There is something to be said for the good hearted, focused, and intentional nature of individuals and organizations that come together to help change the world for the good.
And that’s very much what was felt in the air at the American Friends of Sheba USA / ARC US event at the Liberty Science Center held November 21, 2025 in Jersey City, NJ.
A talented group of hospital systems, universities, government officials, binational governmental fund, philanthropic donors, innovation ecosystems, and startups galore were in full effect at this inspiring meeting of the minds, which I was happy to be a part of.
Notably, ARC US is planning to open an Innovation Facility at Liberty Science Center’s SciTech Scity. The grand opening is expected during 2026.
Programming Was a Hit
The run of show was an energy packed list of speakers, including:
Sam Glassenberg taught us about the power of video games and neuroscience in medical training
Shai Tejman-Yarden MD MSc MBA explored the vast potential of VR and AR in medicine
Anthony Nuñez Fernandez and Dana Klar sharing their inspiring community service initiatives with supplying food and transportation for patients in need at RWJBarnabas Health Medical Group
Michael Avaltroni, the President of FDU shared the role that FDU has in the local the future of health-related job market
Alexander Richter shared plans for SciTech Scity’s healthcare innovation launch
What followed was a rapid-fire pitch style of healthtech startups involved in the ARC ecosystem, including:
AISAP
Biobeat
Caresyntax
Soapy – Clean Hands, Clean Data
How the Attendees Felt
I had an opportunity to interview a number of the prominent organizers and supporters within the ARC ecosystem and adjacent partners. Here’s what they had to say about the event:
“ARC is the innovation platform of Sheba Medical Center and we are very proud to build here in New Jersey an innovation and simulation lab for the future of health and also a soft landing pad for start-up companies. We had a great reception and exhibition here in New Jersey November 21st with almost 10 start-ups coming from Israel but also some of them are already based in the US with exciting technologies. Few of them started to work here with hospitals.
We were able to introduce Bio-beat which has wearable technology to RWJ Barnabas Health which are very focused on health equity and they are going to start pilots very soon here in New Jersey and then other companies have other opportunities for example with our partners at Fairleigh Dickinson University. They are now working with Soapy and they are looking to also partner with OtherReality, with their emphaty technology for medical staff and other technologies coming out from Sheba.
So many interesting things are coming from Israel and other places and very exciting technologies coming to New Jersey with great collaboration with the local institutes here.”
–Orli Biger, CEO, ARC US
“It’s a great night to be able to come beside a whole host of others who are really leading the charge in health care innovation. We’re excited about the opportunity to educate tomorrow’s health care practitioners and thinking about the future of health from a standpoint of higher education’s role. We’re really excited about the partnership with Sheba Medical, with ARC, and with all of those here tonight who we believe we can work with to help enhance the overall education of our students and overall enhance the health care delivery of our product in the United States and beyond.”
“Funding projects between U.S. and Israeli companies with several projects with Sheba and the companies coming out of Sheba and hope to see more that are generated through the ARC program here at Liberty Science Center together with stakeholders here in New Jersey, hospital systems, companies and others.”
- Andrea Yonah, Director, U.S. East Coast/Midwest at U.S.-Israel Binational Industrial R&D (BIRD) Foundation
“I came here because I’m part of the ARC community. It is a great place for startups to showcase our products in the New Jersey community.”
“It’s inspiring to witness the incredible healthcare innovation emerging from Israeli companies, and equally exciting to see the supportive infrastructure that’s developing to help these companies succeed in the US. I look forward to seeing how the collaboration between Sheba Medical Center and the coming SciTech Scity will further foster the growth of Israeli companies entering the US and their impact on the global stage.”
“Coming tonight was very eye-opening to see how the medical field and also the data field is so interwoven with each other but the technologies and AI and machine learning has been such an integral part of healthcare and it is constantly evolving and constantly changing and I think that the event tonight has been very eye-opening for people that are not in the medical field like me.”
- Doreen Shaulpour, Board of the Young Leadership for the American Friends of Sheba / Data Privacy Cybersecurity Attorney
Bringing it all Together
Good times were had by all. I look forward to seeing ARC USA continue to grow and thrive as it continues to evolve in Jersey City. Stay tuned for further developments.
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