When Indians, Israelis come together amazing things happen: Naftali Bennett

Bengaluru: Israel Prime Minister Naftali Bennett on Wednesday said when Indians and Israelis come together amazing things happen, and expressed hope about traveling to the country pretty soon to explore what the future holds for the two nations.

"Couple of weeks ago I met my dear friend Prime Minister Modi (Narendra Modi) and we discussed many ways that we can take Israel-India relations to the next level. Especially future technological collaboration between our countries, which can turn our great partnership into a powerhouse of innovation," Bennett said.

In his video message to the Bengaluru Tech Summit (BTS)-2021, he said, technology doesn't just have power to help lives, but also has the power to save lives, and if both countries join forces and put their minds to the mission, the opportunities are endless.

"I always say amazing people can do amazing things. India is one of the biggest countries in the world, with one of the biggest economies in the world and vast digital expertise, and Israel is one of the leading innovation nations of the world, the startup nations. When Indians and Israelis come together amazing things happen," he added.

The video message was played at the 24th edition of the BTS, that was inaugurated by Vice President of India M Venkaiah Naidu, Karnataka Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot, Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai, Minister for IT & BT, Science & Technology C N Ashwath Narayan, Industries Minister Murugesh Nirani, Biocon chief Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw among others.

Noting that he knew that amazing things happen if Indians and Israelis come together from his past experience, Bennett himself a former tech entrepreneur said, "in my previous life, I ran a company called Cyota, and we merged with an Indian company, and we were working together in our office in Manhattan."

"The fusion of the two civilisations, the two deep cultures was remarkable, and I believe in that fusion. I believed it then and I believe it now," he added.

Sharing the two "most important lessons" he learnt during his years in the hi-tech, the Israeli PM said, "the first and the most important lesson is when you found the company, the single biggest decision is not what the product is, not what the market is, not who your investors are. It's who your partners are, who you are going to do it together with, and you have to choose optimistic, smart people, can do folks, who view the actual startup as more important than their part within the startup."

He said, "the second lesson is to act, make things happen, don't pontificate too much. It's not just about innovation, it's also about entrepreneurship....so when you are not quite sure what to do, do. Practicality, pragmatism and productivity have the power to achieve technological solutions." The combination of creativity together with practicality, the combination of innovation and entrepreneurship, the combination of Israeli and Indian creativity, imagination and tenacity, has the power to do amazing things, he added.