Ben-Gurion University and Google Expand Strategic Collaboration in AI and Cyber
Joint initiatives include projects to improve Hebrew and Arabic AI models, and a visit and lecture by Google Global VP Royal Hansen in December as part of Cyber Week.
Ben-Gurion University of the Negev has long placed the advancement of innovation through research and technological development at the heart of its mission. Having recently inaugurated the Stein Faculty of Computer and Information Science, the country’s largest faculty specializing in artificial intelligence and cyber, the University is further advancing this agenda through its collaboration with Google. The partnership is expected to reach a new high point in December, when Royal Hansen, Google’s Global Vice President of Engineering for Privacy, Safety, and Security, visits the University.
The past two years have been complex academically, technologically, and industrially, particularly in the Negev, and particularly at Ben-Gurion University, which has mourned the loss of many members of its community in the wake of the war and sustained damage from an Iranian missile strike. Even so, the University continues to operate at the forefront of innovation and research, including through its international collaboration with Google.
As a global technology leader, Google includes a dedicated unit responsible for coordinating research collaborations between the company and universities. Over the past two years, the collaboration with BGU has deepened, driven primarily by a shared commitment to advancing capabilities in artificial intelligence and cyber. This aligns with the University’s steady momentum in what is widely regarded as today’s most pivotal field, reflected in the establishment of its new and largest-in-Israel faculty specializing in AI, cyber, and computer science.
This distinctive collaboration is the result of the work of BGN, Ben-Gurion University’s technology transfer company, which serves as a central bridge between academia and industry. Its core role is to harness research knowledge, scientific developments, and innovative technologies, translating them into partnerships and solutions for industry stakeholders and companies such as Google. One of the collaboration’s outcomes is Google’s most recent project with the University, aimed at improving the company’s AI models in Hebrew and Arabic.
Ran Melamed, VP Business Development – Engineering and Exact Sciences at BGN, elaborated on the partnership: “The collaboration brings together Google’s expertise and innovation with Ben-Gurion University’s academic excellence and advanced research capabilities, forming a unique connection that may yield solutions with significant impact in the future. We are doing everything we can to deepen the relationship between the University and Google. We are pleased to see the connection strengthening over time, especially in AI and information security. The collaboration will reach a new peak with a special event at the University, the visit of Google’s Vice President of Engineering to the University campus.”
Royal Hansen, Google’s Global Vice President of Engineering for Privacy, Safety, and Security, is expected to make a landmark visit to the University in December and to deliver a lecture on December 8. Hansen leads the company’s work at the intersection of privacy, safety, and information security with artificial intelligence. His talk, held as part of Cyber Week, will address the advantages, limitations, and future of artificial intelligence, and will be delivered to university students and senior researchers.
