Silicon Valley exec moves to area to offer advice

The Florida-Israel Business Accelerator has made great strides since being formed in 2016 by the nonprofit Tampa Jewish Federation and Community Centers as a way to help Israeli entrepreneurs and tech companies get a foothold in the United States.

Sixteen companies have participated in Tampa-based FIBA's Launch Program, with one of them, protective gear maker StemRad, making Tampa its U.S. headquarters and attracting $6 million in investment led by Tampa Bay Lightning owner Jeff Vinik. Another, WeissBeerger, a beverage consumption analytics company, was acquired last year by Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV.