The Ministry of Industry, Trade and Labor’s Technical Incubators Program and Haifa Economic Corporation have announced the establishment of the first venture in the new crop of incubators. HiCenter will handle high-tech and life sciences projects that do not necessary involve breakthrough technologies that can be patented. The projects do not necessary have to target large markets, either.
HiCenter is therefore in direct contrast to existing technology incubators, whose criteria for projects include innovative ideas and a threshold target market size.
The Technical Incubators Program first raised the idea for a new kind of incubator four years ago, when it realized that high-tech projects that were not necessarily innovative were not suitable for the existing incubators. Nevertheless, such projects could form the foundation for successful companies that would employ skilled personnel and add value, even if the companies do not become world leaders in their fields and are not sold for hundreds of millions of dollars.
Technical Incubators Program director Rina Pridor cited the example of a company that creates Hebrew-language versions of new products. “It’s not innovative, but it can be a good business. It would be a pity to miss this market segment.”
The idea for the new incubator fits in with the Haifa municipality’s plan to develop high-tech in the city and the government’s wish to support the city. This plan gained strength in the wake last summer’s Second Lebanon War.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes.co.il - on September 19, 2007
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