New Delhi, Nov 25 (PTI) Israel's aerospace and defence major IAI on Monday launched an innovation acceleration programme for startups in India that will focus on ten technological areas, including big data, quantum, edge computing and advanced navigation.

Israel's Ambassador to India Reuven Azar told PTI that today marks a new era in the relations between Israel and India, and that the programme is an important initiative for innovation.

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The programme -- IAI Neusphere -- will focus on ten areas. They are Big Data, Signal & Image Processing, Advanced Navigation, AI & Autonomy, XR-Maintenance & Training, Green Energy, Advanced Production, Quantum, Edge Computing, HMI & Wearable Tech.

In the first cohort of the programme, there will be three startups.

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IAI's (Israel Aerospace Industries) Vice President Core Technologies Avital Schrift told PTI that going forward, the aim is to have a cohort of at least five startups every eight months and in the next two years, the total number of startups under the programme will be around 20.

Outside Israel, the group is focusing on innovation activities in the US and India.

"India is a technological giant... we believe very much in India's capabilities... we enjoy working with the Indian technological community," Schrift said.

The window for applications for the programme will be open from November 26, 2024, to February 6, 2025. The programme will commence on April 2, 2025, and the demo day for the solutions developed will be August 20, 2025.

Under the initiative, the participating startups will get a cash prize of USD 15,000. The cohort startups will receive up to USD 300,000 funding for their Proof of Concept (PoC).

Earlier this year, IAI inked a CSR agreement with the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi (IIT Delhi) for collaboration on applied research.

IAI has been working in India on various areas, including those related to radars, airborne warning and control system for the Indian Air Force and coastal defence.

Established in 1953, IAI is one of Israel's largest technology employers. It offers state-of-the-art technologies in space, air, land, naval, cyber & homeland security for defense and commercial markets.

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