
Looking ahead, Ovens listed defense technologies, cybersecurity, and healthcare digitalization as areas where bilateral cooperation can deepen. For young Israeli tech companies, he noted, Germany offers a strategic starting point for entering Europe. He further highlighted the German Israeli Health Forum for Artificial Intelligence, which aims “to bring Israeli technology,” given Israel is “far more advanced than Germany” in the digitalization of healthcare. “We can learn a lot about data standards,” he said, “and how to build a better health ecosystem,” adding that both countries can “work a lot together and also learn and benefit from each other.”
You can watch the entire exchange in the video above.
