Israel Active

Israel’s SpaceIL says its 140kg LunarX satellite is one of the top contenders for Google’s $30 million prize for landing on the moon. It is the smallest, smartest spacecraft, plus the first to rely on optic navigation. And the project has already won the hearts of a whole generation of Israelis.

The Technion-Cornell Innovation Institute (JTCII) is launching a new one-year postdoctoral “Runway program” for technology entrepreneurs. Professors provide academic guidance whilst off-campus consultants supply legal, industrial and financial advice.

Only in Israel can Citi, Ebay, General Electric, General Motors, Microsoft, Red Hat, and 3M develop new ideas together. The seven companies will send 3-5 software engineers to a “Weekathon” in Ra’anana where they will work in groups to develop futuristic products.

(Thanks to Atid-EDI) Israel’s Simgo has launched a low-cost roaming service for Samsung and iPhone. Attach a virtual SIM-enabled protective cover to access high-speed data services, enjoy excellent quality, whilst retaining your own mobile number for all calls.

Israeli cyber-security companies received eleven awards at the RSA Security Conference in San Francisco. Votiro won gold in the “Innovations in Next Generation Security” category for its software that “sanitizes” any form of data that enters an organization via the Internet. Covertix won two awards - silver for its database security and bronze for “Awesome Product of the Year”.

CleanTech 2014, the 18th annual international event for Clean Technologies at Airport City focused on environmental quality, infrastructures and green building, renewable energy and water technologies.

Israel’s Defense Ministry has successfully completed final testing on the “Sky Shield” system that protects commercial planes from missile attacks. A thermal camera integrated with laser technology deflects missiles. European authorities reported eight attempts to launch missiles at airplanes last year.

190 Israeli companies presented at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. Israel’s PointGrab won “most innovative app” with CamMe that lets users make gestures to take “selfies” (photographs of themselves) from their iPhone from up to 16 feet away. Israel’s EverythingMe was also one of five finalists.

In its most severe drought since 1977, California looks to Israel for expert water advice and technology. Israel’s IDE Technologies Ltd. is already helping to build what it says will be the largest seawater desalination plant in the Western Hemisphere.

(Thanks to Atid-EDI) Israel’s Evogene has launched PoinTar, a computationally based target discovery platform for generating new herbicides. It identifies key molecules responsible for essential biological processes in weeds, which have the potential to be chemically inhibited in order to cause weed death.