The Italy of innovation and investment has been showcased in Seattle for the first time since the pandemic, with the “Primo Innovare” (First Innovate) initiative.
“Primo Innovare” took place on 16 November 2022 in Seattle, the American Pacific Coast city that is home to giants like Microsoft, Amazon, Boeing and Starbucks. Ten innovative Italian startups from several regions had the opportunity to introduce themselves to investors, venture capital funds and the leaders of the big American companies based in the State of Washington.
The event was opened by the Consul General of Italy in San Francisco, Sergio Strozzi, who illustrated Italy’s growing innovation, science and technology ecosystems to American investors. He also pointed out the considerable opportunities that are opening up, notably with projects and funding under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR), and the operation of INNOVIT, the new Italian Innovation and Culture Hub in San Francisco.
Strozzi’s address and the presentations by the Italian startups were followed by a panel discussion on “Building bridges and linking innovation communities”. Speakers included leading figures from the economic community in Seattle: Tom Davis, Senior Director of the Microsoft for Startups Programmes; Martina Welkhoff, Managing Partner at the WXR Fund; John Cook, co-founder of GeekWire; and Marcello Majonchi, General Manager at Amazon-AWS.
Co-organisers of the initiative, along with the Consulate General in San Francisco and the Italian Trade Agency Office in Los Angeles, were the Area Science Park Innovation Factory in Trieste and the Serena Foundation in Seattle.
