Acclaimed by VON magazine as "Israel's Bill Gates," Zohar Zisapel has played a critical role in forging an Israeli high tech
Silicon Wadi that is second only to California's Silicon Valley in entrepreneurial prowess and innovation.
Often referred to as "
Silicon Wadi," research and development at Israel's universities and high-tech centers are yielding breakthrough technologies.
The Madrid Peace Conference and the ensuing Oslo peace process were supposed to lay the foundations for a New Middle East, in which Israelis and Palestinians would make peace and the region would be integrated into the expanding and prosperous global economy, with young and hip Israelis and Palestinians making money, surfing the Internet, watching MTV, and launching high-tech startups in Israel's
Silicon Wadi. That was the vision promoted by Shimon Peres and echoed by America's leading fan of globalization and Oslo, New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman.
Paul, Minn.), the Silicon Swamp (Indiantown, Fla.), Silicon Valais (Switzerland, with the added benefit of sounding like Silicon Valley), the Silicorn Valley (Fairfield, Iowa), and the
Silicon Wadi (Israel; "wadi" is Arabic for "valley").