About Us
Founded in 1944, the American Committee for the Weizmann Institute of Science develops philanthropic support for the Weizmann Institute in Israel, and advances its mission of science for the future of humanity.
Jun 03, 2020...
Israeli government investment arm the Israel Innovation Authority (IIA) has approved the establishment of the CRISPR-IL consortium, which will focus on the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) and CRISPR technologies to develop advanced computational tools for genome editing, IIA announced Wednesday.
The consortium will be allocated with a total of NIS 36 million (approximately $10.36 million) for a period of 18 months, with an option to extend operations for an additional 18 months.
Jul 29, 2020... REHOVOT, ISRAEL—July 29, 2020—The Weizmann Institute of Science and Schneider Children’s Medical Center of Clalit Health Services signed a Memorandum of Understanding today on a collaborative biomedical research initiative. The “Schneider-Weizmann Center for Research on Child and Adolescent Health” will be jointly established by the two entities. The anticipated fields of research include oncology, neurology, psychiatry, gastroenterology, endocrinology, nutrition, and metabolism. Other fields of research may be agreed upon in the future.
Sep 13, 2020... REHOVOT, ISRAEL—September 13, 2020—A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel and the Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence (MBZUAI) in the United Arab Emirates was signed on September 12. The signing ceremony, which was held virtually, took place in the presence of Weizmann Institute President Prof. Alon Chen and His Excellency Dr. Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology, member of the Federal Cabinet, and Chairman of the MBZUAI Board of Trustees. A delegation headed by President Chen is expected to travel to Abu Dhabi next week to finalize the details of the MoU and discuss its implementation.
Sep 16, 2020... REHOVOT, ISRAEL—September 16, 2020—By tracking the evolution of what may be our oldest means of fighting off viral infection, a group at the Weizmann Institute of Science has uncovered a gold mine of antiviral substances that may lead to the development of highly effective antiviral drugs. These substances are made by virus-fighting enzymes known as viperins, which were previously known to exist only in mammals and have now been found in bacteria. The molecules produced by the bacterial viperins are currently undergoing testing against human viruses such as influenza and COVID-19. The study was published in Nature.
Feb 04, 2021... American Committee CEO Dave Doneson shares news of the Weizmann Institute’s historic partnership with Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence in the UAE. In a first-of-its-kind undertaking, the two institutions will work together to significantly advance AI research, including through student and postdoc exchanges, conferences and seminars, research collaborations, and a joint virtual institute for AI. The partnership will also support Weizmann’s Artificial Intelligence Enterprise for Scientific Discovery, a flagship initiative that will harness the power of AI to transform biomedicine, environmental research, and other areas of science.
Feb 24, 2021... REHOVOT, ISRAEL—February 24, 2021—Following the Memorandum of Understanding signed by Israel’s Weizmann Institute of Science (WIS) and the United Arab Emirates’ Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence (MBZUAI) in September 2020, the two institutions have announced the establishment of the WIS-MBZUAI Joint Program for Artificial Intelligence Research. The new program will promote collaborative initiatives in fundamental artificial intelligence (AI) research and will explore AI applications in domains such as healthcare, genomics, and more.
Mar 14, 2022... Are we truly alone in the universe? The Weizmann Institute of Science has joined a global consortium of distinguished institutions engineering the world’s most powerful telescope. The Giant Magellan Telescope will be able to probe the atmospheres of planets beyond our solar system for any indication of life.
May 26, 2022... REHOVOT, ISRAEL – May 26, 2022 – About 30 massive, intricate computer networks serve the scientists who stand at the forefront of climate change research. Each network runs a software program comprised of millions of lines of code. These programs are computational models that combine the myriads of physical, chemical, and biological phenomena that together form the climate of our planet. The models calculate the state of Earth’s atmosphere, oceans, land, and ice, capturing past and present climate variability and using the data to predict future climate change. These results are analyzed by leading research institutes across the globe, including the Weizmann Institute of Science, and then incorporated into the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) assessment report. Policymakers rely on the IPCC report when they form adaptation and mitigation strategies for climate change, one of our generation’s greatest crises.
May 31, 2022... REHOVOT, ISRAEL—May 31, 2022—Ketamine, a well-known anesthetic used in smaller doses as a party drug, was hailed as a “new hope for depression” in a Time magazine cover story in 2017. Two years later, the arrival of the first ketamine-based antidepressant – the nasal spray esketamine, made by Johnson & Johnson – was applauded as the most exciting development in the treatment of mood disorders in decades. Yet the U.S. Food and Drug Administration still limits the spray’s use. It is mainly given to depressed patients who have not been helped by other therapies – in part, because the new drug’s mechanism of action is insufficiently understood, leading to concerns over its safety.
Jun 13, 2022... REHOVOT, ISRAEL—June 13, 2022—They say that where there’s smoke, there’s fire, and Weizmann Institute of Science researchers are working hard to investigate that claim, or at least elucidate what constitutes “smoke.” In an article published today in PNAS, the scientists reveal an advanced, innovative method that they have developed and used to detect nonvisual traces of fire dating back at least 800,000 years – one of the earliest known pieces of evidence for the use of fire. The newly developed technique may provide a push toward a more scientific, data-driven type of archaeology, but – perhaps more importantly – it could help us better understand the origins of the human story, our most basic traditions, and our experimental and innovative nature.
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