Meetings with avatars
Microsoft and Israel’s D-ID (see previously) will provide tools to enterprises and developers to create AI avatars for Microsoft Teams and other Microsoft software. D-ID will integrate its technology into Microsoft Azure, allowing AI avatars to be embedded into applications.
$20 million towards creating another university
The Jewish Federations of Canada-UIA (JFC-UIA) have announced a $20 million investment in education for northern Israel. Most of the funds will help transform Tel-Hai College into a full-fledged university, while the remainder will support informal education initiatives.
Countering SMS fraud attacks
Israel’s Atrinet have launched the Atrinet URL Scanner, an advanced solution designed to combat real-time SMS fraud from SMS phishing (“Smishing”). It combines an SMS Firewall with URL Scanner, in collaboration with Google, to scan SMS links for malicious content.
Outstanding Scientists
The Israel Chemical Society has awarded the Outstanding Young Scientist Awards for 2024 to Prof. Josh Baraban from Ben-Gurion University (see previously) and Dr. Moran Shalev-Benami from the Weizmann Institute. See also Outstanding Scientists and ICS Gold Medal winners.
Smart energy
Israel’s Contel Smart Energy was established as Contel Technologies in 1964. Its projects include at Rambam hospital, Hadera power station, power plants in Spain, and Kibbutz Zeelim’s 120MW PV plant. It has now launched Energynie, an AI-based platform to manage PV, wind energy & storage.
The gene that controls the scent of flowers
Hebrew University researchers have found that a single gene, PhDEF, previously recognized for its role in petal formation, also plays a key part in activating scent production in later stages of flower development. It has major implications for the fragrance industry.
Giving apple growers the PIP
Israel’s BeeHero (see previously) has expanded its Pollination Insight Platform (PIP) to the apple market. “Apples are very sensitive for on-time pollination,” said Itai Kanot, co-founder and chief growth operator for BeeHero. And bees are sensitive to cold weather.
Google’s new chip
Google is expanding its chip development operations in Israel. It is currently hiring dozens of employees to develop a new network interface card (NIC) - a basic component for communications between core processors and graphics processors for AI processing.
AI tools to combat antisemitism
Israeli and Jewish tech innovators and organizations are developing new AI-powered tools and initiatives to counter misinformation and antisemitism online. They include Generative AI for Good, Bottom Line, Reasonate, Facts Commando, and Atchalta.
Resolving disinformation in seconds
Israel’s Cyabra (see previously) a leading AI platform for real-time disinformation detection, has launched Insights. This powerful new AI-feature is designed to transform complex social media disinformation data into clear, actionable answers in seconds.