5781 and beyond

Welcome to The Israeli Startup Review, a curated newsletter where I share insights from thought leaders, news, and opportunities around Israel's tech ecosystem. Every week you’ll receive timely analysis from off-the-beaten-path, perspectives from fresh voices from the ecosystem, and selected opportunities to further engage with Israel, the Startup Nation.

Shalom from Israel, happy 5781 and a Shana Tova V’Metuka to those celebrating. Exciting times, new Jewish Year and new opportunities for collaboration between the Startup Nation and the Gulf. I’m spending the two-week mandatory quarantine period on a small farm in the lower Galilee. Only a few more days to go until I join the rest of the country in a general lock-down; out of the frying pan, into the fire!

Be on the lookout for content coming from Atento Capital soon; if you’re an Israeli startup and looking to enter the US market I want to speak to you about opening an office in Tulsa.

Aside from being a part of one of America’s fastest growing ecosystems we are offering a number of meaningful incentives (financial, assistance with recruiting, BD, fundraising, etc.) for Israeli companies who open up shop in Tulsa. To learn more reach out to me directly and book office hours here. 

Cities such as New York will suffer in the coming years as a result of COVID, but some will still regain their footing and continue to grow. LA wasn't a major tech center a few years ago, but serves as a good example of what a city can build for Israeli startups. As such, I'm excited to chat with the team at Fusion LA; they're a venture backed accelerator for Israeli start-ups in the US. They invest $110K in each company and selectively accept 6-9 teams every 6 months to go through their intensive go-to market and mentorship driven program and provide founders with a structured path to commercialize their products, gain traction and fund raise in the US. During the program, they facilitate meetings between their Israeli founders and VCs, angels, tech executives, & like-minded entrepreneurs in Los Angeles and Silicon Valley. 

What is a piece of advice you would give a founder looking to build a startup during this time?

We think it's a great time to start a company. Building a successful company is a long, bumpy road, and choosing your team members is the most important component. Find a co-founder that compliments your strengths and abilities, and make sure you're aligned on your expectations for the coming months/years. 

Startups aren't for everyone, and be prepared to bootstrap your operation for a few months. Part time doesn't work - "Jump into the water" and do it full-time as soon as possible. Pitch your company's idea and don't be afraid to share it with everyone, ask for advice and keep people posted about your progress and needs. Your close network will want to help you!

How has COVID-19 shaped Israeli companies entering the US market?

B2B sale cycles are longer as companies are more risk-averse. Relocation processes have been postponed for many executives & families. We believe that the bar for an investment has become higher and investors will spend more time in reference calls, to compensate for inability to meet in person

What opportunities for startups do you see appearing as a result of COVID-19?

Startups are quicker to adapt to changes. COVID-19 offers an opportunity to be creative, execute faster and advance your company over the current competitors. Everyone is working from home, and no one knows if you're Zooming clients from Santa Monica, Hong Kong or TLV. In some cases, it's easier to set up a video-call, saving costs on flights and trade shows. 

What is the most interesting trend you've seen over the past 6 months?

Addressing the needs of corporations and individuals to a WFH reality - Remote Healthcare/Work/Communication/Learning.

What is something that you believe that most people in the (Israeli) tech space would disagree with you about?

Don't waste your time on Israeli clients. You have to get out of your comfort zone. 

I found this infographic from a few years back, and with the opening of trade with the Gulf, I wonder what it will look like in a year's time.

Maniv Portfolio Job Openings: Their portfolio companies are hiring here.

Secret Tel Aviv: Are you looking for a new job (Israel ONLY)? The Secret Tel Aviv Jobs Board is up to date, they have over 1,470 amazing opportunities! Opportunities here.

The Nevo Fellowship: They are looking for mentors for their first ever cohort of olim leaders working in the Israeli tech ecosystem. The Nevo Network is a social initiative backed by Michael Eisenberg that aims to transform each fellow through personal development and network growth. If this describes you: Team lead/Director/Senior Manager/VP level. 10-15 years work experience. High level English. Work mainly in technical/product related roles. Has 90 minutes/month to pay it forward with an oleh/olah.

As a mentor your skills and experience will guide them and help them excel in the Israeli ecosystem. Based on your responses to this quick survey, they will match you with one of our fellows. If you have any questions, please email Abbey [email protected] 

Startup Snapshot: Take a short survey about your startup. They are working to increase industry visibility in these times of uncertainty, collecting data to highlight industry trends and benchmarks. Once you are done, get the results and see what hundreds of founders are saying about sales, product, hiring and fundraising strategy. Note: Survey is anonymous. Fill up here.

