Greek start-ups compete at DLD innovation festival in Israel

Tel-Aviv this year is once again organizing the innovation festival DLD, with the participation of thousands of representatives from global multinationals and investors, an event that confirms the emergence of the Israeli capital into an international hub for start-ups and entrepreneurship.

Some 15,000 participants are expected this year, including 800 start-up enterprises from 31 countries, with Greece represented by Citycrop and its founder Christos Raftoyiannis.

The Greek company’s “brainchild” is an automated interior cultivation system using hydroponics, which gives users the ability to grow fresh and healthy vegetables, herbs and fruits year-round, even at home. The system also employs a mobile phone app in order to manage the system from afar.

Citycrop earned top honors at a competition, sponsored by the Israeli embassy in Athens recently, which was organized within the framework of DLD 2016.

Women’s entrepreneurship

The year’s innovation festival in Tel-Aviv is dedicated to women’s entrepreneurship, aimed to support and promote innovative business ideas by women from around the world.

According to DLD president Yossi Vardi, the “absolute cooperation” between the Israeli government, society and business community is a primary factor in making Israel attractive and effective for start-up business activity.

Besides Citycrop, another seven innovation-driven Greek companies will participate in DLD’s business-friendly framework, replete with accelerators, venture capital representatives and “business angels”. The Israeli embassy’s trade attaché will also be present at the event.

Greece-based companies include Contadd, Reportbrain Ltd., Workathlon, VesselBot, Yodiwo, Space Horizon and Sourcelair. Additionally, four Thessaloniki area start-ups – ErgoSensePro, Cor-IS, Brainbox Technology and SentiGeek – received an invitation to attend from Tel-Aviv Mayor Ron Huldai, after his recent visit to the northern Greece metropolis.