Israel Active

Tel Aviv University scientists are using muon detectors to build a 3D map of undiscovered underground Jerusalem tunnels, chambers, and fortifications. Muons are a fundamental particle, created when cosmic rays hit our atmosphere. High muon levels indicate a cavity above.

There are currently 105 startups operating in Israel in the field of space applications. These companies raised a total of $314 million in the past year. Most of Israel’s space startups (71%) are involved in Earth observation, communications and navigation, or space infrastructure.

A detailed scientific paper describing the efficient method devised by Technion Prof Avner Rothchild and his team to split water into “green” hydrogen and oxygen. It involves using Bromine in the Decoupled Water Electrolysis (DWE) process. See for Technion’s research into Hydrogen production.

Israel’s Alignment Labs lost two of its 3 key employees who were called up to the IDF reserves. One was released, but only so he could donate a kidney to someone he didn’t know. So, they used their own developed product – Goni – to help them focus on priorities and keep their customers happy.

Another wow year. The 19th Ilan Ramon International Space Conference was introduced by Israel’s President Herzog. His message was “working together” for “the future of humanity”.

Israel’s Rail Vision develops AI-based safety technology for railways. It has just received European certification for its Main Line system which uses 2km range vision sensors to assess risks and detect threats for the railway industry. Even in poor visibility, they can prevent deadly collisions.

Israel’s MazeBolt has developed RADAR – a system that constantly checks a company’s websites and reports any vulnerabilities to DDoS (Distributed Denial of Service) attacks. It performs a real attack on the webserver, but not disruptive enough to crash it. The server is then re-checked after fixing.

It took over seven years (see previously) but Israeli-developed wristcam is a smart wristband that uniquely turns an Apple Watch into a camera capable of taking photos and recording video and audio, without relying on an accompanying phone.

Synergy7 is an innovation hub in Be’er Sheva, aimed at boosting both the area and the entire Israeli tech sector. The Israel Innovation Authority is providing NIS 100 million of funding and it is backed by Ben Gurion University, Clalit Healthcare, Elbit Systems, Dell, and the Merage Foundation.

Israel’s Exodigo (see previously) is working on the US Department of Energy’s GOPHURRS project to modernize America’s aging power grid using underground technologies. The US is also funding Exodigo to provide 3D maps of the country’s power lines.