Venture Capital Collaboration with Israel

Introduction 

Silicon Valley venture capitalists are material collaborators with Israel and the genocide of Palestians. This includes weapons development, production and use; the exchange of venture capital funding, mutual investment in military and surveillance startups, and a close relationship with the Israeli military. In the ongoing genocide, Silicon Valley venture capital stands militarily, financially, ideologically and publicly, with Israel. This document was created in the initial wake of October 7th.

Weapons 

Israel has long been a key customer of Silicon Valley and tech industry weapons startups, and many of them are being used right now in the genocide. 

The weapons startup Skydio produces drones that are actively in use by Israel following direct requests from the Israeli military. Another tech weapons startup, ShieldAI, which produces AI for drone and aircraft swarms, is also being used by Israel. Palantir, the Peter-Thiel backed intelligence startup, announced in January 2024 that it had entered into a “strategic partnership” with the Israel Ministry of Defense “to help the country’s war effort.”; this news came following the company’s board meeting in Tel Aviv, where it has had offices since 2015. In 2021, ShotSpotter announced an exclusive, strategic partnership with Israeli weapons manufacturer Airobotics, stating “outdoor gunfire will be located by ShotSpotter's network of acoustic sensors with precise coordinates communicated in real-time to Airobotics UAVs that will immediately fly to the scene”. Indeed, collaboration far precedes October 7th, 2023; for example, Israeli weapons companies Elbit and ImageSat International launched a surveillance and intelligence satellite using a SpaceX rocket in 2022.

A key juncture in the relationship between Israel and venture capital, has been the collaboration between the giant venture military startup, Anduril, and Elbit, the Israeli weapons manufacturer, on the militarized and lethal US/Mexico border. Anduril is a massive weapons startup producing high-tech weaponry for the full theater of war, backed by a16z, Founder’s Fund (Peter Thiel’s VC firm), and the CIA’s venture capital firm, In-Q-Tel. While we don’t have definitive confirmation that Anduril is active in the genocide, statements made by its CEO Palmer Luckey strongly indicate active collaboration. At a WSJ business conference event on October 16th, 2023 the CEO of Anduril stated: “Israel has my unqualified support. They have the support of Anduril in a moral sense. I obviously can’t talk about what we’re doing over there specifically. That’d be a question for a different day.”

Money

Reporting from Crunchbase from October, 2023 states: “Since 2019, $32 billion [in venture capital funding] has been invested in companies headquartered in Israel… Of that investment amount, around 51% were led or co-led by U.S.-based investors. Many Israeli tech companies have a dual presence in the U.S. and strong connections with American investors, some of whom have worked to support their portfolio companies based in the country.” In 2023, Israeli startups raised $7 billion, with 75 deals made across October, November and December, with reporting stating that foreign venture funding actually rose in the 4th quarter from the preceding months. 

From 2010 to 2020, Israeli institutional investors increased their allocation to venture capital, private equity and other private funds from 1% to 5% of assets under management. Via Techcrunch: “In 2022, [tech] contributed more than 18% of the country’s GDP... A total of 14% of Israeli citizens work in high tech… The active number of startups in the country is 9,000 (third-highest in the world after the Bay Area and NYC) and these startups have collectively, in the last five years, brought $95 billion into the country by way of venture capital… it’s estimated that anywhere between 10% and 30% of all of Israel’s tech employees are getting mobilized.”

Since October 7th, over $1 billion has been raised by venture capital firms with a focus on investment in Israeli tech startups. This March, Team8, an Israeli venture capital firm focused on “cyber security” and artificial intelligence, raised $500 million from especially American tech companies including Cisco and Microsoft. Ibex Investors, in Denver, recently announced a fund of over $100 million for Israeli startups, and will “back as many as 15 local early-stage startups across tech industry areas, including software, infrastructure, cybersecurity, development tools, and insuretech.” Recently, Israeli drone company Titan Innovations announced a $50 million venture capital fund to invest in facial recognition for the Israeli military. In January 2024, The Times of Israel published an article stating “Local and international VC funds remain bullish on Israeli technology despite two crises that have compounded a funding squeeze in a sector that is the nation’s growth engine.” The article further quotes a venture capitalist from American venture capital firm PSG Equity, stating “out of all this mess, and… bad times that we are going through… this will be probably the biggest tailwind that we have for the new wave of innovation in Israel.” The founder of Boldstart Ventures, which has invested over $150 million into Israeli startups, was quoted saying “I wish all my founders were as resilient as the Israeli founders.”