UAE-Israel Technology & Finance List: To enable business relations between both places. Sign up here.

Secret Tel Aviv: Are you looking for a new job (Israel ONLY)? The Secret Tel Aviv Jobs Board is up to date, they have over 1,470 amazing opportunities! Opportunities here.

AWS: Account Manager Hiring Day, Israel. They're looking for passionate, curious & business-savvy professionals to join the AWS Account Management team in Israel. Learn more here.

Principal Business Development Manager - Machine Learning & AI - ISRAEL: Are you energized to create new markets for Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning (ML), and Deep Learning (DL) technology? Do you love building new businesses? Apply here.

Bizzabo: Bizzabo is growing and they are looking for great product designers to make a difference. Join them! Careers here.

Nexar: They're hiring for a new Sales Director to focus on bringing their CityStream platform, which leverages powerful computer vision on the edge, to cities, municipalities and DOTs in need of truly innovative Smart City management solutions. If you, or someone in your network, is looking to jump into the next generation of high tech and make communities smarter and safer Nexar is the place to be! Apply here.

Monday.com: They are expanding their NY office and they're happy to share they are opening their first 'Rev/Biz ops' position in NY. For those who are not familiar with monday.com - they are a SaaS company, in hyper-growth, providing work operating system solution for companies & teams all over the world with more than 180M ARR & 100K paying customers, here is the link for the position.

WANTED!! Director of Marketing: Amazing startup up in Rishon Letzion is looking for their first in Marketing Director: 3 years in similar position. B2B SaaS experience required.very familiar with inbound lead generation. Advantage - Technical knowledge. Please send cv's to [email protected]

New sales roles available:

*VP Sales, Proptech - NYC. You have experience building from the ground up in a proptech startup and managing a team. This role starts as 100% IC and grows to player/coach.

*VP Sales, learning/productivity SaaS - NYC or Boston. You have experience building from the ground in a SaaS startup as a Sr AE or manager. 5 years hunting/closing experience required. This role starts as 100% IC and grows to player/coach. 

*AE role, AI/Proptech - NYC. You have minimum 4 years in a hunting/closing SaaS sales role and are a top performer.

If you fit one of these roles and would like to discuss please be in touch - [email protected]

Monday.com: They are hiring a Global Recruitment Manager at monday.com! They're looking for someone who is passionate about recruiting and is experienced at managing high scale and growth recruitment teams. The position involves managing an amazing and strong team of 15 recruiters - across locations. It’s a unique opportunity to join a hyper-growth start-up with a one of a kind culture! For more information click here.

Okapi AI: They are hiring- Please help them spread the word- Come join their team in NYC! They're expanding their operation and growing their team. If you're interested in a sales role at a growing proptech company, please message Chedva or Iris Cedon for details.

Redefine Meat: Come work with them! New Job Posted: Procurement and Logistic Manager. Full Time Job, Rehovot, Israel More info and how to apply here.

Respond Flow: The incredibly talented team at Respond Flow is looking for awesome marketing and sales talent. If you're a passionate and hungry individual looking for great sales and marketing experience at a fast-growing early stage startup. This is a Tulsa based opportunity, so reach out to me directly if you're interested. Check out the links below to apply! Inbound Marketing Specialist here. Sales Development Representative here.

SQream: Sharing these incredible TLV based, full-time job opportunities from SQream:

Senior Java Engineer

DevOps Team Leader

QA Automation Engineer

C++ Software Team Leader

Framework Python Developer

High-Performance C++ SW Engineer

Technical Support Engineer

An opportunity to join the fastest GPU-accelerated data warehouse, which enables businesses to easily ingest, store and analyze tens to hundreds of terabytes of data and beyond, with minimum cost, ease, and in near real-time! For more info and application click here.

WSC Sports: Their team is growing and they're looking for an account manager to help them with their LATAM expansion! Spanish fluency is a must. Apply here.

Entrepreneurship and fund-raising in 2020: They will host a panel discussion about Securing Funding in 2020 with Soheil Mirpour, Partner at GFC, Elodie Dupuy, Founder at Full In Partners and Derek Gallagher from Global Shares. They will follow up with a fireside chat with investor and serial entrepreneur Justin Kan, creator of modern live-streaming with Twitch (sold to Amazon for $1 billion). He was also partner at Y Combinator. WED, SEP 23, 6:00 PM (BST). Tickets here.

