Mekorot invests in Olive Diagnostics to allow early detection of chemicals in the Kinneret and water reservoirs

Olive Diagnostics, an IoMT MedTech startup that uses AI for 100% passive urine analysis, will develop for Mekorot, Israel’s national water company, a mobile optical kit to detect chemical and biological compounds in lakes and natural water sources. The development agreement, which includes an investment by Mekorot in Olive Diagnostics, was signed following a series of tests that conducted by the parties in recent weeks that were successful in the early detection of chemical and biological compounds in water reservoirs. Use of the technology will improve the monitoring of different water sources, thereby enabling timely detection and treatment of hazardous contaminants in the water source.

The agreement between the parties was the result of a request by Mekorot to improve the monitoring of water sources, some of which supply water to the general public. Mekorot selected the solution of Olive Diagnostics, which previously applied advanced optics and algorithms to diagnose water conditions. To date, the system has mainly been used the healthcare sector to monitor diseases in body before the symptoms appear.

Mekorot is interested in improving its contaminant monitoring capabilities in potable water and micro-contaminants in treated wastewater. To help achieve this aim, the parties conducted a laboratory pilot, which was successful, resulting in the agreement in which Olive Diagnostics will build a mobile optical kit that Mekorot’s field engineers will use to detect these chemical compounds at the press of a button.

The new agreement with the startup Olive Diagnostics is the eighth agreement that Mekorot has signed in recent years. Since 2019, Mekorot has invested in a number of energy management, big data, cyber defense, water quality and security, and national infrastructure maintenance startups, acquiring stakes of up to 20% in them. Mekorot VP Engineering and Technology Yossi Jacoby says that the product will be another line of defense to secure the company’s water supply. “As a national water company, we are committed to scrupulously protect the quality of the water reaching households, farmers, and industry. Olive Diagnostics’ product will help us locate potential threats in a timely manner and better deal with them.”

Olive Diagnostics CEO Guy Goldman says: “Good real-time detection of molecules in liquids make it possible to discover and repair malfunctions in systems in order to protect public health.” He adds: “Our optical technology for detecting molecules in liquids is attracting great interest not only from the healthcare sector, but also from other industries, such as desalination facility builders and operators, of bottled beverages producers and distributors.”

Olive Diagnostics is a medical devices company founded in 2019 by CEO Guy Goldman and Corey Katz. It has developed Olive KG, the world's first hands-free, non-invasive, AI-based optical device for 100% passive and seamless urinalysis, which mounts on any toilet. Olive KG performs high quality analysis of important parameters in the patients’ urine in each urination without user intervention. The continuous monitoring nature of Olive Diagnostics’ device alerts users to pre-symptomatic issues, sometimes weeks before symptoms and the appearance of conditions including urinary tract infection (UTI) and kidney stones. Last year, the company obtained European Union CE Mark certification for the Olive KG, followed by the first orders for the device from European organizations.

The Olive KG has Internet of Medical Things (IoMT) capability, and uses optics to detect chemical compounds in urine to generate real-time secure personal data, which meets the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) directive, and is sent to the cloud and treating physician.

Olive Diagnostics has raised $7.3 million since its establishment. Pre-seed and seed stage investors include Israeli HMO Maccabi Healthcare Services, Mayo Clinic, eHealth Ventures, Amgen Ventures, The Israel Innovation Authority, alongside private European and American private investors.

Mekorot is Israel’s national water company, that supplies more than 1.7 billion cubic meters of water to homes, agricultural fields, and industrial plants throughout Israel. The company provides water and services to the private and public sectors in Israel as well as to the Palestinian Authority and the Kingdom of Jordan, through political agreements.

The company operates about 13,000 km of pipelines, 3,000 production and supply facilities, 1,200 drillings, 1,000 water reservoirs and pools, 40 desalination facilities, and 13 sewage processing plants. The company has accumulated investments of NIS 1.5-2 billion per year, and a three-year development plan approved in advance by several regulators and government ministries. Since 2003, Mekorot has been ranked consistently in the highest financial strength rating (ilAAA) by the international rating company Maalot Standard & Poor’s. In 2019, Mekorot became a reporting company and is listed for trading on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange, after raising its first capital in the company’s history by issuing tradable bonds, accompanied by the publication of a prospectus.