Many of the world's top corporations have opened up R&D and design centers in Israel. They have not only benefited the Israeli economy and increased jobs, but they have also strengthened the quality of their products and competitive standing.
Microsoft built its first R&D facility outside the U.S. in Israel in 1989. It recently established a new communications R&D center in Herzilya.
Motorola's Israel facility was established in 1964 and is the company's largest development center worldwide. Comprised of several local business groups and subsidiaries, Motorola employs about 3,000 people.
IBM began operating in Israel in 1950 and established its first R&D center outside the U.S. in Haifa in 1972, employing over 1,000 people.
Intel is the largest private-sector employer in Israel. It set up its first design and development center outside the U.S. in Haifa in 1974 and now has 4 R&D facilities and 2 manufacturing centers in Israel, employing over 6,500 Israelis. Intel develops and manufacturers Centrino, Core 2 Duo and most of its mobile WiMAX chipset in Israel.
Internet giant Google has greatly benefited from its centers in Haifa and Tel Aviv. Google Suggest, the technology that suggests search matches, and Google Instant, the technology that automatically streams results on the screen, were both developed in Israel.
IT Innovation
Israel is world famous for its tech industry, and has produced several world-renowned powerhouses. In addition, Israel is also home to hundreds of smaller companies and over 1,000 IT start-ups.
In storage, Mellanox is a leader in the data interconnect market for Fortune 500 data center servers and storage systems.
In Internet applications, Israel's Mirabilis developed the instant messaging technology (ICQ), which became the model for AOL Instant Messenger.
In testing, Mercury Interactive's unique Software Performance technology allows its clients to constantly keep an eye on the user's experience of their business applications. Mercury Interactive was acquired by HP in 2006.
In security, tech giant Checkpoint developed the world's first Internet security systems, the firewall, now used on virtually all computers.
SanDisk acquired Israeli company M-Systems which developed the USB flash drives we use for portable storage today.
Changing The World Through Cleantech
Blessed with no natural resources, Israel has relied heavily on its technological achievements in the field of cleantech.
Israel recycles roughly 75% of its water, making it the world's leader. It has also developed seawater reverse osmosis desalination and is home to the world's largest SWRO desalination plant. This plant produces 130 million cubic meters annually, making it the most cost-efficient operation of its kind in the world.
An innovative new company named TaKaDu uses sparse data from existing sensors and folds that in with multiple sources of data to create a smart water grid. This helps the water utility improve its ability to plan and forecast, thus saving money and resources.
In geothermal energy, Israel's Ormat is a global leader with its breakthrough turbine design, which converts geothermal and solar-heated steam into electricity.
Creating energy from water has been extremely important for Israel as well. A company called Applied Cleantechrecycles sewage to produce a material recyllose, which can then be used to produce 120 and 135 gallons of ethanol per ton.
Israel is also leading the world in developing a realistic electric car grid. Better Place, the largest start-up in history, has received hundreds of millions of dollars in financing. Its plans have been approved by multiple governments, and they are set to launch their first network in Israel by late 2011.
Advances in Life Sciences
Israel boasts over 900 life science companies. An additional 50-60 new companies are formed each year. A number of multinational companies have also found a home in Israel, including J&J, Perrigo, GE Healthcare and Phillips Medical. The industry has also produced giants such as Teva, Given Imaging, Insightec, Medinol, Brainstorm and others. Several different industries have intersected in the formation of new therapies, drugs, and devices. Physics, mathematics, nanotechnology, computer science and other sectors have produced breakthroughs in the understanding and treatment of diseases such as Cancer, Alzheimer's, Parkinson's disease and Cystic Fibrosis.
Parkinson's: Teva and the Technion joined forces to develop Azilect/Rasagiline, which works by blocking the breakdown of dopamine in the brain.
Bone Repair: Regentis Biomaterials of Haifa developed Gelrin, an injectable, biosynthetic gel used to stimulate bone repair.
Alzheimer's: Using research from the Hebrew University, Novartis developed Exelon, which postpones the worsening of Alzheimer's symptoms for 6 to 12 months in over 50% of patients.
Diagnostics: Given Imaging developed the ingestible pill camera, which helps doctors diagnose cancer and digestive disorders.
Information Taken From: Israel Investment Promotion Center
The Israel Investment Promotion Center is part of the Ministry of Industry, Trade, and Labor.