Vayyar raises $109 million
As reported previously the technology from Israel’s Vayyar Imaging can see through walls and other materials. Its 4D radar can also detect a patient falling and alerts an emergency contact. Vayyar has just raised $109 million and is opening new offices in Jerusalem and Haifa.
Teaming up to protect hospital systems
As reported previously, Israel’s Medigate protects medical devices from cyber-attack. It has now partnered with Japan’s Sompo Risk Management and Israeli private hospital chain Assuta Medical Centers to develop cybersecurity services for hospitals.
AstraZeneca launches digital health program
AstraZeneca previously teamed up with Jerusalem’s Hadassah hospital to develop new treatments. It has now started a NIS 10 million program for investing in Israel’s digital health sector. It will provide Israeli startups with funds, mentorship and training.
Christian Zionists invest in Israel
650 Christian pro-Israel executives from 50 countries will attend the 2nd annual conference on “Israeli Innovation for Humanity” in December. It is run by the nonprofit ARISE, which matches Christian Israel-loving businesspeople from abroad with entrepreneurs in Israel.
Matching immigrants to employers
Israel’s UWORK is an online recruitment agency targeted at new Olim - immigrants to Israel. The website is said to be the first recruitment platform specifically dedicated to immigrants and foreign language speakers, offering a variety of jobs in companies across Israel.
Importing hi-tech skills
NGO Masa Israel’s “FastTrack Pro” program serves as a pipeline for coding and other key technical skills by matching North American Jews to jobs at Israeli start-ups. Meanwhile, (TY ) The Council for Higher Education’s “Study in Israel” also attracts international hi-tech talent.
Good all-round improvement
Israel’s Composite State of the Economy index for October increased by 0.3% - a slight acceleration in the last two months. All components improved, especially consumer goods exports, services exports, industrial production, imports, retail trade revenue, services revenue and job vacancies.
Top of the world
In the World Economic Forum’s 2019-2020 Global Competitiveness Report, Israel was ranked first for entrepreneurship, (risk, embrace of disruptive ideas, growing innovative companies), R&D expenditure, macroeconomic stability and multi-stakeholder collaboration. Overall Israel was 20th of 141.
Third quarter growth exceeds forecasts
Israel’s GDP grew at 4.1% in the third quarter of 2019, far in excess of the market's 2.6-2.8% expectations, according to an initial estimate published by the Central Bureau of Statistics. The unexpected result indicates that economic growth is stronger than most analysts believed.
Helping banks prevent fraud
As reported previously, Israel’s BioCatch is used to prevent fraud by top UK bank Nat West and seven tier-one banks in Brazil, Chile, Colombia and Mexico. This WSJ article reveals that the Royal Bank of Scotland also uses BioCatch’s behavior analysis to stop fraud.