Israel Active

I reported previously on the links that German carmaker BMW has with Israel. Now, BMW is opening a Tel Aviv tech center to tap into the talent in Israel's startup scene. It will also set up joint research projects with Israeli universities,

I’ve reported previously on the close ties that German software giant SAP has with the Jewish State. SAP has now announced its first Israeli accelerator in Tel Aviv. SAP.IO Foundry will support up to 10 early stage Israeli business-to-business (B2B) startups.

A subsidiary of Warren Buffet’s Berkshire Hathaway, Guard Insurance, has partnered with Israeli startup Planck Resolution to develop a full digital underwriting offering. Planck develops software that helps insurance companies analyze and risk-assess businesses.

The “Jerusalem Expo and Conference,” hosted by the Orthodox Jewish Chamber of Commerce – Israel Division, will take place on 15th May. It is aimed at Israeli residents from North America, Europe, South Africa and other English-speaking countries who want to manage their businesses from Israel.

Turkey’s President Erdogan may not like Israel, but his national airline wants Israeli customers. Turkish Airlines is launching a new four-flights-per-week service between Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion International and Izmir’s Adnan Menderes airport, commencing 29th May.

EasyJet is launching a new, thrice-weekly direct flight route from Tel Aviv to Nantes, the sixth largest city in France, starting in April. Meanwhile Ryanair will be offering three flights a week between Tel Aviv and the southern French city of Marseille. The route will be taking off in October.

American technology giant Nvidia is to acquire Israeli chipmaker Mellanox in a deal worth $6.9 billion. Mellanox has offices in Yokne’am, Tel Aviv, Beersheba, Ra’anana and Tel Hai. Mellanox’s solutions accelerate some of the largest supercomputers in the world .

Israel’s Ika Cohen’s makes chocolates with flavors that include olive oil, Dead Sea salt, basil, and the Middle East herb zaatar. From her little Tel Aviv shop, she is now targeting the Japanese market. At the annual Salon du Chocolat fair in Tokyo she sold over $1,000 of chocolates per hour.

The Entrepreneur Boot Camp for newcomers to Israel is run by Aliya organization Nefesh b’Nefesh. The latest six-week course in Southern Israel culminated in a Pitch Night. 15 contestants each had 90 seconds to present their ideas before a panel of five judges for prizes up to $3,300.

Israeli travel tech companies Fornova and HotelsBI are to merge.  Fornova will integrate HotelsBI’s hotel performance analytics software into its suite of products aimed at the hospitality industry.