Israel dominates in all high technology categories

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu explains the importance of migrating Russian Jews with key technical skills to the United States and Israel to maximize their skill sets to make Soviet Israel the world’s leading technological power.

eToro Launches Crypto-Based Universal Basic Income Project GoodDollar | The project is being incubated by the company in London and Tel Aviv. https://coinjournal.net/etoro-launches-crypto-based-universal-basic-income-project-gooddollar/

Shamah, David. (January 31, 2014). “ QualComm founder a fan long before ‘Start-Up Nation’ ” | Irwin M. Jacobs prides himself on being one of the first US entrepreneurs to discover what Israel could do for multinationals. Times of Israel. https://www.timesofisrael.com/qualcomm-founder-a-fan-long-before-start-up-nation/ excerpts

Israel’s Bar-Ilan University: Nano-Institute at the cutting edge of medical research https://www.healtheuropa.eu/bar-ilan-university/88857/

Why Data Science is Booming in Israel | Israel’s tech sector is one of the hottest in the world… The country’s startup culture has transformed Israel into a competitive tech industry with some of the world’s most promising startups calling Israel home.

And there’s also the benefit of Tel Aviv holding the Data Science Summit for four years.

The event is hosted by IGTCloud , and it was held in May. Data Science is one of the world’s driving industries because we have more data than ever before. The goal of autonomous driving can only be met with proper data scientists at the helm.

These individuals will be able to help intelligence robots and future AI calculate and make sense of big data.

Machine-learning and deep learning are all dependent on big data. …

Data science is an industry that is truly innovative, and it will be the industry that offers the most potential for technological change.

And there’s a new reason for students to start pursuing their masters in data science : Yandex.

Yandex, the “Google of Russia,” is going to expand into Israel. The tech firm, the largest in Russia, will be launching a few services in Israel. The firm will be launching Yandex Music in just a few weeks, and then there are additional plans for Israel.

Times of Israel broke the news that Yandex is still thinking about opening a taxi venture in Israel and also plans to offer an eight-month course in data science. Yandex plans to introduce their Y-Data initiative in Israel, a course that will be very similar to what is already running in Russia. https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/why-data-science-is-booming-in-israel/

How did Israel get access to US high technology and intellectual property? It all began in the 1970s, when the US and Israeli governments formed BIRD (Israel-United States Bi-national Industrial Research and Development) Foundation. BIRD funds joint partnerships between Israeli and American companies, with 50 percent of its funding coming from the US government. That’s right, our taxpayer money is funding Israeli industry, while our infrastructure is in shambles. This quote from a Bloomberg article is Talpiot in action, “The company [BIRD] promotes joint industrial R&D between American and Israeli companies. They provide a maximum of $1.2 million funding per project. BIRD-supported projects allow leading Israeli technology companies to access key world class-US companies and establish business ties.” There you go, US government funded BIRD gives Israeli tech companies access to “world-class US companies.” That is where the Israeli high tech industry gets its lifeblood. Using this access to US industry, Israel set up a massive espionage operation in the United States to steal secret US defense secrets, military technology, and intellectual property in the early 1980s. One operative, Jonathan Pollard, was caught in this operation. Pollard was a US intelligence agent/Israeli spy who stole thousands of documents revealing the methods used by the US for signal intelligence gathering. From then on, Israel had the same intelligence gathering capabilities as the United States. Without Pollard, Israel would never have been able to engage in signal intelligence gathering, which means that the infamous Israeli companies tied to 9/11: Amdocs and Verint, would never have been formed. But Pollard was just the tip of the iceberg. There was a whole Israeli Espionage Network surrounding and working with Pollard, including guys like Richard Perle, Frank Gafney JR, Douglas J Feith, John F Lehman Jr, and Paul Wolfowitz.

All this technology that Israel has stolen was developed by tax payer money through DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency). Nearly all of Apple’s technology was developed by DARPA. Google emerged through DARPA technology and the CIA’s MDDS (Massive Digital Data Systems) project, and Facebook raised its initial capital through an investment from Peter Thiel, whose data mining company, Palantir, was first funded by the CIA Venture capital firm, In Q Tel.

Furthermore, there are Zionist fingerprints all over tech giants like Google and Facebook. Google was initially partly funded by American Jew, Andy Bechtolsheim, the co founder of the tech firm, Sun Microsystems, which has a major R&D center in Israel. Many other tech firms including Google, Facebook, IBM, Motorola, Microsoft, Qualcomm, and Apple have R&D centers in Israel as well. Why would these firms choose to have R&D centers near Tel Aviv? Tel Aviv is the ninth most expensive city in the world. Furthermore, it would make more sense economically to have R&D centers in a place like Bangladesh. where wages are significantly lower with a similar supply of high tech workers. https://talpiottalk.com/2018/08/10/persian-nationalist-history-of-israeli-tech-domination-israel-has-violated-us-law-by-re-exporting-us-military-technology-to-china-yet-they-have-never-beared-any-consequences/

BIRD Approved Projects http://www.birdf.com/approved-projects/

The book tells the story of the birth of the Israeli High-Tech industry from the early 1960’s to the early 1990’s. It provides a fascinating account of the early entrepreneurs and companies that were at the heart of the initial creation and development of the technology industry in Israel; and how it evolved to become a significant force on a global scale.

The book is structured as a set of interlinked personal stories of key people, the pioneers who are responsible for establishing and developing the companies that were the foundation stone of the industry.

The book covers the following people and companies: https://openlibrary.org/books/OL18623011M/Shevavim_shel_ti%E1%B8%B3%E1%B9%BFah_(Literally_%E2%80%9CMicrochips_of_Hope%E2%80%9D)

2018 Gandel Symposium on the Middle East: Maintaining Israel’s Technological Supremacy https://youtu.be/ROnJRI0GAvI

Israel – The World’s Cyber Capital https://youtu.be/z2-zUh4Ngtc

Holy Land: Startup Nations (Full Documentary) | Future Cities | WIRED https://youtu.be/I5h8GfxIWVY

Israel’s Largest Bank Begins Blockchain Trial With Microsoft https://www.coindesk.com/israels-largest-bank-begins-blockchain-trial-microsoft/

Israeli Blockchain Association | Partners http://blockchainisrael.io/#partners

Israel ’15 years ahead’ in cyber warfare capabilities | [T]he Israeli military does boast some of the most advanced cyber capabilities in the world.