Israeli funds also power American venture capital firms. Israeli investor firm Vintage Investment Partners funds Andreessen Horowitz, the largest venture capital firm, and which has played a central role in the build-out of weapons startups. Andreessen Horowitz is in turn an investor in Toka, an Israeli “cyber defense startup”, that features a rash of Israeli war criminals, with former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak in a key leadership position, as well as former Brigadier General and Chief of Israel Defense Forces in cyber. An Andreessen Horowitz partner has also given money to Sarona Ventures, an Israeli fund to support the Israeli startup ecosystem. General Catalyst is also funded by Vintage Investment partners, and has a number of weapons companies in its portfolio. 

Public Support for Genocide

In October of 2023, over 500 venture capitalists signed the “Venture Capital Community Statement of Support for Israel,” stating:

“Israel has been an enduring partner to the global innovation ecosystem, fostering groundbreaking technological advancements and startup innovation. The nation's contribution to the world in terms of technology, research, and entrepreneurship is invaluable, and we hold deep respect for its unwavering commitment to progress…

In the spirit of peace and unity, we encourage the global venture community to support and engage with Israeli startups, entrepreneurs, and investors as they navigate through these challenging times. We believe in a brighter and more prosperous future for the region. We will continue to enable the talented entrepreneurs and startups in Israel and abroad to continue their vital work in shaping a better future for all.”

This was signed by key venture firms primarily from US and Israel, at the heart of technological power, including Almeda Ventures, Altitude Ventures, Apollo Projects (Sam Altman’s fund), Bain Capital Ventures, Bessemer, Blumberg, General Catalyst, Gotham Ventures, Kleiner Perkins, NFX, Not Boring Capital, Vintage Investment Partners and 8VC.

Palantir, the Peter Thiel and CIA-backed spy company, with offices in Tel Aviv, took out a full page ad in the New York Times on October 15th, 2023, stating “Palantir Stands With Israel.” 

In December 2023, 70 US venture capitalists and tech executives from their portfolios went on delegation to Israel to “pledge support for the high-tech sector”. 

The support for Israel extended to a campaign on social media, led by the venture capital firms most involved in the production of weapons startups. The head of Lux Capital, a major backer of weapons startups, has called the Palestinians under genocidal aggression “savage animals”: “Shame disgrace condemnation on these savage animals and any who support them celebrating this inhumanity. The Palestinian people are held hostage by Hamas and Iranian backed terrorists.” A venture capitalist from Sequoia, in firm support of the genocide, has called the Palestinians “barbarians at the gate”: “Just so you understand why Israelis have been so vigilant in the past… … it was living with knowledge that there were barbarians at the gates To those of you that criticized even the tiniest missteps, where are you now?” 

A venture capitalist from Founder’s Fund, Peter Thiel’s venture capital firm, was stoking the genocide as well, agitating for the US to declare war on Palestine, asking, “Why is a foreign ‘government’ killing at least 22 Americans not an Act of War against the US too?”. 

Ideology

Fascist venture capitalists have cited Israel repeatedly in their aspirations to create a venture capital sovereign state. This effort is called “The Network State” and materials from the title of the same name state: “Herzl’s work is a major inspiration for this book.” These materials refer to the desired venture capital state as a “distributed Zion”. The Network State book finds a kindred spirit to the violent establishment of their own state, praising Israel’s achievements: “Their status as a nation state changed with time. The Jewish people were once a stateless nation, a diaspora group united by common ancestry and tradition without a land or government to call their own. Then, within living memory, they founded the state of Israel.”

This ideology is the foundation of numerous venture capital settlements in Latin America and Africa, which are challenging the sovereignty of the host states. Venture capitalists have adopted the ideology of Israel to frame its own violent, colonial and imperial efforts.