Study Trip USA
Motivation
As part of the International or Global Executive MBA program, our students had the incredible opportunity to explore the dynamic and vibrant ecosystem of Silicon Valley during a study trip to the United States. 15 MBA students and Claudia Buchinger, the program manager, started the learning journey in San Francisco. They were curious to understand the Silicon Valley Mindset and Ecosystem where they received exclusive insights in innovation, mobility and AI.
Academic program
The first two days were hosted by the Faculty Club at UC Berkley. We’d like to express our gratitude to George Panagiotakopoulos for the engaging lectures at UC Berkeley. They learnt about Silicon Valley Ecosystem, the Startup Lifecycle and the Entrepreneurial Mindset 2.0. They know about the importance of Data Science after having Gregory LaBlanc as our guest speaker.
On the second day, the focus was on developing and building a good pitch, with amazing development potential within one training day (the CAL cap was a deciding factor).
Rick Rasmussen welcomed the Austrians at the UC Berkeley Sutardja Center for Entrepreneurship and Technology to tell them more about Equity Math and Venture Capital Business Model.
Many thanks to Rick Rasmussen for the compact content of the lecture and the very personal campus tour!
The final impulse took place on Saturday from Alina Adams with her lecture about sustainability and impact investing that particularly captivated the student group. The participants got valuable feedback on their final pitch including helpful suggestions.
Special thanks to Georg Fürlinger for the professional organization and coordination of the competent faculty, who teach at UC Berkeley and Berkeley Skydeck and are founders themselves.
Company visits
We visited a wide range of companies, from tech giants like Amazon Webservices (AWS), Tesla and LinkedIn to smaller, innovative players. The differing goals and approaches of these companies provided valuable insights into the diverse paths toward success.
Special thanks to Mario Herger, PhD for the coordination of the company visits. You enriched our experience with fascinating details and background information during the company visits.
Many thanks for the warm welcome and the impressive insights to Tesla, Learn.xyz and Christian Byza, Amazon Webservices (AWS) and Christopher Kuthan, Mani Honigstein (Tech Investor), LinkedIn and Matthias Zeller. We passed by the birthplace of Silicon Valley, the HP Garage and we made a quick stop at the Apple Visitor Center.
At the end of the day, car enthusiasts experienced an exhilaration of horsepower and luxury cars. Lucid Motors guarantees a luxurious, high-performance experience that showcases cutting-edge electric vehicle technology. Particularly the Lucid Air offers impressive acceleration, smooth handling and a quiet cabin. With advanced driver-assist features, a Lucid Motors drive feels futuristic, blending power, comfort, and sustainability seamlessly.
Mario Herger, PhD, offered our students on their Learning Journey the experience of autonomous driving with Waymo. A big thank to Mario!
Waymo is currently providing over 100,000 robotaxi rides per week in key cities like San Francisco, Phoenix, and Los Angeles. The conclusion was you quickly get used to it and by the second trip it no longer feels unusual because you develop an incredible trust in technology.
Networking
Tuesday evening was all about getting to know the great Open Austria TechCommunity in personal meetings during our networking event. Michael Dobersberger introduced himself in a 2-minute pitch and Claudia Buchinger was invited to talk shortly about the successful MBA-education at LIMAK Austrian Business School.
Cultural Insights
The participants discovered San Francisco with a very interesting and entertaining sightseeing tour. Special thanks to the city guide José. With Gray Line San Francisco they were visiting the Highlights of San Francisco: Golden Gate Bridge, Twin Peaks, Sales Force Tower, Lombard Street, Landsend, Palace of Arts, Mission Dolores, Golden Gate Park, Sausalito, …
One evening they took the ferry to discover Alcatraz by night. Amazing! A night tour of Alcatraz offered a unique experience, with the island’s dimly lit cellblocks and deserted grounds creating an intense, haunting atmosphere. They learnt about the prison’s dark history while enjoying stunning views of San Francisco’s skyline under the moonlight.
Take aways
After the exciting Learning Journey to the Bay Area the students will keep in mind:
- MOVE FAST
- THINK BIG
- BE EXCITED