On this week’s episode of Inside Israeli Innovation, dive into the cutting-edge realm of defense technology with host Maayan Hoffman and special guests Seth Frantzman, Jerusalem Post Senior Contributing Editor, and Yonatan Mandelbaum, a partner with TLV Partners. We’ll explore what’s new in modern warfare, ask about the sophistication of the technology used by Israel in its war against Hamas, and its impact on the war’s strategic outcomes. Tune in to uncover the complexities of defense innovation and discover why now is the prime moment to invest in defense technology.

This week on Inside Israeli Innovation, Maayan Hoffman takes you deep into the world of cutting-edge healthcare and groundbreaking research coming straight from the heart of Israel. First, she interviews Prof. Salman Zarka, the director-general of Ziv Medical Center and Israel's former coronavirus coordinator. Zarka unravels the mysteries behind the latest COVID variant that has sent ripples across the globe – BA.2.86. With over 30 mutations, should you be worried about this new development? Next, Hoffman dives headfirst into the future of healthcare with Katy Bar-Shalom, CIO for the Meuhedet Health Fund. She sheds light on the incredible advancements in genetics, artificial intelligence, and personalized medicine. Discover how Israel is at the forefront of these groundbreaking technologies and what it means for the future of healthcare worldwide. Finally, Hoffman talks with Noam Baumatz, the co-founder and COO of NOGA Therapeutics, on the latest and most innovative gene therapies to tackle severe and chronic illnesses.

In this week's episode of Inside Israeli Innovation, Maayan Hoffman and Zachy Hennessey talk about the ripple effects of judicial reform on the Israeli economy in general and the high-tech sector specifically. According to the latest report by Start-Up Nation Central (SNC), the reforms could be the catalyst for decreased funding and fewer Israeli start-ups being formed. Hoffman talks to Eliran Elimelech, vice president of ecosystem strategy at SNC, about the organization's latest survey. They also discuss July's scorching weather and how dinosaurs survived during this Mesozoic Era when the concentrations of CO2 in the atmosphere were around 16 times higher than now and temperatures around six to nine degrees warmer than today. Hennessy talks about a new artificial intelligence and automated news program presented by avatar clones. Finally, he speaks with Tami Mazel Shachar, CEO of IncrediBuild Software Ltd., about her children's book series to encourage young girls to enter the tech industry.

The world is hot - including Israel. So, in this week’s episode of Inside Israeli Innovation, Maayan Hoffman and Zachy Hennessey talk about managing extreme weather. Hoffman interviews Nostromo Energy, a Jerusalem-based pioneer in thermal energy storage solutions. The company’s modular IceBrick system uses solar energy to charge and store clean energy as ice during daylight hours to cool the water in air conditioning systems. According to the company, it reduces the cost of electricity for cooling by 50% and reduces CO2 emissions by up to 200 metric tons annually. Then, she talks to Amos Porat, head of climatic services at the Israel Meteorological Service, to learn more about why the country (and the world) is experiencing these heat waves. Hoffman asks: Can climate change ever be reversed? Finally, Hennessey takes a slight detour and offers listeners a small taste of Faddom.com, which makes on-premise cloud infrastructures with continuous, automatic updates in as little as 60 minutes. They talk about the challenges facing cloud-based tech companies and how they are working to overcome the high cost of hosting data on the cloud.

The Israel Innovation Authority released its "State of High Tech" report. Maayan Hoffman and Zachy Hennessey unpack that report, looking at how Israel will hold up in the summer months. They share five things you need to know about the state of Israeli high-tech, with data from this recent report. This week's podcast also features an interview with Batsheva Moshe, GM Israel at WIX.com and chairperson of Yozmot Atid. She talks about the challenges minorities face breaking into high-tech, the lack of sufficient government support, and what Israel needs to remain the Start-up Nation.

