On the Rise: Why Israel is Seeing Unprecedented Expansion

Tel Aviv, the capital of Israel’s Start-Up Nation, has long been home to an entrepreneurial, innovative culture, with thousands of software, biotech, cybersecurity, and other specialized firms leading to an ecosystem currently valued at nearly $400 billion [1]. Each of these organizations requires considerable compute needs, often launching with basic requirements on a major cloud platform and then later scaling up for research and development and client usage needs – and doing so in both multi-cloud and colocation environments.  

Despite an exceptionally tech-savvy local audience and high income per person, Tel Aviv had been overlooked as a regional data center location with critical deployments locating elsewhere in the Mediterranean region. However, as Israel’s relationships with its neighbors improve politically and grow economically (witness the recent free trade agreement with the United Arab Emirates), the demand for high-quality data center capacity in Israel has scaled accordingly. 

Cloud and Sea

While many new firms work solely with the private sector, the federal government has recently tendered various large contracts, leading local start-ups and global cloud platforms to compete for that business. For example, the major Nimbus project released for review in 2021 allowed open bidding to provide a host of ministries with a lead service at a deal value of $1.2 billion. Split between two of the most extensive global services, this and other defense-related deals led several U.S.-based firms to enter the market, creating the first formal cloud regions in-country. Continued cooperation between the start-up economy and the defense sector will provide different data center clientele in the future, particularly for those that can then re-sell products internationally. 

As befitting many growing coastal locations, Tel Aviv will gain a new undersea cable in 2024, with the Blue System to link the city to Jordan, Cyprus, Greece, Italy, and France, with landings at the increasingly important cable hubs of Genoa and Marseille. This will provide the first direct link from Israel to France and allow quicker transit to Western Europe and beyond. In addition, for local needs, the Communications Ministry has worked with the private industry to increase fiber home penetration to 70% nationally, accelerating local internet usage and speeds accordingly. 

In addition, energy prices are relatively low compared to worldwide rates, mainly due to gas reservoirs revealed in the last years and innovative production technologies embedded in energy storage. With a tight four percent vacancy, plenty of local clients and talent, reasonable electricity/energy prices, and a pro-infrastructure administration in Tel Aviv – all of this offers an array of positives for new deployments.  

EdgeConneX has been operating in Israel for over ten years, with three data center locations across the Tel Aviv metropolitan area, including Herzliya, Petah Tikva, and Rishon, for small- to large-scale needs. 

Our Israeli sites provide subterranean options, are highly secure, carrier-neutral, and offer resilient infrastructure for hyperscalers, cloud service providers, and enterprises. In addition, we have a local team with experience, a robust carrier ecosystem, and a long track record of operating successfully in the country. EdgeConneX Tel Aviv data centers are marked by:

• Tier III design
• Gateway for global cloud services
• 13 kilometers from downtown Tel Aviv (Petah Tikva)
• 7 MW+ in Rishon coming in 2023
• Engineered for customers requiring the lowest possible latency

So, don’t miss out. Partner with a trusted global leader to expand in one of the global start-up capitals! To learn more, download the EdgeConneX Tel Aviv data sheet: HERE.

Read about our recent expansion: HERE.

Schedule a virtual tour: https://www.edgeconnex.com/virtual-tours/ 

To tour our sites in Tel Aviv, please contact: info@edgeconnex.com 

[1] Dealroom.co: Tel Aviv- A Global Startup Trailblazer (March 2023)