A new initiative from the Information Ministry and the Shin Bet security agency is offering Israeli startup companies based in the geographical periphery opportunities to cooperate with the intelligence community.
Information Minister Eli Cohen and Shin Bet head Nadav Argaman have reached an agreement to launch two incubators, one in northern Israel and the other in the south, that will work with the Shin Bet.
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The incubators are designed to help new startups that are developing technologies relevant to the intelligence world. The initiatives do not have to be aimed at the security market, so long as their products can provide solutions for the Shin Bet and the rest of the intelligence community.
Senior Shin Bet officials will be assigned to mentor the company founders. In addition, the companies will receive financial aid. At the end of the process, the Shin Bet will be able to purchase and use the products or services the companies develop, but not on an exclusive basis and without financial partnerships in the companies.
The initiative carries a starting cost of 3 million shekels ($2.3 million).
The Information Ministry said that establishing the incubators in the periphery will help startups find a home in northern and southern Israel, and bring those areas additional jobs, which will cut down on the number of residents who have to commute to the Tel Aviv metropolitan area. The local authorities that host the companies will also enjoy additional business property taxes.
"Intelligence organizations need higher technological capabilities to handle the challenges they face. The entrepreneurs, the Shin Bet, and the periphery cities will only benefit from this cooperation," Cohen said.
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