News Briefs

January 5, 2015 | The Israeli cabinet has approved an investment plan that will strengthen ties with Japan across a number of sectors, including space and cyber-related research. The Israeli government is set to allot millions of shekels over a period of three years, to foster bilateral trade relations, expand research grants and increase cooperation in the sectors of space, cyber and information security. The state of Israel must vary the markets in which we are active,” Netanyahu told Cabinet members on Jan. 4.: “In the last two years, I have met with the leaders of China, Japan and India as part of a comprehensive policy of turning to major markets, including Latin America and Africa.”

[sharethis-inline-buttons]

January 5, 2014 | The Israeli company that makes wearable exoskeletons for paraplegics, ReWalk Robotics, has named a new Chief Financial Officer. Kevin W. Hershberger, the former controller and chief accounting officer at NxStage Medical, will take over as CFO, taking the place of Ami Kraft. ReWalk has offices in Israel, Berlin and Marlborough and offers an award-winning exoskeleton for use by paraplegic individuals. ReWalk was founded by Dr. Amit Goffer in 2001.

[sharethis-inline-buttons]

January 5, 2015 | The Israel application for monitoring pregnancy, Totally Pregnant, is set to begin expansion within the US. The app, which is currently available on iOS and Android, takes a number primary criteria to present personalized content to expecting mothers. In addition, it allows mothers to view their fetus in 3D and answers questions on nutrition, health and provides important information. The company that owns the application, Totali, has based its US offices in Houston, Texas with hopes to market the app to hospitals as a viable service. Totally Pregnant was founded in 2012 by CEO Niv Adi and has raised $1.5 million in seed funding.

[sharethis-inline-buttons]

January 1, 2014 | The Israeli company listed on NASDAQ NeuroDerm saw its share price doubled following the announcement of results from a Parkinson’s drug trial. According to the company, a mid-stage study showed that giving patients a higher dose of its Parkinson’s drug could allow them to avoid surgery in certain cases. NeuroDerm’s Parkinson’s medication is delivered through a waist-worn pump as compared to other methods delivered orally. As a result of the study’s conclusions, NeuroDerm’s share price doubled, reaching a record high of $14.12 and giving the company a market valuation of $231 million.

[sharethis-inline-buttons]

January 1, 2015 | The Israeli startup SimpleOrder, which develops a management platform for restaurant owners, announced that it completed a $750,000 funding round led by Cyrus Angel Fund. SimpleOrder’s platform allows restaurant owners and managers to keep track of accounting and other financial data in real time, providing for more transparency in order-placing and making the service industry more efficient. SimpleOrder was founded in 2011 by Arik Mazan, Amir Zelig and Guy Even Ezra.

[sharethis-inline-buttons]

January 1, 2015 | EMC, the American information security, virtualization and cloud computing company, announced that Erez Tsur was named the new CEO in Israel. He will take the place of former Israel CEO Danny Neuberger in February of this year. Tsur will lead EMC’s business in Israel, working with the company’s clients in Israel. EMC has a sales and services division in Israel, as well as a research and development sector, actively acquiring Israeli startups. In the past, Tsur served as the CEO of chip developing company Candence Design Systems that employs hundreds in Israel.

[sharethis-inline-buttons]

January 1. 2015 | The Israeli company Brainsway, developing a unique treatment for brain disorders, announced that due to increased interest in the United States, it will launch a subsidiary in the US. Brainsway USA is already working towards recruiting key personnel and is working towards building a versatile team of employees that will expand the company in the US. Brainsway develops and markets Deep TMS (Deep Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation) systems for the treatment of brain disorders, a technology based on patents filed with the National Institutes of Health. The use of the company’s technology for the treatment of depression was recently approved by the US Food & Drug Administration.

[sharethis-inline-buttons]

Beepi, the largest peer-to-peer marketplace to buy and sell used cars, closed a $12.7 million funding round from AngeList, the hub for early-stage startup investments, Yuri Milnet and Scott Bommer. Angelist raised $2.7 million of the amount, the largest amount ever raised with this platform. Millie Tadewalt, AngelList Business Lead for Fundraising Products said, “This is an excellent example of the AngelList platform enabling dozens of distributed angels to efficiently come together, invest in and support startups like Beepi.” This funding comes on the heels of the company’s $60 million Series B round from Foundation Capital and SherpaVentures.