“We are ahead of the rest of the world in digital capabilities by at least 15 years. We’re integrated operational internet capabilities which enable any commander to do anything in any place,” the officer explained. – Israel National News 2016 https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/208126

The top 10 icons of Israeli high-tech – part one | Long before Israel was known as the startup nation, skilled and visionary men were already putting it on course as the next Silicon Valley. In the first of a two-part series, ISRAEL21c takes a look at Israel’s top 10 high-tech pioneers. https://www.israel21c.org/the-top-10-icons-of-israeli-high-tech-the-pioneers/

Full text of Netanyahu’s 2018 address to AIPAC | And there is a revolution taking place. This couldn’t happen at the better time. Look at the ten leading companies in 2006: five energy companies, one IT company, Microsoft. And a mere 10 years later, 2016, a blink of an eye in historical terms, it’s completely reversed. Five IT companies, one energy company left. The true wealth is in innovation. You know these companies: Apple, Google, Microsoft, Amazon, Facebook. Guess what? They all have research centers in Israel. All of them, major research centers. And they’re not alone. There are hundreds more. And there’s a reason, something is going on. It’s a great change. It’s—you want to hear jargon? It’s one sentence. This is a terrible sentence, but I have no other way to say it. It’s the confluence of big data, connectivity and artificial intelligence , okay? Do you get that? You know what that does? It revolutionizes old industries and it creates entirely new industries.

So here’s an old industry that Israel was always great in: agriculture. We were always good in agriculture. But now we have precision agriculture. You know what that is? See that drone in the sky? He’s connected to a big database. And there are sensors in the field, and in the field there’s drip irrigation and drip fertilization. And now we can target, with this technology, the water that we give, the fertilizer that we give down to the individual plant that needs it. That’s precision agriculture. That’s Israel. Unbelievable. https://www.timesofisrael.com/full-text-of-netanyahus-2018-address-to-aipac/

“Despite Israel’s small size geographically, it is a leader in the cybersecurity sphere and a desired partner for collaboration worldwide, said former CIA director [Retired] General David Petraeus … at the [2018] annual CyberTech conference in Tel Aviv.

Speaking at the event, which is hosting some 15,000 attendees from 80 countries over the course of three days, including representatives from 210 companies and 160 international delegations, Petraeus said, “ Israel is a small country in all aspects, but it is a cyber superpower . …

The ex-CIA chief added that the collaboration between the US and Israel reached “new heights time and time again, far beyond what is being published in the media ”. – NoCamels.com 2018 http://nocamels.com/2018/01/israel-cyber-superpower-cia-cybertech-2018/

Billionaire Elon Musk visits Israel to scour tech, party in Jerusalem, hike Masada | The tech giant said that Israel is a “technological superpower.” http://www.jpost.com/Jpost-Tech/Billionaire-Elon-Musk-visits-Israel-to-scour-tech-party-in-Jerusalem-hike-Masada-546592

NEW NASA DIRECTOR CHOOSES ISRAEL FOR FIRST INT’L VISIT | NASA and the ISA will expand their cooperation, according to an official statement issued on Thursday by Science and Technology Minister Ofir Akunis. https://www.jpost.com/Israel-News/New-director-of-NASA-signs-agreement-with-ISA-in-first-international-visit-562334

Bill Gates: Israeli tech ‘changing the world’ | In video call to Microsoft Israel’s annual big bash, co-founder says he’s ‘very impressed’ with Israel’s R&D

While Microsoft is known for many things, it is best known for Windows – and for years, rumors have swirled for years that major parts of the operating system were developed in Israel, something the company has confirmed although it has never specified just which components of Windows are “Israeli.” Gates, who does know, wasn’t telling either, but he was “very happy” to wish the Microsoft Israel R&D center a happy 25th anniversary. https://www.timesofisrael.com/bill-gates-israeli-tech-changing-the-world/

Ex-IDF Intel Chief: By 2025, constant satellite feed will aid targeted killings | The former IDF intelligence chief made several other observations about important trends in intelligence and technology.

By 2025, 10,000 satellites will provide constant Israeli video surveillance of the Middle East sufficient to carry out targeted killings of terrorists at any time and any place , former IDF intelligence chief Aharon Zeevi Farkash said on Wednesday. …

Israel’s intelligence capabilities are moving so fast that soon they may reach a point where it can turn all oral communications that it has picked up immediately into digital form, he said.

Furthermore, Israeli intelligence will then be able to forward the data in specific customized formats for immediate use by the air force, navy and ground forces. https://www.jpost.com/Israel-News/By-2025-constant-satellite-feed-will-aid-targeted-killings-556686

Is Israel on Its Way to Reach a Five-Year Commercial Space Race Mission? | Israel introduced the world’s first nano satellites, which are flown in formation and are the first autonomous spacecraft. The satellites were developed at Haifa’s Technion Israel Institute of Technology.

The project was supported by the Israeli Space Agency and will launch at the end of the year. Scientists are launching the satellites to showcase how a group of satellites can stay 600 kilometers above earth and stay together in a close formation.

Israeli’s startup innovation is slowly making its way into the space industry. …

Israel has made strides since 2015 when the Space Agency announced their plans to enter the commercial space industry. Nano satellites and a strong startup culture put Israel in a good position to capture well beyond 3% of the commercial space market. The country’s five-year goal may well be on its way. http://blogs.timesofisrael.com/is-israel-on-its-way-to-reach-a-five-year-commercial-space-race-mission/

How did Israel become the new Silicon Valley? | The short but impressive story of the start-up environment in Israel makes many think that it has a bigger potential than the American Silicon Valley, and this may, in fact, be true. http://blogs.timesofisrael.com/how-did-israel-become-the-new-silicon-valley/

Israel At 70: Top Venture Capitalists Offer Their Take On Future Innovation | While celebrations for Israel’s 70th birthday are underway, NoCamels has interviewed experts from six of the top venture capitalist firms in the country, picking their brains about the future of Israeli innovation across industries, and what startups are catching their eye in automotive, cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, big data, digital health, agritech, and retail. http://nocamels.com/2018/04/future-innovation-israel-vc/

5G mobile revolution designed in Israel | “Qualcomm is developing chips, and the first generation of 5G is being developed here.” – Globes 2017 http://www.globes.co.il/en/article.aspx?did=1001207153&from=iglobes

5G cellphone service ‘made in Israel’ | Turns out that the team behind Intel’s next revolutionary upgrade is based in the R&D department in Israel. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/248870

5G Technology Being Born In Israel https://youtu.be/pLNRHcOqH3Y

Qualcomm’s $2 billion 5G deal will power 2019 Lenovo, Oppo, Vivo, and Xiaomi phones | Qualcomm announced partnerships with six Chinese manufacturers to accelerate availability of 5G devices in China. Preliminary Qualcomm agreements with four of the companies have an estimated value of at least $2 billion over three years, beginning with the 2019 release of domestic and global smartphones.

