Invested by Aleph

On this episode of Invested, Michael hosts Alex Konrad, senior editor at Forbes covering venture capital, startups and tech out of New York. Alex is the editor of the Midas List and 30 Under 30 List for VC, and the creator of the Midas List Europe and the Cloud 100 List. He has written numerous cover stories on business leaders including Patrick Collison, Satya Nadella and Melanie Perkins, among others, and most recently Wiz CEO Assaf Rappaport. You can find Alex on X (formerly Twitter). Please rate this episode 5 stars wherever you stream your podcasts!  KEY TOPICS  [00:00] Intro  [03:50] Rising Anti-Semitism [07:02] Good Journalism and Clickbait [09:20] Not-for-Profit Journalism [12:02] The Forbes Midas List [16:25] Importance of Having a Brand as a VC [20:00] Covering the War from a Tech Perspective [22:30] Civic Resilience in Tech [26:01] High Tech Involvement in Government [30:00] Gazan Tech [36:05] Israeli Resilience and Civic Duty  [42:20] How Investors Currently View Israeli Tech  [44:15] What Happened with OpenAI and Sam Altman [46:15] Paddy Cosgrave and Web Summit Controversy  [48:00] Deciding What to Cover [50:10] Importance of Family REFERENCES The Midas List KAN11 (IPBC) Sam Altman Gili Raanan Anduril Wiz SpaceX Starlink Unit 8200 Zoe Weinberg Cockroach Labs OpenAI Paddy Cosgrave CREDITS Executive Producer: Erica Marom  Producer: Sofi Levak Video and Editing: Uri Ar Music and Art: Uri Ar  Design: Rony Karadi

On this special episode of Invested, Michael hosts Izhar Shay, former Israeli Minister of Science and Technology, high-tech and social entrepreneur, and venture capitalist.  Izhar is a Venture Partner with Disruptive AI, an early stage deep-tech VC focused on AI investments. Shay is actively involved with a number of innovative companies as an advisor, board member and mentor for CEOs and entrepreneurs. He also volunteers as the Chairman of Darkenu, an NGO focused on promoting liberal democratic values for the State of Israel, which also operates DemocratTV. You can find Izhar Shay on Linkedin. Please rate this episode 5 stars wherever you stream your podcasts! KEY TOPICS  [00:00] Intro  [01:35] October 7th Attack and Losing His Son, Yaron Oree [07:58] Understanding What Happened [10:45] About Yaron Oree [17:59] The Viral Post and the “Next October” Project [25:40] Core Personal Values [28:00] Israeli High-Tech Going Forward [32:22] Taking a Stand Against Extremism [36:35] On Regulating Social Media [40:10] Whether to Release October 7th Footage  [44:30] Investing in Israel in the Future [45:15] Creating Startups After the War REFERENCES Kerem Shalom Nahal Brigade Ami Daniel Windward CREDITS Executive Producer: Erica Marom  Producer: Sofi Levak Video and Editing: Uri Ar Music and Art: Uri Ar  Design: Rony Karadi

On this special episode of Invested, Michael hosts Ami Daniel, the CEO and co-founder of Windward.  In his capacity as CEO, Ami has been featured extensively as an expert in shipping and AI at multiple conferences, events, op-eds and interviews including by The Economist, The FT, WSJ, Bloomberg and many others. He was recognised as one of the 40 most promising entrepreneurs in Israel twice by Israel’s leading economical newspapers – Globes and The Marker. Under his leadership Windward has been awarded multiple awards including as a finalist in the Boldness in Business Awards by the FT, Red Herring, The Hottest Startup in Israel by Wired and many others. Before founding Windward, Ami has been one of Israel’s most impactful youth social entrepreneurs, founding a community center in Haifa when he was 16, as well as another national scale social empowerment program. For these he was given multiple awards including the President’s Award and the Ramon Award (both the most distinguished for youth in Israel). Ami served as a naval officer (Lieutenant) in the Israeli Navy and he holds an LLB from Tel Aviv University. You can learn more about “Kvar Baim” (“We’ll Be Right There”) on their website, and find Ami Daniel on LinkedIn Key Topics: [00:00] Intro  [01:00] The Morning