CTECH: Latest Israeli Innovation & Technology News Feb. 1, 2023
Cyber startup founded by Unit 8200 Commander raises $30 million Series A. Sentra, which took its total funding since its founding 18 months ago to $53 million, was co-founded by Asaf Kochan, the former Commander of Unit 8200, Yoav Regev, who headed Unit 8200’s Cyber Department under Kochan, Ron Reiter, and Yair Cohen. Read more
High-tech startups blocking secondary deals to save face and valuation. Tech employees got used to exercising options in secondary transactions during the good years, but now they are increasingly facing a refusal from their companies who fear that such deals will reveal the drop in their valuation and also bring in unwanted shareholders. Read more
Canadian traveltech giant Plusgrade acquires Israeli startup UpStay. The deal for the Israeli company, which helps hoteliers drive higher ancillary revenue through multiple revenue streams delivered to their guests, is estimated at several tens of millions of dollars. Read more
BridgeWise raises $13 million for generative AI-powered equity research platform. The Israeli startup deploys AI algorithms to analyze more than 44,000 public companies worldwide, generating research reports and detailed buy/sell/hold recommendations. Read more
Guardz raises $10 million Seed funding to make cybersecurity accessible to small businesses. The Israeli startup’s solution is purpose-built to provide real-time cybersecurity protection for small companies, many of whom sit in high-risk industries possessing sensitive data. Read more
Addressable raises $7.5 million in Seed to help scale user acquisition for Web3 companies. The company is building a SaaS platform for Web3 marketers to help teams reach audiences in the era of anonymous blockchain accounts. Read more
Elron Ventures launches CyberFuture alliance to bring CISOs and entrepreneurs together. The alliance aims to empower security practitioners to vet and influence investment decisions, as well as support the selected early-stage companies. Read more
Opinion | Secrets of a company builder. “Founders today have different needs and support mechanisms to ensure their efforts and time can lead to quick validation and reach their potential investors from a position of leverage,” writes AnD Ventures founder Roy Geva Glasberg. “This is where the company builder approach comes in.” Read more
CTalk | “When I interview, I ask and care about diversity. I want to make sure there are women around me.” Noa Greenfield, VP Brand and Communications at Bookaway, explains how and why it is important for management to keep diversity in mind. Watch full video
“Diversity is not a challenge for us, rather it’s an opportunity.” Gila Hayat, Co-Founder and CTO at Darrow, explains that having a diversified team has never been a struggle or something the company tried to artificially create. Watch full video
“Women tend to feel they need more experience before they become entrepreneurs. You don’t.” Lior Simon, General Partner at Cyberstarts, has built her whole career in VCs. She began at the bottom and through hard work and connecting with others made her way up. Read more
“A lot can be learned from adversity. My experience gave me the skills to be a successful founder.” Propel PRM founder and CEO Zach Cutler joined CTech to discuss how his unique challenges set him up for a world of entrepreneurship. Read more
AU10TIX cuts 9% of workforce. The company, which develops identity verification and management automation tools, is laying off a total of 19 employees. Read more
CTalk | “We are recruiting employees that are not exactly our typecast in order to expand our horizons.” Yinon Costica, VP Product and Co-Founder of Wiz, believes that overcoming biases starts with the recruitment process. Watch full video
“Our main focus in Israel is to help underrepresented groups, specifically female founders.” Yuval Passov, Head of Google for Startups Israel, broke down the ways in which Google’s startup program is helping women entrepreneurs. Watch full video
“Diversity is being true to yourself, showing more layers and colors of yourself.” Noa Matz, Partner at VC F2, believes that it is easier to overcome challenges with a diverse team. Watch full video
Boarding Pass | “There is a $5 billion opportunity in the ADHD market.” MindTension has raised a total of $2 million for its tool helping diagnose and treat optimization of ADHD and related mental health comorbidities. Read more
“The IDF is the world’s largest employer of autistic people.” “I know what it’s like to go through dozens of interviews without anyone looking me in the eye,” added Captain Udi Heller, founder of the IDF’s program for autistic people, who himself is autistic. Read more
CEO of gambling group 888 steps down following layoffs. Itai Pazner is leaving the company a short time after it laid off dozens of employees. Read more
Women constitute only a third of high-tech employees in Israel. A new report by Power in Diversity also showed that Arabs and ultra-Orthodox, which make up over 33% of the total population, only account for a total of 0.6% of high-tech employees. Read more
