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In the 29th Jun 2014 edition of Israel’s good news:
ECONOMY & BUSINESS
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Economy grows by 0.2% in May. The Bank of Israel’s Composite State of the Economy Index for May 2014 increased by 0.2 percent, indicating moderate growth similar to the growth rate that has characterized the economy over the past three years.
First oil shipment from Kurdistan goes to … Israel. Israel has a new Middle East ally – Kurdistan. The new breakaway region of Iraq delivered its first-ever tanker of Kurdish oil to the Israeli port of Ashkelon.
Why Israel’s tech ecosystem became a world leader. (Thanks to David F) Another analysis on why Tel Aviv has become such a magnet for start-ups. It includes interviews with Gilad Japhet of MyHeritage, Saul Singer (author of Start-up Nation) and Shimon Shocken (Dean of IDC’s Efi Arazi School of Computer Science).
Trendlines is Israel’s best incubator. (Thanks to Atid-EDI) Trendlines Medical received the Best Incubator award from Israel’s Office of the Chief Scientist. Two Trendlines portfolio companies received Best Start-Up of the Year – Advanced Mem-Tech (water filtration membranes) and MitrAssist (valve to treat faulty heart valve).
Dayton Ohio can mass-produce Israeli innovations. Israel signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the US State of Ohio to help boost the economic prospects of both. Dayton’s manufacturing strengths can complement Israel’s technological innovations, especially in the aerospace industry.
Israel exported $3 billion of cyber security products in 2013. The total exports of Israeli companies in 2013 amounted to around 5 percent of the computer security market – more than any country except the USA. In fact, more than the combined exports of all those other countries.
The Chinese billionaire who supports Israel. (Thanks to NoCamels.com) Chinese entrepreneur Li Ka Shing is Asia’s richest person with assets worth nearly $32 billion. Of the 50 companies he has invested in, 20 are Israeli. He has also donated $130 million to Israel’s Technion.
Idomoo wins Global award. (Thanks to Atid-EDI) Global Telecoms Business awarded Israel’s Idomoo the “Best Consumer Innovation” prize for its “Live this Experience” Personalized Video campaign.
AOL is to invest in Israeli start-ups. AOL is moving ahead with its new project called Nautilus, an initiative that would see the Internet giant invest up to $1 million in Israeli startups. AOL noted that it would invest at least $100, 000 in as many as 10 projects at a time, each for a year’s duration.
Cost of water to be reduced, again. Israel’s Water Authority is to reduce water tariffs in July, following a previous decrease in January. The authority has improved efficiency despite the continuing drought conditions.
An incubator to benefit those with special needs. (Thanks to Israel21c) Jerusalem NGO Pretense has started the business accelerator A3i (Accelerating Inclusion in Israel). It is the world’s first incubator exclusively for startups developing products and services for people with disabilities. A3i currently has 13 companies.
Israel gives young Californian social entrepreneurs a boost. Los Angeles’s Israeli Consul General David Siegel presented three Californian students with the $1000 prize in the Jewish-Latino, High School-MBA collaboration for their project teaching urban youth how to grow and eat healthy foods.
How Israel and (South) Korea can change the world. (Thanks to IsraelSeen) Tsvi Bisk writes of historic similarities between Israel and Korea. Surrounded by enemies, few natural resources, little arable land and far from markets. But they are two of the biggest success stories of the last 50 years. They should work together.
US students get taste of Israeli entrepreneurship. Haifa’s Hi-Center is part of the Onward Israel program for Taglit Birthright participants who want an intensive “Israel immersion” experience. US students work four full days a week with three different start-ups. The fifth day is for tours, educational and culture activities, and fun.
Israeli to produce Star Wars movies. Israeli producer Ram Bergman has been chosen to produce two of the next three episodes in the “Star Wars” saga.
Is Israeli software sending you soccer World Cup images? Israel’s LiveU is responsible for ensuring that broadcasts of most World Cup games get out to the rest of the world. 200 LiveU mini-broadcast boxes are delivering television-quality video of coverage via cellular connections to broadcast centers and the Internet.
