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November 7, 2006

Month-old startup OriginGPS scores $0.9 million in first round

Month-old startup OriginGPS yesterday announced scoring $900,000 in first-round financing from Van Leer Ventures Jerusalem and from the Chief Scientist at the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Labor.

Van Leer Ventures had a hand in founding OriginGPS in October 2006 together with entrepreneur Haim Goldberger. The startup is developing technology to create especially small GPS modules that could be installed in cell phones, for instance, or PDAs.

At present GPS modules consist of a digital unit and an antenna. The OriginGPS concept melds the two components into a single, tiny unit.

A study by marketing research company RNCOS found that the GPS market is growing fast. It is projected to reach 300 million GPS-equipped mobile devices with enhanced user applications, including child locators, distress call location signals, and so forth by the year 2010.

OriginGPS founder Haim Goldberger has 16 years' experience in the miniature components industry. He previously served as VP Corporate R&D for advanced technology at Vishay Intertechnology (NYSE: VSH) and as RF R&D Group Manager at AVX Jerusalem. In 1994 he won the 1994 Kaplan Prize for Innovation and has 11 patents.

Van Leer Ventures Jerusalem CEO Oren Gershtein said, "The capital we invested will help OriginGPS complete development of its GPS system on a single module in 2007, and will lead the company to its next important financing round (Round A), which will involve Israeli venture capital funds."

Van Leer Ventures Jerusalem is the early-stage investment arm of the Docor International BV and the Jerusalem Development Authority. It typically invests between $500,000 and $1.5 million in each company.

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