Dmitry Bergelson

Tel-aviv has improved its position among the top startup ecosystems worldwide according to Startup Genome's 2024 report (https://lnkd.in/dN3aUa_h). What a powerful evidence of Israeli startup and innovation environment's resilience and the unshaken trust of the global investor community. The Israeli high-tech sector remains to be the engine of the nation’s economy, accounting for 18% of GDP, 48% of exports, and 11% of workforce. At Tachles VC we are proud we can back the next generation of cyber, cloud and infrastructure AI Israeli-born start-ups. Karel Tušek, Sivan Kanev, Boris Chovnik, Robin Bienfait

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Is it shopping season for Israeli technology? The recent surge in M&A activity in Israel is the most significant sign of hope and optimism I’ve seen since October 7th. It demonstrates the potential of Israeli tech and the faith placed in it by top global companies. When technology leaders choose to further expand into Israel and acquire local teams, you know financial outlooks are positive. In cybersecurity - often the poster-child of Israeli tech - we’ve seen five acquisitions in quick succession totaling more than $1Bn. Flow Security by CrowdStrike (~$200M), Avalor Security, a Zscaler Company ($350M), Gem Security (acquired by Wiz) ($350M), Silk Security by Armis ($150M) and Entitle by BeyondTrust (~150M). All are led by exceptional individuals, well done! Perhaps more telling is the emerging AI industry. Last week NVIDIA announced its acquisition of two companies for a combined value of $1Bn. Congratulations RunAI ($700M) and Deci AI ($300M). Mainstream media is so focused on the voices of a racist minority calling for boycotts and divestments that they fail to capture actual news. Antisemites might yell the loudest, but the actions of multinational corporations speak louder than words. I am optimistic about the future. Are you?

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Very interesting report of Israel's AI ecosystem by F2 Venture Capital, Google Cloud and Deloitte. 🔍 On a high level: - The AI startup ecosystem in Israel is booming, with over 2,150 active AI companies, representing ~30% of the local tech sector. - Startups leveraging AI attracted over 60% of all capital raised in 2023. - The country ranks 3rd globally in private AI investment, demonstrating its strong position in the global AI market. 💡 Key takeaways from the report: - Vertical AI is a stronghold. It attracts the largest share of private funding, with Life Sciences, Healthcare and Fintech (banking, financial services and insuretech) leading the charge. Israel's deep domain expertise in these sectors positions it as a potential global leader. - Autonomous Enterprise (Horizontal AI) shows promise. Cybersecurity is a particular strength, capturing 56% of the segment's funding However, the development of multi-modal, end-to-end solutions and AI agents presents further opportunities for cross-industry applications. - AI & Data Ops is a key area for growth. Israel's strong talent pool and focus on enhancing existing infrastructure make it well-suited to address the growing demand for cloud-based AI Ops platforms and efficient data management solutions. There are also plenty of challenges: securing and nurturing AI talent, sustaining investment and navigating the global AI landscape/competition. Link to the report in the first comment 🔗

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Graduates from the Technion - Israel Institute of Technology have a significantly higher likelihood of founding a US-based unicorn company compared to graduates from other universities. It's fascinating to note that Technion alumni are 25 times more likely to achieve this feat. Following the Technion, Tsinghua University, Reichman University, INSEAD, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, and Tel Aviv University all share the next spot with a likelihood of 11.3. While this number is notably lower than the Technion's, it still indicates a considerably higher chance of founding a unicorn compared to graduates from universities not listed. This data underscores the strength of Technion in fostering entrepreneurial talent and its impressive track record in producing successful startup founders, particularly in the US market. I graduated for the Technion (D.Sc.) in 1993.

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Today, Koby & I had the privilege of meeting Adv. Hila Rom 🎗, the dynamic Founder & Managing Partner of RUNI Ventures, a venture capital fund affiliated with Reichman University in Israel. Hila is a true powerhouse, blending her extensive experience as an entrepreneur, investor, and business leader to drive innovation and empower the Israeli startup ecosystem. Under her leadership, RUNI Ventures has quickly become a game-changer, providing early-stage funding and resources to extraordinary tech founders. During one of the most challenging years in Israel, Hila and her team managed to build a new fund, partner with top-tier investors and already made 9 (!) investments in groundbreaking startups – a testament to the confidence investors have in Hila’s leadership and in the brilliant founders she backs. RUNI Ventures offers unparalleled support to startups, including access to top talent, expert mentorship, and a global network, all aimed at nurturing the next wave of Israeli innovation. It’s inspiring to see Hila Rom and Reichman University working hand in hand to fortify Israel's visionary innovators building disruptive tech companies 💡✨ If you’re as passionate about supporting visionary founders and driving innovation as we are, RUNI Ventures is definitely a group to watch! As far as we at Sakal Group Family Office are concerned, we've already spotted a few collaborations between our portfolio companies. #Leadership #Innovation #StartupEcosystem #VentureCapital #ReichmanUniversity #RUNIVentures #WomenInBusiness #Israel

