Yahoo! Inc. (Nasdaq: YHOO) today inaugurated its R&D center in Israel. The Yahoo! Research Israel Lab at the Matam High-Tech Park in Haifa will be led by Dr. Ronny Lempel, expert who will report directly to Yahoo! Research VP Dr. Ricardo Baeza-Yates.
At the press conference in Haifa, Yahoo! Research director Prabhakar Raghavan said, “Search is still in its infancy. At Yahoo!, we are working on the hard core science that can lead to search experiences that are significantly beyond the current art. Ronny Lempel is a great addition to the world-class team that we have assembled to develop a new approach to Web search. His expertise in search technologies and ties to local academia will help us draw on the best talent and knowledge from across the region and strengthen our worldwide R&D efforts.”
The Yahoo! Research Israel Lab will focus on boiling down complex technology problems into simple solutions to change the game in web search.
Lempel said, "In two or three years, search engines will be completely different. We're doing things much better, and we'll bring the user closer to what he's really looking for and wants to find on the Web. In order to achieve all our goals, we'll hire the best people that Israel has to offer."
Lempel continued, "Israel is fertile ground for incredibly talented technologists, researchers and engineers, and the Yahoo! Research Israel Lab provides the best opportunity to create the technologies that will underpin the next generation of search on the Internet. I look forward to building the Haifa team with the best talent this region has to offer.”
Lempel added that Yahoo! has no plans to translate its home page into Hebrew, because it was not clear that this would be the right step for the company.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on March 11, 2008
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