$25 million donation for Ariel University. Sheldon and Miriam Adelson have pledged $5 million to develop the medical school at Ariel University and another $20 million for future academic programs. The Adelsons were inspired to action after the abduction of three Israeli teenagers. “…the medical studies at Ariel University underscore humanity, the desire for life and the value of human life wherever they are…” Sheldon said.
SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
An app to build mobile apps. Israel’s Como has developed a do-it-yourself, mobile-app authoring platform, which lets anyone build their own mobile app, without having to hire technical staff. 10 million people use Como-powered apps every day. Over one million apps have already been built using Como.
HopOn, Zeekit and GreenIQ win Smartup2. The incubator prize in the 2nd Smartup competition hosted by Bank Hapoalim and Globes includes 20, 000 Shekels plus advice. HopOn’s smartphone app pays for public transport. Zeekit virtually fits clothes onto a person’s photo. See second article on GreenIQ’s garden computer.
Earn money with your “scoop” videos. Livelens, an Israeli-developed app, lets users take video using their iPhone, Android or Google Glass devices and share them with the world in a live stream, which they can charge money to view. Livelens even recruited a notorious South African celebrity to promote the app.
Wind farms for Kibbutzim. Israel’s Afcon Holdings has secured NIS 200 million in financing to build two wind farms at Kibbutz Maaleh Hagilboa and Kibbutz Degania in the lower Galilee. The two wind farms will generate 21.25 megawatts of electricity altogether.
Israeli water technology for Singapore. A delegation of 15 Israeli companies made an impressive showing at Singapore International Water Week.
An app that just sends “Yo!” to your friend’s phone. Israel’s Or Arbel has built a smartphone app called “Yo!” that with one click sends a “Yo!” sound to another smartphone. The app has over a half-million users.
skyTran for Tel Aviv. Israel Aerospace Industries has agreed to evaluate and develop NASA’s skyTran for deployment in Tel Aviv. The system is a network of computer-controlled, 2-person “jet-like” vehicles employing state-of-the-art passive Magnetic Levitation (MagLev) technology.
ISRAEL’S MEDICAL ACHIEVEMENTS
Non-invasive test for bladder cancer. Israeli biotech Nucleix has raised more than $5 million to finance its test for early detection of bladder cancer. Nucleix uses epigenetics (tiny changes in a cell’s DNA) to identify cancer cells. In the future, the product could also be used to test for colon, lung and prostate cancers.
NaNose cancer detector is ready to market. In international trials, the lung cancer detector developed by Technion’s Dr. Hossam Haick correctly diagnosed early-stage malignant tumors 90% of the time – far better than previous methods. The device has been licensed to Boston’s Alpha Szenszor, for development to market.
Vegetable collagen gel to treat wounds. (Thanks to Atid-EDI) Israeli health organization Maccabi is to commence trials of the Vergenix flowable gel developed by Israel’s CollPlant. Two Maccabi wound clinics will use Vergenix to treat patients with chronic leg ulcers. Vergenix is based on CollPlant’s plant-based collagen.
Nepal uses Israeli public-health model. (Thanks to Israel21c) Israel’s Community Oriented Primary Care (COPC) program has reached mostly poor communities in more than 90 countries since 1960. Recently the model was implemented, on request, in Nepal at Dhulikhel Hospital in Kathmandu.
1000 surgical procedures for MarginProbe. The MarginProbe cancer scanner developed by Israel’s Dune Medical has successfully performed 1000 tumor tests since it was launched in 2013. MarginProbe confirms that the entire malignant tumor has been removed, before the surgeon finishes the operation.
Bringing Israeli innovation to African villages. (Thanks to 12Tribe Films) Israel’s Innovation: Africa has installed solar-power to run water wells, health clinics and vaccine refrigerators. Innovation: Africa’s 75 projects in six countries have changed the lives of over 650, 000 people, all using Israeli technology.
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