CTech's Thursday Roundup of Israeli Tech News

BMW Group to open a technology scouting office in Tel Aviv. A small team will work with local startups and research universities to discover relevant trends and technologies. Read more

Palo Alto to keep Demisto “almost independent” following its acquisition. In a conference held Tuesday, Palo Alto CEO Nikesh Arora discussed the company’s strategy going forward. Read more

JVP closes a new $220 million fund. The firm stated the new fund will invest in early to mid-stage companies in intersectional domains such as computer vision meets wellness, cybersecurity meets fintech and insurtech, artificial intelligence meets retail and media, and big data meets healthcare IT. Read more

Israel’s centrist parties merge to take on Netanyahu. Former Israeli military chief of staff Benny Gantz has joined forces with centrist politician Yair Lapid to run against Benjamin Netanyahu for the prime minister’s seat in the upcoming general election in Israel. Read more 

Phage therapies company BiomX raises $32 million. BiomX develops customized therapies based on bacteriophages—viruses that invade bacterial cells and can be used to treat infections. Read more

Real estate startup Venn intends to operate in 50 cities within five years, says co-founder. Venn operates co-living facilities that offer private and shared living and working arrangements. Read more

ASX-listed satellite company SAS to raise A$12 million. Sky and Space Global uses nano-satellite technology to offer communications services for telecommunications providers. Read more

Genetic interpretation startup Emedgene raises $6 million. Emedgene develops a technology that automates the analysis and interpretation of genetic information at scale. Read more. Read more

Cybersecurity startup Firedome raises $4.5 million. Firedome develops endpoint detection and response cybersecurity protection for smart-home devices. Read more

Crypto company Solidus raises $3 million. Solidus offers a surveillance platform for digital asset trading. Read more