Tech Buzz: Another week, another $422m. raised
After a red-hot June filled with hi-tech investments, acquisitions and exits, the first full week of July maintained pace, with at least $422 million of funding announced. Israeli companies have raised more than $11.5 billion this far in 2021, far more than the total for the whole of last year.
AnyVision, which does facial recognition using AI, said it has secured a $235m. investment from SoftBank Vision Fund 2i and Eldridge with further participation from existing investors. The Holon-based company, whose technology can identify faces and objects in a large crowd for security and commercial applications, said it was one of the largest-ever funding rounds in the visual intelligence space.
Aleph Farms, a cultivated meat company growing steaks directly from non-genetically modified animal cells, said it completed a $105m. Series B funding round. The Rehovot-based company will use the funds to execute its plans for large-scale global commercialization of cultivated beef steaks, include scaling up manufacturing, growing operations internationally, and expanding its product lines and technology platform ahead of the company’s market launch in 2022.
Yokneam-based Silk, whose technology improves cloud database performance, said it raises $55m. in an oversubscribed Series B round. The funds will allow Silk to accelerate its sales and marketing efforts and expand engineering development for its platform, which it claims makes cloud environments run 10 times faster with greater resilience to any infrastructure hiccups or malfunctions.
NanoLock Security, which provides cybersecurity protection for IoT and Operational Technologies (OT) systems, said it secured an $11m. Series B round. The company, located in the Nitzanei Oz moshav in central Israel, said it has embarked on an ambitious growth trajectory with the acquisition of two new industry patents¸ and strategic partnerships and deployments around the world. Its clients include major utilities, industrial companies, and large ecosystem partners.
Medorion, which makes behavioral intelligence SaaS solutions for health insurers, raised $6m., bringing its total funding since 2017 to $9m. The Tel Aviv-based company’s AI-powered platform analyzes claims and social determinants of health data to accurately pinpoint the underlying psychological, environmental, and economic drivers and barriers behind people’s health decisions, facilitating proactive interactions that improve health delivery and financial outcomes.
Haifa-based NanoVation, which is developing a respiratory monitor for continuous monitoring of patients’ breathing, received a €5m. investment from the European Innovation Council to accelerate development and launch initial marketing efforts in the EU. The investment is part of the EIC’s strategy to identify and support high-impact start-ups and small companies and assist them in scaling up game-changing technologies, it said. Last year NanoVation received a €2.5m. grant from the EU’s Horizon EIC Accelerator program. NanoVation is the first Israeli company to receive both a grant and equity funding from the EIC, the company said.
Wisesight, a Jerusalem-based start-up looking to create a world without parking tickets, said it raised $4m. from private investors in Israel and abroad. The company has developed an AI-based system to map parking in smart cities, helping city planners identify challenges in real-time and reminding individuals if they need to pay for parking. Founded in 2017, the company has 20 employees, and has won contracts in Israel, the US, and Europe.
Bllink, an Israeli PropTech start-up completed a $1.6m. round of funding led by Wix executives for its platform that allows residential buildings and building committees to manage and execute all building payments digitally and automatically. The company currently manages tens of millions of shekels, in over 35 cities across Israel, it said.
Finally, e-commerce personalization platform Namogoo said Thursday it acquired Remarkety, a provider of data-driven marketing automation solutions serving over 500 global brands. This is Namogoo’s second strategic M&A following the acquisition of Personali in early 2020. Industry sources believe the deal was worth about $10m.