The man piloting Startup Nation's high-tech ship

He leads an organization that must decide how to invest $500 million a year in government funds in the country's most disruptive high-tech ventures.

He is also responsible for helping Israel incubate more than 6,000 startups and provide an environment in which they can thrive.

High technology drives Israel's economy. It accounts for almost 20% of each country's GDP, compared to 10% in the United States and 6% in Europe.

It is therefore vital that Dror Bin, CEO of the Israel Innovation Authority (IAA), keeps the country ahead of the curve. He is acutely aware that investors can shop around the world, and that Israel's past multibillion-dollar successes with, say, Mobileye, Check Point, and Waze are no guarantee of its future.

Bin took on the role in 2021 in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic. He then had to deal with Israeli judicial reform, the global economic meltdown, the October 7 massacre, and the ongoing war in Gaza.

Although he had never known peacetime in his current position, he was confident that Israel could weather any storm. He quotes a famous quote from Winston Churchill. “Every crisis is an opportunity.”

He fervently believes that there should be a constant flow of ideas and talent between government and the private sector, and considers his tenure at the IIA a form of national service.

Managers, investors, consultants

Bin, 57, has a bachelor's degree in systems information engineering and industrial management, a master's degree in business administration, and nearly 30 years of experience in a wide range of roles in Israel's high-tech world.

Dror Bin, CEO of the Israel Innovation Authority.Photo credit: Hannah Tayeb

Prior to joining IAA, he served as president and CEO of RAD Data Communications, based in Tel Aviv.

I've always said that I've seen the tech industry from every angle: as a business owner, an investor, and a consultant. And then I came to the government, he told ISRAEL21c.

The most interesting thing I learned in this role is how the government sees things. When does the government decide to intervene? How does it intervene if it determines that the market has failed? Should it only address market failures, or if it determines there is a possibility? Should the government take the lead?

Hell, when his time comes, he'll take what he's learned to the private sector, and whoever his successor will be will do the same.

take a risk

Until then, Vin spends his 12-hour workday juggling three priorities. The first is to invest government money in what he calls the “riskiest” startups.

They are companies pushing the boundaries of quantum computing, biotechnology, robotics, and other developing research fields. It has the potential to open up a whole new world, but it also has the potential to fail.

Traditional venture capitalists prefer shorter odds. Therefore, it is her IIA's role to fund these startups and provide grants to take them to the next stage of development.

IIA doesn't ask for shares in return, doesn't sit on the board of directors, and doesn't steer the company like an investor would. However, it insists on demonstrating its faith through private funders willing to provide at least 15% of the total grant amount.

The IIA evaluates a wide range of applications, from early-stage startups to established companies, and approves approximately 40% based on risk, disruptiveness, and potential.

New technology

Bin's second priority is building infrastructure for emerging technologies.

We ensure that entrepreneurs planning a startup in 3, 4, or 5 years have everything they need: R&D labs, talent and human capital, applied research funding, and applied research in academia. He says he wants to be accessible.

A third priority is removing obstacles from the entrepreneurial path, such as taxation and government regulation, as in the case of food technology startups Remilk and Aleph Farms.

The company's products, lab-grown milk protein and cultured beefsteak, were each ready for market, but needed the help of the IIA to convince the Israeli Ministry of Health to approve their sale. . Both products will be in supermarkets later this year.

Israel's greatest asset

The IIA was founded in 2016 and began operations in 1965 as the Office of the Chief Scientist. Israel, which has few natural resources, had already realized that it should focus on its greatest asset: its people.

“Hundreds of delegates are here to learn the secrets of Startup Nation,” Bin says.

The Foreign Office joke is that every delegation that comes to Jerusalem goes to Yad Vashem. [World Holocaust Remembrance Center] And then to IIA. This is what they want to see.

Other countries also copied our model. Because we realized that there are innovations that the private sector will never fund. Governments need to be the first to invest and de-risk technology and ventures. Only then will the private sector come.

Mr. Bin has guided IIA through some difficult times. The coronavirus was surprisingly good for Israeli technology investment, but interest rates began to rise globally in mid-2022, and then in 2023, when Israel was embroiled in protests over proposed judicial reform. There was a sharp decline.

However, the war in Gaza did not deter investors. The latest figure for the last three months of 2023 was $1.44 billion, down about 15% from $1.71 billion in the previous quarter, but not as devastating a drop as some had expected. It wasn't.

it makes sense

In general, the global technology community supports Israel, Bin said.

More than 800 global venture funds supported Israel immediately after the outbreak of war and signed a letter saying they would continue to invest in Israel. More than 200 of the world's largest multinational companies have taken similar measures.

This is not charity work, he says. This is sound business sense. Israel has suffered more than its fair share of crises, but has come out stronger each time.

Less than a month ago, on October 7, The IIA took action by raising $100 million in funding to support early-stage startups. With less than six months of runway money to cover salaries and other necessities after potential investors froze out, many were waiting to see what would happen.

only time will tell

Since then, Bin and his team have addressed two of the biggest challenges in Israel's high-tech sector: a decline in the number and diversity of new startups, and an overreliance on foreign investment (80% year-on-year). We have formulated a plan to abroad).

Together with private investors, we have launched a fund that provides $140 million annually to breakthrough innovation startups with limited access to capital. Another $1.1 billion fund over five years encourages Israeli institutions to invest in venture capital funds. The third fund will focus on deep tech companies.

Beyond his time as IIA commander, Bin is building systems that support Israel's high-tech future. And he's making tough decisions in real time.

When I wake up every morning and when I go to bed every night, I hope I'm doing the right thing, he says. Only time will tell for him.

Sources 1/ https://Google.com/ 2/ https://www.israel21c.org/dror-bin-steering-startup-nation-success/ The mention sources can contact us to remove/changing this article

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