Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Head of the National AI Directorate, Brig.-Gen. (Res.) Erez Eskel launched the National AI Program at a joint conference with the government agencies that have spent the past few months formulating it.
Prime Minister Netanyahu emphasized that the national program has two main goals: To ensure that the State of Israel is a global superpower in the field, and to guarantee the prosperity of the Israeli economy and public. The launched program is an expansion of Government Decision #4255 and details Israel's areas of differentiation, the enabling factors, and the steps required to ensure survival and continuity. At yesterday's conference, government officials transitioned to the operational phase of translating the national program into practical steps.
(All remarks are translated from Hebrew.)
Prime Minister Netanyahu:
"We stand at the threshold of a new era. AI is not just another technology, it is going to change the world. It is going to change the lives of each and every one of us, of our children, and of generations to come. Quite a change is taking place, much like the Industrial Revolution. We are in a historical window of opportunity, but a very short one, because the pace of change is so great that if you do not safeguard and advance yourself in this wave, you will simply be left behind. And we cannot be left behind. We have no time to waste, and we do not just want to avoid being left behind; we want to be in the number one place, a leading place.
I said this back in the day regarding cyber as well; I said we would be among the top five countries in the world. People did not quite buy it. That was about ten years ago, and today we are in second place in investments in cyber ventures. Israel is second only to the United States. This means we have immense capabilities.
We want to ensure two fundamental things in this program: First, securing Israel as a global superpower, and I emphasize, a global superpower, in the fields of AI, and second, promoting prosperity for the Israeli economy, as well as for Israel's citizens and Israel's children. This is important. Not only did we do this in cyber, we did it in agriculture, medicine, medical devices, and many other fields that you know, and we will do it here too, in artificial intelligence."
The Prime Minister added: "I am counting on you. Our ministries, all government ministries have enlisted in this, and all the people present here, as well as many who are not present here. We are acting to create our competitive advantage. Not just to create it, it already exists, but to preserve and expand it. The future will not wait for us; we are creating it. With our brilliant minds, determination, vision, and the work of all of you, we will ensure the future, security, and prosperity of the State of Israel as a global AI superpower."
Head of the National AI Directorate, Brig.-Gen. (Res.) Erez Eskel:
"Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Prime Minister’s Office Director-General Drorit, Civil Service Commissioner Doron, and everyone sitting here in the audience, all government ministries and working agencies that have been working with us day in and day out, bringing the State of Israel a national program to accelerate AI, a very ambitious program, but it is only the first step on our path forward.
We are launching this program, which takes into account the distinct advantages of the State of Israel in the fields of cyber, physical AI, and solving life's problems with AI, while providing infrastructure for the needs of the country and the economy, whether that is Compute infrastructure, powerhouse computing capabilities that almost no countries currently possess, a national quantum computer, and addressing the central and most important issue, the human capital in the State of Israel, which is our true engine.
We are already in a good position. We have dedicated extensive resources and programs to set a much higher standard, and above all to increase the numbers, so that the State of Israel enters a position of very significant leadership into this vital era.
Mr. Prime Minister, this is an opportunity to say thank you for your support and for establishing the Directorate. You established it about half a year ago. I think the results speak for themselves. We already have real results, and we have programs entering the operational phase that are now starting to define clear outcomes that make an impact: First, on the resilience of the State of Israel, and second, on the service that every citizen in the State of Israel receives, ensuring that they receive it in the best possible way."
The conference, led by senior officials of the National AI Directorate, was also attended by representatives from the Prime Minister's Office, the Ministry of Defense, the Ministry of Finance, the Bank of Israel, the Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure, the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Economy and Industry, the Ministry of Innovation, Science and Technology, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Labor, the Ministry of Aliyah and Integration, the Ministry of Tourism, the Civil Service Commission, the Planning and Budgeting Committee, the Council for Higher Education, the Central Bureau of Statistics, the National Economic Council, the National Insurance Institute, the Israel Innovation Authority, the Israel Securities Authority, the Israel Space Agency, the Electricity Authority, the Tax Authority, and the Employment Service.