“We are sorry the high-tech industry has only just woken up, but we have arrived, and we will do whatever it takes.” The high-tech industry has an image of being disconnected, but the impending judicial reforms have resulted in the sector mobilizing like never before. Read more
Fiona Darmon leaving JVP to set up new investment fund. “I have a dream to do something that will be big and that I will create myself. Precisely because of the upheaval currently taking place in the global economy, there is now a possibility to do new things,” said Darmon. Read more
Early withdrawal: Local investment houses sense clients’ fear of judicial reform fallout. Investment houses in Israel are beginning to feel the impact of concerns about the impending legal reforms, with clients expressing their desire to move some of their investments abroad or increase their exposure to world markets. Read more
Balancing act: BoBo takes the boring out of balance. Founded by Israeli physiotherapists to prevent senior falls, BoBo Balance aims to make balance exercises challenging, engaging, and fun. Read more
BiblioTech | CTech’s Book Review: Making changes today for your future self. James Spiro, Journalist and Editor at CTech, shares insights after reading “Atomic Habits” by James Clear. Read more
“If we want to build teams or organizations that are capable of innovation, we need diversity.” Alan Feld, Founder and Managing General Partner of Vintage Investment Partners and founder of the Power in Diversity initiative, described how diversity of employees can improve the bottom line of companies. “A team that encompasses a wider range of skills can deal more effectively with all the challenges it encounters.” Read more
Dell acquires Israeli startup Cloudify for up to $100 million. Cloudify, which develops cloud orchestration solutions, spun off from parent company GigaSpaces Technologies, becoming an independent company in 2017. Read more
OpenWeb acquires audience management platform Jeeng for $100 million. The Israeli-founded unicorn, which raised $170 million at a $1.5 billion valuation three months ago, completed its third acquisition in a year, taking its total spending to $260 million. Read more
Papaya Global CEO: “We will withdraw all of the company’s funds from Israel due to the emerging judicial reform.” Eynat Guez tweeted the decision, explaining that “following Prime Minister Netanyahu’s statements that he is determined to pass reforms that will harm democracy and the economy…there is no certainty that we can conduct international economic activity from Israel.” Read more
VC firm Disruptive, with $250 million under management, to transfer all money out of Israel. “Assuming the reform, which is a judicial coup, will happen, this will create economic instability in Israel,” said Disruptive co-founder Tal Barnoach. Read more
She-Inspires | “You can’t break glass ceilings by sitting on a beach in Seychelles. There is a price to success.” Maya Schwartz, CEO of the Israeli High-Tech Association, has had her ups and downs, including being called a whore by an investor while fundraising, but she never gave up. She adapted to every situation and she has proven that with the right mindset you can overcome any obstacle. Read more
“In the current market situation, fewer companies will succeed in moving from Seed to Series A.” Nate Meir, a Partner at StageOne Ventures, was speaking in a panel on the topic “Seed is King” hosted by the Amit, Pollak, Matalon & Co. law firm. According to Kobi Samboursky, co-founder of Glilot Capital Partners: “Companies that arise in more difficult times like today have a tougher DNA, and in the current market situation, they are built in a more correct way.” Read more
2022 VC Survey | Israeli Medtech startups to watch out for in 2023. As part of CTech’s 2022 VC survey, we asked dozens of industry executives to name some startups they invested in over the past year. The following list highlights some of the notable Medtech startups suggested by their investors. Read more
Freightos lists on Nasdaq via SPAC merger at a $500 million post money valuation. The freight booking and payment platform raised over $80 million in capital through the transaction, including $10 million from Qatar Airways and $60 million from M&G Investments and The Prudential Assurance Company. Read more
Technion to invest $20 million in new Sustainable Protein Research Center. The five-year budget for the center, being led by the Technion and including joint efforts with the Good Food Institute, aims to coordinate the collaborative activities of dozens of researchers from more than 10 different academic departments at the Technion to address the world’s most pressing challenges of sustainability and human health. Read more
CTalk | “I see today more founders going into climatetech – that’s really exciting.” Lior Handelsman, General Partner at Grove Ventures, spoke to CTech about the change in climatetech entrepreneurship. Watch full video
What is next for Israel’s InNegev Incubator? Karina Rubinstein, Climatetech Venture Partner at InNegev Incubator, joined CTech to discuss the climate crisis and how Israeli companies can join the fight. Watch full video
