Japan is the world’s #3 economy…but not for Israel. It is not even a top 10 trading partner. To strengthen bi-lateral trade, Avi Hasson, Chief Scientist and Chairman of the Israeli Innovation Authority, led a delegation of 11 Israeli IoT startups this month to Tokyo and Osaka. The visit generated buzz (including the cover story of Wired Magazine) …
Continue reading “Israel & Japan: Konnichi Wa to Collaboration, Sayonara to Stagnation”
Next month, one of the leading European operators is expected to announce a dedicated, Israel-focused venture capital fund. While there is no one-size-fits-all approach to innovation clusters, some telcos are getting a better ROI from Israel than others.
Groucho Marx could have been talking about the Israeli hi-tech sector when he said “I made a killing on Wall Street a few years ago…I shot my broker”. In 2012, as Israeli exits topped $5.5 billion, there was reason to celebrate but plenty of cause for concern.
This week marks the annual orgy of PR excess known as the Consumer Electronics Show. More than 150,000 (mostly male) visitors, many sporting T-shirts with mysterious acronyms like “4K in HD3D”, will alternate between 2 million square feet of exhibition space and the craps tables. Unfortunately for the 3,200 exhibitors, their marketing dollars will be squandered. Although I will predict a few likely trends, when it comes to CES, what happens in Vegas really does STAY in Vegas.
Apple is in talks to acquire Israeli flash maker Anobit for a rumored $400-$500 million, according to a report by Calcalist. This would be Apple’s first acquisition in Israel and if completed, Anobit and its 200 employees in Herzliya will become Apple’s R&D center in Israel.
