From cyber to banking: Palo Alto’s Nir Zuk recruiting investors for new digital bank. Zuk has partnered with Shmuel Hauser, the former Chairman of the Israel Securities Authority, and entrepreneur Yuval Aloni, to set up what would be Israel’s second digital bank to rival Mobileye founder Shashua’s venture. Read more
Taboola under U.S. Department of Justice investigation for HR activities. The digital advertising platform revealed in an SEC filing that it became aware last month that the Antitrust Division of the U.S. DOJ is conducting a criminal investigation related to its hiring actions. Read more
SimilarWeb IPO: Founder Or Offer to sell $10 million worth of shares.
The Israeli company has filed its amended Form F-1 with the SEC and revealed that it intends to raise $160 million in its offering, valuing the company at $1.7 billion. Read more
Innovid in negotiations for SPAC merger at $1.2 billion valuation. ION Acquisition, which used its first SPAC to merge with Taboola, is believed to be interested in merging with the Israeli-founded video advertising company as well with its second SPAC. Read more
From stealth to San Francisco: Apiiro heads to RSA. Idan Plotnik left Microsoft to reinvent secure development lifecycles. His gamble just might pay off. Read more
Former Science and Tech Minister Izhar Shay joins VC firm Disruptive AI. Shay is a former serial high tech entrepreneur and an experienced investor in venture capital with over 25 years of experience both in Israel and abroad. Read more
Experts discuss Israeli and Japanese partnership at DevOps conference. Speaking at a conference hosted by Pearl Cohen law firm, leaders from JFrog, SOMPO Digital Lab, and Grove Ventures shared their insights. Read more
Israel’s Trendlines Agrifood set to help Mitsubishi Corporation with agrifood partnership. The news follows the announcement that the Japanese corporation is making an active effort to explore innovations within Israel. Read more
“Gaming today is bigger than theater and television combined.” Gigi Levy-Weiss, Managing Partner at NFX, added that there’s an unprecedented growth in investments by funds which weren’t active in the space in the past. “Everything is happening in Israel and that gives us a great advantage,” said Daniel Cohen, Managing Partner at Viola Ventures. Read more
Imperva acquires CloudVector, accelerating its web application and API protections. CloudVector is the company’s third acquisition since Imperva itself was acquired by Thoma Bravo in 2018. Read more
Appointments | Saffron Tech appoints Dr. Efrat Greenwald as new Chief Data Scientist. Greenwald, an experienced agtech researcher, was brought in to help grow the company’s protocol IP and analyze its information technology systems. Read more
CTECH – Latest Israeli Technology and Innovation News
The biggest VC fund in Israel you didn’t even know existed. Clal Insurance has become the largest high tech investor in Israel with a
$2 billion portfolio, holding stakes in the likes of Pagaya, Hippo and REE to name a few. Read more
For StackPulse founders, the company is their new car in the startup race. When their first company was acquired earlier than expected, the three-person team decided to go bigger – and further – than ever before. Read more
ION Acquisition eyeing merger with another Israeli tech giant after listing its third SPAC. The company, led by co-CEOs Gilad Shany and Avrom Gilbert, and Chairman Jonathan Kolber, plans to raise $220 million as it seeks to “focus on the rapidly growing universe of Israeli companies and entrepreneurs that apply technology and innovation to our everyday lives.” Read more
Interview | Israeli startup Mon4t paving the way for mental health digital revolution. Mon4t’s artificial intelligence-based smartphone app helps physicians better monitor and diagnose patients’ psychiatric symptoms in real-time. Read more
Israeli VC Disruptive AI expanding Artificial Intelligence initiative to Turkey. The venture, named AI-SQUARE Forum, started operating in January 2021 as a virtual open meetup platform to promote AI innovation between the ecosystems of Arab countries and Israel. Read more
Opinion | Israeli startups can disrupt the global space industry.
Accelerated privatization combined with Israeli expertise, entrepreneurial spirit and a supportive space innovation ecosystem is an opportunity not to be missed by startup founders. Read more
Appointments | Creative technology platform Artlist makes four senior appointments. The new management members will help the company with its next stage of growth on the back of a record year. Read more
“The Israeli tech ecosystem has become a well-oiled machine.” Jon Medved, founder and CEO of Jerusalem-based investment platform OurCrowd, noted that partnering with the Gulf countries “is allowing Israel to penetrate markets we’ve never dreamed of in Southeast Asia and around the broader Islamic world.” Read more
Hackers reveal thousands of email addresses and passwords of Israeli state employees. Around 5,000 email addresses and passwords belonging to Israeli state employees were among a massive stockpile of billions of addresses and passwords leaked online. Read more
Police investigating alleged $1.5 million embezzlement at eToro. The investigation is focused on a former employee who allegedly cooperated with a friend who acted as a straw man to fraudulently extract millions of shekels from the company. Police have questioned both suspects and eToro has filed a NIS 6.3 million civil case. Read more
Edocate raises $3 million to advance virtual patient simulation platform. The Israeli startup’s platform delivers realistic interactive learning that aims to heighten and reinforce HCPs clinical skills, competency level, and confidence. Read more
Unic-Tech raises over $8 million in IPO. The partnership, which went public on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange, specializes in investing in shares of unicorn technology companies. Read more
Tech on the Roof | What makes Israel’s “most promising startup” so successful? At Calcalist’s Tech on the Roof event, Minute Media shared what it thinks helped earn its place as Israel’s number one startup. Read more
Round B | The pigs are almost flying, now comes the excruciating wait. Piggy’s product is entering the world and CEO Shaul Olmert is sitting tight waiting to see what the feedback will be. Read more
