BIRD
Foundation
Newsletter |
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Message from the Executive Director
The Israeli hi-tech sector is set to break yet another record. In 2021, Israeli companies are expected to raise over $20B, doubling the amount they raised in 2020. The surge in capital raised by technology companies in Israel is a global phenomenon that includes the U.S., Europe and other countries.
Click here for the whole article.
Eitan Yudilevich, Ph.D.
Executive Director |
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WELCOME BIRD’s New U.S. Co-Chair |
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We would like to take this opportunity to welcome Ms. Mojdeh Bahar, who was appointed as the U.S. co-Chair of BIRD’s Board of Governors in January 2021. Ms. Bahar is the Associate Director for Innovation and Industry Services at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). Ms. Bahar wrote some time ago, “I find intersections interesting - full of possibilities. They bring seemingly disparate things, concepts, people together and provide a common point. They allow more than one path and give us permission to explore. The point of intersection allows us to find commonalities, to start a conversation, a meeting, a negotiation.” |
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Dr. Jonathan Margolis served as BIRD Governor, representing the U.S. State Department, for 10 years. During his tenure as Governor and thanks to his guidance, the BIRD Foundation made great progress in adapting to the changing environment. The entire BIRD team thanks Dr. Margolis for his wisdom and insights and for always making the BIRD Board meetings interesting and rewarding.
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BIRD Announces Upcoming Call for Proposals |
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Companies in the U.S. and Israel are invited to apply for the first general BIRD funding cycle of 2022. Executive Summary deadline is March 1, 2022. See Call for Proposals. |
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NOTE: While the maximum conditional grant per project is still up to $1M, the BIRD Board of Governors may exercise its discretion to increase the award to $1.5M for exceptional proposals. This is contingent on the quality of the proposal and available funding. |
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BIRD HLS Approves Two Projects in its Sixth Annual Cycle |
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The U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the Israel Ministry of Public Security together with the BIRD Foundation announced the recipients of its sixth annual HLS cycle on October 6, 2021. Two projects, each consisting of a U.S. and an Israeli company, received approval for a total investment of $1.5 million. Projects selected addressed topics relating to air traffic management and public security. For additional information, see Press Release. |
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BIRD HLS Grantees, ELTA Systems and TLC Solutions developed a search and rescue system for locating victims under ruins and in disaster areas by accurate location of their cellular phones. |
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Elta Systems of Israel and Florida-based TLC Solutions, were awarded a BIRD HLS grant in 2018 to jointly develop a cellular geolocation system for first responders to quickly and efficiently locate survivors of natural disasters and victims trapped under ruins.
The BIRD Homeland Security program is a joint initiative funded by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the Israel Ministry of Public Security to develop advanced technologies that address the homeland security needs of both countries.
In the joint project, the companies worked together to advance the Res-Q-Cell system so that it can be activated based on the geo-located cellular phones of victims trapped under ruins, independent of the local cellular network. The size of the system was significantly reduced so that it could be installed on small aerial platforms such as commercial drones, as well as on vehicles.
The project was successfully completed and the companies believe that there will be strong demand for this solution by rescue forces around the world.
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MyndYou Cognitive Technologies of Israel and Cosán Group of New Jersey, were awarded a BIRD grant in 2019 to improve in-home care with AI-based patient engagement based on voice analysis and monitoring. |
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MyndYou Cognitive Technologies developed and integrated its AI-based voice analysis technology for remote monitoring and analyzing patient health together with Cosán Group, an industry-leading healthcare organization that provides continuous patient care coordination with caregivers, physicians and healthcare organizations. The combined system improves patient treatment, offers early detection of health anomalies and provides better patient engagement.
The companies were awarded a BIRD Foundation grant in 2019 and jointly developed and integrated their technologies into a validated platform that was proven to create value for patients, caregivers and the healthcare system.
In this project, MyndYou developed a voice bot called “MyEleanor” which initiates weekly calls to high-risk patients that use Cosán’s Care Management platform. Based on their proprietary data analytics engine, which detects subtle changes in a patient’s voice, the voice bot identifies anomalies in the patient's health and mental condition. Based on MyEleanor’s findings, Cosan’s platform sends HIPAA-compliant alerts, transcripts and actionable data to care teams, allowing them to follow up and focus on the members who need them the most. |
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BIRD’s Executive Director visits U.S.- Israel Energy Center Consortium for an in-person update |
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BIRD's Executive Director, Dr. Eitan Yudilevich, joined members of the U.S.-Israel Energy Center's Energy Storage (UISEC) consortium when he visited the University of Maryland on October 4 to hear how the program was progressing.
The Energy Storage consortium was awarded $18.4 million over five years to develop next-generation batteries for advanced energy storage applications.
Jointly led by Bar-Ilan University's BIRAD – Research & Development Company Ltd. in Israel and the University of Maryland in the U.S., the Energy Storage consortium's member partners include Ion Storage Systems, Saft America and Forge Nano, Inc. in the U.S. and Tel Aviv University, Materials Zone and 3DBattery in Israel.
Dr. Yudilevich had the opportunity to meet with representatives from the UMD, Ion Storage Systems and Saft and get an update on their achievements in developing market-ready solid-state battery components and cells. He also met with University of Maryland leadership to discuss the unique US-Israel Energy Center model and potential future areas of cooperation.
Thanks to Prof. Paul Albertus for making this meeting possible and to the team of talented participants for such an exciting and inspiring visit.
In addition, the Fossil Energy "GoMed" consortium held their first annual meeting on October 28, 2021. Consortium members from both countries met for the first time in a COVID-friendly virtual meeting held simultaneously at Tulane University, in the U.S., and Hebrew University, in Israel. Consortium leaders Prof. Dan Shantz, of Tulane University, and Prof. Simone Emmanuel, of the Hebrew University, brought together their binational task teams to share their progress and offer insights. |
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From left to right: Carine Steinway (Saft), Gregory Hitz (ISS), Robert Briber (UMD), Samuel Graham (UMD), Eitan Yudilevich, Paul Albertus (UMD), Eric Wachsman (UMD), Keith E. Gregorczyk, PhD (UMD), and Barry Bogage (MD/Israel Development)
Find out more about the U.S.-Israel Energy Center here: https://us-isr-energycenter.org. |
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