US-Israel Foundation To Invest $7M In 8 New Joint Projects In VR, Cybersecurity, NanoTech

The Israel-US Binational Industrial Research and Development (BIRD) Foundation announced this week that it was investing close to $7.3 million in eight new joint projects between Israeli and American companies in a number of fields including cybersecurity, agriculture, and medical care.

The foundation, created in 1977 to foster collaboration between Israeli and American industries, said that the projects will also have access to private capital, bringing the total amount available to over $20 million.

The organization, which works with companies in both countries to identify strategic partners, said the eight joint projects, which are reviewed by evaluators tapped by the Israel Innovation Authority and the US National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), are the following:

– 4Cast Systems, a Petah Tikva-based Israeli company, will partner with and Adelos Inc., an applied research and product development company specializing in fiber optic sensor systems, to develop an advanced pipeline disaster prevention system.

– Ramat Gan-based Compedia, which develops advanced learning solutions using visual computing, augmented reality, virtual reality, advanced systems, and North Carolina’s Samaritan’s Purse, an evangelical Christian humanitarian aid organization, will develop VR skills and empowerment tools for disaster relief volunteers.

– HackerU Ltd, a Ramat Gan-based educational center for coding, and New York’s JustCode Inc. will develop cybersecurity and coding assessment platform for measuring and enhancing cyber readiness and tech talent competency.

– Juganu, the developer and creator of energy efficient LED lighting tech for indoor and outdoor spaces, and Newark, New Jersey-based Just Greens LLC, a grower of leafy greens and herbs, will develop a tunable, LED-based fixture for automated horticulture processes.

– Leviticus-Cardio Ltd., an Israeli medical device company that developed a wireless coplanar energy transfer system for congestive heart failures, and New York’s Jarvik Heart Inc, which develops and manufactures miniaturized heart assist devices, are partnering to work on the wireless Jarvik 2000® LVAD (Left Ventricular Assist Device), an investigational device used to support patients for lifetime use.

– Netanya’s Mitos Medical Ltd, also a medical device company dedicated to bringing surround vision to surgery, and Baltimore’s FiberTech Medical Inc, are set to design and manufacture a surround vision scope for the operating room.

– MS Tech Ltd, a Herzliya-based firm that develops and manufacturers nanotechnology detection and diagnostic sensors, and Tekwave Solutions Inc, in Alpharetta, GA, will develop a rapid field analysis of chlorates, perchlorates, fentanyl and synthetic opioids using nanotechnology detection sensors.

– Raanana-based Somatix Technologies Ltd., which developed a real-time patient monitoring platform for cost-effective healthcare and well-being enhancement, and Catholic Senior Housing and Health Care Services, Inc in Bethlehem, PA, will partner to develop a digital health system called “SafeBeing – ‘Aging in Place’ Lifestyle with Exceptional Peace of Mind.”

Dr. Phillip Singerman, Associate Director for Innovation and Industry Services at NIST and co-chairman of BIRD’s Board of Governors said in a statement that it was “satisfying to see how varied are the projects submitted to the BIRD Foundation with diversity in sectors, size of US companies and their geographical location, enhancing BIRD’s impact, for mutual benefit of the US. and Israel.

Singerman said the program was originally designed to enable mature US companies to help the emerging Israeli technology startups but four decades later, it is now enabling Israel’s mature technology ecosystem to join forces with US companies to compete in the new global market of the 21st century.

“The US is one of Israel’s major partner for innovation,” said Dr. Amiram Appelbaum, chief scientist at the Ministry of Economy and Industry, and chairman of the Israel Innovation Authority. “We are proud that our collaboration with the BIRD Foundation has seen such spectacular successes over the decades which resulted in groundbreaking technological innovations offered by both Israeli and US grantees. We are confident their innovative solutions in the varying fields will prove vital for the population worldwide. We are also calling on additional companies to submit their innovations for this program and be instrumental in finding the solution that will provide cutting edge solutions to the global challenges we are all facing.”

Dr. Eitan Yudilevich, executive director of the BIRD Foundation, said: “Consistent with BIRD’s mission, the selected projects reflect a high level of innovation, as well as the convergence of economic and social impact.”