Israel Active

Israel’s Council for Higher Education has assigned $27.7 million over five years for universities and colleges to set up or boost entrepreneurship and innovation programs. The goal of the New Campus Vision is to promote vibrant, inspirational, entrepreneurial centers.

Great blog by newsletter supporter . Since the 2005 start of the BDS (Boycott, Divestment and Sanction) campaign, Israel’s economy has improved by 100% with GDP per capital up 27%. Exports are up by 43% and tourism by 70%. Foreign investment is up 277%. Tiny Israel is an economic power.

In the Tourism Ministry’s annual Inbound Tourism Survey just published, 93% of tourists ranked their 2018 Israel visit in the "good to excellent" category. Over 50% said that their views on Israel had changed for the better with only 1.5% changing for the worse.

The American Council of the Blind (ACB) has partnered with Israel’s OrCam. Under the agreement, ACB members can buy Orcam’s visual aids, such as MyEye2 and MyMe at a special discount.

Globe Telecom, the leading telecom company in the Philippines, has chosen Israel’s Gilat Satellite Networks for a three-year multi-million US dollar contract, to enable WIFI service over satellite to schools and hospitals, in addition to cellular backhaul throughout the Philippines.

I reported previously that Israeli supermarket Shufersal was running a pilot of the automatic checkout system from Israel’s Trigo. Now the giant UK chain supermarket Tesco is testing the Trigo Vision system as one of a range of technologies for future implementation.

Google is to acquire Israel-based cloud storage company Elastifile for approximately $200 million. Elastifile had already been partnering Google Cloud, plus Amazon Web Services and Microsoft Azure.

Israeli entrepreneur Sharon Rabi studied electrical engineering at Tel Aviv University. But a too-short haircut and lack of styling tools prompted her to invent the DAFNI. Her range of products now sells in 15 countries.

If you can afford the steep price, you can avoid crowds by using the new Fattal Terminal at TLV Ben Gurion Airport. You get a nice place to chill, eat and drink as much as you want while the staff take care of your bags and passport control. Plus, a luxury car takes you direct to your aircraft.

Non-profit organization Start-up Nation Central has opened L28 (in Tel Aviv’s Lilienblum Street) where chefs can conceive and develop Israeli foods, ingredients and menus. It will also help chefs learn how to run a restaurant, without the worries of raising enough money to survive.