Israel, U.S. Sign Joint Statement on Artificial Intelligence Partnership

Israel and the United States on Friday signed a Joint Statement on cooperation in Artificial Intelligence (AI), marking a new milestone in bilateral relations and advancing Israel’s ambition for global leadership in the sector.

The signing took place at the City of David in Jerusalem, following Israel’s recent entry into the Pax Silica initiative, a coalition of leading nations focused on the development of safe and advanced AI technologies. Of the nine countries considered global leaders in the field, Israel was selected as the first to formalize a Joint Statement with the United States.

The memorandum was signed by the Head of Israel’s National AI Directorate, Brigadier-General (Res.) Erez Eskel, and the U.S. Under Secretary of State for Economic Affairs, Jacob Helberg, in the presence of Israel’s Foreign Affairs Minister, Gideon Sa’ar, and U.S. Ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee.

Speaking at the event, Foreign Affairs Minister Gideon Sa’ar described the agreement as a strategic breakthrough.

“Today – as part of the Pax Silica initiative – Israel and the United States are issuing a Joint Statement on the launch of a strategic partnership on AI, research and critical technologies. This is another milestone in our unbreakable alliance,” Sa’ar said.

He added that bilateral relations had reached “historic heights” and praised Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for establishing the National AI Agency to address emerging challenges and opportunities.

“Just as the United States is indispensable for Israel, Israel is an indispensable asset for America and its national security interests,” Sa’ar stated.

Brig.-Gen. (Res.) Erez Eskel said the agreement reflected Israel’s broader push to collaborate with leading global powers in AI.

“Since the establishment of the National AI Directorate under the Prime Minister, we have been working vigorously to create partnerships with the key nations leading the global AI industry, foremost among them our great friend, the United States,” Eskel said.

He noted that Israel’s participation in Pax Silica and the new partnership would support the development of high-performance computing infrastructure and human capital, in close cooperation with academia and industry.

“Leadership in the field of artificial intelligence will determine the national security of the State of Israel,” he added.

U.S. Under Secretary of State for Economic Affairs, Jacob Helberg, said the initiative underscored a shared commitment to shaping the future of critical technologies.

“With the launch of Pax Silica, the United States and Israel are uniting our innovation ecosystems to ensure the future is shaped by strong and sovereign allies leading in critical technologies like AI and robotics,” Helberg said.

Also speaking, U.S. Ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, described Israel as America’s closest strategic partner.

“America has many friends and allies, but we have only one true partner in Israel. This Strategic Partnership announcement is just the latest example of U.S.-Israel cooperation on the most important and challenging issues of our time,” Huckabee said.

Under the Joint Statement, both countries will deepen cooperation in joint research, development, investment, and commercialization across strategic sectors, including artificial intelligence, energy technologies and storage, advanced computing infrastructure, space, semiconductors, additive manufacturing, and edge innovation. The partnership also emphasizes the protection of sensitive technologies, secure supply chains, and a trusted environment for collaboration and investment.

Photo Credit: Photos: Yossi Zamir (GPO)