Israel Active

Norm Cohen and Alan Cohl are creating Israel’s first distillery for American bourbon-style whiskey. The Legends Distillery in Israel’s Elah valley is on the site of the epic fight between David and Goliath. Legends joins Milk and Honey (single malt) and Golan Heights (two-grain).

The BIRD Foundation is to fund $7.5 million for 9 new joint Israeli-USA projects. The Israeli companies include AgRobics, Axon Vision, Farm Dog, ImageSat, MyndYou, NSLComm, RunEL NGMT and Taranis. They involve agrotech, communications, medical devices, digital health, environment, homeland security and more.

Israel’s Export and International Cooperation Institute (IEICI) has calculated that Israel’s exports of goods and services exceeded $100 billion in 2017 - 5% more than in 2016. Goods exports to the European Union (EU) grew 20% to $16 billion, accounting for 35% of Israel's 2017 total.

I reported previously on Israel’s Intuition Robotics, and its ElliQ empathic desk lamp. Intuition has since raised tens of millions of dollars, including from Toyota and Sumitomo Mitsui Banking.

I reported previously on the NASDAQ joint venture with the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange to setup a new private exchange for Israeli startups. Now, NASDAQ and Israel’s LeumiTech have launched a joint program “Gateway to Global Growth” to help expand these companies.

2017 saw a 46% increase on 2016 in kibbutz investments into startup ventures, totaling some NIS 76 million. 24 kibbutzim invested in 19 startup companies. Kibbutzim are also renting space for local entrepreneurs to set-up new businesses.

A report by Start-Up Nation Central shows that during the first half of 2017 Israeli on-farm technology companies raised 7% of global investment in such technologies – out of all proportion to Israel’s tiny size.

Tel Aviv University (TAU) and Japanese electronics giant NEC are founding AlphaC - a new incubator for early stage cyber startups. Ten early stage ventures will join an intensive three-month program, receiving access to TAU resources, workspace, business contacts and mentors.

Israel-based venture capital firm Pontifax raised another fund of $240 million – its fifth such fund. Excess demand for the fund saw it closed within two months, and Pontifax is expected to invest most of the money raised in the life-sciences industry.

At December’s International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) conference in Sri Lanka, Israel signed new air transport agreements with the U.K., Switzerland, Chile, South Africa, Vietnam, Canada, Dominican Republic, Tanzania, Uganda and Jordan. These will increase direct flights to Israel.