Israel Active

The UK subsidiary of Israel’s Elbit Systems has won a contract worth some $166 million from the UK Ministry of Defence, for the Royal Navy Future Naval Training Program. The 12-year program will modernize the Navy’s shore-based training, plus establish its “Future Submarine School”.

Israel’s Rapyd (reported previous) has just raised a huge $400 million to give it a market valuation of $2.5 million.  Rapyd's real-time funds transfer platform is now used in more than 170 countries. Rapyd will use the funds to increase its workforce and purchase additional companies.

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When the Anytime Fitness gyms reopen in the UK, its 170,000 members will be able to enhance their fat burning program using Israel’s Lumen device (reported previously).

Israeli-founded, New York-based Talkspace (reported previously) has attracted huge numbers of customers during the pandemic. It is growing so fast that it could soon go public.

Israel’s Amnon Shashua, Mobileye President and CEO, announced at the virtual CES 2021 event that its technology would make fully Autonomous Vehicles a reality in 2022 and widely available by 2025. Its Radar / LIDAR and camera-based AVs would be safer than vehicles driven by humans.

Israeli startup As You Stay lets travelers save money at 400,000+ hotels and properties by eliminating fixed check-in and check-out times. It also states that the current cost of this flexibility is far lower than pre-pandemic. And, unlike the song “Hotel California”, you can always leave!

Israel’s Glilot Capital, which until now specialized in early-stage tech ventures, is launching a new $170 million VC fund focusing on investments in more mature companies. Glilot+ (Glilot Plus), will seek to place $5 – 20 million in each of around 15 enterprise software and cybersecurity companies.

Despite the global economic crisis, Israel Bonds sold an unprecedented $1.8 billion in investments during 2020, mainly in the US. Proceeds of the sale of bonds are used to promote Israel’s technological growth.  The funds will help Israel offset the economic challenges that are expected to come.

Israel’s Aleph Farms (reported previously) is partnering with Mitsubishi Corporation’s Food Industry Group to bring cultivated (slaughter-free) meat to the Japanese table. It will help reduce Japan’s reliance on imported food, and to reach its goal of zero greenhouse gas emissions.