The National Academy of Engineering, a private nonprofit that the U.S. Congress charters, elected Israeli Brig. Gen. (res.) Daniel Gold as part of its 2025 class.
The more than 60-year-old, independent group, which is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine, stated that election to the NAE “is among the highest professional distinctions accorded to an engineer” and that its “members are among the world’s most accomplished engineers from business, academia and government.”
Gold, who developed the Jewish state’s Iron Dome missile defense system, is head of Israel’s Defense Research and Development Directorate. The academy recognized him as one of 22 international members—alongside 128 new members stateside—“for contributions and leadership in the defense industry, especially the development and deployment of missile defense systems.”
The Israeli Defense Ministry called the recognition a “significant honor” for the Jewish state.