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- جمعه, ۱۰ مارس ۲۰۱۷، ۱۲:۴۹ ق.ظ
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As many know, Israel has carved out a strong place in the cybersecurity industry, with many companies there playing a prominent role in cyber defense technology, research and development, and data protection. Indeed, Israel has the world’s second-largest cyber market, second only to the United States. To further discuss this topic, I’ll be speaking with my colleague, Einat Meisel, who is head of O’Melveny’s Israel Practice, and is familiar with both the industry and the numerous cross-border transactions involving the area.
Q: Why is Israel a hub for the cybersecurity industry?
A: It makes a lot of sense considering the fact that security has been a social, cultural, and political priority throughout the country’s history. I would also say the creation of the State of Israel was itself an entrepreneurial endeavor. And since its creation, Israel has had to be continually vigilant to handle enemies and threats along its borders and beyond. Protecting Israel from threats at all levels, both on line and off, is a major focus of Israeli governmental strategy. As a result, the military invests heavily in computing technologies, particularly in the intelligence branches.
The largest military unit in the Israel Defense Forces is 8200, Israel’s legendary elite cyber intelligence unit, a high-tech spy agency that is considered by intelligence analysts to be one of the most formidable of its kind in the world. With a culture that closely resembles that of a start-up, soldiers work in small groups, with limited resources, to crack major—possibly existential—problems. The soldiers are encouraged to question and challenge authority. In other words, they are trained to think creatively, honing their ingenuity and innovating thinking, all traits that as alumni they can parlay in new ventures in civilian life.
In addition, the Israeli government strongly supports science education, with multiple research facilities throughout the country focusing on IT and cutting edge technologies. There are also multiple government programs to support and foster start-ups and technology ventures.
Q: How would you describe the cyber industry in Israel?
A: Given the cultural, political and social factors, Israel’s expertise in cyber security has evolved naturally in the areas of the internet and network security, anti-virus software, including antifraud and authentication, data protection, and other cyber defense technologies. In addition, the IoT and automotive security sectors have grown significantly. Indeed Israel has been a pioneer in these areas, with companies like Check Point, which developed one of the first fire wall systems; and CyberArk, a data protection company that now claims as customers approximately15 percent of the Global 2000 and raised $86 million with its 2014 IPO. Other Israeli companies like the cloud security firm Adallom, which Microsoft purchased in 2015 for $250 million; and Rafael, which developed the Iron Dome and more recently an IoT platform designed for the commercial market, continue to do cutting-edge work.
Q: What kinds of products and services are being offered?
There are numerous products and services intended to address a wide gamut of cybersecurity issues, many of them at the forefront of the industry, including biometrics, drone security, mobile data security, and even connectivity technology to prevent attacks on autonomous vehicles.
Q: Is there global interest in Israel’s cybersecurity industry? Are there outside investors?
A: Absolutely. There is tremendous global interest in Israeli cybertech. And despite an international slowdown in cybertech transactions in 2016, Israel’s cybertech market actually grew last year. A record $581 million of capital was raised last year in the space. This amount was second only to the US, and accounted for 15 percent of the total venture capital raised by cybersecurity companies globally. We see investors from around the globe, including the US, the UK, China and many other countries, investing in seed, or Series A and more mature investment rounds.
Multinational corporations have also expanded their presence in Israel in the cyber security sector, and in 2016 they provided more than a third of funding for Israeli startups. Overall, Israel’s cybersecurity sales totaled somewhere in the $3.5 to $4 billion range last year, representing about 20 percent of global private-sector investment in the industry.
In 2016 China’s Huawei bought Hexatier and Volkswagen AG started CyMotive Technologies to provide security solutions for connected cars. In addition, Accenture, a US professional services and consulting company, bought Maglan, an Israeli cybersecurity firm, and launched a new research and development lab in Israel focusing on cybersecurity projects. Likewise, in 2015, the British micro-chip designer Arm Holdings bought Israel’s Sansa Security, which provides Internet of Things (IoT) and mobile trust and security technologies, and is planning to create a new hub there. And in that same year, PayPal, which already had extensive operations in Israel, bought CyActive, which develops predictive malware detection.
Q: Are these transactions by foreign companies feasible in Israel’s legal environment?
A: Transactions are not only feasible but thriving. This is not an accident. Israel is open to foreign investment, and the government actively encourages and supports the inflow of foreign capital. There are few restrictions on foreign investors, no screening of foreign investment and no regulations regarding acquisitions, mergers, and takeovers that differ from those that Israelis otherwise must follow.
In addition, Israel strives to maintain supportive conditions for companies looking to invest in Israel consisting of a reliable legal system to provide investors with rights and remedies, encourage capital and R&D investment, and provide incentives and benefits including grants, reduced tax rates, tax exemptions, and other tax-related benefits.
