Israel Innovation Authority Name 5 Groups To Open Tech Incubators

The Israel Innovation Authority named the winners of five new technology incubators that will support startups in their initial stages with some NIS 500 million ($155 million.) The incubator will operate in the fields of climate, food tech, space, and bio-convergence, healthcare that fuses the advancements in biology and software engineering., the company said on Tuesday.

The incubators will be established and operated by experienced venture capital firms and local and international corporations.

The IIA selected five groups from the 13 that participated to establish incubators within a year. The winning groups include global corporations such as pharma companies, Bristol Myers Squibb, Becton Dickinson, Kyocera, Corning, CBG group, Eren Industries, and more.

The selected incubators are expected to establish about 150 new innovative technology companies within the next five years. In order to meet their obligations, the incubator franchisees must provide sources of financing and investment obligations in the incubators in excess of NIS 150 million (about $46 million.)

The winning incubators are: The Kitchen Hub 2, owned by the Strauss group, which was selected to operate a food-tech incubator with regard to alternative proteins, fermentation, and cellular agriculture; Netzero Ventures, which was selected to operate a climate incubator targeting hydrogen alternatives, water treatment, and reducing emissions tied to energy, transportation, and construction; Incentive Incubator NG, which was selected to operate a health incubator focused in precise and personalized medicine; NGT Healthcare 2, which was selected to operate another health tech incubator to advance bio convergent solutions for medical treatments and promote tech projects in Arab sectors; and Space & Earth, which was selected to operate a space and deep tech incubator to diversify its applications and establish Israel as a world leader in the sector. 

The startup companies established by the incubators will be entitled to a budget of up to NIS 6.5 million per project (roughly $2 million), which includes a 60-85 percent grant from the Israel Innovation Authority as well as complementary funding from each incubator’s respective capital firms. 

“The role of the government is focused on two issues: to be a catalyst for innovation and for the economy as a whole and to focus on areas in which the risk is high and the innovation is ground-breaking,” said Orit Farkash-Hacohen, Minister for Innovation, Science and Technology.

“The sectors in which the incubators will operate cover fields highlighted by the Authority’s strategy, in a way that will expand Israeli high-tech’s diversification…and create additional growth engines for the local economy,” said Dr. Ami Appelbaum, Chairman, Israel Innovation Authority.