Under the new “5G Pioneer” initiative, Qualcomm expects to provide Lenovo, Oppo, Vivo, Wingtech Technology, Xiaomi, and ZTE with a platform to develop “premium tier and global 5G commercial devices,” importantly including RF front-end components that convert analog radio waves into digital signals. RF front-ends are critical parts in wireless phones, and can dramatically reduce power drain along with battery size if properly engineered. – VentureBeat 2018 https://venturebeat.com/2018/01/25/qualcomms-2-billion-5g-deal-will-power-2019-lenovo-oppo-vivo-and-xiaomi-phones/

Nokia’s cloud business expands with T-Mobile 5G win | Nokia’s CloudBand unit came from the acquisition a couple of years ago of Alcatel-Lucent, where the cloud business unit was built from scratch. Knowing this was a whole new ball game, it started bringing in new talent and building the core team in 2011 with personnel in Israel.

When Nokia acquired Alcatel-Lucent two years ago, they took advantage of the situation to do a reset of the portfolio. Then in 2017, Nokia started seeing the first deployments as a result of that strategy, and according to Guy Shemesh, vice president of CloudBand within Nokia’s software unit, it’s already off to a strong start in 2018. Shemesh was co-founder of Alcatel’s Cloud Business Unit based in Israel that became the core strategy at Alcatel-Lucent. – FierceWireless 2018 https://www.fiercewireless.com/wireless/nokia-s-cloud-business-expands-t-mobile-5g-win

Are 5G and AI Linked? Can India Vault To Pole Position In AI Race With 5G Rollout? | After shaking up the telecom market with $25 million 4G wireless network, Reliance Jio is now working with Israel’s Airspan to bring 5G service in India. – Analytics India Magazine 2018 https://analyticsindiamag.com/5g-ai-linked-can-india-vault-pole-position-ai-race-5g-rollout/

Israeli Digital Forensics Firm Can Now Hack Into Almost Any Cellphone, Tablet | The Israeli digital forensics firm Cellebrite claims it now has the ability to unlock almost any phone on the market, including iPhones installed with the latest software said to be of top-notch security, as well as tablets like iPads. http://nocamels.com/2018/02/cellebrite-hack-phone-tablet/ – NoCamels.com 2018

Cellebrite has a Talpiot connection: Oren Felenberg, Security Researcher at Cellebrite, “Talpiot” Program Cadet https://www.linkedin.com/in/oren-felenberg-57668889/

How one company is getting smartphones to rat out their criminal owners | Digital forensics firm Cellebrite has moved from copying contacts on mobile phones to digital forensics, helping police collar the bad guys along the way. – ZDNet 2014 http://www.zdnet.com/article/how-one-company-is-getting-smartphones-to-rat-out-their-criminal-owners/

Terrorist’s iPhone didn’t turn up any useful information, FBI admits | It was nevertheless reported that the FBI unlocked the device with the help of Israel’s Cellebrite , a company that specialises in mobile forensic software. – The Telegraph 2016 https://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/2016/04/15/terrorists-iphone-didnt-turn-up-any-useful-information-fbi-admit/ [ 2016 San Bernardino shooting was a black op: https://willyloman.wordpress.com/?s=san+bernardino ]

In the U.S. specifically, Cellebrite has taken over $2 million worth of purchase orders from the FBI since 2012—the agency renewed its software contract with the company earlier this week, according to public records.
https://www.fpds.gov/ezsearch/fpdsportal?q=cellebrite+CONTRACTING_AGENCY_NAME:%22FEDERAL+BUREAU+OF+INVESTIGATION%22&s=FPDS&templateName=1.4&indexName=awardfull&x=0&y=0&start=0

Haifa team sires Intel’s ‘best processor ever’ for laptops | New family of 8th generation Intel Core processors lets computers perform 88% better than a 3-year-old PC, company says https://www.timesofisrael.com/haifa-team-sires-intels-best-processor-ever-for-laptops/ Israel — Blockchain Capital of the World ? | Interestingly, Israel is being positioned as one of the countries that are supportive of Blockchain technology and its applications in cryptocurrencies and other arears. The country’s stand is not surprising, considering the fact that Israel has been dubbed the Startup Nation – a reflection of the number of its successful startups, VC firms, funding funnels, founding teams, and the general collaborative and supportive tech ecosystem. This piece provides some insights on the how Israel is gradually becoming the blockchain and crypto-hub of the world. https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/israel-blockchain-capital-of-the-world/ Israel Can Cook Up the Next Big Thing in Fintech (financial technology) | [T]he minimal market size is probably what caused Israel’s human capital to seek global financial expertise overseas. This in turn may have been the catalyst for the creation of many successful global fintech companies. Israelis who have held positions in financial institutions in New York, London, or Asian financial centers, utilized their financial background as the driving force to build fintech startups like alternative financiers Behalf Inc. and FundBox Inc. Israelis who have held roles at global fintech enterprises like PayPal have later ventured onwards to build new and more agile businesses like fraud prevention company Forter Ltd.

The former employees and executives of success stories like FundTech Ltd. (sold to D+H), Traiana Inc. (sold to ICAP, now the NEX Group), Mint Bills Inc. (Sold to Intuit), Fraud Sciences Ltd. (sold to PayPal) and Actimize Inc. (sold to NICE), have gained strong industry expertise and now reap the fruits of obtaining such expertise by building new disruptive fintech-focused ventures.

Several leading financial institutes such as J.P. Morgan, Citibank and Barclays have opened development centers in Israel in recent years , looking to tap local expertise and talent. The latter two have also set up fintech-oriented accelerators, looking to court some of the country’s home-grown fintech startups, which number around 500 according to estimations made by the Israeli Ministry of Finance in 2017.

Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, Israel has become globally known for its successes in various industries such as unmanned aerial vehicles, cryptography, data manipulation and cyber security, all of which already have and will continue to have a huge impact on global financial institutions, including insurance carriers , who are in need of disruptive solutions to improve their legacy systems.

After assessing all the input I have gathered from industry leaders and fintech founders over the past few years, I believe the following technological advancements currently coming out of Israel will be the backbone behind the next generation of Israeli fintech companies.