Intel to hire 1,400 new employees, establish $200 million campus in Haifa. Israel’s largest private employer will hire 1,000 new employees for its various R&D centers and another 400 for Habana Labs. Read more
Locusview raises $64 million series A to accelerate growth of DCM platform. The Israeli startup has managed within two years of the launch of its first product to integrate it in over 20 of the biggest energy infrastructure companies in the U.S. Read more
Data scientists’ salaries reach crazy highs as the war for tech talent escalates. A survey held by Machine & Deep Learning Israel has revealed that the average salaries in the data science and machine and deep learning sectors at GAMFA stands at NIS 55,700 (approximately $17,200) a month. Read more
Connecteam raises $37 million to grow all-in-one app for deskless employees. During 2020, the company saw massive customer growth of more than 400%, and now has over 150,000 active users. Read more
Your secrets are safe with Akeyless, who just raised $14 million to upgrade cloud security. The company protects all types of secrets, across multiple environments, via a single SaaS-based platform. Read more
AiVF receives European CE Mark for its AI-based IVF treatments. The platform is now seeking approval in the U.S. where IVF treatment can cost as much as $20,000. Read more
Clal and Altshuler lead $31 million investment in electric mobility startup IRP Systems. The Israeli company specializes in high-performance electric powertrain systems for a variety of e-mobility platforms. Read more
Cleantech company Tipa considering SPAC merger at over $500 million valuation. The Israeli company, which develops compostable flexible packaging, raised funds at a $120 million valuation just four months ago. Read more
Tech on the Roof | “It’s a matter of a year or two”: Innoviz outlines autonomous vehicle roadmap. Speaking at Calcalist’s Tech on the Roof, Omer Keilaf outlines when he believes self-driving cars will be validated and deployed to more streets around the world. Read more
Property management platform Guesty raises $50 million led by Apax as travel returns. The Israeli startup provides customers in over 80 countries with an end-to-end solution in which they can manage their portfolio of properties across a variety of online travel platforms. Read more
Placer.ai raises $50 million series B led by Product Hunt CEO. In the last year, the Israeli startup continued to expand its presence in core markets like Commercial Real Estate, Retail, Municipal governments, and Hospitality while advancing into new segments like CPG and Hedge Funds. Read more
ZenGo closes $20 million series A to build unique retail crypto wallet. The Israeli startup plans to use the funds to expand its set of financial services, including a VISA payment card, and a bigger set of choices for on-ramp, off-ramp, trade and savings options. Read more
Toyota subsidiary Hino to partner with REE on electric commercial mobility solutions. The companies will first work to develop hardware prototypes by 2022, while evaluating business models, engaging potential customers, and conducting demonstrations in parallel. Read more
Bank branches irrelevant during the pandemic, fees obsolete, says CEO of Lili. CEO of the largest freelance bank in the U.S. Lilach Bar-David spoke during Calcalist and Google’s Startup Week. eToro CEO Yoni Assia explained the mass influx of private investors to digital investing platforms. Read more
Materials Zone raises $6 million series A to boost AI materials discovery platform. The Israeli startup has developed a platform designed to make the process of development and manufacturing of any physical product faster and cheaper. Read more
California is now home to 22 Israeli-founded unicorns. The Golden State has the most Israeli-founded unicorns of any state, but New York trails by just one, according to data collected by the United States – Israel Business Alliance. Read more
Israeli meat-alternative startup Chunk Foods raises $2 million in pre-seed led by Stray Dog Capital. Chunk Foods leverages cutting-edge fermentation technology to produce whole-cut plant-based meat products. Read more
Israel’s Mizrahi-Tefahot Bank selects Finastra for cross-border payments. Fusion Payments To Go will help the bank enhance its customer experience. Read more
Tech on the Roof | Rewire: Covid-19 increased the diversity of our team. Speaking at Calcalist’s Tech on the Roof, CEO Guy Kashtan discussed how remote working led to an expansion in diversity efforts. Read more
Blackstone CEO: “Our arrival is a sign of the maturity of the Israeli economy.” Stephen A. Schwarzman believes there is only upside in the entrance of Blackstone Growth’s $4.5 billion fund to Israel. Read more
Analysis | Blackstone in Israel: Pouring fuel on the raging fire of local tech. Israeli tech entrepreneurs are used to working with VC funds, but Blackstone is very different. Read more
Check Point surpasses market forecasts for Q1, plans to recruit 600 new employees this year. The Israeli cybersecurity giant ended the first quarter of 2021 with total revenues of $508 million, a modest 4% increase year over year. Read more
Israeli startup generates oxygen from lunar soil. The Israeli Space Agency and the Ministry of Energy are backing an initiative that will generate oxygen from lunar soil, enabling space agencies to establish permanent colonies on the Moon. Read more
The war over digital wallets has begun. Apple Pay’s entry into Israel in the next two weeks will ignite the battle between multiple vendors offering digital wallet services. Read more
Kaspersky: Over 8 million cyberattacks on remote working Israelis during Covid-19. According to a survey by the cybersecurity company, more than half (56%) of ransomware victims paid the ransom to restore access to their data last year. Read more
Augury helps Carrier with its new digital offering. The digital offering connects customers’ equipment to Carrier’s cloud-based IoT platform. Read more
Latest count reveals 912 Israeli startups in the EU, employing 24,000 people. The report was conducted by EIT Hub Israel, ISERD, and CQ Global. Read more
Tech on the Roof | Zoomin CEO shares insights after returning to Israel. Gal Oron returned to Israel after a year and a half of building his company in New York – what did he miss? Read more
