SCOTT TICKNOR: Good evening.
My name is Scott Ticknor.
I'm the acting special representative
for commercial and business affairs
in the Economic Bureau at the State Department.
And I have the honor of introducing
our keynote speaker, Michael Kratsios.
Mr. Kratsios currently serves as the Deputy Assistant
to the president for technology policy
and leads the White House Office of Science and Technology
Policy.
We're excited to have his support for the Global
Entrepreneurship Summit.
Prior to joining the White House,
Michael was a principal at Thiel Capital,
where he invested in and advised technology companies.
As a public servant and diplomat myself for the past 30 years,
I'm inspired when private sector experts like Michael Kratsios
choose to serve our great nation and help government
folks like us work to assist and enable
private sector companies, innovators, and entrepreneurs.
So please join me in welcoming Michael.
MICHAEL KRATSIOS: Good evening, everyone.
Scott, thank you so much for that very generous and kind
introduction.
Before-- before I begin, I really
want to express our nation's really deep gratitude
for the deep bonds of friendship between the United States
and the Netherlands, which really
pre-date our founding as a nation,
as the ambassador mentioned.
The Trump administration has always
celebrated the great contributions of risk takers
and job creators around the world,
and we have made the Global Entrepreneurship
Summit a top priority at the most senior level.
As you know, Ivanka Trump led the American delegation
to the summit last year in India.
And as the ambassador just announced,
Secretary Pompeo will be--
will be leading the delegation this year.
America has had a long and very proud
history of entrepreneurship that continues to this day.
We are the home of some of the world's greatest universities
and technology companies, the birthplace of inventors,
and a consistent leader in the newest technologies.
Before I joined the White House, I
was an advisor to tech entrepreneurs in Silicon Valley
for almost seven years, and I saw firsthand
how those who embraced America's tradition of innovation
succeeded in a very unique and effective way.
Yet our amazing success extends far
beyond the global capital of technology in Silicon Valley.
Citizens in Denver, and Detroit, North Carolina, North Dakota,
and Pittsburgh, and Omaha, and all over the U.S.,
and everywhere in between are really
leading the way in emerging technologies.
American entrepreneurship contributes
immensely to our nation's success,
with small business entrepreneurs
employing nearly half of America's private workforce
and driving about a third of all of American exports.
Now, entrepreneurship is also key to the world's
global success.
According to the OECD about 70% to 95%
of businesses in all countries have fewer than 10 employees,
and small and medium sized businesses account
for over half of all employment-- over half
of all employment in OECD economies.
Now, our administration respects America's long, long tradition
of innovation and understands that the root of our prosperity
isn't government micromanaging, but economic freedom,
the stability of law, and culture
that supports the respectful exchange of services.
Now, we're successful as a country because we--
because as a people, have the guts,
have the vision, and the freedom to chase their dreams,
and because they live in a country
where the rules here really make that-- make that possible.
Now, acknowledging this spirit of the American people, one
of our primary goals within the Trump administration,
and particularly in my role at the White House
Office of Science and Technology Policy,
is to empower our citizens to innovate by really removing
barriers to innovators.
And that has been something we have really
been pursuing relentlessly for the past almost two years.
Our innovators are engaged in a magnificent project.
Perhaps day to day life seems normal to them.
They work, they grow, they invest.
But when they work, they build.
When they grow, they lift others up.
When they invest, they help others really
reach their dreams.
That's how the common citizens of America
created the most prosperous nation the world has ever
known.
We can already see this pro-innovation approach bearing
a lot of fruit here at home.
For example, the president recently
signed a memorandum to develop a new spectrum strategy so we
can deploy 5G faster, we can connect more Americans
to high-speed broadband, and we can
help participate in the prosperity of the 21st century.
Yet and also this year, the administration
decided to make tech transfer, a federally funded technology
from the lab to the market, an administration priority.
We want to help bridge what is known as the valley of death
in the innovation cycle, where universities stop funding
R and D, but it's far too early for the private sector
to step in.
And, of course, the administration
has had a bold deregulatory agenda and historic tax cuts
that have led to an economic boom lifting
all Americans nationwide.
Now our goal is to continue to enable investment growth
and opportunity throughout America.
And as we look to the future and begin
preparing for the next Global Entrepreneurship Summit,
I hope America's experience can help innovators
and entrepreneurs from around the world
to achieve their dreams as well.
We very much look forward to working with the entrepreneurs
and investors who will be at the conference
from hundreds of countries around the world.
And speaking directly from our office,
I cannot be more excited about what's to come next year.
So thank you so much, and we look forward
to supporting this in every way we can.