Silicon Valley: an Indispensable Building Block in the Enterprise Called Israel
Op-ed: The founding fathers of the Zionist dream envisioned the cultivation of the Yizrael Valley, not Silicon Valley. But Silicon Valley can contribute profoundly to a flourishing Zionist dream
Yoel Esteron, Calcalist Publisher, speaks on board the United Airways flight to San Francisco, before guests of Calcalist’s airborne conference.
We’re on our way to Silicon Valley, San Francisco – the promised land version 6 Plus; the heart-felt dream and desire of the startup nation; the object of yearning for intrepid entrepreneurs; a destination for relocation, far removed and far away from the valleys our founding fathers pined for, Nefesh Yehudi Homiya.
Is this the proper time to talk about Zionism? I believe so. I believe this is the right time, the right place and the right audience before which to speak of Zionism.
In Calcalist we regularly discuss Israel’s high-tech industry; we hold conferences on technology’s hottest topics; we give awards to the most promising startups of the year; we beseech the regulators not to put a stick in the wheels of Israel’s high-tech industry, and we enthusiastically follow every single financing round and exit. In short: it’s more than evident that we’re with you.
But we also have a request: between exhilarating financing rounds and spectacular exits – take a moment to look around. Look at what’s going on with Israel’s society, and ask yourselves not what this country has done for you when it fostered the bright young minds of its education system, of its knowledge-intense military units and of its universities. Rather – ask what you can do for this country. And Kudos to John Kennedy.
More than a few high-tech companies have already incorporated social responsibility into their organizational culture – whether by undertaking personal volunteerism or by community activism. I’m not talking about financial donations, but about contributing the time and energy. I’m talking about being an active part in Israel’s discourse on Democracy, education, culture, science and technology.
Israel’s prospects of competing and prevailing in a developed world and avoiding falling behind, balance on the thousands of promising pioneers in the land of Israel’s high-tech. Alas, the “startup nation” thrives within a society that does not enjoy equal growth, to say the least, and which is afflicted by third world maladies.
We’re on our way to Silicon Valley – a honey pot for the technology world’s brightest and most talented. I have not one bad thought against Israelis who choose to live here, at the epicenter of technological creativity. On the contrary – the world we live in is flat, and just like their Chinese and Korean counterparts, Israeli tekkies should be where the tech action is, in order to gain the opportunity to create and learn and bring their knowledge and skills back to the land of milk and honey.
The lively traffic between Israel and Silicon Valley is essential for Israel’s high tech industry. Any Israeli who comes to the Valley for a few years makes his individual choice. But it behooves the Israeli community in Silicon Valley to consider how Israel’s high-tech – and Israel at large – can benefit from the substantial Israeli presence in Silicon Valley.
The founding fathers of the Zionist dream envisioned the cultivation of the Yizrael Valley, not Silicon Valley. But Silicon Valley can contribute profoundly to a flourishing Zionist dream, if only we know how to reap the benefits of this human bridge that lies between Israel and California. In many ways, Silicon Valley is an inalienable asset of Greater Israel. Of our progress.
