The prolonged conflict in Gaza has fueled a wave of defense technology innovation in Israel, as many reserve soldiers combine military experience and civilian expertise to establish startups.
Among them, there is Zach Bergerson - a 36-year-old high-tech engineer, who developed SkyHoop (a real-life threat warning device that applies mobile phone technology).
SkyHoop is being tested in Ukraine and is expected to be piloted at the US Department of Defense. Bergerson's story reflects a broader trend: more than a third of today's Israeli defense startups were formed after Hamas' attack on Israel in October 2023.
The change in the nature of modern conflicts has increased the demand for live-fire technology. About 20% of the Israeli reserve force is active in the high-tech sector, bringing a great advantage to the defense innovation ecosystem.
The new companies are now attracting the attention of both US and Israeli venture capital funds. Lital Leshem, a reserve soldier, co-founded the Protego Ventures fund in December and raised $100 million.
Despite facing challenges in scale and legal barriers, Leshem believes Israel can repeat the success it has done to the cybersecurity industry.
As President Donald Trump calls on Europe to share the defense burden with the US, Israeli companies are looking towards this market. Under the new NATO plan, European countries will increase defense spending to 5% of GDP, including 3.5% for forces and weapons, and 1.5% for security investment.
This opens up hundreds of billions of dollars in defense spending over the next decade, contributing to pushing the value of Israel's defense exports to a record $14.8 billion in 2024, of which more than 50% will go to Europe - up from 35% in 2023.
Although some countries have called for a boycott of Israeli weapons for political reasons, many still choose Israeli products because of their practical effectiveness. Former General Yair Kulas - head of the Israel International Defense Cooperation Agency (SIBAT) - said that European countries are replacing old equipment with new weapons from Israel, largely due to the impact of the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
However, Mr. Kulas also admitted that political reactions are a big challenge and it is unclear how they will affect export results in 2025.
Avi Hasson from Startup Nation Central assessed that the current wave of defense startups could lead to a new technological revolution, similar to how the mobile phone industry developed 20 years ago.
