CTechs Monday Roundup of Israeli Tech News

Ford to open an innovation center in Israel. Bill Ford, executive chairman of Ford Motor Company, is set to launch the new center during his planned visit to Israel in June. The center will operate alongside Ford's local AI subsidiary SAIPS. Read more

As the market matures, Israeli tech valuations continue to climb. More Israeli startups raising capital in 2018 did so at higher company valuations than their last round, compared to 2017, according to a new report. Read more

From crisis response to accessibility tools: some recent developments from Google’s Israel R&D center. “There is nothing new about solving problems with tech, but AI can help us accomplish things that were just science fiction until now,” Yossi Matias, head of Google’s research and development center in Israel, said at a press conference Wednesday. Read more

The European Investment Fund and Israel’s Bank Leumi expand tech loan program. LeumiTech, a technology-focused subsidiary of Israel's second largest bank, can offer to finance a combined sum of up to $620 million with EIF providing a guarantee for the funds as part of Horizon 2020, the European Union’s research and innovation program. Read more

Wix acquires Israeli brand marketing agency Gefen Team. Founded in 2013, Gefen Team counts brands like Coca Cola, Microsoft, Doritos, and the Kimberly-Clark Corporation among its clients. Read more

Tami Mazel Shachar steps down as co-president of NSO. Mazel Shachar served as co-president of the Israeli spyware developer for three years. Read more

Allen Institute for artificial intelligence to open Israeli branch. Opened with an $8.4 million investment, the Israel branch will focus on natural language processing. Read more

Charge while you drive company ElectReon signs agreement with Swedish government. In January, the company announced a successful trial for its wireless charging system, having managed to power a Renault Zoe for more than 25 meters of test road. Read more

Tel Aviv asks e-scooter companies to scoot over. Officials are "tired of scooters being thrown around and disturbing the sidewalks," according to a letter sent to e-scooter and bike sharing operators. Read more

Israel leads OECD countries on opioid use increase, says report. Between 2011 and 2016, the availability of opioids in Israel grew by 125%, according to an OECD report published over the weekend. Read more

Everest Investment Banking partners with Israeli crowdfunding platform PipelBiz on cannabis fund. The fund, which aims to raise an initial $8.5 million in commitments with a final target of $28 million, will invest in pre-seed, seed, and series A stage companies. Read more