Jerusalem, 13 January, 2026 (TPS-IL) — Israeli startup Converge Bio has secured $25 million in a Series A round led by Bessemer Venture Partners, bringing its total funding to $30 million. Founded in 2024, Converge develops an AI platform that accelerates drug discovery for Biotech and Pharmaceutical Companies, offering tools for target identification, antibody design, and protein optimization.

The platform is already in use by over a dozen global companies, delivering measurable results in oncology, autoimmune, and neurodegenerative research. CEO Dov Gertz said the goal is to make “every Biotech and pharma company an AI company.”

Jerusalem, 13 January, 2026 (TPS-IL) — Israeli defense technology firm Axon Vision said it has received a $350,000 order from U.S.-based Leonardo DRS for its new AI-driven counter-unmanned aerial systems (C-UAS), marking a further step in growing defense cooperation between Israel and the United States.

The Tel Aviv-based company said the initial delivery will provide end-to-end detection, classification, tracking, and interception of aerial threats, supporting U.S. defense and homeland security forces. The order follows a strategic partnership signed in late 2025 and will see the systems evaluated in live operational exercises on manned and unmanned platforms.

Axon Vision, whose AI solutions are used by the Israeli military, said the U.S. market is a key growth focus in 2026.

Jerusalem, 13 January, 2026 (TPS-IL) — Israeli police launched a security response on Tuesday after a wallet containing a note raising suspicions of a possible attempted attack on the President’s Residence was discovered in Jerusalem.

Officers, including bomb disposal experts, carried out searches and security procedures in coordination with presidential security officials.

Jerusalem, 13 January, 2026 (TPS-IL) — Israel’s RevitalVision published positive clinical data showing its digital therapeutic can improve vision in patients with infantile nystagmus, a congenital eye disorder affecting eye movement.

The study, conducted at Shamir Medical Center and published in the British Journal of Ophthalmology, demonstrated significant improvements in visual acuity, contrast sensitivity, and functional vision. Nearly half of treated patients achieved vision sufficient for driving.

RevitalVision’s neuroplasticity-based program offers a non-invasive approach to enhancing cortical visual processing, providing new hope for those with limited treatment options. The therapy is FDA-cleared and delivered digitally under clinician supervision.

The pursuit has ended.

Base teams are currently working to address the incident and contain the flooding, while maintaining the base’s proper functioning. There is no damage to operational readiness.

Jerusalem, 13 January, 2026 (TPS-IL) — Tel Aviv-based CytoReason unveiled LINA, an AI assistant designed to speed up pharmaceutical research, at the JP Morgan Healthcare Conference. LINA helps scientists analyze medical data and understand how diseases work at the molecular level.

Unlike standard AI chatbots that can produce incorrect information, LINA is built on specialized disease models that keep its answers accurate and grounded in real biology. The platform generates analysis code and explains how genes and cells behave in different patients. CytoReason is testing LINA with major pharmaceutical companies including Takeda.

The forces are currently pursuing the suspects. We emphasize that these are not IDF soldiers.

Jerusalem, 13 January, 2026 (TPS-IL) — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office released, for the first time, the recommendations of its inter-ministerial team on government innovation. The roadmap aims to boost the efficiency and effectiveness of public services by connecting initiatives, removing systemic barriers, and accelerating innovative solutions.

Presented at the cornerstone-laying ceremony for the new Government Innovation Space, the recommendations emphasize portfolio management, grassroots support under a strategic umbrella, workforce skill development, and incentivizing risk-friendly management.

Israel recently joined the OECD’s Observatory of Public Sector Innovation, which guided the team with international best practices.