Tag: successful startups

The Startup Nation’s 2015 rising-star entrepreneurs and innovators

Famously titled as the ‘Startup Nation’, Israel has more high-tech startups and a larger venture capital industry per capita than any other country, earning international acclaim for its cutting-edge innovations, technologies, and research in a variety of fields. But how did Israel become a world leader in startup success? Israel’s thriving startup ecosystem is commonly attributed to its mandatory military service, immigration history, government tax policy, limited natural resources, the country’s seclusion and limited natural resources that evoked a survival-at-all-costs mentality, or simply the illustrious chutzpah characteristic of Israeli culture that sparks innovation. Many — both in Israel and worldwide — have recognized these unique qualities of Israeli culture, and over the years have praised and commended Startup Nation representatives for their various achievements and contributions. Recently, The Marker, as well as the Massachusetts Institute of Technology – a world leader in research and education – paid tribute to a group of promising young Israeli entrepreneurs and innovators for impacting the world through their work, revolutionizing industries, technologies, and new disruptive ideas. Representing Israeli high-tech in The Marker’s ‘Most Promising 40 Under 40’ In their annual Most Promising 40 Under 40 list...

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The 10 Plagues of Startup Investing: What Passover Has to Teach Us About Startups

This week we are celebrating the Jewish holiday of Passover, which commemorates the liberation of the Israelites from slavery in ancient Egypt. The 10 plagues that Moses, with a little help from on high, launched on the biblical Egyptians have been spun into numerous allegories, lessons, and instructions. And, being the Israeli high-tech investing fanatics we are, our first thoughts were with the connections to startup investing. Startup investing isn’t easy — sometimes you’re blessed with miracles (i.e.- exits and IPOs), but along the way to the Promised Land of Profits, you’re frequently plagued by problems. There is no guaranteed recipe for success, but here are some tips for avoiding bad investments. So, without further ado, here are the 10 rules of what NOT to do when investing in startups. The 10 Plagues of Startup Investing: Investing in just 1 startup: The data here don’t lie – picking the right startup is tough. So, diversification is even more important when investing in young, private companies than it is when investing in startups. How much can investors make investing in startups? The Kauffman Foundation groundbreaking research on startup investing demonstrated investors made 2.5X on...

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