An all-Israeli exit
Israel-founded NNG – developer of the popular iGO navigation app – has acquired Israeli startup Arilou – developer of cybersecurity for vehicles. A newsletter debut for both companies.
Another 9 joint US-Israel projects
The Israel-U.S. Binational Industrial Research and Development (BIRD) Foundation approved funding (worth $21.5 million) for nine new projects. The Israeli companies involved are Cellect Biotechnology, Evogene, File X, Hinoman, IAI, Kamada, Keystone Heart, MedAware and Mellanox.
Microsoft’s latest accelerator graduates
Ten Israeli startups have just completed Microsoft Israel’s latest “Scalerator” program, bringing a total of 83 that have graduated from the eight programs to date. Six of the ten have already raised investments or received investment offers for a total of $27 million.
Mighty Israeli tahini
Israel’s Rushdi Foods Industries has launched Mighty Sesame Tahini. It is made from just one ingredient‑ Ethiopian sesame seed - no preservatives, sugar, salt, or any artificial ingredients. Over 21% protein and ten times higher in calcium than cream cheese.
Mobileye is world’s 6th smartest company
MIT Technology Review ranks Israel’s Mobileye sixth on a list of the world's 50 "smartest" companies. Mobileye is working on autopilot and collision avoidance technology for Audi, BMW, General Motors, Nissan, Tesla, Volkswagen, and Volvo.
Israeli cybersecurity boom is sustainable
Isaac Ben Israel, who heads the Interdisciplinary Cyber Research Center (ICRC) at Tel Aviv University, reckons the massive growth in Israel’s security industry will continue. “Israel is the only country where you can choose cybersecurity in high school,” he said at Cyber Week.
$100 million Israeli fund makes first investment
The $100 million Israel Biotech Fund (IBF), founded to invest in Israeli bio-techs, has made its first investment in cancer treatment developer Vidac. Vida’s VDA-1102 is the first ointment that selectively targets malignant skin cancer cells with minimal effects on surrounding healthy skin.
$3.32 billion in six months
Israeli startups are still in high demand. In the first half of 2016 there were 45 exits by Israeli startups worth $3.32 billion. They include the $811 million acquisition of EZchip by Mellanox, the $643 million buyout of Xura, and the $430 million acquisition of Ravello Systems by Oracle.
Record $1.4 billion raised by startups
Israeli startups broke all records for the most funds raised in a quarter. The $1.4 billion raised from Apr to Jun beat the $1 billion in Q1 2016 and the £1.1 billion in Q2 2015.
Israel is strategic for Cisco
Cisco’s chairman and Israel’s Prime Minister signed a strategic agreement to make the eastern Negev into Israel's first fully digitalized region. In other news, Cisco signed a financial tech agreement with Bank Hapoalim and paid $293 million for Israeli cloud security company CloudLock.