Above: Ben-Gurion University of the Negev President Prof. Rivka Carmi (right) and General Manager of IBM Israel Rick Kaplan sign the agreement to create the new IBM Center of Excellence for the Protection of Critical Infrastructure and Assets at BGU in Tel Aviv on Sunday.
IBM and Ben-Gurion University of the Negev launched today a new Center of Excellence in the field of protection of infrastructure and assets, which will operate at BGU’s Marcus Family Campus in Beer-Sheva.
The CoE will be led by Dr. Yaron Wolfsthal, a senior R&D manager from IBM Research, who has vast experience in leading R&D teams in multinational projects and technological ventures in the software arena. The center’s activities will include research and development of solutions for the enterprise market, private and public, with a focus on the security and protection of critical assets in future computing environments, including cloud, mobile and IoT (Internet of Things).
Prof. Rivka Carmi, President of BGU, said at the launch ceremony, that the University is delighted to welcome the unique expertise of IBM in the data security field to frame a set of activities that will benefit from the University's research capabilities. “Cooperation with a worldwide leader such as IBM can continue to extend and further develop our research capabilities," she said. Carmi also noted that "cloud computing and Big Data are changing the way in which we secure our information in the public sector. The Center will allow IBM's infrastructure and security experts to work with leading researchers from the University."
As part of the Center of Excellence which is being built with the contribution of BGN Technologies, the technology transfer company of the university, IBM and BGU researchers will work jointly to promote research and technological development projects, thus supporting the ecosystem of technology companies and technology-intensive ventures evolving in the Negev area.
According to Rick Kaplan, General Manager of IBM Israel, "IBM has been active in Israel for over sixty years. Its first research center was opened in Haifa in 1972. The new CoE further strengthens IBM's commitment to research and development activities in Israel and IBM's desire to be involved in the development of the Negev. IBM shares the Prime Minister's vision to make Beer Sheba and the Negev a global cyber center. Our ongoing investment in R&D has allowed IBM to lead the world in new patents for over twenty straight years which in turn leads to cutting edge technology that allows our clients to secure and protect their infrastructure and information assets in the current era of Big Data and cloud computing. The partnership with Ben-Gurion University will help us expand innovation not only in Israel - but also around the world."
