May 20, 2018 | The Northern Health Science Alliance (NHSA), a system made up of eight research universities, eight teaching hospitals and four academic science networks across the north of England, signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the UK Israel Tech Hub Wednesday with the purpose of bringing Israeli health and MedTech innovations to northern England. The agreement will support Israeli healthcare firms establishing a presence in the UK, specifically in northern England. The NHSA will provide support to these companies, identified by the UK Israel Tech Hub, giving them the opportunity to access UK clinical research in the region and engage with health research professionals, teams, and clinical experts for the development of tech that will benefit the Northern Health Science system. The MOU was signed by NHSA Head of Corporate Affairs Suzanne Ali-Hassan with the British ambassador to Israel David Quarrey at the Mixiii-Biomed 2018 life science conference in Tel Aviv. “There are well over 1,400 life science and healthcare companies in Israel whose innovations have the potential to bring great benefits to the North’s hospitals and patient population,” Ali-Hassan said.
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Northern England Health Science Alliance To Bring Israeli Health Tech To UK
Waze App Now Available In Ford Sync3-Equipped Vehicles
May 17, 2018 | Ford announced on Thursday that customers with Sync 3-equipped Ford and Lincoln vehicles would be able to use the Waze navigation app directly on their built-in screens by plugging their iPhone to the car’s USB port. Ford first announced the partnership with the Israeli-founded company earlier this year at the annual Consumer Electronics Show (CES) conference in Las Vegas. This week, Ford announced that the system is available for Ford customers globally. Waze users can now view the navigation instructions and real-time traffic reports on the touch screen of all Ford models that have the SYNC AppLink and control the app with voice commands. They will also have easier access to different features, such as locating faster routes, navigating to reduced fuel stations, and reporting accidents on the road. Waze was founded in 2007 by Amir Shinar, Ehud Shabtai, and Uri Levine and acquired by Google for a reported $1.3 billion in 2013.
Cisco VP, Check Point Software Founder Among Keynote Speakers At 15th Bynet Expo
May 16, 2018 | The 15th Bynet Israel Tech Expo 2018, claiming to be the “the largest technology conference of the year in Israel,” was held on Tuesday, May 15 at the Tel Aviv Convention Center. This year, the conference marked 70 years of Israeli innovation with more then 6,000 participants from Israel and guests from around the world, including entrepreneurs, government officials, and senior corporate heads attending the event. Keynote speakers at the conference included Yehuda Zisapel, chairman of the RAD Group, independent companies that develop, manufacture, and market solutions for segments of the networking and telecommunications industry, Alon Ben Zur, CEO of Bynet Communications, Roy Zisapel, president and CEO of Radware, Liz Cantoni, senior vice president of Cisco, Ofir Akunis, Minister of Science, Technology, and Space, Gil Shwed, CEO and founder of IT security firm Check Point Software and Eyal Waldman, CEO of Mellanox Technologies. The conference was divided into nine content tracks exploring main trends and future developments in the tech world, government and smart cities, the future of banking, the future of health services, the future of the army and defense, the future of cybersecurity, the future of IT, and the future of digital and the customer experience.
Intel To Invest Up To $5B To Expand Production In Israel
May 16, 2018 | American multinational corporation and chipmaker giant Intel submitted plans to nearly double its manufacturing operations in Israel, and invest some $5 billion over the next two years. The details of the plans and timetables were not being disclosed at this point, Intel said in a statement this week. The company employs about 11,000 people in Israel and another 1,000 from Jerusalem-based Mobileye, which it acquired last year for $15.3 billion. It is considered the largest employer in the tech sector. Intel says that since it began operations in Israel, its investment in the Israeli economy has totaled $35 billion. Economy and Industry Minister Eli Cohen welcomed the latest plan, saying “Intel’s choice to continue making significant investments in Israel is an important expression of confidence in Israel and the Israeli economy.” Intel said it submitted a business plan, for government approval, to expand its operations in its Kiryat Gat fab technology plant. Haaretz reported that under the terms of the agreement with the Israeli government, Intel will get a 700 million-shekel grant ($194 million) and a reduced corporate income tax rate of just 5 percent until 2027. In return, Intel agreed to spend 3 billion shekels ($830 million) on local suppliers and will add 250 new jobs.