Israel is known as a cybersecurity powerhouse. This week, Maayan Hoffman and Zachy Hennessey get ready for Cyber Week with talks with three Israeli cyber experts: - Udi Mokady, co-founder and executive chair of CyberArk - Dvir Reznik, vice president of marketing for C2A Security - Gadi Mazor, CEO of BioCatch They look at who commits cyber attacks and their “attack journeys.” They ask what’s the actual threat - and could it be not only life-altering but a question of life and death?

Live from the Jerusalem Post Annual Conference, Maayan Hoffman, Deputy CEO of Strategy and Innovation, brings listeners an inside look at some of the most critical developments in Israeli tech. She talks about artificial intelligence in the health sphere with Brachie Sprung, chief communications officer & head of investor relations for aMoon Fund; Aryeh Myers, senior paramedic and liaison with the international relations department for Magen David Adom; and Amir Elichai, founder, CEO and chairman of Carbyne. Health 2023 represents the shift from robots to medicine that is more predictive, preventative and personalized as AI revolutionizes biology. Sprung says that "doctors who use AI will replace doctors that don't" in the coming years. Hoffman also talks with the Minister of Innovation, Science and Technology Ofir Akunis about the future of Israeli food tech. They chat about the taste of the world's first-ever 3D-printed, ready-to-cook fish fillet using animal cells grown in a laboratory and why Israel is investing so much in food technologies. Finally, Hoffman and co-host Zachy Hennessey reflect on the Annual Conference and share a little about their own diet choices in the era of sustainability.

In this week's episode of Inside Israeli Innovation, Maayan Hoffman and Zachy Hennessey focus on femtech - technologies for women - and women in technology. According to Start-up Nation Central, in 2022, there were 130 start-ups and growth companies explicitly geared toward women in Israel. This week, Hoffman talks to AVIF CEO Daniella Gilboa, who is based n Tel Aviv, about the company's recent integration of their IVF technologies with those of Genea Biomedx to improve clinical efficiencies and success rates of IVF treatments. Then, Hennessey speaks to Deborah Garner, CEO of FEMSelect, an Israel-based company responsible for developing EnPlace, a minimally invasive solution for Pelvic Organ Prolapse. The team talks about the state of investment in women's health. Finally, they shift gears for a discussion on women in technology roles. According to the Israel Innovation Authority, women account for only around 30% of the high-tech workforce but more than 50% of Israeli citizens. Moreover, Israel is ranked among the four OECD countries with the highest gender-related wage gap. To discuss the challenges, Hoffman speaks to Fleur Hassan Nahmoum, co-founder of FemForward, which is working to close those gaps. Last week, FemForward headed to Morocco, bringing together a delegation of Israeli and Moroccan high-tech superstars to collaborate and learn from each other.

In this week's episode of Inside Israeli Innovation, Maayan Hoffman and Zachy Hennessy talk about everything solar: Challenges, opportunities, new technologies and more. Did you know? - Solar energy generation was 95% of the total renewable energy generation in 2021. - However, only around 10% of Israel's energy comes from solar, according to reports by the Environmental Protection Ministry. - But, the ministry has estimated that if solar panels were adequately distributed, solar installations could generate 40% of total electricity generation in Israel by 2030. Israel's first solar power station opened in August 2008. Last week, Gigawatt Global, an international company headquartered in Jerusalem, inaugurated a massive solar field in Burundi, Africa. Hoffman speaks with Gigawatt Global's chief strategy officer Ayreh Green to learn more about that project. Then, Hennessey talks solar panel cleaning with Oded Fruchman, the CEO of Blade Ranger.

In this week’s episode of Inside Israeli Innovation, Maayan Hoffman and Zachy Hennessey take you behind the scenes of the recent “GoforIsrael” investment event. Over 1,000 tech experts, entrepreneurs and investors from Israel and around the world took part in the event, and Hoffman and Hennessey interviewed many of them. They share their discussions with leaders in cyber, robotics, medical, green, food and mobility technologies. The GoforIsrael event is a Cukierman & Co. Investment House and Catalyst Investments project.