A new entrepreneurship center called IN-VENTech has been launched in Haifa at an investment of NIS 25 million over the next four years.
The new center was established with the aim of increasing the number of Haifa-based technology companies. It was launched with the support of the Haifa Municipality and the Haifa Economic Corporation, and behind it are Haifa mayor Einat Kalisch-Rotem and deputy mayor and chairman of the hiCenter Ventures entrepreneurial campus in the city Nakhshon Tsouk. hiCenter has invested in more than twenty startups that have raised over NIS 150 million in investment and grants.
The new center is managed by hiCenter Ventures acting CEO Lior Hanuka, and Nimrod Elmish, who is leading the center's first startups program. The vision for IN-VENTech is that it should be "an engine for substantially growing the number of technological startups active in the city, forming a synergetic connection with the city's anchor institutions such as the Technion, the University of Haifa, the hospitals, Haifa Port, and the research and development centers of the major companies."
Thirteen companies have been chosen from 150 applicants to be the first cohort at the center. Their areas of activity are smart cities, healthcare, and shipping. These are early-stage companies before any substantial first round of funding that have reached the proof-of-concept stage or have completed an acceleration track at a technological incubator.
The program will last for between six months and two years. In addition to finance, the selected companies will receive rent for workspace in Haifa for the duration of the program, an incentive grant of up to $100,000, business consultancy services, assistance in raising finance, and exposure to potential investors in Israel and around the world. IN-VENTech does not make its aid conditional on management fees or an equity stake and does not dilute the holdings of entrepreneurs and shareholders. The sole commitment on the part of the participating companies is to base their activities in Haifa for at least three years from the start of the program.
Published by Globes, Israel business news - en.globes.co.il - on January 18, 2021
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