• Big data aggregation and data manipulations can significantly enhance risk modeling, false claim detection and insurance underwriting, impacting how policies are priced, how risk is calculated and how an insurance carrier can make sure it has the necessary reserves to fill claims.
• Artificial intelligence and computer vision expertise can help build strong automated systems, understand who the customer is and what financial products are most relevant. Let’s not forgot autonomous vehicles , who will utilize computer vision technologies, providing critical data for insurance carriers as they assess immediate and ongoing risks.
• The quantum computing developments that are coming out of Israel’s leading universities in the fields of medicine and data algorithms can disrupt capital markets and certain types of trading, by executing more complex algorithms than today’s computers, in a much faster way.
• Targeting, retargeting and NLP technologies that have been used to market to e-commerce purchasers and website visitors can be utilized as a strong marketing tool to reach new insurance policy holders and provide them with the most relevant and customized products.
• Anti-malware, anti-phishing and security technologies that have been used in defense systems can be utilized to recognize potential cyber attacks and mitigate damages. It’s clear that insurance companies need updated defense mechanisms to match evolving cyber threats.
• Cryptography and blockchain-based technologies that have been used to cryptographically store and transfer sensitive information can be utilized to secure massive amounts of customer data, authenticate transactions, verify transacting parties as part of “know-your-customer” standards and connect the unbanked/underbanked to new banking and payment systems they could not access beforehand.
• Unmanned aerial vehicles, smart sensors and other connected device technologies can bring a new generation of drones, autonomous vehicles, smart homes and other IoT devices ; all of which continue to be a substantial disruptor in the insurance industry. …

As financial markets continue to evolve and embrace new business models, Israeli fintech startups will be sure to adapt to those changes as well. We are already seeing it happening in the world of blockchain and digital currencies, where three of the largest ICOs (initial coin offering) to date were performed by Israeli startups .

Thus, Israel has advantages and disadvantages in its pursuit of becoming a global fintech hub, and time will tell if regulations and capital markets will help or hinder Israel in that goal. In the meantime, I believe we are just beginning to see the potential that lies within Israel’s human capital, bringing forth the next wave of successful global fintech companies. – Calcalist 2018 https://www.calcalistech.com/ctech/articles/0,7340,L-3731717,00.html

AI Takes Center Stage in Israeli Tech | From eBay’s automated personal fashion designer to Amazon’s hunger for local talent: a spotlight on Israel’s AI scene

Tech powers fight over Israeli AI specialists, but local talent is in over-demand. Amazon, Intel, Nvidia, and Intuit vie for Israeli AI specialists, but local talent is already stretched thin, with high demand coming not just from multinationals, but also from homegrown startups. – Calcalist 2018 https://www.calcalistech.com/ctech/articles/0,7340,L-3732521,00.html

Oracle CEO: We’re not in Israel to save money on taxes | Speaking at Oracle Israel’s offices in Petah Tikva, Safra Catz said that Israel is a target because of its innovation, not its tax benefits. http://iglob.es/?en1232070

The Junction is the leading platform in Israel for early stage startups to accelerate and advance their ventures into better products and companies. http://thejunction.co.il/

Israel is becoming an artificial intelligence powerhouse | It should come as no surprise, that Israel, a country whose technology acumen and startup prowess is well-documented, is a hotbed of AI innovation and well poised to lead the way.

As has been the case in other tech sectors, including Cybersecurity and Fintech, Israeli AI startups are generating quite a buzz. Broadly speaking, Israeli tech startups have continued to attract tremendous interest from investors, raising a total of $5.24 billion in 2017, an increase of 9 percent from the previous year. Yet, broken down by sector, it is astounding that a staggering $1.1 billion of investment, nearly 20 percent of the aforementioned total, was directed towards AI companies. Driven by multi-sector demand for AI technology, activity in the sector is broad and encompasses all industries, with Israeli AI firms developing solutions across a wide cross section of verticals including Technology, Industrial, Automotive, Enterprise, Healthcare, Fintech, and Marketing. Given the breadth of activity, it is not surprising that Israeli AI startups are receiving global acclaim. Last year, seven Israeli AI companies appeared on CB Insight’s list of “the most promising artificial intelligence companies in the world”.

If the trend continues, and there is no reason to believe it won’t, we can expect a great deal of innovative activity coming out of Israel’s AI sector. As an example of what the future offers, below you will find five interesting Israeli companies whom you may be hearing more about in coming years. – Times of Israel 2018 http://blogs.timesofisrael.com/israel-is-becoming-an-artificial-intelligence-powerhouse-2/

Can foreign startups bridge China’s tech gap? | Booking Holdings, which operates brands such as Booking.com, Priceline, Kayak and Cheapflights and is based in Norwalk, Connecticut, is focused these days on AI. In his view, if you are not there, you will fail.

“That’s why we opened an R&D center in Tel Aviv, so we can access the best AI talent,” he said.

Booking Holdings is a latecomer. Startup Nation Central, an information and research service, reports that as many as 320 multinationals have an R&D center in Israel, including Chinese tech giants Huawei and Alibaba. https://technode.com/2018/11/16/can-foreign-startups-bridge-chinas-tech-gap/

Michael Radwin, Director, Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning, Intuit explains why they come to Israel for development due to the best AI data scientists and machine learning engineers [35:40] – OurCrowd TV Israel 2018 https://youtu.be/2EhFgtD1T1M?t=35m40s

Artificial intelligence cyber-hacking arms race at full throttle | Experts are warning that cyber defense can waste no time in playing catch-up. http://www.jpost.com/Israel-News/Artificial-intelligence-cyber-hacking-arms-race-at-full-throttle-539886

AI experts call on mobile operators to get in the game | The founders of innovative companies developing solutions based on artificial intelligence stressed the importance of mobile operators, with Ran Krauss, CEO of Airobotics, most blunt in his assessment. “There’s no other way to get this done without partnering up with mobile operators,” he said.

Krauss, who was joined by executives from Teralytics and MOV.AI, was speaking in the Creating an Artificially Intelligent Future keynote.

Based in Israel, Airobotics has developed a pilotless drone solution, which is self-deployed and works using AI algorithms. The company has already made inroads into what Krauss calls the ‘industrial internet’ space, targeting sectors such as above-ground mining, oil and gas, and seaports. – Mobile World Live 2018 https://www.mobileworldlive.com/featured-content/top-three/ai-experts-call-on-mobile-operators-to-get-in-the-game/

ISRAEL JOINS THE RACE TO BECOME A QUANTUM SUPERPOWER | China and the US have made substantial investments and advancements in some area of quantum research. https://www.jpost.com//Israel-News/Israel-joins-the-race-to-become-a-quantum-superpower-574510

Israeli gov’t allocates NIS 300m for quantum computing | Israel is gearing up for the quantum computing race, one of the hottest fields in computing today. Sources inform “Globes” that the Prime Minister’s Office plans to allocate an initial sum of NIS 300 million ($80 million) for development of quantum computing technology in Israel. Most of the money will go to the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology for development of a quantum computer, among the first in the world. Part of it will go to the Weizmann Institute of Science, where scientists are working on development of capabilities in this field.

Sources familiar with the matter say that this is only an initial allocation of funds, and that to the extent that the feasibility of the project is proven, the resources made available for it will increase. It is assumed that private companies will also invest in quantum computing in Israel as it makes progress. http://en.globes.co.il/en/article-government-allocates-nis-300m-for-quantum-computing-1001244244

Interview: Quantum tech is tip of iceberg, full application expected to come in decades: Israeli scientist | The “beautiful” work made in China shows a development in the direction of the quantum technology, but this kind of application is still in the beginning, said Stern.