As a result, Israel offers foreign investors a unique, vibrant business friendly environment.
The Modular Automotive Reference System (MARS) is a complete imaging solution for camera system developers and software developers working on automotive imaging applications. MARS gives engineers and software developers the fundamental building blocks needed to create next generation imaging systems, while reducing the design effort and resources required to develop a working solution.
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Benefits of MARS:
First the bad news: Self-driving cars are a crazy idea, and I’m just not buying it yet. A totally autonomous vehicle with no steering wheel or brake pedal is just going too far. What about self-driving 50,000-lb. 18-wheelers going 70 on a snowy highway? Surely they have to be unsafe? And an autonomous taxi is just creepy. Maybe it’s just me.
Yes, I know it is all possible now, but are the benefits real or just perceived? The automotive companies and some large technology firms are hoping we are going to buy into the idea. Some will, some won’t.
Surveys I’ve seen indicate that a majority of us wouldn’t buy a self-driving car. One survey by a car insurance company, in fact, said that 80% of respondents would not buy an autonomous vehicle. Another survey, by J.D. Power, indicated a similar outcome, with only 20% willing to buy a self-driver. An AAA survey indicated that 75% of respondents feared self-driving cars, while one from the IEEE noted that 60% were not comfortable with them.
Then again, a sizeable number of people like the idea—obviously enough to justify all the current interest and R&D in self-driving cars. As my editorial colleague Bill Wong said in a recent blog, we are going to get them anyway. It certainly looks like it. But while I accept that conclusion, I can’t help but think that self-driving cars will end up as an expensive niche, like electric vehicles (EVs) are now. As comedian Dennis Miller used to say, “That’s just my opinion, I could be wrong.”
The good news is that we should appreciate all of that R&D investment in autonomous vehicles, as any new or improved technology will be of value elsewhere. Advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) and Dedicated Short Range Communications (DSRC) are good examples. The former are already deployed in many new cars, and more will eventually adopt them. Amongst the notable ADAS features are backup cameras, adaptive cruise control, lane departure warning, automatic braking, blind spot warning, and voice control and response. My new (non-self-driving) vehicle has all of these items. It took a while to learn and adapt to them, but they have made me a safer driver.
The next big ADAS deployment will be vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communications, including vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) and vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) communications that will let vehicles talk to one another, share information, and provide warnings or critical information. That communications system, the aforementioned (DSRC), is a modified version of Wi-Fi IEEE 802.11a called 802.11p. It uses 75 MHz of spectrum in the 5.8-5.9 GHz band. The standard provides seven 10 MHz channels for data rates up to 27 Mb/s rate using OFDM.
The data consists of vehicle location as determined by GPS, direction, speed, and braking status. Messages are transmitted 10 times per second to all nearby vehicles. Messages like traffic light status, congestion, road conditions, weather, construction, and other useful status information will also come from the V2I roadside units. The idea here is to avoid potential collisions.
DSRC is not here yet, but the National Highway Transportation Safety Agency (NHTSA) has mandated it for all light vehicles beginning in 2019, and in all new cars by 2023. In the meantime, a battle has developed as to what radio technology to use in vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communications. Instead of 802.11p, some companies like Qualcomm and the cellular operators are promoting 5G or cellular V2X. Some want the 5.9 GHz DSRC spectrum for expanded Wi-Fi speed and capacity.
That’s a good thing, but will future Wi-Fi interfere with DSRC? 802.11p is here now with cheap wireless modules, whereas 5G is years away. It’s uncertain how this conflict will turn out. I’m sure the auto manufacturers want to know right now.
In any case, it will take a while before enough vehicles are using V2X to make it fully useful. Still, it’s a good start. ADAS and DSRC support the driver and enhance safety overall. This, to me, is a better path toward greater safety. ADAS and DSRC gradually introduce drivers to semiautonomous control, and that will go a long way to making self-drivers more acceptable.
They say that self-driving cars will save lives. Maybe. I do believe that full adoption of ADAS/DSRC may save as just many lives, and without all the possible insurance, regulatory, and self-driving angst to come. At least implement V2X ASAP.
If self-driving cars aren’t enough to worry about, ponder the flying car implications. I’m not making this up. China is already working on flying vehicles based upon the multi-rotor drone concept. Some models would be self-guided, but others would be remotely controlled. A Chinese company recently demonstrated its EHang 184 (a single-passenger taxi drone) in Dubai. The eight-rotor craft is remotely controlled and has about a half-hour’s worth of battery charge with speed up to 100 mph. It can carry up to 220 lb.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) already has its hands full managing the stunning growth of the commercial and consumer drone business. Self-piloting passenger drones are another issue to pile on. The real fun is yet to come