[sharethis-inline-buttons]

December 30, 2014 | The Israeli startup Zuznow will open an office at Stony Brook University in New York to take advantage of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo’s tax-free business zones. As part of the Governor’s initiative, companies will establish their offices at New York colleges and universities in order to receive tax-free conditions, and in return they will employ locals. Zuznow was one of the 13 businesses chosen, and the Israel-based company will establish its first US offices on the Long Island campus of Stony Brook University. The businesses are allowed to operate 10 years without paying state income, business, corporate, and sales taxes; property taxes and franchise fees. impressive conditions for an up-and-coming startup like Zuznow. Zuznow allows users to convert web applications into mobile applications seamlessly and was founded by CEO Chen Levkovich and Business Developer Rachel Batish.

[sharethis-inline-buttons]

December 30, 2014 | The Israeli company Chiasma raised $33.8 million in a $563 million funding round, according to regulatory findings. The announcement comes some months after a $595 million commercialization deal for the company feel through. Chiasma’s main product, called oral octreotide was developed to treat acromegaly, a disorder that results from the excess growth of hormones. Current investors participating in the funding round include: MPM Capital, Abingworth, 7-Med Health Ventures LP, ARCH Venture Partners and F2 and F3 Ventures.

[sharethis-inline-buttons]

December 30, 2014 | The American publication “Advertising Age” published a list entitled ‘Creativity 50:2014’ including Israeli director Vania Heymann. The annually complied list outlines the most creative individuals in advertising and media in the outgoing year. Heymann was chosen as part of the list for his various video art achievements, including the first interactive music video for Bob Dylan’s classic song “Like A Rolling Stone.” Heymann, a graduate of Jerusalem’s Bezalel Academy of Art and Design, is only 28-years-old, but his talents are internationally recognized.

[sharethis-inline-buttons]

December 30, 2014 | The content recommendation company Taboola is set to close a $100 million funding round from existing and new American investors. The Israeli company has developed a system that recommends text and video content for readers. The funding round is set to be completed in the coming weeks and will likely be Taboola’s last such funding round as a private company. Taboola, founded in 2007 by Adam Singolda, is set to file for an initial public offering in 2015.

[sharethis-inline-buttons]

December 30, 2014 | The Israel-US Binational Industrial Research and Development (BIRD) Foundation approved $8.3 million in funding for eleven new shared projects between Israeli and American companies. In addition to receiving grants from BIRD, the selected projects will have access to private sector funding, boosting the combined value of the projects to approx. $23 million. The approved projects include: BrainsGate-Formlabs, Danziger Innovations-Precision BioSciences, FSV6-Abbott Medical Optics, Hy-Laboratories-GENEWIZ, IOSight-American Water Works Company, MobileOCT-Dimagi, Oregensis-Pall Corporation, SCD-Quantum Imaging, Softwheel-Crawford Composites, ThetaRay-GE Global Research and Timocoo-Rhode Island Hospital’s joint projects. These eleven projects are added to the over 900 projects already approved for grants by the BIRD Foundation during its 37-year history, investing over $300 million.

[sharethis-inline-buttons]

December 30, 2014 | Glilot Capital Partners, a mainly early-stage investor in cybersecurity and internet startups, announced that it is about to close funding for its second fund, which will total $70 million, according to a “Globes” report. Glilot’s last funding round took place in 2012 according to most assessments. Glilot Capital makes seed and early stage investments in Israeli technology companies, mainly cybersecurity companies, coaching them through their seed round of funding through to an exit. The fund’s investors include both institutional bodies and private investors. The fund was established by a number of serial investors.

[sharethis-inline-buttons]

December 30, 2014 | The Hongkou District in China has established a science and technology center in a central area of Shanghai that will include an Israeli incubation center. One of the goals of the newly established Dabaishu Science and Technology Innovative Center will be to encourage Israeli companies to invest in Shanghai businesses and to offer supporting services. The city of Haifa also signed an agreement with the center to establish the Hipcenter, a center to help Israeli companies invest in Shanghai startups that will also help Israeli companies gain a foothold in China. According to Arnon Perlman, the consul general of Israel in Shanghai, the Israeli companies that will invest in Shanghai focus on the sectors of high-tech, medicine, water treatment, the environment and agriculture.

[sharethis-inline-buttons]