The Israeli scientist would like to encourage more communication between China and Israel in the field of quantum technology and it will be significantly helpful to develop good connections between the two countries. There are a lot of very difficult problems in the field, Stern said, “We need to combine all the brain power of the world.”

Quantum technology is a new field of physics and engineering, which transitions some of the properties of quantum mechanics into practical applications such as quantum computing, quantum sensing, quantum cryptography, quantum simulation, quantum metrology and quantum imaging.

Quantum mechanics in some sense gives the possibility of doing two things in two places at the same time, and “coherence” is a big obstacle that should be overcome in the process of pushing forward the development of the quantum technology, Stern said, adding that if there are 1,000 bytes, the number of possibilities will then become “very large” simultaneously and scientists should do many calculations in parallel. – Xinhua 2018 http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2018-02/25/c_136997531.htm

Netanyahu announces program to enhance IDF’s intel with ‘quantum technology’ | At first-of-its-kind international science ministers convention in Jerusalem, PM says he hopes Israel will become a global leader in the field https://www.timesofisrael.com/pm-announces-program-to-enhance-idfs-intel-with-quantum-technology/

How quantum physics can make Israel more secure | The prime minister’s freshly announced project recruits some revolutionary technologies and excites scientists https://www.timesofisrael.com/how-quantum-physics-can-make-israel-more-secure/

Q&A With Israel’s Quantum Queen | Michal: OK, so some really important things in our world work on quantum mechanics: things like lasers (for industrial, medical, security, and fiber optic communication), semiconductor devices (your phone, solar cells, light emitting diodes, and memory chips), imaging technologies (think CT scans), sensors (pressure and humidity, biomedical and drug discovery, environmental etc) , batteries and fuel cells (electric vehicle battery, H2 and other types of fuel cells). There’s quantum stuff going on inside all of those as the quantum effects change the way devices work, modify their design and fundamental properties. But now that quantum stuff is going to into computers too, making them much more super than the supercomputers we currently have that do things like figuring out our DNA. https://www.forbes.com/sites/startupnationcentral/2018/04/22/qa-with-israels-quantum-queen/2/#20cdefa92e8a

Israeli physicist leads int’l team making quantum computer | Bar-Ilan’s Beena Kalisky is working with researchers in France, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain and Sweden on the groundbreaking project. https://www.israel21c.org/israeli-physicist-leads-intl-team-making-quantum-computer/

Government Innovation Arm Marks Next Frontiers for Israeli Tech: Quantum Computing, Personalized Health, and Precision Agriculture | The country’s influential government innovation arm intends to invest in domains that may bring about the next spurt of growth of Israeli tech, said CEO Aharon Aharon

Israel aims to nearly double its technology workforce within the next ten years , according to a report published in October by the government arm headed by Mr. Aharon, officially called the Israeli Innovation Authority (IIA). – Calcalist 2018 https://www.calcalistech.com/ctech/articles/0,7340,L-3732546,00.html

Daniel Amihud Lidar [1] is the holder of the Viterbi Professorship of Engineering at the University of Southern California , where he is a Professor of Electrical Engineering, Chemistry, Physics & Astronomy. He is the Director and co-founder of the USC Center for Quantum Information Science & Technology (CQIST) as well as Scientific Director of the USC-Lockheed Martin Quantum Computation Center , notable for his research on control of quantum systems and quantum information processing.

He is a class of 1986 graduate of the Armand Hammer United World College of the American West. He obtained his PhD from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem in 1997 under [2] Robert Benny Gerber and Ofer Biham , with a thesis entitled Structural Characterization of Disordered Systems.

In 1997–2000, he was a postdoc at UC Berkeley , having been awarded Rothschild Foundation [3] and Fulbright Program fellowships (the latter of which he declined); in 2000–2005, he was an assistant professor and then later an associate professor of Chemistry at the University of Toronto , with cross-appointments in Physics and Mathematics. He moved to the University of Southern California in 2005, where he is a Professor of Electrical Engineering , Chemistry , and Physics. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Lidar

Job One for Quantum Computers: Boost Artificial Intelligence | But a quantum computer’s ability to store information compactly doesn’t make it faster. You need to be able to use those qubits. In 2008, Lloyd, the physicist Aram Harrow of MIT and Avinatan Hassidim, a computer scientist at Bar-Ilan University in Israel, showed how to do the crucial algebraic operation of inverting a matrix. …

Last year a group led by Maria Spiropulu, a particle physicist at the California Institute of Technology, and Daniel Lidar , a physicist at USC , applied the algorithm to a practical physics problem: classifying proton collisions as “Higgs boson” or “no Higgs boson.” Limiting their attention to collisions that spat out photons, they used basic particle theory to predict which photon properties might betray the fleeting existence of the Higgs, such as momentum in excess of some threshold. They considered eight such properties and 28 combinations thereof, for a total of 36 candidate signals, and let a late-model D-Wave at the University of Southern California find the optimal selection. It identified 16 of the variables as useful and three as the absolute best. The quantum machine needed less data than standard procedures to perform an accurate identification. “Provided that the training set was small, then the quantum approach did provide an accuracy advantage over traditional methods used in the high-energy physics community,” Lidar said. https://www.wired.com/story/job-one-for-quantum-computers-boost-artificial-intelligence/

Israel wins second-largest number of cybersecurity deals globally | Israeli startups BioCatch, Cylus and D-ID are among the 26 cybersecurity firms selected by CB Insights that are transforming the industry https://www.timesofisrael.com/israel-nabs-second-largest-number-of-cybersecurity-deals-globally/

Israeli Partnerships Help Gulfstream Soar | The Savannah company’s jet aircraft incorporate Israeli tech, earning it Conexx’s U.S. Company of the Year award.

Since 2001, Gulfstream and Israel Aerospace Industries have collaborated to design, develop and certify more than 500 business aircraft.

IAI delivers advanced technologies and systems in all domains: air, space, land, sea, cyber, homeland security and ISR (intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance). IAI manufactures systems for the Israel Defense Forces and other national militaries.

