By Steven Scheer
JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Intel Corp . (O:INTC) has joined Team8, an Israeli creator of cybersecurity start-ups, as a strategic partner and will help with the formation of companies that address the largest cybersecurity problems, Team8 said on Wednesday.
Intel, the world's largest chipmaker, joins Team8's syndicate members Microsoft (O:MSFT), Cisco (O:CSCO), Qualcomm (O:QCOM), AT&T (N:T), Citigroup (N:C), Accenture (N:ACN), Nokia (HE:NOKIA), Bessemer Venture Partners and Eric Schmidt’s Innovation Endeavors.
Israel has some 450 cyber start-ups, which receive 20 percent of global investment in the sector. Although the need for security is growing quickly, the proliferation of start-ups means that several companies compete in every subsector.
Team8 has already launched two cyber companies, Claroty and Illusive Networks, and two others will follow suit soon.
Team8 co-founder and CEO Nadav Zafrir told Reuters that one company will move out of stealth mode in a few weeks while another will do the same in early 2018 without elaborating.
He noted that each of the syndicate members has a different perspective on cyber.
"Citi enables us to see the world from a financial standpoint. With Intel joining we will see the challenges going forward in cybersecurity like computing, automotive, cloud, mobile and IoT (Internet of Things)," Zafrir said. "Together we can address the (cyber) problems before they emerge."
Intel will also collaborate with Illusive, which catches attackers once they break into corporate networks using deception technologies, to help combat so-called advanced persistent threats (APTs).
The alliance between Illusive and Intel extends deception-based cyber security from software to hardware, Illusive said.
"Our collaboration with Illusive networks provides users with more effective defenses against sophisticated APTs, in the early stage of the attack, that otherwise go undetected and pose a great threat to enterprises and individuals," said Jacob Mendel, general manager of Intel's platform security division.
