Israel has approved a major national artificial intelligence program aimed at strengthening technological independence, economic growth, national security, and global leadership in AI.
The Israeli government on Tuesday approved Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s proposal for a National Program to accelerate artificial intelligence and establish Israel as a global AI leader.
Spearheaded by the National AI Directorate in the Prime Minister’s Office, the program is designed to strengthen Israel’s technological independence, national resilience, innovation capacity, and long-term economic growth while embedding AI capabilities across government, industry, security, education, health, and public services.
Netanyahu described artificial intelligence as a transformative revolution rather than just another technology, saying Israel would use its greatest advantage — human capital — to become a global AI superpower, similar to its rise as a cyber powerhouse.
The plan includes major strategic measures such as expanding sovereign computing infrastructure, setting a national target of 100,000 processing units, advancing a national quantum computer, deepening international AI partnerships, and investing heavily in human capital and workforce training.
It also calls for the establishment of a National Artificial Intelligence Institute and acceleration hubs to connect government, academia, industry, and investors, while converting national and global challenges into applied AI-based solutions.
A special focus will be placed on Cyber AI, Physical AI, and countering deepfake threats, reinforcing Israel’s comparative strengths in cybersecurity, defense, and advanced technology.
The government also plans to deploy AI tools across public services to reduce waiting times, improve citizen access to information, streamline ministry operations, and modernize service delivery.
Brig. Gen. (Res.) Erez Askal, head of the National AI Directorate, called the decision a historic step that would shape Israel’s future standing in the artificial intelligence era. He warned that the coming years would determine which nations lead the next technological age and which become dependent on others for critical AI infrastructure and capabilities.