BrainQ Raises $8.8M To Treat Stroke And Spinal Cord Injury With AI
May 16, 2018 | Israeli medtech startup BrainQ, developing AI-powered technology to treat neurodisorders, has announced it has raised $5.3 million in a funding round to cap their total funding to date at $8.8 million. Investors from investors that include Norma Investments, the Tokyo-based fund IT-Farm, and Qure Ventures, Israel “first fund focused on exclusive on digital health” under equity crowdfunding platform OurCrowd, and other strategic angel investors. BrainQ says it will use the funding to further develop its non-invasive simulation device for commercialization in various markets. Funds will also be used to support clinical trials and grow their database. BrainQ is currently developing technology that uses AI algorithms to identify spectral patterns in a patient’s brain waves (known as “electroencephalogram” or “EEG.”) These patterns are then translated into a customized electromagnetic treatment for disabilities that arise from neurodisorders such as stroke and spinal cord injury. The AI-powered technology comes from developing one of the largest known Brain Computer Interface (“BCI”)-based EEG databases for motor tasks. BrainQ was named one of the four companies in the world to transform healthcare with AI last year. It’s currently participating in Google’s Launchpad Studio program in San Francisco. It’s also working with Google’s Israel accelerator. BrainQ is one of the key investments for OurCrowd Qure, a new fund launched in 2016 by OurCrowd – Israel’s first exclusive digital health fund and appearing at the MIXiii-BIOMED 2018 conference tomorrow for the Digital Health, IoT, and Big Data track.
Credit Suisse Commits $250M Investment for aMoon II Digital Health Fund
May 16, 2018 | Leading financial services company Credit Suisse has committed a $250 million investment for a new life sciences venture capital fund set up by aMoon Partners last month, Reuters reported on Wednesday, citing the fund’s managing partner Dr. Yair Schindel. He and Marius Nacht, the billionaire co-founder of cybersecurity giant CheckPoint Software Technologies, are the founders of aMoon Partners. Last month, they announced that they had raised $200 million from private investors for the fund, focused on mid- to late-stage companies in the health and medical technologies field. With the latest Credit Suisse commitment, the fund is now close to meeting its target of $500 million. The average investment will be between $10 million and $40 million, Schindel said last month, with most of the investments in Israel with possible opportunities in the US, the UK, and Switzerland. The first aMoon health fund was set up in 2017, with Nacht putting up $200 million. The fund invested in 16 startups.
Dropbox To Expand Israel Operations, Inaugurates New Tel Aviv Office
May 15, 2018 | Dropbox, the file hosting and cloud storage service headquartered in San Francisco, inaugurated its new Tel Aviv offices Tuesday on the 44th floor of the Azrieli Sarona Tower, the tallest building in Israel. Quentin Clark, Senior Vice President of Engineering, Product, and Design at the US Dropbox headquarters came to Israel to mark the event, alongside Meir Morgenstern, the Dropbox Israel Site Lead. During a presentation, the two spoke about the importance of the Tel Aviv office as an international R&D center and the growth of Dropbox in Israel and around the world. The company went public in the US in March this year and has room to double its size in employees in Tel Aviv as the company expands in Israel. “We’re here in Israel because of the talent,” Clark said during the presentation, “Dropbox can’t not be in Israel.” When asked what Israeli talent brings to the table, he mentioned military experience. “There is a very well-known educational system that goes beyond just university education,” he said. Currently, about 40 employees are working in the Dropbox Tel Aviv office, which is the second largest Dropbox presence outside of the US. The Tel Aviv office develops administrator controls and other features important to Dropbox Business customers. Dropbox first established its office in Herzilya in 2015, when it acquired the mobile productivity startup CloudOn, led by Morgenstern. Dropbox moved to the new Tel Aviv office about two and a half months ago, where it has offices next to neighbors like Facebook, Amazon, and Israeli market intelligence tool SimilarWeb. Dropbox currently has 12 international offices with 500 million registered users across 180 countries, and 2.5 million registered users in Israel. The company was founded in 2007 by Drew Houston and Arash Ferdow.
Sports Platform Minute Media Raises $17M From Goldman Sachs, Vintage Partners
May 15, 2018 | Sports and tech publishing platform Minute Media, announced on Tuesday that it raised $17 million in a Series F funding round comprised of new investors including Goldman Sachs and Vintage Partners, as well as existing investors such as Battery Ventures, Dawn Capital and Qumra Capital. The latest funding round brings the total raised by Minute Media since its founding in 2011 to $77 million. Minute Media operates three sports platforms: 90min, a leading global football publisher, DBLTAP, the esports brand focused on stories beyond the stage, and 12up, the US sports brand at the intersection of sports and pop culture. Minute Media allows fans to share their passion for the game with millions of other fans by creating articles, quizzes, slideshows, videos, listicles and other multimedia content to tell the stories behind the game. Minute Media has partnerships with dozens of third party publishers and brands including Sports Illustrated, USA Today Sports Media Group, MSN, ProSieben, and Horizon Media. The company employs 180 people in offices in Tel Aviv, New York, Los Angeles, London, Singapore, Tokyo, Manila, and Sao Paolo. The company says its revenue increased 130 percent from 2016 to 2017 “driven by a substantial investment into technology diversification and the launch of several mobile web product solutions and that upward trend is expected to continue in 2018.” Minute Media Founder and CEO Asaf Peled said in a statement that “unlike traditional players in our industry, our tech-driven approach to publishing has been key to our growth during such challenging times in digital media. We are clearly cemented at the intersection of platforms, publishers and communities.” Aaron Siegel, Managing Director at Goldman Sach said “the team at Minute Media is rewriting the playbook for sports media. Their focus on product, fan empowerment and global scale are key differentiating ingredients in the sector. We look forward to being a part of the continued growth.”
