Israel's tech sector contributes almost a fifth of the nation's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) annually, making it the economy's biggest contributor, as reported by the Israel Innovation Authority. Despite the conflict, a few tech sector members that CNBC conversed with expressed that the community is managing to advance. "A lot of participants in the tech community have been sent to serve in the reserves," Yaniv Sadka, an associate at aMoon Ventures, said.
On Saturday, Dvir Ben-Aroya, co-founder of the workplace collaboration platform Spike with clients including Fiverr, Snowflake, Spotify and Wix, was met with blaring alarms and missiles flying overhead when he woke up to go on his regular morning run. It was only after he had been confused for over an hour that he learned about Hamas' terrorist attacks near the Israel-Gaza border that had killed civilians and taken hostages. Consequently, Israel declared war and implemented a siege of Gaza to cut off access to power, food, water and fuel. Ben-Aroya then held an all-hands meeting with his 35 full-time, Israel-based employees and offered them the option to leave the country with their family with the support of the company. As a result, at least 10% of his employees took up the offer, and he believes more will do so in the coming weeks. Despite the ongoing war, much of Israel's tech community is still striving to move forward. Israel's tech sector accounts for about one-fifth of the country's gross domestic product while making up around 10% of the total labor force.
Ben-Aroya had intended to launch Spike's integrated artificial intelligence tool on Monday but opted to delay the project for a week. Amitai Ratzon, CEO of Pentera, reported that the beginning of the week was filled with "uncertainty and lots of confusion" for his company, which consists of 350 employees spread across 20 countries, with Israel being the largest contributor. Pentera specializes in creating cyberattacks for clients such as BNP Paribas, Chanel and Sephora, and its employees are given the opportunity to take time off should they feel it necessary. Ratzon revealed that he had to alter some international commitments due to the conflict, such as the cancellation of a training session some Pentera employees were to attend in Israel, the replacement of his planned keynote address in Monaco, and the reassignment of flying duties for the Dubai conference from Israel-based personnel to German and U.K. team members. According to Ratzon, “everyone is covering for each other."
A considerable number of tech workers have already been called to serve in the military reserves, totaling 360,000 Israelis. Pentera's CEO, Ratzon, reported that a number of their best employees are now on the front lines. Isaac Heller, CEO of Trullion, an accounting automation startup located in Tel Aviv, informed CNBC that their finance lead had raised more than $50,000 to purchase bulletproof vests for their Israeli Defense Forces unit, following his completion of the 2024 financial forecast. Out of One Zero's almost 450 employees in Israel, a little over 10%, have been enlisted for reserve duty, Gal Bar Dea, CEO of the digital bank, explained to CNBC. He was stunned by an employee WhatsApp group where people constantly volunteered to fill in for each other. He remarked, “This guy says he was drafted, all of a sudden three people jump in and cover his tasks.” He went on to say that everyone was continuing their work and supporting one another during the crisis. Bar Dea further reported that the team was still committed to their upcoming initiatives and didn’t see the need to push back their deadlines. In fact, the lead on the ChatGPT-like chatbot project, an Air Force pilot who was called to active duty, opted to take part in the planning calls while in his military uniform.
Many tech community members have been called to reserve duty, Yaniv Sadka, an investment associate at aMoon, a venture capital firm focusing on health tech and life sciences, informed CNBC. He additionally noted that a large portion of the tech community has been summoned to serve in Israel's intelligence units. Sadka remarked that he had already attended two military funerals by the time of speaking. Bar Dea, also from the tech sector, told CNBC about the tech tools some members are working on related to the conflict, including a website for locating missing persons, cyberattack defense tools, a GoFundMe-like resource, and even a site for finding online psychologists. Dea observes that the tech industry's assistance is the 'secret sauce' of Israel, and added that “in two days, people are raising money, volunteering, taking kids in, building new houses, walking deserted dogs.” Sadka remarked that he'd never seen such mass donations and volunteering as is presently occurring, with “thousands upon thousands upon thousands of people taking care of each other”—from teenagers to senior citizens. Right before his conversation with CNBC, Bar Dea reported hearing sirens from his office, and stated that his wife had taken the kids to their home for safety. He said it was challenging to be both the CEO of a bank or high-tech company, and at the same time a father of two. Everyone, Dea added, is attempting to figure out how to manage both from a business and a personal viewpoint. In the same vein, Sadka concluded that it’s difficult to concentrate on work while tending to personal matters and safeguarding the country.
CNBC providing updates on Israel-Hamas conflictLive updates on the Israel-Hamas warIron Dome, a missile defense system used by Israel -- what you should knowFacing risk of tunnels, Israeli forces push forwardHow the conflict might concludeIsraeli military claims to have attacked 2,600 'terrorist targets'Healthcare in Gaza reaches a critical level
Live updates on Israel-Hamas conflict:A comprehensive summary on what is the Iron Dome missile defense system, its implications for this warWhat risks are Israeli troops facing from Gaza's tunnels?Overview of potential outcomes concerning the Israel-Hamas warIsrael's claim of 2,600 'terrorist targets' struck and the impact on Gaza's health services
Stay informed with live updates on the Israel-Hamas conflict. Get a full understanding of the Iron Dome missile defense system and its implications. Be aware of the risks Israeli troops face from Gaza's tunnels and the potential outcomes of this war. Learn of Israel's claim of striking 2,600 'terrorist targets' and the effect it has on Gaza's health services.
The school is not a place for students to socialize
Students should not use the school as a venue for socializing.
Comments