Israel Struggles to Build AI Infrastructure, Needs Sovereign AI

Israel excels in fields requiring minimal infrastructure investment, but artificial intelligence demands significant infrastructure, an area where the country is still struggling, according to Professor Amnon Shashua, founder and CEO of doubleAI and founder of Mobileye. Speaking at an EY conference, Shashua noted that while Israel possesses exceptional talent, concentrated unlike in the US, AI development necessitates substantial infrastructure investment, which he doesn't see being adequately addressed. This leads many Israelis to register their companies in the US, he observed, urging Israel to invest wisely in this critical area.

Yair Shanir, Managing Director of Dell Technologies Capital in Israel, revealed that his firm invested in Shashua's new company, doubleAI, because it focuses on 'model companies,' a departure from previous AI investments. He expressed frustration over China's release of the Deepsea AI model, believing such advancements should originate from Israel, which he feels is capable of simpler, cheaper solutions. Shanir sees Shashua's team as ideal for developing Israel's own sovereign AI.

Shashua categorized the future of physical AI into autonomous vehicles and humanoid robots. He stated that the cost barrier for autonomous vehicles has been overcome, but humanoid robots still face challenges in learning and generalizing tasks without constant retraining. He anticipates this will be resolved in a few years, significantly impacting society. Key regulatory challenges involve robot-human interactions, particularly concerning safety when a heavy robot interacts with a child.

Shashua further explained that doubleAI aims to develop core components for 'Deep Reasoning,' focusing on information search and verification. He highlighted that while humans excel at verification, AI struggles to distinguish right from wrong, making debugging difficult. Despite recent AI advancements in solving complex mathematical problems, verification remains an open issue. DoubleAI plans to announce a new product next week focused on code optimization, building on an NVIDIA library and exploring quantum computing. They recently published an article written entirely by AI, signed only by its 'agent.'

A panel discussion following Shashua's talk explored robotics. Lior Ben Horin of NVIDIA Israel emphasized automation's role in improving quality of life. Susan Snof of Konga raised security concerns regarding robots lacking human values. Dr. Yossi Nathan of Foresight Robotics stressed safety layers for medical robots, while Yonatan Yaacobi of Enigma noted that robotics has yet to experience a ChatGPT-like breakthrough, requiring better inference and generalization. The panel also touched on the significant capital investment needed for robotics companies, with Nathan mentioning Foresight Robotics raised $100 million and Yaacobi noting Enigma raised $71 million. Ben Horin observed a recent surge in Israel's robotics industry, despite challenges like the lack of large-scale manufacturing sites, expressing optimism about overcoming these hurdles with government support.