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- The Media is Lying to You about Israeli Tech ft. Yev Gelfand of Alumni VC | VAST Data Closes $1.17 Billion Deal with CoreWeave
The Media is Lying to You about Israeli Tech ft. Yev Gelfand of Alumni VC | VAST Data Closes $1.17 Billion Deal with CoreWeave
This Week in IsraelTech - Israel vs. The Markets: A VC Explains Why It Keeps Winning ft. Yevgeny Gelfand of Alumni Ventures
If you want to know where global investors get Israel wrong, ask someone who has built billion-dollar businesses and now backs founders for a living.
Yevgeny Gelfand is a serial innovator and business builder who spent 15 years in financial services and SaaS, launching and operating new businesses that either exited through IPO or grew privately into multi-billion-dollar operations. After that run, he shifted into venture investing, backing and scaling startups across sectors and geographies.
Yev, now a Partner at Alumni Ventures, joins IsraelTech to explain why so many investors still misread both the real risk and the real opportunity inside Israel’s tech economy.
From New York’s political shifts to the quiet support he sees for Israeli founders, he shares what he’s observing firsthand:
• Why global investors still misprice Israeli companies
• How the economy strengthened after two difficult years
• Why experienced investors treated October 7th as a moment to pay attention, not a moment to pull back
• The reactions he gets wearing a kippah across the US
• What happens when founders pitch during a rocket alert
• And why he believes Israel is positioned to become a major center of tech
If you want a grounded look at Israeli innovation, how VCs actually make decisions, and what may be coming next for the ecosystem, this conversation offers clarity most people don’t have.
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Wadi and IsraelTech’s Video & AI Event
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Yesterday, Wadi and IsraelTech held an event to discuss video and marketing in the age of AI. We loved seeing so many of you there to hear from our incredible founder and CEO Yoel Israel, our very own Revital Moses, and Wadi’s Danya Chazan. We’re still unpacking everything from Monday. It was a fantastic morning, and we’re glad you were part of it.
Learn more here
Shorts of the Week
Sometimes the best partnerships start long before you plan them. ft. Tal Slobodkin of StageOne VC
What happens when an 18-year-old is handed responsibility for national security? ft Tal Zamir of Perception Point
As AI reshapes how code is written, not everything can be automated ft. Meni Shmueli of DataFlint
“They told me I was crazy. I said, that’s our job.” ft. Rona Segev of TLV Partners
This Week in Israeli Tech News
VAST Data Closes 1.17 Billion Dollar Commercial Deal With CoreWeave
VAST Data, a leading data infrastructure company powering global AI workloads, has finalized a major multi-year agreement with CoreWeave that further cements its position at the heart of large-scale AI deployment.
Israel Launches World-First Project, Pumping Desalinated Seawater Into the Sea of Galilee
Israel has officially begun transferring desalinated Mediterranean seawater into the Sea of Galilee, using advanced water-tech engineering to revive dried streambeds and stabilize the Kinneret for the long term.
Bill Clinton Partners With Universe Partners to Advance Global Resilience-Tech Innovation
Universe Partners, founded by Shani Zanescu, announced a collaboration with the Clinton Global Initiative to invest in breakthrough resilience technologies spanning climate, economic instability, AI disruption, and geopolitics.
Apono Secures $34M Series B to Scale Its AI-Native Identity Security Platform
Apono, the cloud identity-security startup built for the agentic AI era, raised $34M to expand AI-driven access intelligence and global go-to-market efforts.
Guardio Raises $80M to Advance Consumer Cyber Protection in the Age of AI Fraud
Guardio, the Israeli cybersecurity company protecting millions of users, raised $80M after three years of 100%+ ARR growth, putting it on track to cross $100M in early 2026.
Chargeflow Lands $35M Series A to Expand Its AI-Powered Chargeback Automation Platform Globally
Chargeflow, the AI-powered platform preventing friendly fraud and automating dispute recovery for 15,000+ merchants, closed a $35M Series A to expand globally and enhance its end-to-end suite.
Culture Corner
Israel held a farewell ceremony at Ben Gurion Airport for slain Tanzanian student and former hostage Joshua Loitu Mollel, whose body was returned after 761 days in Gaza. Mollel, who came to Israel through the Agrostudies program and worked at Kibbutz Nahal Oz, was abducted on October 7 and killed by Hamas. Dozens of Israelis joined Tanzanian classmates to honor him, while a friend, Ahmady Salum, shared emotional memories and expressed gratitude to Israel for bringing Mollel home. A new agricultural program will be founded in Tanzania in his memory.
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