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As we face the pressing challenges of climate change, the convergence of climate tech and sustainable mobility presents a remarkable opportunity. From electric vehicles and smart grids to renewable energy and carbon capture technologies, the synergies between climate tech and mobility are transforming industries and communities. Next Gear Ventures' investments in these areas help accelerate the transition into a low-carbon economy and foster a resilient, eco-friendly infrastructure.🌱🚴‍♂️🔋 #ClimateTech #Sustainability #Mobility #GreenInvestment #CleanEnergy #SustainableTransport #Innovation #EcoFriendly #UrbanMobility

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In Q3 2024, Israel's tech ecosystem saw a significant surge in mergers and acquisitions (M&A), driven by high-value transactions despite global and regional challenges. Here's a summary of the key trends and activities: 1. **Increase in M&A Value**: M&A activity in Israel rose by 40% year-over-year, reaching $12 billion in total exits by Q3 2024. This reflects global and domestic confidence in Israel's innovation capabilities, particularly in sectors like AI, cybersecurity, and healthcare【8】【9】. 2. **Notable Transactions**:   - **Blackstone** acquired Priority Software for $800 million, demonstrating the global appeal of Israeli enterprise software.   - **Nvidia** purchased Run:AI for $700 million, highlighting the strategic importance of AI startups.   - **Johnson & Johnson** expanded its healthcare offerings with the $600 million acquisition of V-Wave, a medical device innovator【10】. 3. **Shift in Deal Dynamics**: Although fewer deals were made compared to 2023, the median deal size increased dramatically, showcasing a focus on high-value acquisitions. The median size rose to $300 million, reflecting substantial global investment interest【10】. 4. **Sectoral Highlights**: AI, enterprise software, and health tech led the way in M&A activity, underscoring their growth potential and strategic importance【8】【10】. 5. **Investor Trends**:   - North American firms dominated acquisitions, while domestic Israeli companies also increased their role as acquirers, signaling growing local consolidation.   - European participation remained steady, indicating diverse international interest in Israeli tech【10】. These trends reinforce Israel's status as a global innovation hub, attracting significant investments despite external pressures. For a deeper dive, you can explore detailed insights from F2 Venture Capital, Startup Nation Central, and Crunchbase【8】【9】【10】.

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Join me, Fusion VC, Deloitte Catalyst, and Google for Startups Israel for a special event dedicated to the future of #fintech in Israel! This event will host Venture Capital investors, rising founders, and industry experts to discuss latest industry trends and tech. Registration link in the first comment. See you there!

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I had the honor of being interviewed by Globes about the recent groundbreaking advancements from OpenAI and Google. It's fascinating to witness the rapid pace of innovation and how these giants are pushing the boundaries of what's possible with AI. Key takeaways from the interview: OpenAI's GPT 4o Launch: OpenAI introduced GPT 4o, a model that’s twice as fast and half the cost of its predecessor. With 100 million active weekly users, the goal is to make AI models even more accessible and integrated into daily life. Exciting features like video calls with ChatGPT are on the horizon! Google's Gemini Upgrade: At Google’s annual developer conference, they showcased enhancements to their AI model, Gemini, which can now handle more data and produce even more sophisticated outputs. Google also emphasized the integration of AI in their search engine and the development of advanced personal assistants. The Future of AI: Both companies are striving towards creating intelligent personal assistants that can handle a myriad of tasks seamlessly. This includes recognizing emotions in voice and eventually through video. In the interview, I mentioned: "Until now, integrating individual text segments into models was a manual process. The future model aims to provide continuous and comprehensive responses, seeing everything you see. However, it's unclear when this will become a reality." Challenging Business Models: It's intriguing to see how these companies might be disrupting their own business models. OpenAI’s move to offer GPT-4 for free aims to build a vast user base, which could convert to premium users in the future. For Google, integrating AI into search might reduce ad revenue but is essential for maintaining relevance. NVIDIA’s Crucial Role: Both OpenAI and Google acknowledge NVIDIA’s pivotal contribution with their advanced GPUs, which are essential for these AI advancements. This collaboration underscores NVIDIA's importance in the AI ecosystem. The AI landscape is incredibly dynamic, and it's a privilege to be part of this revolution. Looking forward to seeing how these technologies evolve and shape our future! Link: https://lnkd.in/dn_hFv5K

