Israel Active

Lockheed Martin has launched three more MadaKids science kindergartens, this time in the Israeli northern city of Beit She’an. It brings to seven the number of science-based kindergartens opened in Israel by the global aerospace giant (see for previous).

Israeli security researcher and industry analyst Keren Elazari founded Leading Cyber Ladies, a global movement of top women in cyber tech. Starting with 30 Israelis, it now numbers around 3,000 globally of which 1,000 are Israelis. Its goal is to increase the numbers and impact of women in cybersecurity.

A high-speed data cable is being laid under the Red Sea that will connect (for the first time) Israel to Saudi Arabia. Part of the France to India link, it promises to improve the speed and lower the cost of transmitting data between Europe and Asia and improve relations between former enemies.

Israeli-founded Loop is a tech academy for global youth. It teaches coding to children aged 7 – 18 and is a unique combination of a youth movement and a tech incubator. Its student “loopers” learn computer science so they can become part of the hi-tech industry and build their own startups.

Israel’s parliament (Knesset) has passed legislation to allow autonomous shared taxis on Israeli roads, carrying passengers but without a safety driver. It paves the way for Mobileye, Intel’s Jerusalem-based subsidiary, to roll out “robo-taxis” and ride-hailing services in Tel Aviv this year.

The University of Haifa (UofH) and Israel’s Technion Institute are launching a joint archaeology research fund. It follows the UofH establishing the School of Archaeology and Maritime Cultures, which will revolutionize archaeological research in Israel.

Professor Roi Granot of Israel’s Ben Gurion University pioneered the use of magnetometer data (the magnetic field of rocks) to date the oceanic crust. In a recent study, Gronot together with Dutch scientists have shown that an event 105 million years ago shaped how the world looks today.

Israel’s Juganu (see previously) is partnering Qualcomm and Nokia to build 5G networks for smart cities. Juganu’s technology has been deployed in 15 countries including Israel, Mexico, Brazil, Guatemala, the U.S, and Greece.

Israel’s Autotalks (see previously) has deployed its V2X (Vehicle to anything) systems on nearly 2,000 buses and related infrastructure in Seoul City.  The advanced system alerts drivers of pedestrian collision, school zones, road and weather conditions warnings, and more.

Altooro is a startup that assesses the talent of developers and gives numerical and statistical values to their abilities. Its founder, Mo Mitwaly is also a mentor for Loop, helping to educate young Arab tech students in Nazareth so that they can eventually create their own startups.