(Blog.TimesOfIsrael) Israel has been quick to recognize the importance of quantum technology. The Startup Nation’s engineers can be found toiling away in the fight to be at the frontier of the world’s next big technological innovations.
Israel has gained the attention of major players in the tech sector, including giants such as Intel, Amazon, Google, and Nvidia. The Startup Nation got its nickname due to a large number of startups compared to the population, with approximately 1 startup for every 1,400 residents.
Habana Labs and Annapurna Labs, both created by entrepreneur Avigdor Willenz, were recently acquired by Intel and Amazon respectively to further their development in the realm of quantum computing. One of Google’s R&D centers located in Tel Aviv is actively researching quantum computing.
In 2017, Professor Uri Sivan of the Technicon Israel Institute of Technology led a committee dedicated to documenting the strengths and weaknesses of the current state of Israel’s investment in quantum technology research and development. What the committee found was a lag in educational efforts and a need for more funding to keep pace with the fast growth of the industry.
In response to this need for funding, in 2018 Israel’s Defense Ministry and the Israel Science Foundation announced a multi-year fund that would dedicate in total $100 million to the research of quantum technologies
Israel, the ‘Startup Nation’, Moved Quickly on Quantum Technology Funding and Development
