CTECH – Latest Israeli Innovation & Technology News July 4, 2023
Blackstone closing on significant investment in fintech startup Stampli. The investment giant is set to lead a funding round of over $50 million in the company that has developed an AI-powered Accounts Payable automation solution. Read more
Can positive stock market momentum resurrect the high-tech industry? Unlike the sporadic jumps observed in stock indices over the past two years, there are now also signs of life in the IPO market. Read more
Israel drops five places to 10th among the world’s best-funded tech ecosystems. Due to the sharp decline in 2022-3, Israel dropped below South Korea, Singapore, France, Germany and Canada, according to a report by VC firm Viola. Read more
“At Google there is a constant drive to enhance AI.” Adi Ashkenazy, Industry Manager, Retail – Ecom and branding at Google, also noted that most of Google’s products already incorporate AI. Read more
“The trust that the high-tech industry built over 30 years could be lost in three weeks.” Shlomo Kramer, CEO of Cato Networks, added that “there’s no way back” should the Israeli government make decisions without checks and balances, while Gigi Levy Weiss, one of Israel’s most prominent investors, noted that “the government keeps claiming that our crisis is similar to everyone else’s, but it’s not.” Read more
OCON Therapeutics improving women’s quality of life with innovative IUD design and targeted health solutions. CEO Keren Leshem spoke to CTech about how OCON is pioneering painless and effective IUDs for women and addressing prevalent women’s health issues like endometriosis and uterine fibroids. Read more
When AI decides who to hire. As AI tools like ChatGPT have been integrated in recruitment processes, concerns have risen over biases in decision-making and privacy of personal data. Read more
Musk limits number of posts Twitter users can read – Shooting his new CEO in the foot. At a time when new CEO Linda Yaccarino is taking significant steps to steer Twitter back on track, Musk is undermining the very foundation on which the company is built. Read more
Wenrix raises $15 million led by Insight Partners to predict optimal timing for purchasing flight tickets. The Israeli startup’s algorithms are based on big data and deep learning models that predict when flight tickets are at their lowest price. Read more
Thoma Bravo’s Applitools acquires Preflight in $10-15 million deal to expand AI-powered test automation tools. With this acquisition, Applitools expands its portfolio to offer an end-to-end testing platform that covers the entire automated testing lifecycle. Read more
General Catalyst to invest up to $150 million to help Lemonade acquire new customers. Lemonade is aiming to expedite its path to profitability through the Synthetic Agents program in which General Catalyst will finance 80% of the cost of acquiring new customers in return for 16% of the premiums generated from the insurance policies. Read more
Israelis should look to Virginia to cozy up to U.S lawmakers. The state of Virginia is near the nation’s capital and a unique spot for Israeli companies looking to partner with the U.S. government. Read more
Ramon.Space lifts off with $26 million for its space computing infrastructure. “Space-grade computing solutions have become an essential foundation for the evolution of the space economy,” said CEO Avi Shabtai. Read more
Investment in Israeli high-tech down 65% in Q2 to $1.78 billion. Despite the number of transactions also falling 48% year-over-year, Q2 saw a 2% increase in investment compared to the first quarter of the year. Read more
Blackstone hasn’t made significant investment in Israeli high-tech since opening local office two years ago. The financial giant hired Yifat Oron, former CEO of LeumiTech, to head its Tel Aviv office in April 2021, but the uncertain climate in the local industry means it remains unclear when Blackstone plans to make a significant investment in an Israeli startup. Read more
Waze hit with layoffs six months after being merged into Google Geo. Alphabet-owned Google said it is cutting jobs at the mapping app as it merges the app’s advertising system with Google Ads technology. Read more