General Dynamics acquired Gulfstream in July 1999. The company soon identified IAI’s business jet products to complement its product line of private jets typically flown from coast to coast in the United States. – Atlanta Jewish Times 2018 http://atlantajewishtimes.timesofisrael.com/israeli-partnerships-help-gulfstream-soar/

eBay Unveils Personalized Fashion Design AI | The new algorithm is currently being tested at eBay’s Israel R&D center, and a controlled pilot will be launched among Israeli shoppers this year – Calcalist 2018 https://www.calcalistech.com/ctech/articles/0,7340,L-3731862,00.html

Why Israel Is A Hotbed For The AR Industry https://uploadvr.com/why-israel-is-a-hotbed-for-the-ar-industry/

‘ Netflix for virtual reality ’ targets your living room | Working with any brand of headset, Tel Aviv-based Inception will use VR to transport viewers inside reality TV programs and much more. – ISRAEL21c 2018 https://www.israel21c.org/netflix-for-virtual-reality-targets-your-living-room/

Tel Aviv University’s smart artificial intelligence program | Scientists and other researchers are working on several machine learning (ML) and artificial intelligence (AI) projects.

Globerson, a researcher at TAU’s Blavatnik School of Computer Science, is heading the university’s new Yandex Initiative for Machine Learning, which is augmenting the number of AI/ML course offerings at TAU and supporting research in the field. Yandex is the largest technology company in Russia and one of the largest Internet search engines worldwide.

According to Globerson, Yandex’s founder Arkady Volozh believes so much in growing the AI/ML field out of Israel that he spearheaded Yandex’s funding of the program. …

IN ONE EXAMPLE, TAU recently signed a cooperation agreement for joint research in “Smart Cities and Digital Living” with Stanford University, which draws heavily on big data and machine learning. The five-year grant, funded by the Koret Foundation of San Francisco, is bringing together leading scholars and scientists from TAU with their counterparts at Stanford to advance multidisciplinary, basic and applied research in data science that enhances the quality of life, safety and efficiency of cities, while supporting communications across people and organizations. https://www.jpost.com/Israel-News/Tel-Aviv-Universitys-smart-artificial-intelligence-program-553218

OurCrowd CEO Jonathan Medved Biography | Jonathan Medved is an investor, serial entrepreneur and according to the Washington Post “one of Israel’s leading high tech venture capitalists”. In the NY Times Supplement “Israel at 60” Medved was named one of the top 10 most influential Americans who have impacted Israel. – CBN 2017 http://www1.cbn.com/700club/jonathan-medved-biography [Jonathan Medved’s father worked at NASA https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Medved ]

OurCrowd, a Jerusalem-based crowdfunding venture capital fund, announced Thursday the launch of Cognitiv, a $100 million fund to invest in early-stage companies in the field of artificial intelligence, deep-learning, IoT, robotics and digital manufacturing. https://www.timesofisrael.com/ourcrowd-to-set-up-new-100m-fund-with-focus-on-ai-technologies/

OurCrowd TV Israel 2018

• Smart Infrastructure https://youtu.be/woh4KTaVLQI
• Smart Machines & AI https://youtu.be/UMB3P8p_TS4
• Smart Mobility https://youtu.be/vw_4e6PRHkg
• Smart Medicine https://youtu.be/WNlZtX0-Fok
• See more at their YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/user/OurCrowdFund/videos

Israel hosts 1st int’l cybersecurity conference for [smart] cities | Participants will meet with leading cyber security experts for a global brainstorming session on the challenges and threats of smart cities.

Among the speakers are Israeli Minister of Economy Eli Cohen; Jonathan Reichental, chief innovation officer of Israel Electric Corporation; Roy Zisapel, cofounder and CEO of Radware, and former Mossad Director General Tamir Pardo. – ISRAEL21c 2018 https://www.israel21c.org/israel-hosts-1st-intl-cybersecurity-conference-for-cities/

6 Ways To Make Smart Cities Future-Proof Cybersecurity Cities | “There is no place like Israel to teach local government leaders how to make their cities and citizens cybersecurity resilient.” – Forbes 2018 https://www.forbes.com/sites/gilpress/2018/02/14/6-ways-to-make-smart-cities-future-proof-cybersecurity-cities/

Smart Cities Under Attack | As cities become smarter, the existence of citizens is left vulnerable to cyber attacks that threaten to shut down critical infrastructures, leading to chaos and major disasters. Join efforts with the leading Israeli and global cyber guardians in war game exercises, learn major cyber fight strategies and technologies. Cyber security thought leaders will present new cyber weapons and prognosis on cybercrime developments http://www.muniworld.com/#part-1 Speakers: http://www.muniworld.com/speakers/

First ‘Smart City’ Cybersecurity Conference In Tel Aviv Hosts 80 International Delegations | Former head of the Mossad Pardo, who since finishing his term with the Mossad in 2016 has joined the Israeli cyber firm XM Cyber , gave some of the more memorable and grim statements of the event on the issue of cybersecurity.

Cyber, he said using a term often used by in Hebrew to mean cybersecurity or cyber threats, “is a nuclear weapon — a soft and silent nuclear weapon.” …

“There is a lot more chaos coming. Chaos is the biggest threat to democratic countries,” Pardo warned, outlining different scenarios where hackers, whom he refers to as “hunters” with levels of sophistication that is “generations ahead,” [ Israel’s kill switch diplomacy ] take out telecom systems, electricity grids, and power installations, and engage in advanced ransom schemes that can inflict significant damage on brands. Some of this has already happened, he acknowledged. – NoCamels.com 2018 http://nocamels.com/2018/02/smart-city-cyber-conference-tel-aviv/

Israeli companies talking to Saudi Arabia about $500b. ‘Smart City’ | A number of Israeli companies are talking to the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia about developing the proposed 26,500-sq.km. “Smart City” zone , The Jerusalem Post has learned, a blow to the decades-long Arab League boycott of the Jewish – Jerusalem Post 2017 http://www.jpost.com/Business-and-Innovation/Israeli-companies-likely-talking-to-Saudi-Arabia-about-500-bil-smart-city-508429

Russia to invest billions of dollars in Saudi Arabia’s future megacity | As part of the work on Neom, RDIF plans to attract leading Russian companies working in solar energy, health, artificial intelligence technologies, high-speed transport, and the construction of port infrastructure. – Russia Today 2017 https://www.rt.com/business/407824-neom-saudi-arabia-russia/

Israeli defense electronics and weapons specialist] Rafael focus on “4th industrial revolution” reaps dividends | Now the company is leveraging developments in what has been called the Fourth Industrial Revolution, namely artificial intelligence, machine learning and big data, to improve defense-related products and systems . In order to harness this latest in technology for defense purposes, Rafael has established a number of facilities outside of the company that work with academia and collaborate with commercial entities. – Aviation International News 2018 https://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/defense/2018-02-06/rafael-focus-4th-industrial-revolution-reaps-dividends

Israel to launch Big Data health project amid privacy concerns | This area of digital health is estimated at six trillion dollars.

The five-year program will have a budget of nearly NIS 1 billion ($280 million). The funds will go toward digitizing and sharing patient data among the country’s health funds, relying on artificial intelligence (AI) tools to more accurately detect abnormalities and find correct diagnoses.