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Israel is and continue to be a global leader in #innovation and #technology. "Robotics could be 'the next wave of #AI,' or at least that is the recent projection given by Jensen Huang , the CEO of NVIDIA . He spoke at a conference in Taiwan about the next frontier of AI and specifically mentioned humanoid robots and self-driving cars." "Israel is a hub for robotics tech companies, with 170 companies pioneering the development of robots in diverse sector" according to Startup Nation Central. As mapped by its Startup Nation Finder, "the sector distribution shows that 33% of the Robotics companies address Industrial Technologies. 23% of robotics companies work in Agrifood Tech. Health Tech represents 19% of the companies; Aerospace and Defense – 9%." * Thanks to Guy B. for his post about this in Italian. #startups

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Can you feel secure without a car key in your pocket? 🎙️ In my recent interview on the iCar podcast, we covered a wide array of topics: from why Israeli families spend more on transportation than vacations, to how alternative transport can offer the same sense of security as owning a car. Listen to the full conversation in Hebrew and discover how transportation might evolve: https://lnkd.in/dg2GPe5h

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#Israel's #investment landscape in Q1 2024 is growing compared to Q3. Despite the current challenges in Israel, #startups are proving again to be #resilient as they continue to raise money and grow. Israel's decrease in investments is in par with that of the US in 2023. Read more about Israel's investment landscape and about ICI Fund's portfolio companies in ICI Fund's May newsletter: https://lnkd.in/dBnXWYcK #Startupnation will always stay #resilient, #nomatterwhat.

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The Israeli tech sector has indeed shown remarkable resilience during times of conflict, including the recent escalation of violence. Several factors contribute to this resilience: 🇮🇱 Robust Infrastructure: #Israel has a well-established tech #ecosystem with strong infrastructure, including advanced telecommunications and #cybersecurity measures, which helps companies maintain operations even in challenging circumstances. 🇮🇱Adaptability: Many tech companies in Israel are used to operating in a dynamic environment. This #adaptability allows them to pivot quickly and implement emergency protocols as needed. 🇮🇱 Government Support: The Israeli government often provides support to the tech sector via Israel Innovation Authority רשות החדשנות and more during #crises, including #financial aid and resources to help companies navigate challenges. 🇮🇱 Global Market Reach: Many Israeli tech firms have a global customer base, which can provide some insulation from local #disruptions. This international presence allows them to continue operations and generate revenue despite local challenges. 🇮🇱 Innovation and Agility: The culture of #innovation in Israel encourages companies to develop new solutions #rapidly, often leading to the creation of products that address emerging needs during crises. 🇮🇱Community and Collaboration: The tech #community in Israel is known for its #collaborative spirit, with companies often supporting each other during tough times, sharing resources and knowledge. Despite the challenges posed by conflict, the resilience of the Israeli tech sector highlights its ability to adapt and thrive even in adverse conditions. #Israelgroup #Legalmarketing #Funding #Startupnation #AI #MA https://lnkd.in/dUWGbM7c

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The Q3 2024 Israeli capital raising preliminary report is out with some positive trends/ momentum, which is pretty remarkable, given the war. 🔹 Israeli startups raised $2.43 billion in the third quarter of 2024, across 99 rounds, representing a 32% increase compared to the same period in 2023 (pre war). Excluding the large transactions (6 transactions of over $100 million), the investments in the third quarter amounted to $1.33, a 5% increase compared to the previous quarter. ♦️ Despite the growth, Q3 2024 saw a 20% decrease in funding and a 17% drop in deal volume compared to Q2 2024, highlighting volatility. 🔹 In contrast to the dominance of the cyber sector in the previous quarter (62% of the total capital raised), in the third quarter the scope The transactions amounted to about 14% of the total of all rounds. SSI Inc. $1 billion round accounted for 41% of total Q3 investments. ♦️ Foreign investor participation remained strong, while local investor activity declined due to geopolitical and economic uncertainties. Link to the IVC Data and Insights preliminary report in Hebrew and my post on VC Cafe in English the first comment 👇

