US Tech-Giants to Open Data Centers in Israel
Oracle, an American company that specializes in cloud infrastructure has decided to proceed with its plans to establish a data center in Jerusalem despite losing out on Israel’s cloud Nimbus tender earlier this month. If Oracle goes through with these plans, it will be the first of the American tech giants to establish a data center in Israel. As a part of the project, Oracle has signed a 1 billion shekel construction deal to begin building the center in the high-tech park of Har Hotzvim, located in Jerusalem.
The vice president of Oracle cloud infrastructure product development, Scott Twaddle has spoken out about the decision making process behind the desire to open operations in Israel. “Security has always been top of mind for Israel- they’ve been a leader in security technology and that extends into everything they do.” Twaddle continued to explain that Israel is the perfect place to open a data center due to its emphasis on security within its high-tech sector. He believes that this emphasis will allow Oracle’s customers to trust the products they bring into the market.
Oracle’s data center announcement is no surprise. In the face of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Israeli tech-sector has experienced an unprecedented year. The Israeli tech-sector is thriving more than ever before. The year 2020 brought over 578 tech deals with an accumulated investment of $9.9 billion. Oracle is not the first American Tech-Giant to announce plans of launching data-centers in Israel. Earlier this year, Microsoft announced similar plans, however the company’s plans have now been pushed to late 2022.
Although Microsoft and Oracle have both lost the bid to provide the Israeli Government cloud services, Both companies have decided to follow through with establishing data centers in Israel, independent of the nimbus tender deal. Microsoft’s country general manager for Israel, Ronit Atad expressed Microsoft’s desire continue growing the company’s presence in Israel. “Israel is known for its great innovation and entrepreneurial capabilities, and I am sure that our cloud technology will fulfil an important role in creating new, fascinating opportunities for enterprises in Israel’s economy. Enterprises need strong, stable, secure computing infrastructure that will allow them to focus on growing their business.”
It is with great pride, that Israel welcomes Oracle and hopes that others will join the Israeli high-tech family.
