Fueled by a vibrant entrepreneurial culture, robust technological infrastructure and highly skilled human workforce that produces the most substantial number of startups per capita in the world, innovation is one of Israel’s most valuable natural resources. At the same time, Israel is today home to over 350 R&D centers of multinational corporations, many of them Fortune 500 companies, illustrating Israel’s profound and disproportionate impact on the advancement of global innovation as well.
The Israel Innovation Authority, an independent publicly funded agency, was thus created to provide a variety of practical tools and funding platforms aimed at effectively addressing the dynamic and changing needs of the local and international innovation ecosystems. This includes early-stage entrepreneurs, mature companies developing new products or manufacturing processes, academic groups seeking to transfer their ideas to the market, global corporations interested in collaborating with Israeli technology, Israeli companies seeking new markets abroad and traditional factories and plants seeking to incorporate innovative and advanced manufacturing into their businesses.
In order to meet the various needs of its wide range of clients, the Israel Innovation Authority has developed a new internal structure focused on six primary innovation divisions. Each division offers a unique “toolbox” of customized and comprehensive incentive programs. These divisions thus serve as a launch pad for successful innovative projects, providing entrepreneurs and companies with the most relevant plan for them to realize and implement their ideas, develop their products, and mobilize private investment.
These divisions include:
Startup Division
he Startup Division offers unique tools to support the early developmental stages of technological initiatives at the pre-seed or initial R&D stages, thus helping transform their ideas into reality while reaching significant funding milestones.
Division programs include:
- Incubators Incentive Program
- Innovation Labs Program – Incentive Program
- Tnufa (Ideation) Incentive Program
- Early Stage Companies Incentive Program
- R&D Preparatory Incentive Program for Companies in the Manufacturing Industry
- MOFET – R&D in the Manufacturing Industry
- GCI – Grand Challenges Israel Incentive Program
- Coding Bootcamps Program
- Digital Innovation for Public Sector Challenges
- Assistive Technology for the Disabled Incentive Program
- Back to Tech Program
Growth and Advanced Manufacturing Division
The Growth Division operates a wide range of incentive programs that assist hi-tech companies in the sales growth stage as well as mature hi-tech companies that utilize growth channels based on technological innovation and/or seek assistance in funding innovative research and development.
Division programs include:
Technological Infrastructure
The Technological Infrastructure Division focuses on funding applied R&D infrastructure, promoting applied research in academia, technology transfer, Leveraging R&D for Dual Use Technologies, exchange of knowledge and experience and developing of groundbreaking innovation by an integrated group of researchers from academia and industry.
Division programs include:
- TELEM (The National Infrastructure Forum for Research and Development)
- Leveraging R&D for Dual Use Technologies – MEIMAD
- Applied Research in Academia
- Knowledge Commercialization
- MAGNET Consortiums
- Users’ Association R&D Infrastructure
- Promoting Applied Research in Academia
- Infrastructure and Equipment
International Collaboration
The International Collaboration Division is responsible for coordinating international collaboration in innovative R&D knowledge and technology between Israeli companies and counterpart organizations abroad, thus offering various competitive advantages for the Israeli industry in the global market.
Operated by the Europe, Americas and Asia Pacific Desks, as well as the desk for multinational corporations, support for such strategic alliances is made possible through an array of bilateral cooperation agreements and bi-national funds, as well as through the EU Framework Programme for Research and Innovation.
Division programs include:
- Bilateral Programs for Parallel Support
- R&D Cooperation with Multinational Corporations
- EU Framework Agreements – Horizon Europe
- Program for Boosting Participation of Israeli Companies in the European Frameworks Program – Horizon Europe
- European Programs for Parallel Support
- Incentive Program for Adapting Products for Emerging Markets
- Bi-national Funds
Innovation Authority’s investments recepients – 2021
For further information about the Authority’s divisions and various incentive programs :
- Print booklet in English- Israel Innovation Authority
- Israel Innovation Authority – Presents its Annual Innovation Report – State of Innovation 2022