Israel Active

I reported previously about Israel’s BioFeed which developed a solution that killed the Ziko virus-carrying mosquito without having to spray crops. Now BioFeed’s no-spray fruit-fly solution is helping protect Indian mango farmers against the devastating pest.

10,000 high-tech professionals descended upon Tel Aviv for the city’s 5th annual DLD (Digital Life Design) Conference. 100 events were planned – including a new focus on food tech in which Israel has over 500 startups. DLD ended with a closing party on the beach.

Archaeologists at prehistoric Tel Tsaf in Israel’s Jordan Valley have found a unique 7,200-year-old clay silo model, the earliest evidence of ritual food storage. They also excavated well-preserved mudbrick architecture, the region’s earliest metal item, and evidence of long-distance trade.

Israel’s Bank Hapoalim and software giant Microsoft are working together to set up a platform to create digital bank guarantees, based on the latest Blockchain technology. The “pioneering project” will help make the process of signing up guarantors a simple and quicker process.

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.