Boeing Teams Up With Assembrix For Secure 3D Printing
May 15, 2018 | American aerospace multinational Boeing announced this week that it signed a memorandum of understanding with Israeli company Assembrix, which developed a SaaS platform for 3D printers, to use its software “to manage and protect intellectual property shared with vendors during design and manufacturing.” Boeing Israel president David Ivry said the agreement “expands Boeing’s ties to Israeli industry while helping companies like Assembrix expand their business. Boeing seeks suppliers globally who meet stringent quality, schedule, cost and intellectual capital, and Assembrix does all of that.” Assembrix CEO Lior Polak said in a statement, “We are pleased to partner with Boeing and value its confidence in us and in our capabilities. This collaboration supports our vision to develop and implement innovative solutions that connect the world and take the additive manufacturing digital thread one step forward.” Assembrix’s software, Boeing said, “will enable Boeing to transmit additive manufacturing design information using secure distribution methods to protect data from being intercepted, corrupted or decrypted throughout the distribution and manufacturing processes.”
Connected Tech Giant Harman To Expand Israeli Operations, Open Smart Car Lab
May 14, 2018 | Harman, a subsidiary of electronics giant Samsung Electronics focusing on technology for automotive, consumer, and enterprise markets, has announced it will expand its operations in Israel by uniting three R&D centers and all of its Israeli-based employees into a 4,300 square meter building in Hod HaSharon. The new building will include a smart car lab where “automotive solutions will be examined in real-life conditions,” according to a company statement. It is also being set up to provide more working space for new employees that will be hired as the company continues its expansion in Israel. Harman, acquired by Samsung Electronics at the end of 2016 for $8 billion, has also acquired three Israeli startups: iOnRoad, a red alert company situated in Ramat Gan, Red Bend, a Hod HaSharon-based company enabling today’s cars to be connected to the cloud a and the automobile cyber protection company TowerSec, with offices in Kfar Saba.
Tel Aviv, Singapore Stock Exchanges Partner To Draw Tech, Healthcare Companies
May 14, 2018 | The Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (TASE) has teamed up with the Singapore stock exchange to allow Israeli tech and biomed companies to list and raise money on both markets simultaneously. The partnership will help companies during the pre-listing stage, facilitate the listing process and will provide post-listing support by leveraging networks and platforms from the exchanges. In January, the Israel Securities Authority approved a plan to allow Israeli companies traded in Singapore, Hong Kong, and Toronto to list on the TASE at the same time. In an effort to boost trade volumes, the TASE has also been tapping into new markets and making internal changes, a statement said.
Israeli Aircraft Startup Nabs Fast Company’s World Changing Ideas Award
May 13, 2018 | Israeli startup Eviation Aircraft, a company building an electric nine-seat airplane, was selected as the winner of the transportation category of Fast Company’s 2018 World Changing Ideas Awards last month. “Twelve companies, initiatives, concepts and projects poised to help shift society to a more sustainable and more equitable future” were chosen by Fast Company from nearly 1,400 entries for 12 different categories. Eviation Aircraft’s plane, called the Alice Commuter, expects to begin making its first commercial flights in 2021. According to Fast Company, the startup has decided to go all-electric for its first plane because they believe it will make flights more affordable. Tickets for flights are expected to cost less than driving or taking the train. “There is a revolution happening in aviation, and it’s happening because of lightweight materials, energy density of batteries, the power of electric propulsion, and the computer power of managing this together,” says Omer Bar-Yohay, co-founder, and CEO of Eviation Aircraft told Fast Company. The company has been building this full-scale aircraft since mid-2017 and will start to take test flights with it in 2019. The plane is designed to be as comfortable as flying on a private jet so passengers won’t mind the small size. The company hopes that people will use the planes to fly between smaller airports but hopes that over time that bigger airlines would use the planes for short flights, with more direct flights between smaller cities. Bar-Yohay says larger planes (carrying 19 passengers) and smaller vertical takeoff planes for urban transportation will also be in the works in the future. Eviation Aircraft was founded in 2016 and is based in Kadima in central Israel.
