Not many people know that at the heart of the official Start-Up Nation is the Israel Innovation Authority (IIA), which until 2016 was called the Office of the Chief Scientist (OCS) in the Ministry of Economy and Industry. As a support arm of the Israeli government, IIA’s mission is to foster industrial research and development in Israel. Its headquarters are located in the Jerusalem Technology Park in Malha.
Besides offering programs as well as financial and developmental resources for entrepreneurs and companies of all sizes and stages in Israel, IIA is responsible for international agreements and partnerships, including with countries in the European Union, Asia and North America.
At the end of March, for example, IIA signed a joint declaration with NY CREATES, the New York Center for Research, Economic Advancement, Science, Technology and Engineering, during a New York trade mission to Israel.
Israel Innovation Authority, NY CREATES team up on semiconductors
NY CREATES is a New York-based innovation center that specializes in advanced semiconductor R&D and accelerating the transfer of innovation to the business sector. As part of the agreement, IIA will support NY CREATES in identifying technological developments and scouting Israeli companies that fall within its sphere of activity. IIA will provide funding for the Israeli companies, while NY CREATES will support the US component of the collaboration.
“Collaboration is critical to innovation, which is why we are excited about our new partnership with the Israel Innovation Authority, as we will work together on research and development to advance semiconductor technologies,” said David Anderson, president of NY CREATES. “Israel has many promising early-stage companies with inventive new ideas, and NY CREATES has the world-class facilities and expertise to help transform those ideas into new technologies with real-world applications. We look forward to our partnership and working together to grow companies and new technologies, expand markets, and strengthen the semiconductor industry in the US, Israel, and globally.”
“Israel has many promising early-stage companies with inventive new ideas, and NY CREATES has the world-class facilities and expertise to help transform those ideas into new technologies with real-world applications. We look forward to our partnership and working together to grow companies and new technologies, expand markets, and strengthen the semiconductor industry in the US, Israel, and globally.”
David Anderson
Dror Bin, IIA’s CEO, said: “Against the backdrop of a global semiconductors’ supply chain crisis, and the US government backwind for investments within this specific sector, the Israel Innovation Authority identified this opportunity to collaborate with a leading semiconductors R&D entity. This agreement will enable Israeli semiconductor companies to operate in some of the most advanced facilities worldwide and gain better exposure to the US market and other relevant global entities.”
Also at the end of March, IIA announced that it had chosen Synergy 7 to establish an innovation center in the new innovation district of Beersheba, investing NIS 25 million over four years to develop the hi-tech ecosystem in southern Israel. Synergy 7 is jointly owned by, inter alia, Ben-Gurion University, Soroka Medical University Center, and Elbit Systems. “The project will focus on promoting entrepreneurship and hi-tech employment and strengthening Beersheba’s position as one of the Israeli innovation industry centers, in particular in the fields of medical data, autonomous robotics, and cyber defense,” IIA said in a press release.
After three months of economic instability over the government’s judicial overhaul plan, the business newspaper Calcalist reported on April 2 (a week after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced a pause in the legislation to enable talks with the opposition) that Israeli startup funding had hit its lowest mark in five years. Two reports conducted by the Start-Up Nation Policy Institute and by IVC Data and Insights with LeumiTech showed worrying trends for Israel’s tech sector, it said, adding that $1.7 billion were invested during the first quarter of 2023 in Israeli tech firms compared to $6.7 billion in same period last year.
For those who need a boost, I recommend a visit to IIA’s offices in Jerusalem or any of the hi-tech hubs around the country. You will see for yourself that innovation is still very much alive and kicking in “the Nation of Creation.”