Beth Zuckerman
Made in JLM Blog
Published in
4 min readDec 5, 2018

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Jerusalem Is Changing the Demographics of the Start Up Nation

Jerusalem is a city of many titles and designations: City of Gold, Zion, The Holy Sanctuary , City of Peace and many more. However, it’s rarely thought of as a high-tech hub, but high-tech’s growing foothold in Israel is changing that demographic map. Recently, acclaimed international venture capital firm Jerusalem Venture Partners (JVP)was selected to establish the New York City’s first international cybersecurity investment hub and create the next billion-dollar opportunity in cybersecurity.

Did you know that cybersecurity attacks occur every 40 seconds across the globe? With over 3.8 billion internet users being affected by cyber-attacks in 2017 alone. This extreme and growing threat has created a growing demand for new cybersecurity talent and products. In response to this rapidly rising situation Cyber NYC, recently announced its plans to transform NYC into a global leader of cybersecurity innovation, in order to combat today’s rising security risk. Cyber NYC will be partnering with inventive hub startups to stimulate research and commercialization, as well as unique talent pipelines to educate the cyber workforce of the future.

Cyber NYC will initially be supported by about $70 million in private investments, including two prominent Israeli firms: Jerusalem Venture Partners, a venture capital fund; and SOSA, a corporate innovation specialist, among others. While, another $30 million is being subsidized by the city of New York. Its goal: to create 10,000 local cybersecurity jobs over the next decade as part of Mayor de Blasio’s New York Works Plan.

Creating an Epi Center of Gravity for Cyber

The self-described “open-innovation platform,” SOSA is a global network of corporations, investors, and entrepreneurs that connects major institutions with innovative startups tackling core needs.

SOSA together with its partner startups, seek to provide hands-on-mentorship, investor sourcing, and the physical resources needed to achieve growth. The group’s areas of expertise include logistics, mobility, energy, automation, fintech and cybersecurity. Currently, headquartered in Tel Aviv, SOSA recently opened an innovation lab in New York, backed by major partners including HP, RBC, and Jefferies.

From Jerusalem to New York

NYCEDC has also selected acclaimed international venture capital firm Jerusalem Venture Partners (JVP) to establish the city’s first international cybersecurity investment hub and create the next billion-dollar opportunity in cybersecurity. This influential program will support growth-stage startups, promote access to clients, business backing, and investment, with the aim of growing them into major cybersecurity powerhouses in New York City.

“We’re convinced that New York City, the world capital of finance and media, will soon emerge as the new global hub for cybersecurity,” said Erel Margalit, Founder and Chairman of JVP. “If the West Coast is the U.S technology hub, New York can become the international technology Hub in close partnership with Israel and the international community to build the next generation of cybersecurity companies to counter the new threats.”

Beyond the Investment

JVP’s energy in cybersecurity space also goes beyond the investment process, with the firm recently establishing an incubator, known as JVP Cyber Labs, specifically focused on finding, developing and building the next wave of Israeli cybersecurity and big data companies.

JVP Cyber Labs has invested in over 10 new cyber-security startups over the last 3.5 years of operation. Tens of millions of dollars have been invested in these exclusive companies, stimulating more than 250 new jobs and generating shareholder value in the hundreds of millions of dollars.

So, it comes as no surprise that both of the EDC’s venture partners are familiar with the Israeli cybersecurity ecosystem. As Israel has long been viewed as a leader in cybersecurity innovation and policy, and has benefited from the same successful public-private sector coordination New York hopes to replicate.

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