Israel’s 17th Annual BioMed, BioTech Confab Opens This Week
May 13, 2018 | Israel is hosting the 17th MIXiii-BIOMED 2018 Conference and Exhibition in Tel Aviv this week, bringing together hundreds of healthcare professionals, investors, and speakers for the annual event focusing on innovation in the Israeli life science industry. The three-day confab will take place between May 15-17, 2018, at the David InterContinental Hotel in Tel Aviv and will look at trends and developments that are shaping the future of healthcare systems and life sciences, including in digital health, oncology treatments, medical devices, nanomedicine, and personalized diagnostics. Ahead of the conference, organizers released facts and figures about the industry, noting its ” compounded annual growth (CAGR) of 10 percent from 2008 to 2017.” Israeli life science companies, of which there are 1,200, raised $1.2 billion in VC funds in 2017, over 135 investment deals, marking a 41 percent increase compared to 2016, with $850 million raised in 137 deals. Last year also saw two significant exists, the acquisition of NeuroDerm by Mitsubishi Tanabe for $1.1 billion, and of Valtech by Edwards Lifesciences for $1 billion with an upfront payment of $340 million. The report also emphasized growing trends in the industry, including how the influences of artificial intelligence will transform medical diagnosis, the rise of immunotherapy and gene therapy, personalized medicine and tackling disease progression.
Israelis Rejoice As Netta Barzilai’s ‘Toy’ Wins Eurovision Song Contest
May 13, 2018 | Israel won the annual Eurovision song contest for the first time since 1998 as singer Netta Barzilai clucked her way to first place in the 63rd year of the international song contest with her female empowerment hit “Toy” for the #MeToo era. “I feel super honored to be here…to be on this stage. To have changed a little bit the world. To show something different in front of 200 million people,” she excitedly told a reporter in her first reaction after winning the competition. “For the majority to choose me is groundbreaking,” she said, shaking her head in disbelief. “Next year in Jerusalem,” she shouted, to applause. Moments later, Barzilai received a phone call from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu who told her she was Israel’s “best ambassador.” Later, the singer told a press conference in Lisbon that “I believe authenticity passes through,” when asked how she stacked up against other competitors, particularly singer Eleni Foureira from Cyprus who became the favorite in the final week of the conference. Barzilai had been the fan favorite until that point and it was a majority of votes from viewers that helped her win the competition above Cyprus and Austria in second and third place. The 25-year old Barzilai, originally from Hod Hasharon, has been praised for her realness, confidence, and talent. Answering Hebrew questions later on Barzilai said, “Israel deserves a reason to celebrate,” before talking about how much she loved her country. Israelis gathered in Rabin Square to celebrate the victory, with some even jumping into a fountain and singing the Israeli national anthem Hatikva. Later, Barzilai promised she would be at the Tel Aviv Pride Parade, taking place on June 8. Israel has participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 41 times since making its debut in 1973. It has won the contest four times, with the last win from Dana International with her song “Diva” in 1998. Barzilai’s victory, Israel’s fourth in the contest, comes 20 years later.
Two Israeli Startups Join Berlin’s Metro Accelerator Powered By Techstars
May 13, 2018 | Two Israeli startups were selected to take part in Berlin’s retail-focused Metro Accelerator powered by Techstars, the American seed accelerator founded in 2006, according to a statement. The companies will take part in the accelerator for three months, where they will receive guidance from more than 100 high-tech professionals from Germany retail groupMetro AG, the fourth largest retail chain in the world, and Techstars. They will also receive up to $143,530 in funding as a possible investment and be presented in July as part of demo days to private investors and venture capitalists in London, England and Munich, Germany. The two Israeli startups to join the accelerator are LSVR, a Tel Aviv-based company that uses AI and computer vision to help “people to get engaged on their buying expedition and continue with their personal e-commerce flow” and NeuroApplied, a Hadera-based company developing a platform using machine-learning analytics in combination with neural-networks computing in order “to provide clients with useful data collected from the associative subconscious of their customers.” The Metro Accelerator by Techstars was launched in 2015 to “empower entrepreneurs to scale-up their solutions and access networks curated by both Techstars and Metro AG along with selected partners.” Metro Accelerator Program Director Sylvia Dudek said, “The Israeli companies selected from among the best and most successful candidates will enjoy a basket of benefits and direct access to the intellectual capital of one of the world’s leading food and retail chains and the top managers there. The level of activity in Israel and its quality impress us, ” says Dudek. “Since we started the operations, we have met quite a few young Israeli companies and all along we have discovered unique thinking outside the box, innovation and daring.”
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