Israel Active

Intel Israel has announced its Ingenuity Partner Program (IPP), an accelerator program that will provide assistance, mentoring, and connections to Israeli startups. Nine companies are already enrolled into the first six-month program.

Graduate students in real estate and business administration at the Netanya Academic College have had first-hand encounters with corporate leaders in China. They learnt how to deal with the challenges that foreigners face when seeking to operate in China.

Facebook’s Virtual Reality subsidiary Oculus has spent around $60 million to acquire Israel’s Pebbles Interfaces, which specializes in technology that can track hand movements. Pebbles says it uses micro-optics and computer vision to help take virtual reality to the next level.

Israel’s Stockton Group, a world leader in the bio-pesticide business, is being acquired by China’s Hebang Group for $90 million. Stockton’s Timorex Gold bio-fungicide is sold in 20 countries to treat rice, coffee, grapes, tomatoes, bananas, and other fruits and vegetables.

Facebook’s Virtual Reality subsidiary Oculus has spent around $60 million to acquire Israel’s Pebbles Interfaces, which specializes in technology that can track hand movements. Pebbles says it uses micro-optics and computer vision to help take virtual reality to the next level.

In MIT Technology’s Review of the 50 Smartest Companies, Israeli desalination company IDE Technologies is number 18. There is also Israeli technology in Tesla , Alibaba , Google , Amazon , Apple , Freescale , Bristol-Myers , Facebook , IBM and of course Microsoft and probably others.

Israel’s SerVision has won a contract with London Gatwick airport for the supply of live mobile CCTV systems. The project will install SerVision MVG400 streaming systems into 12 vehicles used for airfield operations.

Low cost airline RyanAir has announced it will commence six weekly flights to Eilat originating from Budapest (Hungary), Krakow (Poland) and Kaunas (Kovno, Lithuania). RyanAir expects to bring 40,000 passengers a year.

Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat has approved the construction of nine new office towers in Givat Shaul that will provide space for a range of businesses from high-tech to medical. It will create tens of thousands of new jobs and employment opportunities.

Israel’s Ministry of Economy hailed as a “breakthrough”, a deal stipulating cooperation with the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB). IDB is the largest investment body in Latin America and the Caribbean. It funds $12 billion of projects annually.