Gadi Behar, the founder and managing director of Silicom Ventures stated “We are very excited about these two investments. They represent two dissimilar but very hot markets, and demonstrate the diversity of our members. Yield improvement for deep sub-micron IC chips is getting a lot of attention as the semiconductor industry is becoming ever so competitive. Age related ophthalmic diseases are also a fast growing field as our population is aging.”

Regarding the timing of the investments Gadi added “2004 started on a very good note and there are indications that this is going to be a good year for investment. We definitely see a change for the better in the mood of our investors and we expect to see more such deals in the coming months.”

ABOUT SILICOM VENTURES
Silicom Ventures provides a conduit for technological innovation linking qualified, experienced investors with entrepreneurs from around the globe. Our 180 members include a diverse group of high tech Angel and Venture capital investors specializing in early round financing. More about Silicom Ventures www.silicomventures.com

ABOUT E-Z-CAD
E-Z-CAD develops advanced Electronic Design Automation software tools for design-stage semiconductor yield prediction and yield improvement. Design-stage yield prediction will enable yield signoff design methodology. Design stage yield improvement is aimed at making integrated circuits tolerant to manufacturing defects and improves the quality of the design, reduces the cost of working silicon and accelerates time-to-market of silicon products.

ABOUT CHAKSHU RESEARCH
The objective of Chakshu research is to develop medications that address age related visual acuity declines, and other age related ophthalmic problems. The target market for its first product is every individual over the age of forty, which translates to a US market of 120 million people.

Contact information:
Tal Behar
Executive Director
Silicom Ventures
1442 Fowler Ln.
Los Altos, CA 94024
tal@silicomventures.com