Playbuzz raising funds, Uber not leaving, TLV’s balloon and more – This week from the Startup Nation

American-Israeli hit website Playbuzz raised $16 million

US-Israeli start-up Playbuzz, whose platform enables the distribution of content on social media, said on Wednesday it has raised $16 million in a financing round led by venture capital fund 83North. Playbuzz content is seen by over 80 million monthly unique visitors and has ranked the #1 most shared publisher on Facebook for four consecutive months. The new investment will be used to expand the company's operations and develop the variety of formats available on the platform. In addition to its New York headquarters, PlayBuzz is opening offices in Asia and Europe.

Read more “>here. 

Tel-Aviv gets its own hot air balloon

Tel Aviv is about to join London, Paris, Hong Kong and some 50 other major cities which offer a bird's eye view of the city from a hot air balloon. The huge TLV Balloon, which landed in Israel this past week, is 23 meters (75 feet) in diameter and can reach a height of 120 meters (393 feet) off the ground. It can carry up to 30 people each time. A TLV Balloon ride is expected to cost NIS 75 (about $18.5) for adults, NIS 65 ($16) for Tel Aviv residents and NIS 50 ($12) for children. The 12-minute flight will include an aerial tour of the city with a pilot who will also provide short explanations about interesting spots on the way. Also planned is a visitor center which will explore the history of hot air balloons in Israel and around the world.

Read more “>here. 

Israeli startup offer sharper glasses

As the population in many affluent Western countries ages, it’s a sure bet that the eyewear business will remain a growth industry. And the older people get, the greater the likelihood they will need multifocal specs to correct nearsightedness and mid- or long-range vision, compensating for the loss of vision focus common among the elderly. Proper multifocal use requires aiming the eyes at different sections of the lenses — the “near” or “distant” focus parts, depending on what the wearer is looking at — and some people never really learn the art of focus adjustment necessary for a successful multifocal experience. 

For them, electronic lenses developed by Israeli start-up DeepOptics may be an option. Using sensors, the glasses detect what the eye is focusing on as well as the viewing distance — adjusting the power of the glasses to ensure that whatever is being looked at comes into focus, whether near or far.

Read more “>here. 

Losing car-keys no more!

Have you ever lost your smartphone? Your glasses? Your keys? Of course you have. The question is: How much time is too much time wasted to find them again? Pixie Technology is the newest company on the market to make tracking gadgets that help you find your things. The company says it has created the world’s first Location of Things (LoT) technology platform that makes location an exact science by allowing users to create a digital map of their things. Pixie says it can help anyone pinpoint the location of lost items within inches.

Read more “>here. 

The Technion is looking for two special teen-researchers

The Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, globally recognized for driving Israel’s high-tech industry, offers two prestigious start-up/entrepreneurial summer programs to give talented high school students, ages 15-18, the unique opportunity to experience the start-up nation first-hand. In both programs, tailored to the needs of different types of students, the goal is to help students develop their ideas into a start-up business plan on site at Technion, the birthplace of many of Israel’s most exciting tech innovations, which inspires hundreds of start-up enterprises in Israel and around the world.

Read more “>here. 

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