While top ten lists are oft times nothing more than “clickbait” (cough, BuzzFeed, cough) there are many lists that have proven their merit and are actually quite useful – we’re looking at you BlogTO.
Over the past few months, reputable media outlets (The Telegraph, Bloomberg), an up-and-coming travel blog (WOW Travel), and a prestigious award show (World’s Fifty Best Bar Awards) listed the world’s healthiest countries, most gay-friendly cities, most ‘hipster’ neighbourhoods, and, well, the fifty best bars. Today, tech giant Intel announced its list of ten startups from five different countries that it will be investing $22 million US into.
And it would just so happen that Israel, a land that frequently receives negative attention from media outlets, appears on each one.
On Bloomberg’s list of the world’s healthiest countries, released Oct. 31, Israel comes in at No.6, below first-place Singapore, Italy, Australia, Switzerland and Japan, but ahead of Spain, Netherlands, Sweden, and Germany. North American countries fail to appear in the top ten. The rankings were compiled from data from the United Nations, the World Bank, and the World Health Organization. Israel is the only Middle Eastern country to appear in the top ten.
On WOW Travel‘s list of gay-friendly cities, Israel’s cultural capital, Tel Aviv, secured the No. 1 spot (Toronto took home No. 11), referred to as one of the world’s most liberal cities, and also, “the most gay-friendly city, not only in the Middle East but in the entire world.”
The Telegraph‘s list of the world’s most “hipster” neighbourhoods ranked Tel Aviv’s Gan Hahashmal as No. 10, “home to a growing community of young indie fashion designers and other artist types.” Toronto’s Queen West comes in at No. 16. The Telegraph cites a variety of boutiques, restaurants, cafes and creative spaces that Israelis in the area can visit, and even names a couple local drinks. Definitely an area worth checking out the next time you visit the Holy Land. Interestingly, this isn’t the first time a Tel Aviv borough was named in a list about hipsters. Thrillist gave the city’s Florentin area the distinction of being No.2 on its list, only behind New York’s Williamsburg.
As Haaretz reports, at October’s World’s 50 Best Bar Awards, Tel Aviv’s Imperial Craft Cocktail Bar was voted among the world’s top 20 bars. Coming in at No. 17, Imperial Craft was the highest new entry on the list, moving up from No. 56 since last year. The bar was also voted the best bar in Africa and the Middle East. The World’s 50 Best Bar Awards is panelled by over 400 experts in the field, and is noted as one of the most distinguished award ceremonies for bars.
As for Intel, it announced that two Israeli companies would join its portfolio today, one being Ramat Gan-based Sckipio, a company that develops high-speed modems, while the other is Parallel Machines, which has offices in Tel Aviv, California, Boston, and Seattle. Over the last ten years, Intel has acquired eleven Israeli firms.