How Big Data & AI Can Fight the COVID-19 Crisis: The fight against the novel coronavirus is entering a new phase, as people worldwide begin to resume normal life alongside an invisible enemy. To help win this battle, experts are turning to a potentially potent weapon. Time: Wednesday, September 23th at 20:00 (Israel Time) 13:00 EDT. Register here.

Angular Insights: Five Mistakes Slowing Your Growth: Please join them for their next Angular Insights event, a short webinar with Guy Poreh. As former Head of Digital for ad giant BBDO Tel Aviv, the Chief Innovation Officer at Silver + Partners in New York, and then Founder of Playground, Guy had the privilege of observing and working with hundreds of startups, from the ultra successful like Wix, HYPR (recently acquired) and Aquant to… those that aren’t around anymore. Sep 23, 05:00 PM in Jerusalem. Register here.

Threat Scenario: Managing a Cyber Pandemic: Picture this: An ordinary day turns upside when a group of hackers takes over your business, infecting thousands of computers in your organization. Join them for the next webinar on September 24 at 4:00 pm Israeli time where they will address the following questions based on the above scenario:What role should the government play in large scale cyber-attacks and how involved should they be in fixing the crisis. Sep 24, 2020 04:00 PM in Jerusalem. Register here.

The Submarine Affair with Eliad Shraga: A session for the ecosystem leaders. A session by Eliad Shraga, Chairman of the Movement for Quality Government in Israel (?????? ?????? ??????), to the leaders of the Israeli startup ecosystem. The movement has taken a very active role with this affair both uncovering details and filing petitions to start a formal investigation. September 24th at 8:00pm IDT. RSVP here.

Global Finance Summit: The Fintech Hackathon is an initiative aiming to gather the world’s brightest online talents to battle the world’s biggest challenges. During this day, they want to bring people from all over the whole world online together. This day is meant to connect the world together in finding solutions for our global challenges. They want to work on a better future between all countries who are facing the challenges caused by COVID-19. They are organizing a Matchathon as a follow up for their successful World Hackathon Day event. 22-25th of September. Register here.

Founders Foundations Meeting - How to start your startup: Are you a first time Founder? They bet you have tons of questions.... so they are here to help! Join their conversation to learn from Kfir Kimhi , CEO ITsMine experience and get some answers from our legal experts at Fox Rothschild LLP and tax expert from GPL Tax & Accounting October 14, 2020 at 9am PST | 7pm IL. Register here.

Cyber Week Goes Virtual: Cyber Week Online invites you to experience expert-driven content and high-level networking opportunities, from the comfort of your own home. Bringing you world-class thought leaders from industry, government, and academia, Cyber Week Online provides a virtual space to connect and share ideas with international decision-makers, business executives, startups, and investors. October 19th-21st. Register here.

Increase Diversity in Healthcare Ecosystem: Startups and investors play a critical role in creating health's future. HLTH and Samsung Next Ventures are pleased to collaborate on a dedicated startup showcase promoting diversity in healthcare! If you identify as an underrepresented founder, or have a solution focused on an underrepresented community -- including, but not limited to women, immigrants, and racial/ethnic groups traditionally underrepresented in tech -- they invite you to apply to be featured in this inaugural showcase at HLTH VRTL taking place October 12-16, 2020. Apply here.

Y Combinator Accelerator: Winter 2020 funding cycle; $125,000 funding for 7% equity. Program may be fully or partially remote; 3 months; Jan 01 - Mar 31; Office hours + connect w/experts + demo day. Access to Y Combinator alumni network; apply by Sep 23. Israeli companies should apply. Apply here.

Global Wellness Summit: GWS is excited to share with you two important projects that will be center stage at the 2020 Global Wellness Summit. GWS launched the “Call for Wellness Innovations” competition, in partnership with Welltech1! They are looking for innovations in the wellness space—a product, service, technology—both from existing companies that have recently developed new creative ideas or start-ups looking to break into the wellness arena. The winner will be awarded the Global Wellness Summit Prize on stage at the Summit! Apply here.

Jonathan 'Yoni' Frenkel has been involved in the US-Israeli tech community for many years, mentoring startups on marketing, hosting events connecting investors with startups, and publishing on the topics of tech and venture regularly. Professionally, he heads a content marketing agency, YKC Media, and works with VCs, corporates, and startups in creating written content, social, and advising on marketing strategy focused on engaging a US audience. He can be reached on LinkedIn here.