“We are making a move of historical significance. We are developing the industries of tomorrow,” said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in a statement on Sunday, adding that the digital-health field involves the intersection of big data, artificial intelligence and connectivity.

“It’s potentially bigger than cybersecurity, which is a huge area. It’s bigger than transportation, a huge area as well. This area of digital health is estimated at six trillion dollars,” Netanyahu said. “Let’s assume that we get 10% real market out of this potential – [which] in my opinion, is a conservative estimate – that’s a $600 billion market.” http://www.jpost.com/HEALTH-SCIENCE/Israel-to-launch-Big-Data-health-project-547043

Doctor Writes ‘Epic Saga’ Of Jews in Medicine | “Jews and Medicine” (Ktav Publishing) examines one of the largest and perhaps greatest of Jewish endeavors: the Jewish contribution to medicine — from its origins in ancient Israel up until 1950.

“Five hundred years ago, 50% of the doctors in Europe were Jews,” Heynick said at a recent reading of “Jews and Medicine,” at a Brooklyn Barnes & Noble. At the time, Jews made up less than 1% of the total population of Europe. But from the lowest rung of society to the court physicians, Jews were deeply embedded in the medical profession. Medicine was a profession that the Jew — wandering from land to land — could take with him. “Fast forward 500 years: 36 Nobel Prize winners in medicine were Jews — and [the Jews] are not even approaching 1% of the world population,” Heynick said. …

“Yes,” Heynick said, the common view was that “Jewish physicians poison their patients. But only one in 10. That was an interpretation.” According to the medieval logic, Jews would not be able to survive if they poisoned every single one of their patients, so they poisoned only a minority. – The Forward 2003 https://forward.com/culture/7926/doctor-writes-epic-saga-of-jews-in-medicine/

The [Jewish] Poisoners: A Thread | “If they [the Jews] could kill us all, they would gladly do so, aye, and often do it, especially those who profess to be physicians. They know all that is known about medicine in Germany;

They can give poison to a man of which he will die in an hour, or in ten or twenty years; they thoroughly understand this art.” – Martin Luther http://archive.is/78J7A

Merck Group Inaugurates Jerusalem Innovation Lab | The new lab is located at Merck subsidiary Qlight Nanotech, acquired by the pharmaceutical company in 2015 – Calcalist 2018 https://www.calcalistech.com/ctech/articles/0,7340,L-3731393,00.html

With 67 startups behind him, Israel’s Gigi Levy-Weiss can spot a winner – Haaretz 2015 https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/business/.premium-israeli-startup-guru-can-spot-a-winner-1.5436383 [Gigi Levy-Weiss “held senior positions at several Israeli companies including Amdocs, where he was the president of the European and Latin American division.”]

Billionaire Donates $20m to Israel’s Sheba Hospital for Nuclear Medicine, Research Center | Sheba Medical Center at Tel Hashomer in Ramat Gan has begun to build a new 2,000-square-meter medical center for nuclear medicine and research after receiving a gift of $20 million from Russian Jewish billionaire Roman Abramovich.

The three-story center will focus on nuclear medicine, molecular imaging and research, using a cyclotron – a particle accelerator that can pinpoint and kill cancer cells by using radioactive ion beams. …

Abramovich has long been a generous supporter of Sheba Medical Center; in past years he has donated $57 million, and partnered with the hospital on pediatric heart and cancer research. He serves as Chairman of the Federation of Jewish Communities of Russia, and is a trustee of the Moscow Jewish Museum, in addition to being a generous supporter of the Chabad-Lubavitch Chassidic movement. – JewishPress.com 2018 http://www.jewishpress.com/news/chessed-and-tzedaka/billionaire-donates-20m-to-israels-sheba-hospital-for-nuclear-medicine-research-center/2018/03/03/

Predictive Patient Care Startup Medial EarlySign Raises $30 Million | Predictive patient care startup Medial EarlySign has raised $30 million in Series B funding, the Israel-based company announced Tuesday, bringing its total equity raised to $50 million. The round was led by Israel-based life science fund aMoon Partners, with participation by Li Ka-Shing’s Horizon Ventures.

Established in 2009, Medial EarlySign combines machine-learning technology and decades-worth of electronic health records (EHR) to create an artificial intelligence-based risk predictor. The company’s algorithms can analyze dozens of EHR factors such as demographics, medication and lab results to identify “red flags” that could point to individuals at high risk of developing medical conditions like cancer and diabetes. – Calcalist 2018 https://www.calcalistech.com/ctech/articles/0,7340,L-3733533,00.html

How Salesforce is compelling Israeli retailers to go online | “We’re in the middle of the fourth industrial revolution, and the world is changing very rapidly,” Short said. “We’re seeing the whole impact of mobile, cloud, artificial intelligence, robots and 4-D printing.” – Jerusalem Post 2018 http://www.jpost.com/Israel-News/How-Salesforce-is-compelling-Israeli-retailers-to-go-online-540900

Israel on Track to Become a Crypto-Powerhouse , Says Attorney – Calcalist 2018 https://www.calcalistech.com/ctech/articles/0,7340,L-3731099,00.html

Israeli tech firm undercuts facial recognition to bolster privacy | It has also signed preliminary agreements with a number of leading government organisations – Perry would not disclose which ones, nor how much the product will sell for. – Reuters 2018 https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-israel-technology-privacy/israeli-tech-firm-undercuts-facial-recognition-to-bolster-privacy-idUKKCN1FY1Z8

Without Proper Security, No Connected Car Should Be Allowed on the Road- Argus CEO Explains | Founded in 2013, Argus has decades of experience in both cyber security and the automotive industry. Today, the Argus team consists of over fifty people, the vast majority of whom are ex-8200 military intelligence officers who collectively bring tens of decades of experience in cyber technology to the company. Argus also has hired automotive industry veterans. With the knowledge base of the team, Argus solutions and services are built for the automotive industry by automotive and cyber experts.

With headquarters and R&D located in Tel Aviv, Israel and offices next to major automotive centers in Detroit, Silicon Valley, Stuttgart and Tokyo, Argus is well positioned to play a central role in the industry for years to come. – vpnMentor Blog https://www.vpnmentor.com/blog/interview-with-argus-ceo-ofer-ben-noon/

Despite Low Profile, Israel’s Online Games Firms Earn Big for Startup Nation | But the games industry may be just as big, as seen by the $500 million acquisition of Plarium by Australias Aristocrat Leisure, one of the worlds largest makers of slot machines. Plariums portfolio of online games includes Vikings: War of Clans, which has been among the top-10-grossing strategy games since its release two years ago. – Haaretz 2017 https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/business/israel-s-online-games-firms-earn-big-for-startup-nation-1.5442550

Israeli Start-ups Are Leading the Growth of Gaming | What is special about Israeli expertise? What is the competitive advantage?

