Israeli medical center, investment group establish healthcare innovation hub

A “landmark healthcare hub” to promote innovation in the field has been established by Jerusalem’s Shaare Zedek Medical Center (SZMC) and the Arieli Capital, LLC investment firm in New York. They plan to launch an open call for companies by year’s end, targeting worldwide market-ready healthcare startups, to participate in the first SHAAR scale-up group.

Scale-up companies are defined as those that have been growing over three consecutive financial years at an annual rate above 20% in terms of turnover or number of employees.

The Shaare Zedek Arieli Innovation Hub – whose acronym is SHAAR – will focus on transformative startups, advancing innovative technologies, and supporting pioneering research and development that will benefit humanity.

Shaare Zedek Scientific (SZS), the research and innovation arm of SZMC, and Arieli are leading the new SHAAR (“gateway” in Hebrew) Hub, which was launched with support from the Jerusalem Development Authority (JDA).

Located on the hospital’s large Jerusalem campus opposite Mount Herzl, it combines SZMC’s medical expertise and world-class facilities with Arieli’s investment experience and track record of fostering innovation and growth platforms.

The innovation hub said its mission is to build a bridge between innovation and capital, creating an environment where cutting-edge medical research, pioneering projects, and forward-thinking startups can thrive through strategic financial and professional support, leading co-working space, and a collaborative community.

The hub facilitates advanced innovation programs and access to investment and funding opportunities, providing startups and medical projects with the resources needed to turn visionary healthcare ideas into impactful solutions.

It will advance and support the next generation of healthcare technologies and entrepreneurs, the two partners said.

“SHAAR is a true embodiment of our mission,” said the medical center’s director-general Prof. Ofer Merin. “Our goal is to equip entrepreneurs with direct access to physicians, clinical settings, data, and samples. Such access is essential, serving as a springboard for the development of innovative medical solutions. I do not doubt that this significant partnership with Arieli Capital, led by Prof. Dan Turner and Dr. Renana Ofan, will greatly contribute to the success of this initiative.”

“We are honored to partner with the SZMC to bring the important mission of SHAAR to life,” said Evan Renov, Arieli’s founder and CEO. “We are eager to bring Arieli’s global business expertise in growing healthcare startups to SHAAR. Our goal is to bridge the gap between promising entrepreneurs and the venture capital industry, ultimately impacting people’s lives and healthcare on a global scale.”