Argentina’s ambassador to the U.S. covered his diplomatic bases, extolling recent reforms and recommending investors take another look at a South American country that has made an art form out of dealing with volatility.
But during a Monday chat designed to explore prospects for weaving its tech ecosystem together with Atlanta’s, Alejandro “Alec” Oxenford also dusted off his entrepreneurial hat.
The founder of three companies, including two unicorns, shared hard-won wisdom with 13 visiting Argentine companies and Atlanta firms set to engage in some wine-fueled speed meetings designed to foster cross-border business deals.
During a speech and talk with Technology Association of Georgia President Larry Williams, Mr. Oxenford explained how some of Argentina became a breeding ground for billion-dollar companies during the tech bubble of the late 1990s and early 2000s.
Some 14 unicorns, about 80 percent of those founded in Latin America, were born in this crucible — from a country with just 10 percent of the region’s population.
“My point is that there is something that was evidenced back then (that was) quite special about Argentina and the capacity to take advantage of a favorable context quicker than others and turn that into viable companies,” he said.
The lost decades following that notwithstanding, when Argentina faced persistent debt and currency crises, the country’s creativity amid adversity remains a feature, not a bug, of the local tech ecosystem, Mr. Oxenford said, praising an economic system that has produced five Nobel laureates and a savvy workforce.
“For a whole class of younger people, being able to sell their services outside of Argentina proved to be a very good way to circumvent the problems that the instability in the country generated,” he said.
The implication was clear: If Argentine companies like Globant have grown to the point of serving companies with the complex needs of the world’s Disneys and Googles, such tech talent deserves a look from Atlanta companies in fintech, cybersecurity and beyond.
A Natural Fit With Atlanta
Thanks to the Consulate General of Argentina in Atlanta, that link has been cultivated for years, but talks are intensifying as the two sides gain more exposure through delegations like the group that touched down this week.
Mr. Oxenford noted many “compatible” sectors, including payments, where Argentine innovators like Ualá, a Latin American financial super app that could bring its inclusive approach to the U.S. [Read more about Uala on Global Atlanta here: Five Latin American Fintechs Disrupting Traditional Banking Showcased in Atlanta]
“It could be one of those few cases where something happens in Latin America, and then comes to the U.S. Normally, it’s the reverse,” the ambassador said. “Who knows? It could be the case that this time around, it’s different.”
Beyond its massive airport, universities and traditional economic assets, Mr. Oxenford said he was convinced of Atlanta’s appeal by a more pertinent data point: More Americans are moving here.
“(Relocating) is emotionally costly. It’s very difficult. It’s one of the most difficult decisions people can take. If they’re deciding to come here, there must be very good reasons for that.”
Mr. Williams, the president of 30,000-member TAG, laid out some of them, outlining the strengths of Georgia as a tech hub that doesn’t have a single calling card but hangs its hat on pragmatism and a sense of community.
“I really describe Georgia as where technology meets the real world. It’s not necessarily the shiniest new gadget or the coolest new social app, but we have more people that are building companies, utilizing technology to drive revenue and build globally dominant companies, than probably anywhere else, and it’s very practical in its purpose,” Mr. Williams said.
The modem, for instance, was invented in Atlanta, and the plumbing of the electronic payments system in the U.S. is here, with some 70 percent of transactions processed by companies with a Georgia presence, Mr. Williams said in a discussion moderated by Ania Lackey of Fintech Atlanta. The New York Stock Exchange, he noted, is owned and run by metro-Atlanta-based IntercontinentalExchange, or ICE.
But perhaps most important for the Argentines was Mr. Williams’ description of the ecumenical nature off the tech community here. Unlike other cities, companies in the “understated” South are less cutthroat and more wedded to the theory that a rising tide lifts all boats.
“People here care about your success, even your competitor. We believe that your success is our success, and you will see that throughout not only people’s words, but people will make the introductions, people will take the time to help you,” Mr. Williams said. “Because when we succeed, you succeed, and vice versa, and that is the true part about what makes Georgia special.”
The world is soon to experience that when people arrive for the World Cup next year, which Mr. Williams views as the second “quantum moment” for metro Atlanta, 30 years after the Olympics created the first.
Ambassador Oxenford, whose futbol-crazed country fielded the national team that won the 2022 World Cup, was interested.
“I hope to visit you,” he said, to laughter from the audience.
Beyond Tech: A Strategic Moment in U.S.-Argentina Ties
Beyond technology, the U.S.-Argentina relationship faces a unique and “unprecedented” moment, the ambassador took a moment to lay out in his larger speech.
Argentina’s libertarian President Javier Milei has visited the U.S. 16 times since taking office 14 months ago. He’s held an audience with President Donald Trump on five or six of those occasions, helping lead to a framework trade agreement the countries announced in mid-November. (Critics will say the leaders enjoy perhaps too much alignment, given that the U.S. Treasury Department under Mr. Trump backed an unconventional $20 billion currency swap in October meant to prop up the Argentine economy, and, by extension, Mr. Milei, ahead of recent elections.)
The outcome of that important October contest, which gave Mr. Milei’s La Libertad Avanza party a mandate to continue his aggressive reforms, shows that Argentine voters are seeing results as inflation falls and public spending is reined in, Mr. Oxenford said.
And more can be done, he added: Energy is “exploding” in Argentina, as the country seeks to exploit vast oil and gas reserves in the Vaca Muerta region, he added.
“We think, without changing the growth curve, that in three to five years, we will have the equivalent of the whole Pampas region agricultural production in dollars coming out of the energy sector, so we’re doubling Argentina’s export capacity.”
That will also happen in mining, where Argentina holds plentiful unexploited reserves of minerals like lithium and copper. As an illustration, Mr. Oxenford pointed out that Argentina exports about one-tenth of Chile’s copper output, despite sharing the eastern half of the same Andean range where it’s mostly mined.
“Same mountain, same kind of DNA. There’s no real explanation why this should be the case,” he said, noting that Argentina has a history of “preventing ourselves from taking advantage of the resources with which we have been blessed.”
The 13 companies that accompanied him, the ambassador said, provide an example of the human resources that continue to be a boon for the country of 47 million.
He invited local participants in the event to connect with these companies, which contributed to Argentina’s $8 billion in software exports, and foster new business ties before they headed to Austin, Texas.
“This is a very profitable meeting. I hope everybody enjoys it,” he said. The TAG International Business Society, which helped coordinate the “South Meets South” reception along with accounting firm Frazier & Deeter, noted that more than 70 companies, chambers and connectors sat down with the 13 companies during the event.
Mr. Oxenford also praised business as being a better venue for effecting change the politics and dropped a bit of wisdom for the fellow tech founders in the room about thinking big, finding co-founders and dealing with the coming onslaught of AI, which he sees leveling the playing field to create “a whole planet full of entrepreneurs” who will bring ideas to market at much lower cost.
But perhaps the most profitable thing many gleaned from being present? A business card with the cell phone number of the unicorn founder-turned-diplomat who headlined the event.
Learn more about the 13 companies who attended here or in the Global Atlanta story here, or contact the Consulate General of Argentina and learn more about the breadth of the mission on LinkedIn. Over two days, the delegation visited the following destinations and organizations:
- Burr + Forman (reverse pitch session with Mercedes-Benz USA, CONA Services — Coke’s IT arm — Amdocs, UPS and Kimberly-Clark)
- Atlanta Tech Village
- TAG
- NXTMOVES
- Investment roundtable with Atlanta tech attorney John Yates
- Woodruff Arts Center
…and more.
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