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Another successful event of the Israeli Investors Forum with participants from 81 Unit Alumni Association - AMIT and leading angels took place last week at AWS premises. This vital cooperation between the Israeli Investors Forum and AMIT 81 ensures quality deal flow for investment. The participants had the opportunity to meet and hear the leading team of the Investors Forum and AMIT 81: Our Chairwoman, Michal Koren 🎗🇮🇱, introduced the investor's forum and Eyal Desheh, Chairman of the investment committee, talked about his experience as an investor and the criteria for a good investment. Javier Shocron and Chen Kamin presented AMIT 81 activities and capabilities. Eli Barda, a senior Tech partner at EY, presented an overview of the High Tech State of the Industry. Inon Beracha, the founder of Ceragon Networks and PRIMESENSE LIMITED, shared his experience as a successful entrepreneur in a chat with Eti Mitrany. Then, Assaf Wise broke some misconceptions about DeepTech investment and showed evidence supporting claims that DeepTech startups are more likely to scale to unicorns and that the time to unicorn or exit is on par with other tech startups. Eti Mitrany Rayten, CEO of the Israeli Investors Forum, gave an inspiring presentation on the future of drug development, followed by a presentation on the investors' forum investment policy. We thank Keren Zemer-Abramowitz and Amazon Web Services (AWS), a strategic partner to the forum, for hosting the event and supporting startups in our ecosystem. Should you want to join our investor forum as an investor or apply for funding, please visit our website at https://lnkd.in/d_h_Ynhg hashtag #DeepTech #angels #Tech #investors #investment

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East Vs West About a year ago, the Israel Advanced Technology Industries (IATI) in collaboration with Deloitte Israel published the most comprehensive report on the contribution of the high-tech sector to the Israeli economy and society. The report aimed to identify and assess the contribution of high-tech to the Israeli economy, considering both quantitative and qualitative contributions. The report evaluates the impact of the sector on the Israeli economy in several dimensions: direct and indirect economic contribution to Israel’s economy, contribution to national resilience, improvement of labor productivity in Israel, and more. Due to space constraints, I will not delve into all parts of the report but will present the main figures: - 240 billion NIS - the direct contribution of the high-tech industry to GDP in 2021 (about 16% of GDP). - Between 2017-2021, 45% of GDP growth in Israel was derived from the high-tech sector. - 50-60 billion NIS - state revenues from high-tech industry taxation - about 65% of specific taxation. - 34% of income tax is attributed to high-tech workers. - 310-360 billion NIS - the total contribution of high-tech to GDP, including derivative contributions. - 67 billion USD - high-tech exports, about 54% of total exports from Israel. The contribution of the Israeli high-tech sector to the broader world is immense. Israel leads in the most innovative technological developments that benefit everyone globally, both in everyday use and in cost savings and energy efficiency. Israel’s location is in the Middle East, surrounded by enemies who seek its destruction. To deal with Middle Eastern enemies which embrace completely opposite values, it is necessary to fight them in a language and values they understand, otherwise, we will not survive here. The West must understand this as it faces increasing Muslim terrorism itself. Israel is making every effort to bridge this gap, and the developed West must stand by its side because they are on the same side, and time is of the essence.

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It was a real pleasure to participate yesterday in a fireside chat organized by the Commercialization Reactor as part of its bootcamp for researchers who are considering becoming future deep tech entrepreneurs. The robust discussion we had was moderated by Anton Adamovitch with the participation of Kristaps Jaudzems and Robert Dwilinski. The goal was to provide some broad recommendations and suggestions to the bootcamp participants on what to take into account when preparing for discussions with VCs or other investors. Here are the key teakeaways: 🔗 business strategy and IP strategy are intertwined; clarity on IP ownership is crucial for investors; ⚖ team composition is critical: scientific expertise must be balanced with strong business acumen; 🛒 market validation and understanding the competitive landscape are essential for attracting investment 🔀 scientists should be open-minded and flexible when commercializing their research, considering various paths (e.g., startup, licensing). ⚠ don't approach VCs immediately; seek advice from accelerators, mentors, or business angels first. ⛔ lack of competition can be a red flag for investors, suggesting the problem you are working on may not be significant I hope it was a meaningful experience for the participants of the call, too bad we couldn't meet in person and explore these themes in more detail. Maybe next time! Radix Ventures Michal Olszacki Małgorzata Szcześniak DJ Nag Vassil Karaivanov Ilona Gulchak Wojciech Ratymirski Gabriela Konopka-Cupiał Krystian Gurba Krzysztof Gulda

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Join me and IDA Ventures for another insightful session where we will brainstorm with experts and explore the opportunities in the public market in Israel. It's time to seize the moment and invest in attractive pricing. 🌟 #IDAventures #InvestmentOpportunities #PublicMarket #IsraelInvesting 🇮🇱

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