of October 7th [02:46] The Massacre in The South of Israel [04:07] We’ve Got to Do Something  [07:35] Rescuing Survivors of the Massacre [13:40] Meeting The Rescuees in Person [17:05] Importance of Mental Support [17:50] Ami’s Navy Experience  [22:30] About Windward  [25:40] The Wartime CEO  [28:00] Building a Product to Help Rescue Efforts [30:10] How “Kvar Baim” Was Created in 48 Hours [32:25] The Need for Innovation [36:40] Civic Involvement and Resilience  [40:20] What’s Changed Since the War Started [44:20] Pioneering 2.0 [45:50] The Importance of Family References: Kvar Baim Brothers in Arms Erez Shachar Qumra Capital Nova Music Festival Be’eri Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs Yoel Zilberman Nir Zohar Micha Kaufman Eynat Guez Guy Bloch Josh Wolfe Peter Thiel ZAKA Credits: Executive Producer: Erica Marom  Producer: Sofi Levak Editing: Uri Ar Music and Art: Uri Ar  Design: Rony Karadi

On the 10th episode of Invested, Michael hosts Eyal Waldman, the chairman of Waldo Holdings and Co-founder of Mellanox. Waldo Holdings is a family office that focuses on diversified investments in private and public companies, various funds, real estate and other financial platforms and vehicles. Mr. Waldman has been the Co-founder, President, CEO and Board member of Mellanox Technologies since March 1999, a semiconductor company which went public on Nasdaq in 2007 and was acquired by NVIDIA on April 2020 for more than $7B.  Between March 1999 until June 2013, Mr. Waldman served as Mellanox’s chairman of the board.  From March 1993 to February 1999, Mr. Waldman served as Vice President of Engineering and was a Co-founder of Galileo Technology, Ltd., a semiconductor company, which went public on Nasdaq in 1997 and was acquired by Marvell Technology Group, Ltd. in January 2001 for $2.7B.  From August 1989 to March 1993, Mr. Waldman held several design, management, and architecture related positions at Intel Corporation, a manufacturer of computer, networking, and communications products, and was awarded with the “IAA Intel achievement award” and the “Employee of the year” award.  Mr. Waldman serves on the board of directors of several private and public companies.  Mr. Waldman holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Engineering and a Master of Science degree in Electrical Engineering from the Technion - Israel Institute of Technology.  In June 2016, Mr. Waldman was awarded an Honorary Doctorate by the Technion.  You can find Eyal Waldman on https://www.linkedin.com/in/eyal-waldman-968788/ Please enjoy and rate this episode 5 stars wherever you stream your podcasts! Key Topics: [00:00] Intro  [03:20] Building Mellanox [07:36] Selling to NVIDIA [08:40] OpenAI and InfiniBand [12:05] InfiniBand vs. Ethernet [14:23] Self-Doubt [16:15] Future of AI [23:50] Making a Difference [27:00] Employing Palestinians and Israelis [30:30] Conflicting Values [31:39] Making Tough Decisions [37:35] Peace Through Business [40:48] Business With China [45:53] Business as a Bridge [49:44] Fear of Failure [52:30] Motivation and Vulnerability [55:14] Mellanox Today Show References: Check Point Galileo NVIDIA Mellanox InfiniBand OpenAI Ethernet ChatGPT Marik Lechner Marvell Technologies Neom Credits: Executive Producer: Erica Marom  Producer: Sofi Levak Video and Editing: Ron Baranov  Music and Art: Uri Ar  Design: Rony Karadi

On the 9th episode of Invested, Michael hosts Harry Stebbings, founder of 20VC, the largest media asset in venture with over $300M AUM and 13 unicorn portfolio companies in the last 5 years. 20VC’s portfolio includes Pachama, Tripledot, Linear, BeReal, Sorare, Roam Research, Merge and Nex Health to name a few. Harry is also a passionate supporter of MS UK and male eating disorder charities. ‍ You can learn more about 20VC at www.thetwentyminutevc.com ‍ Please enjoy and rate this episode 5 stars wherever you stream your podcasts!  ‍ Key Topics: [00:00:00] Intro  [00:01:50] Kindness as a Value [00:05:00] On Harry’s Influences [00:09:15] Timing Markets [00:12:45] Drinking Culture [00:18:00] Mainstream Media [00:20:30] Burnout [00:22:15] Investment Takeaways [00:29:55] Happiness vs. Wealth [00:37:47] Emerging Markets [00:41:20] Early-Stage Investments [00:45:15] 20VC Process [00:52:55] Being Underestimated [00:55:00] Defining Success  [00:59:50] Persistence and Creativity [01:03:55] Future of Content [01:07:40] Eating Disorders [01:08:27] Relaxing and Family [01:15:40] Rapid Fire Questions [01:18:10] Biggest Hurdles Resources: Follow Harry on Twitter: https://twitter.com/HarryStebbings?s=20 ‍ Follow Harry on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/harrystebbings/ ‍ Subscribe to Harry's podcast "20VC": https://www.thetwentyminutevc.com/ ‍ For show notes and past guests on Invested, please visit content.aleph.vc ‍ Learn more about Aleph: aleph.vc  Sign up for Aleph’s monthly email newsletter: aleph.vc  ‍ Subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@aleph-vc/ ‍ Follow Michael on Twitter: twitter.com/mikeeisenberg ‍ Follow Michael on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mieisenberg/ ‍ Follow Aleph on Twitter: https://twitter.com/mikeeisenberg ‍ Follow Aleph on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/aleph-vc/ ‍ Follow Aleph on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aleph.vc/ Credits: Executive Producer: Erica Marom  Producer: Andrew Jacobson and Sofi Levak Video and Editing: Ron Baranov  Music and Art: Uri Ar  Design: Rony Karadi

On the 8th episode of Invested, Michael hosts Jon Pelson, the author of “Wireless Wars: China's Dangerous Domination of 5G and How We're Fighting Back," which tells the story of how China seized global leadership in mobile communications and describes the threat this presents to the free world. Mr. Pelson spent nearly twenty-five years working as an executive at some of the world’s largest telecom companies, serving as Chief of Convergence Strategy for British Telecom and Vice President for Lucent Technologies, where he observed how China’s national champions were used to advance geopolitical goals. Wireless Wars outlines a proposal to retake the lead from China through the use of trusted ecosystems and disruptive, permissionless innovation. Pelson has lectured at Duke University, Yale, William & Mary, and other colleges and associations, and is an advisor to private companies and government agencies and departments. He is an Adjunct Fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies; a member of the Advisory Council for the Krach Institute for Tech Diplomacy at Purdue; and is on the Advisory Board of Rampart Communications. Mr. Pelson has a degree in economics from Dartmouth College and an MBA from the Darden School at the University of Virginia. You can find Jon Pelson on Twitter at @JonPelson and buy his book at wireless-wars.com. Please enjoy and rate this episode 5 stars wherever you stream your podcasts!  Key Topics: [00:00] Intro  [01:00] Importance of Truth [01:35] Jon Pelson [03:35] Is there One Truth? [05:30] Chinese Influence  [08:55] China In Saudi Arabia [11:25] Chinese 25-Year Plan [15:37] China vs. Other Countries [16:25] AI Data Collection [18:02] Moral Differences  [23:30] Guilt vs. Shame [25:20] Rule of Law vs. Rule of Strong [29:48] Business with China  [36:05] Keeping Your Enemies Close [40:00] Free Market Trade  [41:00] Courage to Write  [43:58] TikTok [48:55] Business, Politics and Technology [56:15] Aligning Values  [58:30] Warning Israel  [01:01:20] China’s Investment in Israel [01:05:30] Telecom in 20 Years [01:10:05] Rapid Fire Questions Resources: To purchase Jon’s book “Wireless Wars”: https://www.wireless-wars.com/  Follow Jon on Twitter: https://twitter.com/jonpelson?lang=en Follow Jon on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jon-pelson-3302bb1/ For show notes and past guests on Invested, please visit content.aleph.vc Learn more about Aleph: aleph.vc  Sign up for Aleph’s monthly email newsletter: aleph.vc  For the transcript of this episode, go to https://content.aleph.vc/invested-episode-08 Subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@aleph-vc/ Follow Michael on Twitter: twitter.com/mikeeisenberg Follow Michael on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mieisenberg/ Follow Aleph on Twitter: https://twitter.com/mikeeisenberg Follow Aleph on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/aleph-vc/ Follow Aleph on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aleph.vc/ Credits: Executive Producer: Erica Marom  Producers: Andrew Jacobson and Sofi Levak Video and Editing: Ron Baranov  Music and Art: Uri Ar  Design: Rony Karadi

