Photo from 2024 Taiwan trip / Courtesy: County Executive Marc Elrich
For the third year in a row, County Executive Marc Elrich is in Taiwan for an international conference and to recruit businesses to expand in the county.
The 2025 Smart City Summit & Expo is “Asia’s largest Smart city tradeshow” and brings together international leaders, business partners, and exhibitors to explore digital and green innovations, according to the event website.
Along with attending the conference, Elrich will meet with universities and biotechnology/technology companies.
“Our goal is to try to bring people back to Montgomery County so they can expand their businesses here,” Elrich said while mentioning the trip during his operating budget announcement last week.
“We are very careful, we do not say, ‘We want your company to leave Taiwan.’ We talk about expanding in operation, having a subsidiary in the United States,” he said.
Maryland Secretary of State Susan Lee and County Councilmember Andrew Friedson are joining the trip, County Chief Administrative Officer Rich Madaleno said during a media briefing Wednesday.
In 2023, Elrich traveled to Taiwan for his first international economic trade mission as county executive. Elrich has also traveled to China, India, Korea, and Vietnam with similar economic development goals.
