Author: OurCrowd

Internet of Things: The next wave of our connected world

Internet of Things: The next wave of our connected world

Jan 21, 2016 | ,

A system called the Iron Dome intercepts rockets before they can hit the ground, saving human lives. A farmer using an application called CropX sets his irrigation system to deliver more water to certain parts of his field and less to others, increasing food yields while conserving resources. Two ancient human challenges, warfare and farming, have been completely transformed due to technology that increasingly connects all objects, ranging from hostile missiles to green sprouts of wheat. About 28 billion ‘things’ will be connected to the internet by 2020, according to a recent Harvard Business Review report. As advances zoom forward with the help of the sector known as Internet of Things, or IoT, the world is on a path to increasing connectivity, setting us up for myriad social and economic changes. The first internet-connected device that was not a computer was a toaster. In 1990, John Romkey created a toaster that could be switched on and off over the internet, following the challenge of Interop Internet host Dan Lynch. Although this started off as nearly a joke, the technology...

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OurCrowd’s portfolio company Syqe featured in TechCrunch

Jan 20, 2016 | ,

Leading technology website, TechCrunch, featured OurCrowd’s portfolio company Syqe Medical. The company has developed a pocket-sized metered-dose cannabis inhaler, poised to become the most advanced and versatile inhalation-based drug delivery platform of its kind. While the government is deliberating new reforms to expand Israel’s cannabis industry, it’s likely that the so-called reforms will cause more problems than they will solve, as is often the case with government meddling. The proposal will also have to pass several committees before it’s voted on in the Knesset (Israel’s parliament). Luckily, Israeli startups know better than to wait for the government to act. In January, Cigarette conglomerate Philip Morris International announced that it will invest $20 million in Syqe Medical, an Israeli start-up that developed the world’s first precision metered dose inhaler for medical use, according to Israeli news site Calcalist. Syqe raised $2,232,593 from OurCrowd investors in June 2015. Read more on...

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OurCrowd’s portfolio company Argus featured in the Times of Israel

Jan 20, 2016 | ,

OurCrowd’s portfolio company Argus — an automotive-focused cybersecurity company — was featured in The Times of Israel, an English-language news website covering Israel, the region & the Jewish world. Argus Cyber Security, one of the first – and still one of the few –companies in the world to provide solutions for car security, is teaming up with cyber-security giant Check Point to provide security systems for cars. “Argus’s mission is to promote car connectivity without compromising on safety, security and privacy,” said Yoni Heilbronn, Vice President of Marketing at Argus Cyber Security. Argus raised $838,148 from OurCrowd investors in September 2015. Read more on The Times of Israel...

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The investor’s guide to the first-ever Crowdbuilding Hackathon

The investor’s guide to the first-ever Crowdbuilding Hackathon

Jan 20, 2016 |

Next week, thousands of investors will gather together in Jerusalem for OurCrowd’s 2016 Global Investor Summit (January 25-26). They’ll be joined by top tech innovators, startups, angel investors, VCs, and other industry leaders from around the world. In addition to hosting the ‘who’s who’ of the investment world, the roster of keynote speakers, we’ll also be introducing the first-ever Crowdbuilding Hackathon. What is ‘crowdbuilding’ you ask? One of the value-adds OurCrowd offers our portfolio companies is access to a community of over 10,000 accredited investors, with their own individual expertise, networks and resources. Crowdbuilding is the term we coined to define the action of investors leveraging their professional networks to help our companies grow and prosper. Imagine what we can accomplish in portfolio growth – live. At next week’s summit, 300 investors, partners and mentors will congregate in one room to help propel the success of some amazing startups, with the power of the crowd. Here’s a brief overview of what to expect at the 2016 Crowdbuilding Hackathon: An unprecedented opportunity to get involved in some of our best portfolio companies A chance to win some...

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Looking ahead to a more connected era of healthcare

Looking ahead to a more connected era of healthcare

Jan 20, 2016 | ,

When Frederick Philips bought a small factory in the Dutch town of Eindhoven in 1891, he manufactured light bulbs and exported them globally, just as the world was embracing electrical lighting. In an unexpected twist, in a physics lab opened for research into new and improved electrical products, Philips in 1918 developed a medical X-ray tube and set off on a long journey to become one of the world’s leading diagnostic and healthcare companies. Over the years, Philips has continued to innovate, applying new technology from many disciplines to the world of healthcare. Now, more than ever, the future of healthcare is poised for a revolution; a revolution based on applying the technology of cloud computing, internet of things, and mobile apps to the healthcare sector. Just as Philip’s X-ray tube emerged from a light bulb company, modern disruptive healthcare solutions are emerging from high-tech and data-analytic companies. Such solutions have the potential not only to improve human life but will also save the United States alone as much as $300 billion a year, according to Goldman Sachs. In fact, the...

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