Israel’s largest server farm
Nine floors below Jerusalem’s Har Hotzvim tech hub, Israel’s Bynet Data Communications is building one of Israel’s biggest data centers. Some of Israel’s most sensitive information will be stored inside the hill. It is said Herod used rocks from Har Hotzvim to expand the 2nd Temple.
Protecting the Internet from attack by your fridge
. The Internet of Things makes home devices connected to the Internet (such as your fridge or TV) vulnerable to being hijacked and used to mount Denial of Service attacks via the Internet. Do not worry though - scientists at Israel’s Ben Gurion University can help stop that.
An app to prevent online exam cheating
Israel’s ORT Braude College of Engineering in Karmiel won a 250-participant hackathon with “Anansee” - an app to prevent cheating, specifically for online tests. The app uses the camera in the student’s computer and mobile phone, plus issues and verification checking.
A virtual desktop for working at home
Israel-based ControlUp (reported previously) helps employees turn their home computers into a virtual office running on a virtual desktop from the cloud. Many of the 1,000 employees at Israel’s Sheba Medical Center use ControlUP for telemedicine and to work from home.
Medals at chemistry Olympiad
Israelis won one gold, two silver medals and a bronze at the 52nd International Chemistry Olympiad, held on Zoom. 18-year-old Roi Peer won the first ever Israeli gold medal at the event. The Israelis competed against 240 students from 60 countries, including Iran and Syria.
New chip tech is “most promising venture”
The Venture program – Switzerland’s leading competition for up-and-coming entrepreneurs – ranked new on-chip memory technology developed at Bar-Ilan University, as one of three most promising ventures among nearly 330 start-ups. The technology is being commercialized.
US-Israel to conserve our heritage
The United States and Israel have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to support cooperation and exchanges on biodiversity conservation, protected areas and the protection of cultural and historical heritage. It covers countering wildlife trafficking and protecting ecosystems.
Earthquake warning system
Recent video and update from SeismicAI (featured previously) that uses an innovative sensor network and Artificial Intelligence to predict earthquakes and send alerts to help reduce damage. SeismicAi has pilot projects in Canada, the Himalayas and even Istanbul, Turkey.
Extreme tech winners
Israeli startups won 2 awards in the Extreme Tech Challenge 2020 (XTC) - the world’s largest startup contest with 2,400 companies from 87 countries. ReWire won the Fintech category for its global digital banking solutions. TytoCare won the Covid-19 Innovation Award for its telehealth solution.
Sodastream’s Covid-19 breathing machine
Israel’s Sodastream, now part of PepsiCo, has developed the StreamO2. It pushes temperature-controlled oxygen mixed with air into the patient’s nose. It helps Covid-19 patients suffering from respiratory distress, but who can still breathe on their own and don’t require a ventilator.