• Startup of the Week: QuantLR, low-cost quantum encryption
  • Azerbaijan Investment Co. signs with OurCrowd
  • FDA clears RealView hologram for ‘sci-fi’ surgical planning
  • Nexa3D’s ‘Nexa Level’ shows future of 3D printing
  • SaNOtize signs Glenmark deal for anti-Covid spray in Asia
  • NanoLock Security named ‘Baby Black Unicorn’
  • Introductions
  • More than 2,800 high-tech jobs worldwide

Startup of the Week:
QuantLR: Secure low-cost quantum encryption


Quantum computing presents an unprecedented hazard to conventional data encryption. There was a time when 256-bit RSA keys were considered secure. Now they could be broken in minutes. Key length has increased to today’s state-of-the-art 2048-bit keys, which are considered unbreakable by classical computers, but not for quantum computers. QuantLR has developed the world’s first and only secure, low-cost quantum cryptography using the principles of quantum physics. The company’s low-cost, secure SaaS quantum cryptography platform provides ultra-secure protection for 5G infrastructure by allowing users to transfer and receive keys. Many companies want to add quantum cryptography to their toolbox, but are concerned about cost and complexity. Incubated at OurCrowd’s Labs/02, QuantLR provides quantum encryption at low cost with easy installation and no special hardware. Instead of transferring a public key that is protected by mathematical complexity, the key is created simultaneously at both ends using properties of quantum mechanics. QuantLR’s quantum key distribution (QKD) technology is embedded into its partners’ products, making it easier to integrate and less expensive to install. It is also up to 10X cheaper than competing solutions, costing just $20K vs $200K, driven by its patent-pending software-based technology. Major proof-of-concept testing is underway or agreed with major telecoms and banking partners. Paid pilots with SpeQtral (Singapore) and Elta (Israel) are ongoing, and additional pilots with two major players will launch in Q4.

 

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Azerbaijan Investment Co. signs with OurCrowd 


OurCrowd was the first Israeli business to sign an agreement with the Azerbaijan Investment Company (AIC) following last week’s opening of the Azerbaijan Trade and Tourism Offices in Israel. I was honored to sign a memorandum of understanding with Mikayil Jabbarov, Minister of Economy of Azerbaijan and Chairman of the Supervisory Board of AIC to promote strategic cooperation in the field of investment by the Government of Azerbaijan in OurCrowd’s portfolio. In the initial phase, subject to successful entry into full-scale agreement between AIC and OurCrowd, AIC will invest in 10-15 startups from the OurCrowd portfolio, especially in companies producing technologies and innovations which have significant potential to encourage growth for the Azerbaijan economy, with a specific focus on the fields of energy, health, agtech and foodtech and education. We will expand the cooperation by examining ways to encourage startups that have received investments to establish a presence in Azerbaijan. OurCrowd foresees that other potential partners based in Azerbaijan, in both the private and public sectors, will join us and make additional investments. “The Memorandum of Understanding between the Israeli company OurCrowd, and the Azerbaijan Investment Company has been signed to attract investments in startup projects and transfer the best practices of leading Israeli companies to our country. This new area of cooperation will contribute to the establishment of an innovative ecosystem in our country,” Minister Jabbarov said at the signing ceremony. “We are looking to create similar collaborations with additional governments,” said Ori Sobovitz, OurCrowd’s Partner for Government Relations. I believe that the MOU with Azerbaijan will allow us to expand our reach, helping new entrepreneurs and startups realize their dreams. This agreement will play a significant part in advancing the cooperation between Israel and Azerbaijan. By bringing together entrepreneurs and investors in both countries and around the world, we will be able to expand our ecosystem, and build new innovations together.

 

Top Tech News

FDA clears RealView hologram for ‘sci-fi’ surgical planning


The FDA has cleared a system created by OurCrowd portfolio company RealView Imaging that creates accurate, three-dimensional holograms of a patient’s organs, giving surgeons a new opportunity to interact with the patient’s anatomy and orient themselves prior to any procedure, Fierce BioTech reports. RealView Imaging’s Holoscope-i assembles its holograms from CT and 3D ultrasound scans and projects them from a device suspended over the surgeon’s head. This allows the user to manipulate the image with their hands, without having to wear augmented reality headsets or other equipment. “Having a real hologram of the heart in my hand based on pre-operative CT and intraprocedural ultrasound, allows me to focus in and fully understand the complexities of the patient’s 3D anatomy,” says RealView’s medical director, Elchanan Bruckheimer.

 

Nexa3D’s ‘Nexa Level’ shows future of 3D printing

  
OurCrowd portfolio company Nexa3D unveiled the first issue of The Nexa Level, a magazine showcasing future trends in 3D printing. Additive manufacturing can help manufacturers to dramatically reduce the industry’s carbon footprint, says Nexa3D CEO Avi Riechental.

SaNOtize signs Glenmark deal for anti-Covid spray in Asia

Drug firm Glenmark Pharmaceuticals signed an agreement with OurCrowd biotech startup SaNOtize to commercialise its breakthrough Nitric Oxide Nasal Spray (NONS) for Covid-19 treatment in India and other Asian markets, India’s Economic Times reports. Glenmark and SaNOtize announced an exclusive long term strategic partnership to manufacture, market and distribute NONS in Asian markets including India, Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Nepal, Brunei, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Timor Leste and Vietnam, Glenmark said in a regulatory filing. “This partnership with SaNOtize closely aligns with Glenmark’s focused approach against Covid-19 and will help reduce the burden of the pandemic in the region,” says Glenn Saldanha, Chairman and MD, Glenmark Pharmaceuticals.

 

NanoLock Security named ‘Baby Black Unicorn’

OurCrowd cybersecurity startup NanoLock Security was named a “Baby Black Unicorn” at the Black Unicorn Awards, held each year during the Black Hat USA conference, rated by Cyber Defense Magazine to have the potential to reach a $1B valuation in 3-5 years. “We are thrilled to be a winner of the prestigious Top 10 Black Baby Unicorn award by the Cyber Defense Magazine that has recognized the company’s potential, while competing against leading cyber security companies,” Eran Fine, CEO and co-founder of NanoLock Security, tells Calcalist. ”We continue to expand and penetrate the international market by partnering with large ecosystem partners worldwide, on our way to becoming a leading OT and IoT device-level cyber security company.”

Introductions

Your portfolio gets stronger when the OurCrowd network gets involved. Visit our Introductions page to see which of our companies are looking for connections that you may be able to help with.

More than 1,200 High-Tech Jobs

Read the OurCrowd High-Tech Jobs Index Q1 2021 here.

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