Broadcom Foundation Supports Race to the Moon in Google Lunar X Prize Competition with Israel's SpaceIL Project

IRVINE, Calif. and TEL AVIV, Israel, March 14, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --

News Highlights

• Broadcom Foundation and Wallis Foundation each announce $100,000 grants to SpaceIL
• Donation to support SpaceIL's mission of landing and operating a robot on the moon
• Focus on encouraging youth to pursue careers in science and technology  

Broadcom Foundation, a non-profit organization funded by Broadcom Corporation (NASDAQ: BRCM), today announced it will donate $100,000 to the Weizmann Institute of Science in support of SpaceIL, an Israel-based non-profit mounting a submission for Google's $30 million Lunar X Prize contest. This project was selected by Broadcom Foundation for its use of the competition as a platform to promote excitement for science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) among Israeli youth. As the only non-profit team in the contest, SpaceIL has pledged to donate all winning proceeds to STEM education for middle school children. Join the SpaceIL conversation at www.facebook.com/TeamSpaceIL.

SpaceIL's challenge is to become the first team to successfully land a robot on the moon, have it travel 500 meters over the lunar surface and send videos, images and data to Earth. Throughout this competition, SpaceIL is engaged in educational outreach initiatives, such as its programs to teach aerospace engineering to youths and graduate students. 

"The Broadcom Foundation is proud to partner with SpaceIL to encourage young people, especially middle school students, to unleash their imaginations and be captivated by a space race much like my generation of Americans were when man first landed on the moon," said Paula Golden, Executive Director, Broadcom Foundation and Director of Community Affairs, Broadcom Corporation. "By supporting SpaceIL's journey, we can play a direct role in inspiring the next wave of innovators."

Broadcom Foundation's gift is part of its ongoing goal of inspiring and enabling middle school students around the world to enter careers in STEM. In addition to Broadcom Foundation's donation, the Wallis Foundation is making a matching grant to Tel Aviv University that will benefit SpaceIL.  

"It's exciting for the Wallis Foundation to team up with an innovative organization like the Broadcom Foundation that is actively working with young people in STEM education," said Jeffrey Glassman, trustee of the Wallis Foundation. "It is our hope that the race to the moon by international teams will motivate children as well as focus upon the importance of engaging everyone—not just governments, but businesses, non-profits and volunteers—in the critical mission of STEM education."

Broadcom Foundation is a long-time supporter of universities in Israel. The Company has more than 500 employees in Israel operating in five locations including Herzeliya, Raanana, Ramat Gan, Tel Aviv and Yakum.

Resources

Broadcom Foundation

SpaceIL website and Facebook page

Google Lunar X Prize

About Broadcom Foundation

Broadcom Foundation was founded to inspire and enable young people throughout the world to enter careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) through partnerships with local schools, colleges, universities and non-profit organizations. Broadcom Foundation is the proud sponsor of the Broadcom MASTERS®, a program of Society for Science & the Public - a national science and engineering competition for middle school children.  The Foundation's mission is to advance education in STEM by funding research, recognizing scholarship and increasing opportunity. Learn more at www.broadcomfoundation.org. 

About Broadcom

Broadcom Corporation (NASDAQ: BRCM), a FORTUNE 500® company, is a global leader and innovator in semiconductor solutions for wired and wireless communications. Broadcom® products seamlessly deliver voice, video, data and multimedia connectivity in the home, office and mobile environments.  With the industry's broadest portfolio of state-of-the-art system-on-a-chip and embedded software solutions, Broadcom is changing the world by Connecting everything®. For more information, go to www.broadcom.com.

Broadcom®, the pulse logo, Connecting everything®, the Connecting everything logo and Broadcom MASTERS® are among the trademarks of Broadcom Corporation and/or its affiliates in the United States, certain other countries and/or the EU. Any other trademarks or trade names mentioned are the property of their respective owners.

SOURCE Broadcom Foundation; BRCM