The Israeli gaming industry benefits from the great local startup ecosystem. Israeli engineers are at the forefront of innovation for sensors (to detect movements, emotions, wellness, etc.), Big Data (for online marketing, leverage user databases, etc.), computer vision and video analysis (VR, AR, etc.), Artificial Intelligence, IOT, and many more. In addition, since the end of the ‘90s and the rise of the Internet, some Israeli companies became world leaders in the online casino and poker industry and developed exceptional know-how around online user acquisition, retention, marketing, and monetization. – Start-Up Nation Central Blog 2017 http://blog.startupnationcentral.org/gaming/how-israeli-startups-are-leading-the-growth-of-gaming/

Start-Up Nation Central Ltd. (CC) connects companies and countries to the people and technologies in Israel that can solve their most pressing challenges. We are the authoritative source on, and the GPS to, the Israeli innovation community. We are an independent, non-profit organization committed to accelerating your growth. http://blog.startupnationcentral.org/

10 Israeli Startups Founded by Ultra-Orthodox Jews Seeking New York Investors | “When we founded KamaTech and began working to accelerate ultra-orthodox startups, people thought it was a joke,” KamaTech Founder and CEO Moshe Friedman told Calcalist. “The process has been amazing. We started five years ago with five startups and by now over 1000 startups have applied to our program.” – Calcalist 2018 https://www.calcalistech.com/ctech/articles/0,7340,L-3732537,00.html

First Israeli research nanosatellite launches from India | Foot-long, 11-pound BGUSAT orbiter successfully reaches space, will study weather, desertification, airglow and other phenomena

Israel successfully launched into space Wednesday a new nanosatellite, the first for Israeli academia, that will conduct scientific missions for Ben Gurion University of the Negev. – Times of Israel 2017 https://www.timesofisrael.com/first-israeli-research-nanosatellite-launches-from-india/

SpaceX signs a deal with Israel to launch two of its communication satellites into orbit | Israel’s Space Communications has signed a deal with Elon Musk’s SpaceX to launch two communication satellites into orbit, after a prior attempt ended in disaster. http://www.firstpost.com/tech/news-analysis/spacex-signs-a-deal-with-israel-to-launch-two-of-its-communication-satellites-into-orbit-4157337.html

9900 supplies real time information to all levels of the establishment: The political leadership, top military decision makers, battalion commanders and even smaller units. Since 9900 can monitor distant countries most of the demand for its information comes from the defense establishment. The unit’s commander explains: “Information is sent out immediately after the request is received. We instantly aim a satellite camera at the requested zone. Since Israel has 10 satellites, each one orbiting the earth every hour and a half or so, we effectively have worldwide coverage. An Elbit system, for example, synchronizes surveillance activities in a certain order, and that’s how we receive real time information.” – iHLS 2013 https://i-hls.com/archives/22809

The latest hot start-ups to emerge from Israel’s cybersecurity war machine – CNBC 2017 https://www.cnbc.com/2017/02/28/the-latest-hot-start-ups-to-emerge-from-israels-cybersecurity-war-machine.html

[Creepy video] Technology Allows Us to Unleash Deep-Seated Needs and Desires, Says Google Executive | As innovation unlocks new technologies, people still feel the need to connect it to their everyday lives, says Head of Strategic Planning at Google Abigail Posner – Calcalist 2018 https://www.calcalistech.com/ctech/articles/0,7340,L-3734357,00.html

Ex-Mossad Chief Recruits Over 30 Elite Israeli Hackers For Cybersecurity Firm http://nocamels.com/2018/03/ex-mossad-chief-recruits-israeli-hackers/

20 top tech inventions born of conflict | Many of Israel’s most amazing contributions to the world – from the DiskOnKey to the PillCam –result from its existential need for innovation in the military. https://www.israel21c.org/20-top-technology-inventions-born-of-conflict/

Cybersecurity Pioneer Gil Shwed to Receive First Israel Prize in Technology | Founder and CEO of Check Point Software Technologies has been awarded the first Israel Prize in the newly formed technology category

Check Point, founded 25 years ago, is among Israel’s largest technology companies and a major world cybersecurity company. The company invented the world’s first firewall, based on a patent held by Shwed.

Prior to founding the company, Shwed was part of the Israeli army’s elite Unit 8200, where he worked on military computer projects. https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/cybersecurity-pioneer-gil-shwed-to-receive-first-israel-prize-in-tech-1.5870317

Check Point billionaire seeks to make Israel global leader in healthcare | Set up 10 months ago, the 8400 Health Network run by Nacht and co-founder Yair Schindel aims to gather the brightest brains at the intersection of health and technology to help Israel become a life science powerhouse. https://www.timesofisrael.com/check-point-billionaire-seeks-to-make-israel-global-leader-in-healthcare/

The Heart of Israeli Cyber, a Check Point Brotherhood [Mafia] | Alumni of the veteran Israeli computer-security company are behind an outsize number of successful startups in the same area. Last spring they all got together when Check Point acquired the startups Hyperwise and Lacoon. https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/business/.premium-a-brotherhood-at-israeli-cyber-s-heart-1.5392265

New Israeli VC fund recruits industry veterans to nurture cybersecurity startups | Cyberstarts is looking to invest in early-stage companies, leveraging the experts’ experience

The general partner of Sequoia Capital’s Israeli arm, Gili Raanan, is setting up a new fund to invest in early stage cybersecurity companies and has recruited industry heavyweights to back the initiative.

Among the investors in the new fund are Shlomo Kramer and Marius Nacht, two of the co-founders of Check Point Software Technologies Ltd.; Amichai Shulman, co-founder of Imperva; Mickey Boodaei and Rakesh Loonkar, two of the founders of Trusteer, acquired by IBM; Nir Zuk, the founder of Palo Alto Networks; and Assaf Rappaport, one of the founders of Adallom, acquired by Microsoft Corp. Sequoia Capital is also an investor in the fund. https://www.timesofisrael.com/new-israeli-vc-fund-recruits-industry-veterans-to-nurture-cybersecurity-startups/

“Yissum is the Technology Transfer company of The Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Our mission is to benefit society by converting extraordinary innovations and transformational technologies into commercial solutions that address our most urgent global challenges. We are leaders in innovation and experts in technology and evaluation acquisition strategies. Together with Hebrew University’s top researchers, Yissum is bridging breakthrough academic research with scientific and commercial applications.” http://www.yissum.co.il/

Cisco Backs Israeli Marketing Conversation Analytics Startup Gong | Gong’s online service gives sales representatives insights into their interactions with customers by analyzing recorded phone calls and tracking keywords and topics of conversation https://www.calcalistech.com/ctech/articles/0,7340,L-3736198,00.html