Prime Minister Netanyahu emphasized that the national program has two main goals: To ensure that the State of Israel is a global superpower in the field, and to guarantee the prosperity of the Israeli economy and public. The launched program is an expansion of Government Decision #4255 and details Israel's areas of differentiation, the enabling factors, and the steps required to ensure survival and continuity. At yesterday's conference, government officials transitioned to the operational phase of translating the national program into practical steps.
(All remarks are translated from Hebrew.)
Prime Minister Netanyahu:
"We stand at the threshold of a new era. AI is not just another technology, it is going to change the world. It is going to change the lives of each and every one of us, of our children, and of generations to come. Quite a change is taking place, much like the Industrial Revolution. We are in a historical window of opportunity, but a very short one, because the pace of change is so great that if you do not safeguard and advance yourself in this wave, you will simply be left behind. And we cannot be left behind. We have no time to waste, and we do not just want to avoid being left behind; we want to be in the number one place, a leading place.
I said this back in the day regarding cyber as well; I said we would be among the top five countries in the world. People did not quite buy it. That was about ten years ago, and today we are in second place in investments in cyber ventures. Israel is second only to the United States. This means we have immense capabilities.
We want to ensure two fundamental things in this program: First, securing Israel as a global superpower, and I emphasize, a global superpower, in the fields of AI, and second, promoting prosperity for the Israeli economy, as well as for Israel's citizens and Israel's children. This is important. Not only did we do this in cyber, we did it in agriculture, medicine, medical devices, and many other fields that you know, and we will do it here too, in artificial intelligence."
The Prime Minister added: "I am counting on you. Our ministries, all government ministries have enlisted in this, and all the people present here, as well as many who are not present here. We are acting to create our competitive advantage. Not just to create it, it already exists, but to preserve and expand it. The future will not wait for us; we are creating it. With our brilliant minds, determination, vision, and the work of all of you, we will ensure the future, security, and prosperity of the State of Israel as a global AI superpower."
Head of the National AI Directorate, Brig.-Gen. (Res.) Erez Eskel:
"Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Prime Minister’s Office Director-General Drorit, Civil Service Commissioner Doron, and everyone sitting here in the audience, all government ministries and working agencies that have been working with us day in and day out, bringing the State of Israel a national program to accelerate AI, a very ambitious program, but it is only the first step on our path forward.
We are launching this program, which takes into account the distinct advantages of the State of Israel in the fields of cyber, physical AI, and solving life's problems with AI, while providing infrastructure for the needs of the country and the economy, whether that is Compute infrastructure, powerhouse computing capabilities that almost no countries currently possess, a national quantum computer, and addressing the central and most important issue, the human capital in the State of Israel, which is our true engine.
We are already in a good position. We have dedicated extensive resources and programs to set a much higher standard, and above all to increase the numbers, so that the State of Israel enters a position of very significant leadership into this vital era.
Mr. Prime Minister, this is an opportunity to say thank you for your support and for establishing the Directorate. You established it about half a year ago. I think the results speak for themselves. We already have real results, and we have programs entering the operational phase that are now starting to define clear outcomes that make an impact: First, on the resilience of the State of Israel, and second, on the service that every citizen in the State of Israel receives, ensuring that they receive it in the best possible way."
The conference, led by senior officials of the National AI Directorate, was also attended by representatives from the Prime Minister's Office, the Ministry of Defense, the Ministry of Finance, the Bank of Israel, the Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure, the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Economy and Industry, the Ministry of Innovation, Science and Technology, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Labor, the Ministry of Aliyah and Integration, the Ministry of Tourism, the Civil Service Commission, the Planning and Budgeting Committee, the Council for Higher Education, the Central Bureau of Statistics, the National Economic Council, the National Insurance Institute, the Israel Innovation Authority, the Israel Securities Authority, the Israel Space Agency, the Electricity Authority, the Tax Authority, and the Employment Service.