Based on data of the Israel National Nano–Technology Initiative – INNI – which has gathered on the occasion of Nano–Technology Week: NanoIsrael 2010 Conference and Exhibition being held next week in Tel Aviv, during the last three years since Nano–Technology has been declared an Israeli national priority project, this area has arrived at some achievements that cannot be disregarded: 52 world–wide well–known scientists have immigrated to Israel and have been accepted as faculty members in various universities. The financial facts are impressive as well: 77 million dollars have been invested during the last three years in basic equipment in addition to the 41 million dollars which have been invested in new infrastructure and facilities.
During this time, 389 cooperation transactions have been established between the Israel academy and the Industry (both local and foreign), 106 'success stories' have been documented, either as new start–up companies or as authorized patents, not to mention the 422 patents that were submitted for registration.
In 2007, the Israel Nano field was defined as a project that received governmental priority, and its mission was the installation of the research and structural infrastructure in six university premises. The selected universities were those in which the research dealing with establishing the industry based on Nano–Technology was going to be performed. A plan was based on three supporting entities: governmental support (one third), university resources (one third) and contributions (one third). Six Nano centers were established in different universities (the Technion center had already been established in 2005).
According to the INNI, 249 junior scientists coming from the field (including postdoctoral researchers), 675 doctorate students and 662 masters students have participated in the plan since day one. During these three years, 3248 scientific articles were published and 536 other essays were originated in cooperation between several universities. 'This is an excellent example of the efficient use of public money and the mutual cooperation between the government, academy and industry, which brings back significant return on investment [ROI],' said Mr. Dan Vilenski – a member of the national NanoIsrael committee. 'I believe that we are on the way to turn Israel into a leading Nano–Technology great nation.'
The 'NanoIsrael 2010' conference (http://www2.kenes.com/nano/pages/home.aspx) and the accompanied exhibition will be held on November 8–10 at the Dan Panorama Hotel in Tel Aviv focusing on business innovations and opportunities in the fields of energy, water systems, environmental issues, Nano–Materials, Nano–Electronics, Nano–Photonics, Nano–Bio and Nano–Medicine.
This conference is targeted at industry and business persons from around the world, and will serve as the meeting point for companies and persons involved in venture capital, private funds, institutional and organizational investors, regulation, technology and development persons, governmental decision makers, as well as academy representatives, scientists and investors. The conference is held in cooperation with INNI – The Israel National Nano–technology Initiative – the Nano–technology Centers of the various Israeli universities, and is organized by the Kenes International Company." (source)
