Author Archives: MichaelOrdman

Jerusalem streets after Lag B’Omer

Jerusalemites have been taking full advantage of the end of the ban on weddings before Lag B’Omer. Now the streets are full of the sound of celebrations and parties. But these cannot compare to the Yom Yerushalayim (Jerusalem Day) celebrations … Continue reading

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Gal Gadot’s movie has over 100 million views

Israeli actress Gal Gadot’s action thriller “Heart of Stone” was streamed on Netflix over 109 million times in the second half of 2023. It was the second most watched movie, behind “Leave the World Behind”, which had 121 million views. … Continue reading

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European curling runners up

Bulgaria beat Israel 7-4 in the final of the men’s European Curling Championships 2024 C-Division in Dumfries, Scotland. The silver medal-winning Israeli men’s team comprised skip Alex Pokras, third Dmitri Abanin, second Lawrence Sidney and lead Jeffrey Yaakov Lutz. https://worldcurling.org/2024/05/medal-games-eccc2024/

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Hot Jazz

A taste of the New Orleans Jazz festival in Tel Aviv (see here previously). https://eng.hotjazz.co.il/the-new-orleans-jazz-festival-tel-aviv-may-june-2024/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h4LbPKyERQI

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Terminal 1 re-opens as Ryanair returns

Ben Gurion airport’s low-cost Terminal 1 reopened on Jun 3rd for international flights. A few hours later, Ryanair’s first flight in Israel since February landed. It will operate routes between Tel Aviv and Berlin, Paphos, Budapest, Bari, Milan, Malta and … Continue reading

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Eyes for French aircraft engine manufacturer

Israel’s Odysight.ai has received a purchase order from France-based Safran Aircraft Engines. Odysight.ai will supply its cutting-edge micro cameras to support Safran’s experimentation, planning and development of jet engines for the aviation industry. https://www.odysight.ai/press/odysight-ai-receives-purchase-order-from-france-based-safran-aircraft-engines/

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Startup investment – to 9/6/24

Gauzy raised $75 million (IPO);

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Exits, takeovers and mergers – to 9/6/24

Germany’s SAP is acquiring Israel’s WalkMe for $1.5 billion; US-based Tenable is acquiring Israel’s Eureka Security for “tens of millions of dollars”. Israel’s Valens Semiconductor has acquired Colorado’s Acroname.

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Pineapple delight

Israel has cancelled customs duties on pineapple imports from Costa Rica, leading to plummeting prices.  Israelis have taken full advantage, almost doubling their normal consumption. The fruit already had increased its popularity, rising from 1.1 million sold in 2021 to … Continue reading

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$260 million order for Elbit

Another (undisclosed) international company has recognized Israel’s dominance in the defense technology industry with a two-year, $260 million purchase order for systems from Israel’s Elbit. In 2023, Elbit earned revenues of approximately $6 billion and now has an order backlog … Continue reading

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