Startup Street: Israeli Spy Agency To Fund Startups Building Cool Spy Gadgets
Spy toys, a startup hub and a bug bounty program - on this week’s Startup Street.
This week on Startup Street, startup nation Israel is looking to fund cutting-edge spy technologies. India and Portugal joined hands to establish a new platform to help startups and investors alike. And Zomato is learning from its mistakes as it beefs up cybersecurity.
Israel's Mossad Sets Up Startup Fund To Invest In Spy Technologies
The National Security and Intelligence agency of Israel, the Mossad, has established a fund which will provide grants of up to 2 million shekels (roughly $600 million) for startups that are building innovative spy technologies.
Libertad Ventures will invest in the research and development of "cutting-edge technlogy" startups in exchange for non-exclusive rights to use the technology, a statement by Israel Prime Minster's Office said. The investment will be equity free, and Mossad will get a licence to use the technology, without paying royalties or putting any restrictions on the intellectual property.
Mossad is eyeing “groundbreaking” technologies in areas like encryption, robotics, machine learning, automatic identification and self-powered systems, Libertad’s website shows.
Research and development for the project will be conducted for up to two years and the grants will be awarded in phases based on four milestones set by Mossad. While 2 million shekels has been set as the maximum funding, Libertad's website said exceptions will be considered.
But that isn't all. The government's advertisement, featuring futuristic gadgets, to launch the fund is the real highlight.
PM Modi Launches StartUp Hub In Lisbon, Portugal
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Portuguese counterpart Antonio Costa launched a platform to strenghten the startup ecosystems of the two countries.
The India-Portugal International Startup Hub will aid capacity building and enable connection between startups, incubators and investors from relevant sectors, according to a joint statement issued during Modi's trip to Portugal last week.
The platform will host a range of tools that will provide information on subjects like policy, taxation, visa options, read a statement on Narendra Modi's website, calling it a "Go-To-Market Guide" for startups.
The programme has been initiated by Startup India and supported by the Commerce & Industry Ministry and Startup Portugal to create a mutually supportive partnership.
Zomato Will Pay You To Find Bugs In Their System
Food startup Zomato, which was hit by a massive data breach last month, has launched a bug bounty program to reward people who report technical vulnerabilities on its website and mobile application.
The minimum reward for severe bugs is $1,000, a post by founder Deepinder Goyal on Zomato's blog said. Zomato has launched their program on HackerOne, a platform to bring together companies and cybersecurity experts.
We also encourage security researchers to intimate us of any potential security issues. We will make every effort to quickly resolve all reported issues.Deepinder Goyal, CEO and Founder, Zomato
The rewards, however, will be assessed on a case-by-case basis by Zomato's cybersecurity team. Finding unique and rare bugs may result in a higher payout.
Goyal also said that Zomato has strengthened its overall infrastructure and increased their security checks following the massive breach in May which saw personal data of over 6.6 million users stolen from their website.
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