On the 7th episode of Invested, Michael hosts Ron Gura, co-founder & CEO at Empathy, which helps families deal with loss.  Ron is a tech entrepreneur who has brought his love for developing empowering products to startups and major international corporations alike. As Senior Vice President at WeWork, Ron started and oversaw a global R&D center of 250 team members, responsible for the tools and systems that helped the company scale operationally. Previously, Ron served as Entrepreneur in Residence here at Aleph. Prior to that, Ron served as a Product Director and General Manager at eBay, leading its business incubation organization. Ron joined eBay as a result of the 2011 acquisition of The Gifts Project, a social-commerce startup where he served as Co-Founder & CEO. You can learn more about Empathy at empathy.com. Please enjoy and rate this episode 5 stars wherever you stream your podcasts!  Key Topics: [0:00] Intro  [2:45] Ron’s core values  [8:18] How Michael judges character [10:35] Gifting  [17:41] Life events [19:10] Empathy  [23:17] Automation and humanity  [25:13] Brand-first approach [29:00] Death statistics  [32:10] Hiring a chief grief officer  [33:41] AI for obituaries  [37:40] Who works at Empathy?  [42:45] From B2C to B2B  [46:30] Transaction vs. process [49:00] Scaling empathy  [53:45] Ron’s motivation  [55:00] Ron’s personal grief  [59:30] Ron’s family [1:01:50] Gifts Project team  [1:04:00] Rapid fire questions  [1:05:20] Empathy in an era of AI  Resources: To learn more about Empathy: https://www.empathy.com Follow Ron on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rongura/ Follow Ron on Twitter: https://twitter.com/Rongura For show notes and past guests on Invested, please visit content.aleph.vc Learn more about Aleph: aleph.vc  Sign up for Aleph’s monthly email newsletter: aleph.vc  For the transcript of this episode, go to https://content.aleph.vc/invested-episode-07 Subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@aleph-vc/ Follow Michael on Twitter: twitter.com/mikeeisenberg Follow Michael on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mieisenberg/ Follow Aleph on Twitter: https://twitter.com/mikeeisenberg Follow Aleph on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/aleph-vc/ Follow Aleph on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aleph.vc/ Credits: Executive Producer: Erica Marom  Producer: Andrew Jacobson  Video and Editing: Ron Baranov  Music and Art Direction: Uri Ar  Design: Rony Karadi

On the 6th episode of Invested, Michael hosts Kathryn Mayne – “the mother of Aleph.” Kathryn is a managing director at Horsley Bridge. She joined the firm in 2003 and manages their London office. Prior to HBP, Kathryn was Senior Vice President of Investments with Claridge Inc., where she was involved with investments in media, technology, consumer, and industrial companies as well as private equity fund investments. Kathryn started her professional career in asset management with Jarislowsky, Fraser in Montreal. She has a BA in History from the University of Calgary and an MBA from the University of Western Ontario. You can learn more about Horsley Bridge at www.horsleybridge.com and follow Kathryn on LinkedIn.  Please enjoy and rate this episode 5 stars wherever you stream your podcasts!  Key Topics [0:00] What makes a great venture capitalist?  [1:39] Intro  [3:09] How Michael and Kathryn know each other [4:54] How Kathryn became ‘the mother of Aleph’  [7:32] Are you an investor or psychologist?  [8:17] Do you have to like people to invest in VC? [10:30] How do you communicate hard things with VCs?   [12:55] What’s the biggest reason VC partnerships come apart?  [15:12] Why do you take risks? [17:46] Backing second VC funds  [18:40] Do you like your managers? [19:25] What makes a great venture capitalist?  [24:09] Do you care about the values of your investors?  [25:04] Do you care about the values of the underlying companies?  [26:25] What is the right way to value startups?  [28:35] How has the time horizon for investors evolved?  [31:41] What makes a great entrepreneur?  [32:35] What was your first trip to Israel like?  [34:05] What makes Israel unique?  [35:55] Are there entrepreneurial role models in Israel?  [37:30] How do you develop trust?  [38:20] Diversity and women in venture capital  [40:40] What is the culture of Horsley Bridge?  [41:40] How do you stay curious?  [42:30] How do you spark your kids’ curiosity?  [43:00] What are you interested in outside work?  [44:20] Your daughters paths  [45:30] Why were you cofounder of Level20?  [48:00] Diversity vs. returns [55:30] What gets you out of bed in the morning?  [55:44] What problem in the world do you most want to fix?  [57:10] What gets you emotional?  [58:00] How do you want to be remembered at the end of your life?  [58:41] What is the title of your biography?  [59:15] How do you maintain equanimity?  [1:02:15] The long-term impact of technology  [1:04:00] Is innovation values-neutral?  Resources To learn more about Horsley Bridge: www.horsleybridge.com  Follow Kathryn on LinkedIn: https://uk.linkedin.com/in/kathrynmayne For show notes and past guests on Invested, please visit: content.aleph.vc Learn more about Aleph: aleph.vc  Sign up for Aleph’s monthly email newsletter: aleph.vc  For the transcript of this episode, go to https://content.aleph.vc/invested-episode-06 Subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@aleph-vc/ Follow Michael on Twitter: twitter.com/mikeeisenberg Follow Michael on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mieisenberg/ Follow Aleph on Twitter: https://twitter.com/mikeeisenberg Follow Aleph on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/aleph-vc/ Follow Aleph on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aleph.vc/ Credits: Executive Producer: Erica Marom  Producer: Andrew Jacobson  Video and Editing: Ron Baranov  Music and Art Direction: Uri Ar  Design: Rony Karadi

On the 5th episode of Invested, Michael hosts Daniel Schreiber, the co-founder and co-CEO of Lemonade, the AI-powered insurance company driven by social impact. Lemonade hit one million paying customers faster than Netflix, Spotify, or Amazon did, and 5–10 times faster than the most formidable insurers in the U.S. (Allstate, GEICO, State Farm, USAA). At a 150% compound annual growth rate, their top line accelerated faster in their first 5 years of operation than did Facebook’s, Amazon’s, or Apple’s. Prior to co-founding Lemonade in 2015, Daniel served as President and a member of the board of directors of Powermat Technologies Ltd., a wireless charging solutions and technology company. Daniel is a serial entrepreneur. His first company – Alchemedia, an internet security software company  was acquired by Finjan Software in 2002. Daniel is also a trained commercial lawyer. He holds a Bachelor of Laws with First Class Honors from King's College London. You can find Lemonade at lemonade.com and can find Daniel on Twitter @daschreiber.  Please enjoy and rate this episode 5 stars wherever you stream your podcasts!  Key Topics:   [0:00] Intro  [2:57] How we know each other  [3:43] Lemonade’s beginning  [6:30] Different types of investors  [9:05] What Lemonade could have done better [10:55] Risk management vs. uncertainty [15:58] Why to go public  [21:20] Stock prices [23:20] Competition  [29:10] Business model alignment  [35:00] Are people good?  [39:10] Values create economic value [40:45] Storytelling [43:00] Gas and miles-per-gallon  [46:30] For-profit vs. non-profit status  [53:00] Community in business [57:00] Corporate social stands  [59:00] Developing entrepreneurial children  [1:01:00] Grandparents [1:03:00] What problem do you most want to fix? [1:03:40] What makes you vulnerable?  [1:04:15] Why didn’t you give up?  [1:05:30] How do you want to be remembered?  [1:06:45] What did you learn from Har Etzion? Resources: To learn more about Lemonade, visit lemonade.com  Follow Daniel on Twitter: twitter.com/daschreiber For show notes and past guests on Invested, please visit content.aleph.vc Learn more about Aleph: aleph.vc  Sign up for Aleph’s monthly email newsletter: aleph.vc  For the transcript of this episode, go to https://content.aleph.vc/invested-episode-02 Subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@aleph-vc/ Follow Michael on Twitter: twitter.com/mikeeisenberg Follow Michael on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mieisenberg/ Follow Aleph on Twitter: https://twitter.com/mikeeisenberg Follow Aleph on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/aleph-vc/ Follow Aleph on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aleph.vc/ Credits: Executive Producer: Erica Marom  Producer: Andrew Jacobson  Video and Editing: Ron Baranov  Music and Art Direction: Uri Ar  Design: Rony Karadi

On the 4th episode of Invested, Michael hosts Member of the Israeli Knesset Orit Farkash Hacohen. Orit is the former minister of Innovation, Technology and Space for the State of Israel, and former Minister for Tourism & Strategic Affairs—notably during Coronavirus. She previously served as the first female Chair of Israel’s Electric Authority. She has also been instrumental in Israel’s offshore gas exploration, and has worked tirelessly to advance tech diplomacy efforts between Israel and the United States, as well as the Arab world and other countries. Orit holds an LLB from Hebrew University and an MPA from Harvard University. She is married with four children. You can find her on Twitter @FarkashOrit, where she tweets mostly in Hebrew. She is also active on Linkedin and Facebook. Please enjoy and rate this episode 5 stars wherever you stream your podcasts! Key Topics: [0:00] Dealing with bad state actors [00:47] Introduction [3:34] International AI Regulation [5:30] Why is it important for the government to be involved in AI ethics? [7:36] Should Israel be a leader or joiner in international regulation of AI? [9:32] What is unique about Israel’s culture? [11:20] Is it the role of the Ministry of Innovation to regulate AI? [14:30] How to deal with bad state actors with technology? [18:02] Israel’s natural gas exploration [22:35] Strategic vs. financial objectives in energy decisions [29:52] Solar energy and renewables in Israel [33:58] Orit’s view on national influence by doing the right thing [37:40] Computational and synthetic biology [39:10] Burnout [42:13] Orit’s children [44:40] Socioeconomic diversity in Israel high-tech [47:30] Social mobility in Israel [52:25] What’s unique about Orit [55:15] Fixing Israel’s political polarization [56:30] How Orit wants to be remembered [57:00] What Orit would title her biography Resources: To follow Orit on Twitter: https://twitter.com/FarkashOrit To follow Orit on LinkedIn: https://il.linkedin.com/in/orit-farkash-hacohen-2a80543 To follow Orit on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/oritfarkashhacohen/ For show notes and past guests on Invested, please visit: content.aleph.vc Learn more about Aleph: aleph.vc Sign up for Aleph’s monthly email newsletter: aleph.vc For the transcript of this episode, go to https://content.aleph.vc/invested-episode-04 Subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@aleph-vc/ Follow Michael on Twitter: twitter.com/mikeeisenberg Follow Michael on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mieisenberg/ Follow Aleph on Twitter: https://twitter.com/mikeeisenberg Follow Aleph on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/aleph-vc/ Follow Aleph on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aleph.vc/ Credits: Executive Producer: Erica Marom Producer: Andrew Jacobson Video and Editing: Ron Baranov Music and Art: Uri Ar Design: Rony Karadi