CTECH Latest Israeli Innovation & Technology News May 29, 2024
Remember your ICQ number? The story behind how the messaging platform gave birth to startup nation. In a month, after 28 years of activity, the ICQ messaging platform will be shut down. Its sale to AOL jump-started the startup nation in 1998, but at first, the founders just wanted to play ping pong together. How did four nerds from a basement in Israel reach the summit of global high-tech in just two years? An excerpt from the book “The Israeli Mind: The Story of Israeli Innovation”. Read more
Israel’s Elbit accelerates work on high-power laser weapon systems as order backlog crosses record $20B. The defense company’s sales in the first quarter were approximately $1.55 billion, marking an 11% increase year-on-year. Rafael’s “Magan Or” laser system is expected to reach maturity next year, and Elbit’s El-Op company is developing a laser weapon for aircrafts. Read more
Sienna Venture Capital Partner: Now is the best time to invest in Israeli tech. Isabelle Amiel, Founding Partner of Sienna Venture Capital spoke to CTech during Israel’s Business Delegation to Paris led by Calcalist and Bank Hapoalim about how less investor competition and resilient entrepreneurs makes this the best time to invest in Israeli tech. Read more
How cloud credit became tech’s new currency. Tech giants like Amazon, Microsoft and Google use their cloud services as a kind of new currency. They invest in companies while giving “credit” to use the cloud instead of paying in cash, and along the way attract and tie start-ups to their infrastructures. Read more
Is your feed filled with junk? Blame it on the algorithm. Social networks are trying to increase revenue by tweaking their settings. The result: more junk content and problematic ratings. The solution: algorithm-free platforms, such as WhatsApp. Read more
Wiz vs. Orca: Delaware court sets stage for high-stakes IP showdown. The court rejected Wiz’s request to dismiss Orca’s lawsuit outright, setting a trial date for December 2025. Read more
Publicis Chairman: “People are afraid of becoming a target of anti-Semitism.” Maurice Levy, who heads one of the largest advertising companies in the world, commented on the situation in Israel at an event held as part of the business delegation to Paris organized by Calcalist and Bank Hapoalim. Read more
Bank Hapoalim Chairman: “Israel stands at a crossroads.” “Those who look at the short term may think that this is an existential crossroads,” Bank Hapoalim Chairman Reuven Krupik said in Paris as part of Israel’s Business Delegation led by Calcalist and Bank Hapoalim, “but those who examine the events from a long-term historical perspective know that we have already faced challenges in the past.” Read more
How is AI impacting orthopedics ahead of the Summer Olympics? Dr. Mark Loebenberg, Head of Shoulder and Elbow Service at Beilinson Hospital, joins CTech to discuss the ways in which technology is changing orthopedics. Read more
“Wearable devices allow doctors to better diagnose patients.” Dr. Shirit Kazum-Beiser, Head of the Sports Cardiology Clinic at Beilinson Hospital, was speaking at the closing event of Calcalist and Bank Hapoalim’s business delegation to Paris. Read more
Finout raises $26 million Series B to optimize cloud expenditure. The Israeli startup’s FinOps platform is used by leading global brands, including Lyft, the New York Times, Choice Hotels, Wiz, Tenable, and Appsflyer, to optimize cloud expenditure and allocate costs across all cloud providers and services. Read more
Top 5 most promising AI startups in Israel – 2024. Exodigo, Pinecone, FundGuard, Robust Intelligence, and D-ID were the highest ranked AI companies in this year’s list of the 50 most promising Israeli startups. Read more
French giant Thales acquires Israeli spacetech startup Get SAT. Get SAT provides efficient antenna and terminals that offer high-data-rate communications. Read more
Small defense firms see big gains as war drives massive investments. The billions that the defense system pours into the weapons manufacturers also flow to small companies that produce unique products integrated into larger systems. Companies accustomed to turnovers of tens of millions of shekels are now facing orders in the hundreds of millions. “The great wave of demand is still ongoing, and there are more orders on the horizon,” says one of the suppliers. Read more
Israel’s alternative protein sector suffered 78% investment decline, double global drop. The fall in investments in 2023 in Israel, which was considered a leader in the field of alternative protein, came amid political unrest and the outbreak of the war. Read more
Scott Galloway: “When it comes to hate against Jews, freedom of speech is absolute.” NYU professor Scott Galloway is a successful entrepreneur, business guru, branding expert, best-selling author, and podcast host – but in recent months he is one of the sharpest and most influential voices in the fight against anti-Semitism. In an in-depth interview with Calcalist he talks about the reasons for standing at the front of the struggle, the despair of America’s youth, and where it’s all heading. Read more
Meet Faye, Israel’s Most Promising Startup of 2024. Co-Founder and CEO Elad Schaffer joined CTech to discuss the milestone for the company and its hopes for the travel industry. Read more
Israel’s AI hopes high, but investment and talent shortages persist. In 2023, half of the investments in startups, both in terms of capital and the number of rounds, were in AI companies, with investments in generative AI startups jumping by 85% between 2020 and 2023. However, this seemingly positive trend is overshadowed when compared globally. Between 2020 and 2023, the volume of investments in AI in the U.S. increased tenfold, and in Europe, it quadrupled. Read more
Google Cloud VP: “Cyber attacks are psychological warfare.” According to Sandra Joyce, vice president at Google Cloud and head of Mandiant Intelligence at Google, the tactic of harming public morale during wartime is familiar and ancient. She does not rule out the possibility of an Iranian cyber attack on electrical infrastructure, but according to her, an attack on a national level is difficult to accomplish. Read more
“If you want to create an avatar using Joe Biden or Donald Trump, you will be blocked.” Tomer Zuker, VP of Marketing at D-ID, speaks to CTech about its place on Calcalist’s ‘Most Promising Startups’ list – and the challenge of providing AI video tools in an election year. Read more
