Hadasit, the Hadassah Medical Organization’s technology transfer company, has launched Israel’s first biotechnology hub within a medical center. Hadassah Accelerator is powered by IBM Alpha Zone, a 20-week incubation program with a methodology to help startups “build leading solutions for the enterprise market.”

The program focuses on seed and post-seed startup companies that can benefit from long-term technology and business partnerships with Hadassah and IBM. The first cohort of participants is currently being selected, and the startups are expected to be in gear in the coming months.

Hadassah Accelerator, strategically located on the premises of the BioHouse at Hadassah Hospital Ein Kerem, offers companies direct access to hospital resources as well as medical and professional staff. In addition, IBM will provide expert technological advice and access to its advanced technological tools, including hosting on the IBM Cloud.

“Hadassah has enough brain mass to impact the entire world,” comments Hadassah Director General Prof. Zeev Rotstein. “Hadassah has been a leading medical organization for over 100 years, and it is appropriate we be at the edge of the arrow in leading Israel in biotech.”

 

IBM Israel Chief Executive Officer Daniel Malka adds, “IBM opened its first branch in Israel in 1949, one year after Israel’s independence. IBM opened its first global research center in Israel in 1972. Today, it is the second largest in the world, and it leads IBM’s policy and global agenda. We are excited to partner with Hadassah to foster innovation.”

 

Caption for photo: Daniel Malka, CEO of IBM Israel, at the opening of the Accelerator at Hadassah’s BioHouse.