Israel Active

Car maker Hyundai has signed an agreement with Israel’s Technion Institute and KAIST (Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology) to conduct joint research on future mobility technologies. Hyundai will fund a multi-million-dollar Technion-KAIST R&D center.

IKEA has chosen Israel’s Flying SpArk to join the nine other startups in its Swedish training course.  Flying SpArk produces a high-quality protein powder from fruit fly larvae for human consumption as a healthier and sustainable alternative to animal protein.

Researchers at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem have created a nanophotonic chip system using lasers and bacteria to observe fluorescence emitted from a single bacterial cell. The breakthrough technology will enhance efforts to build mobile “lab on chip” devices.

There are 73 international R&D centers in Tel Aviv, nearly doubling in five years, providing over 6,200 jobs. The latest, Visa, joins Amazon, AOL, Apple, Barclays, Bosch, Citibank, Coca Cola, Deutsche Telekom, Facebook, Google, IBM, Intel, MasterCard, Microsoft, Paypal, Renault, Samsung, Siemens, Yahoo and more.

Innovate Israel returns to London on 12th Sept co-sponsored by OurCrowd in partnership with The Institution of Engineering and Technology. Over 20 leaders of Israeli companies will discuss the most exciting innovations coming from scale-up nation.

The first Israeli-developed environmental satellite, VENµS, was successfully launched at the Guiana Space Center’s Kourou site.  The joint Israel Space Agency and French space agency CNES project will allow study of global environment, agriculture and water issues.

Karnataka, a state in southwestern India, has transformed 59,305 acres of drought-stricken land in Hunagund into a fertile green pasture, thanks to Israeli drip irrigation. As a result, by October, 15,000 farmers will harvest their first monsoon season crop in years.

I reported recently about Hebrew University Professor Berta Levavi-Sivan’s technology that promotes fish growth – as implemented in Uganda. She has co-founded the startup AquiNovo to utilize the technology and was awarded a 2017 Kaye Innovation award.

During his visit to Israel, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres was shown Israeli technological innovation in the fields of water, energy and malaria tests. These included Water-Gen, Aqwise, Innovation: Africa, HomeBiogas and Sight Diagnostics.

Israel’s Ministry of Education has launched a NIS 70 million initiative to increase English proficiency around the country. Its 4-year goal is for 70% of Israeli students to study high and advanced English (currently 61%). It targets improving verbal skills using non-formal methods. Also, more on the NIS 12 million ($3.4 million) nationwide training program for English teachers.