1. What are the most promising opportunities for strengthening economic and innovation ties between Austria and the United States over the coming decade?

Thank you for the question and thank you to invest.austria for the fruitful exchange we had at my residence in May.

The U.S. - Austrian trade and investment relationship is largely based on innovative technology sectors, so there are plenty of areas for increasing economic ties, particularly in key, cutting-edge sectors. According to the American Chamber of Commerce study “2026 USA-Austria Transatlantic Trade Relationship” presented in May, nearly eighty percent of U.S.-Austrian trade is in high technology products, including pharmaceuticals, chemicals, electronic equipment, optical technologies, and more. In terms of investment, the fastest growing American firms in Austria are concentrated in digital transformation sectors.

Since I arrived in November 2025, I have been particularly impressed with innovations in quantum technology being developed in Austria. During a recent visit to Innsbruck, I met with academics, researchers, and startups that are developing an incredible amount of intellectual property (IP) in high demand in the United States and globally. I am committed to ensuring that this IP is protected and creates stronger partnerships with American and Austrian firms to commercialize this great work.

2. What can both countries do to strengthen the flow of talent, knowledge, and entrepreneurial experience across the Atlantic to support innovation-driven growth?

There is absolutely no substitute for person-to-person interactions when increasing collaboration and innovation-driven growth. Austria has a tremendous resource in Advantage Austria, which organizes visits to the United States throughout the year. A member of my Commercial Team at the Embassy will accompany an Austrian trade mission to the Association of the U.S. Army (AUSA) Annual Meeting and Exposition in October in Washington, D.C. The defense sector is one of the most innovative in the world as it addresses both physical and cyber threats to our freedom. Events like the AUSA show introduce established firms and startups to the U.S. defense sector supply chain, which serves both as an opportunity to develop strong markets for innovations and address both of our countries’ national security interests.

The AUSA Annual Meeting is just one small example. Advantage Austria will also lead a delegation to eMerge Americas in March in Miami, which brings together global enterprises, startups, investors, and government leaders to accelerate advancements in AI, Deep Tech, National Security, Health, and Finance. I also encourage more U.S. firms to participate in the invest.austria Conference 2026 in November. As I mentioned earlier, there are incredible technologies being developed in Austria and I have astrong interest in highlighting them to American private-sector partners and investors.

We all benefit from technology and innovation produced in the United States, Austria, and the European Union. Let’s keep our markets open so U.S. and European firms can compete fairly in each other’s markets.

3. As global competition for innovation capital intensifies, how can Austria and the United States position themselves as preferred partners for founders and investors seeking long-term growth, technological leadership, and sustainable value creation?

Innovation is the source of long-term growth for both of our countries. The intellectual property that Austrian and U.S. founders and investors bring to the table will support economic growth and job creation for years and decades to come.

A key consideration is how our partners and investors will protect intellectual property so the economic benefits can flow to the owners of the IP and, in the case of critical technologies, ensure that IP is used for the benefit of our joint national security interests. My team at U.S. Embassy in Vienna has a long history of working closely with the government of Austria to encourage fair, reasonable legislation that promotes innovation while controlling the export of physical and intellectual property to protect trade secrets and promote our national interests.

The United States is the partner of choice for start-ups and scale-ups to raise capital and expand to a large market ready to support innovative products and ideas. Austrian firms have recognized this opportunity and have made Austria the 5th fastest growing source of foreign direct investment into the United States. Our robust intellectual property protections ensure that Austrian innovation remains the property of the Austrian owner – unlike in other markets.I am working to highlight Austria’s work in research and innovation to attract more U.S. venture firms to the outstanding investment opportunities in Austria.

4. Looking ahead, what is your vision for a stronger transatlantic innovation and investment ecosystem and what role can organizations like invest.austria play in making that vision a reality?

I remain impressed with the Austrian innovation ecosystem. I am particularly excited to work with the Austrian government to help advance the goals in the new “Industrial Strategy Austria 2035” and determine how U.S. firms can assist with the objective of increasing Austria’s industrial competitiveness.

Every day my colleagues and I at the U.S. Embassy are seeking ways to deepen the trade and investment relationship with Austria. One step along this path is a successful Technology Summit, which I noted earlier in this interview. By exposing more U.S. firms to Austrian innovation and demonstrating how U.S. technology can advance Austria’s competitiveness objectives, we will have achieved that goal. I encourage invest.austria to play an active role in our Technology Summit, an ideal venue for us to explore mutually beneficial investment opportunities in the technology sphere.

5. How can we further encourage collaboration between Austrian founders, U.S. venture capital firms, and corporate innovation ecosystems to accelerate company growth?

Strengthening collaboration between Austrian and U.S. innovation ecosystems is a goal of mine during my tenure as Ambassador to Austria. To reach this goal, I am convening a Technology Summit to be held on February 4, 2027, in Vienna. The event is an effort to bring together the Austrian innovation ecosystem found at universities, research institutions, and start-ups together with U.S. commercial entities, including venture capital firms and corporations. The U.S. Embassy has invited technology commercialization experts from American universities to share best practices on how they bring innovative research to the marketplace. Concurrently, we will have strong private-sector participation to learn about the strong Austrian innovation ecosystem and address some of the challenges investors face while expanding their investments in Austria.

My Commercial Section team at the Embassy is happy to share information with Invest Austria members who may have an interest in participating in the event. Please reach out to Ken Walsh at ken.walsh@trade.gov for more details.