K A S H R U T . C O M_©

December 22, 2023 from Reuters:

"Nearly 7,000 miles away in Portland, Oregon, venture capitalist George Djuric said he was compelled to visit Israel during the country's war with Palestinian militant group Hamas and to pledge support for the high-tech sector.

"Djuric, chief technology officer at yVentures who arrived in the United States as a 3-year-old refugee from Bosnia during the Bosnian war in the mid-1990s, this week joined some 70 other U.S. tech executives and investors on a trip to Israel.

"Although not Jewish, Djuric said he was drawn to Israel by the state's resiliency and as someone whose family's views were shaped by war.

"nvestors and analysts had predicted the conflict with the Palestinians would derail a fragile recovery in high-tech, which accounts for more than half of Israel's exports and nearly a fifth of its overall economic output.

"Funding had already dropped sharply amid a global slowdown and a divisive government judicial overhaul when the war took its toll on the economy. Growth, on pace for a 3.4% clip this year, has fallen to an expected 2% with the outlook at least as grim.

"At least 15% of the tech workforce has been called up for military reserve duty. Fighting in the Gaza Strip escalated on Thursday and Hamas rocketed Tel Aviv, even as the foes engaged in the most serious talks for weeks on a new truce.

"Yet, even as the war rages, tech funding deals are still getting done, albeit at a slower pace. Startups have raised more than $6 billion in 2023 compared with $16 billion in 2022.

"On Tuesday, ScaleOps, a startup specializing in cloud resource management, announced a $21.5 million funding round. Last week, cyber startup Zero Networks, which prevents attackers from spreading in corporate networks, raised $20 million.

"Ron Miasnik of Bain Capital Ventures who co-organized the delegation, said he had expected Israeli startups to go on drawing large sums. He said he believed the country's economy would ultimately bounce back."