Israel’s tech industry is unaware of impact tech, says Israel Innovation Authority VP
Anya Eldan who heads the startup division at the Israeli government investment arm spoke Sunday at Calcalist’s online conference on sustainability and innovation
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The Israeli tech industry lacks awareness of the impact tech sector, according to Anya Eldan, a vice president and the head of the startup division at Israeli government investment arm the Israel Innovation Authority (IIA). Eldan spoke Sunday at Calcalist’s online conference on sustainability and innovation.
“Tech companies neglect to define themselves as impact companies and I believe the IIA should focus more on the impact a company can make and take that into account when it examines an investment,” Eldan said.
One of IIA’s investment criteria is potential impact, especially when it comes to the environment, Eldan said, but there is still plenty to be done.
In the past five years, she said, Israel has become a foodtech powerhouse developing smart packagings, waste management technologies, and alternative proteins. According to Eldan, while all of these fields have a significant environmental impact, companies tend to define themselves too narrowly as alternative protein companies, for example, instead of emphasizing their potential contribution to the environment.
Israel is also a global leader in desalination and recycling, Eldan said, naming water treatment company IDE Technologies Ltd. and cleantech startup UBQ-Zeelim Ltd. as examples.
