CTech’s Sunday Israeli Tech News Roundup

Bag screening machine company Qylur looking to raise $50 million in Toronto IPO. Founded in 2005 by CEO Lisa Dolev, Qylur develops a honeycomb-shaped bag scanner for security checks at public venues. The machine has been operational in Disneyland Paris for a while, and has also been employed during the 2016 Olympics in Rio. The company filed a preliminary prospectus with Canadian stock exchange TSX Venture earlier this month. Read more  

Greek energy company Energean lists on London Stock Exchange, raises $460 million. The owner of two of Israel's natural gas fields, Karish and Tanin, Energean is considering a second IPO at the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange in the second quarter of 2018, according to a person speaking on conditions of anonymity. Read more

Israel Aerospace Industries is developing a short-distance electric plane. The government-owned aerospace and defense technologies developer is investing hundreds of millions of dollars in the project, an IAI executive says. The first model will carry up to ten passengers, reach a flying altitude of between 10,000 and 20,000 feet, and cover a range of 320 kilometers, about the distance between London and Paris. Read more

Israeli cannabis company to set up foreign farms, expects first harvest in 2019. After a reform to allow medical cannabis export from Israel has stalled, Together Pharma announced plans to set up cannabis farming operations outside of the country, in partnership with an unnamed foreign company. Their greenhouse complex will be capable of growing up to 60 tonnes cannabis a year. Read more

ABC News undaunted by Facebook feed changes, executive says. News publishers that provide reliable, engaging content will continue to find Facebook a hospitable platform even despite changes to the way the social media feed works, said Doug Vance, ABC News’s vice president for product, in a talk at Calcalist’s Mind the Tech conference. Watch the video

69% of Israelis drive to work, according to new report. Israel’s Central Bank published a section of its 2017 economic report, showing Israelis are largely displeased with the state of public transportation in the country. The report found that those in Israel who depend on public transport often belong to a lower socio-economic class, and that people earning higher salaries use public transport much less frequently, reinforcing the conclusion that most Israelis who regularly use public transport do so due to lack of choice. Read more

Israeli startup helps wheelchair-bound parents travel independently when pushing a stroller. Founded by industrial designer Dana Yichye Shwachman, whose father was wheelchair-bound, FreeWill designs a customizable universal adaptor capable of connecting between any wheelchair and baby stroller. Read more

Agritech drone startup Aerodrome monitors crops from the sky. Drones are the future of agriculture, said Roy Degani, CEO of drones developer Aerodrome, during Calcalist's Mind the Tech conference held last week in New York. Watch the video