Alibaba founder Jack Ma, former Google CEO Eric Schmidt and other top entrepreneurs and investors from dozens of countries gathered at the Peres Center for Peace & Innovation in Tel Aviv-Jaffa recently for the Israeli Innovation Summit and the inauguration of the new Israeli Innovation Center.
The 1,300-square-meter Innovation Center offers a meeting place for technology entrepreneurs, startups and investors, as well as a visitors’ center where the public can experience the story of Israel, the Start-Up Nation.
Noting that 330 multinational companies currently operate in Israel, Minister of Economy and Industry Eli Cohen said the new center “will not only expose visitors to all the aspects of life that are constantly being changed by Israeli innovation but will also provide them with a unique opportunity to see, touch, and even experience them personally.”
Corporate delegations and senior officials visiting from around the world can arrange a customized visit, focusing on fields such as agriculture, software, communications, medicine, and more. Information on each field is available in Hebrew, English, Arabic, and Chinese.
The center will have continuously updated exhibits on cutting-edge Israeli initiatives, where companies will display models of their products. Approximately 40 young startups will be selected each year to receive space in the expo hall.
Visitors can get a firsthand look, for example, at Argus Cyber Security’s network for autonomous vehicles; Cortica’s artificial intelligence technology; SpacePharma’s Space Telescope; and OrCam’s AI assistive device for the visually impaired.
A 200-seat auditorium, dubbed Place to Dream, overlooks the Mediterranean Sea, and three adjacent workshop rooms provide space for visitors seeking to engage more deeply with the content.
“We have created an experience that engages all the senses and invites visitors to see Israeli innovation from an insider’s perspective and to be a part of it in a way reminiscent of the most advanced technology centers in the world,” said Efrat Duvdevani, director general of the Peres Center for Peace and Innovation. “We look forward to receiving 200,000 visitors a year from Israel and around the world.”