There are plenty of cities in the U.S. that want to lay claim to becoming the “next” Silicon Valley, but a dusty desert town in the south of Israel called Beersheva might actually have a shot at becoming something more modest, and more focused. They want to be the first place you think about when it comes to cybersecurity research, education, and innovation. If things go right there, it may well happen.

Israel is a hotbed of tech startups, a self-proclaimed Silicon Wadi. It is ranked near the top of several recent Bloomberg innovation metrics. Particularly when it comes to cybersecurity, you almost have as many firms as there are Starbucks in Seattle – seemingly they are everywhere. In fact, Inc. magazine lists nine different Israeli security startups to watch. And that is just the tip of the iceberg. Read more