Israeli ‘Smart-Industry’ Startups Nabbed $650M From Investors In 2019

This article was first published by The Times of Israel and is re-posted with permission

Investments in Israeli startups that are trying to bring innovation to age-old industries — making them digital and smarter — have jumped in five years, to $650 million at the end of 2019 from $112 million in 2014, according to data released by the nonprofit Start-Up Nation Central.

TECH NEWS: Israeli-Japanese Venture Launches World’s First Agency Offering Autonomous Robots-For-Hire

The 2019 financial figure accounts for 6 percent of global VC-backed financing into the Industry 4.0 sector, also known as the I4 industry, according to the organization’s database Start-Up Nation Finder and data firm Pitchbook.

But while funding injected into these firms is growing, these startups are struggling for revenues, paying customers, and growth because the sector is still in its early stages and Israeli industry, being small and often non-competitive globally, offers limited growth opportunities, said Yuval Engelstein of Start-Up Nation in a blog posted on the nonprofit’s website.

To read the full article, click here.

[Start-Up Nation Central, Grove Ventures, and Deloitte are hosting the largest gathering of Industry 4.0 professionals in Tel Aviv for II4 Week 2020 on February 24-27. The series of events, mainly in Tel Aviv, will focus on how disruptive technological advancements such as AI, computer vision, cybersecurity, smart sensors, blockchain, and automation processes, are helping to change the way products are manufactured, designed, and marketed.]