Microsoft names Braverman-Blumenstyk head of Israel development center

TEL AVIV (Reuters) - Microsoft Corp said on Wednesday it has appointed Michal Braverman-Blumenstyk as the general manager of the Microsoft Israel Development Center.

She will continue to hold the position of chief technology officer of Microsoft Cloud and Artificial Intelligence Security.

Braverman-Blumenstyk is one of the highest-ranking Israelis in cybersecurity and a female leader in the field, the company said. She replaces Assaf Rappaport, who moved on in January.

The Microsoft Israel Development Center is the company's first research and development center outside the United States. Established in 1991, about half its employees engage in cybersecurity.

Braverman-Blumenstyk joined Microsoft in 2013, founding the cybersecurity center which employs hundreds of developers and cyber experts, some of whom came on board with the acquisition of Israeli startups.

(Reporting by Tova Cohen; Editing by Steven Scheer)