CTalkFrom Seed to growth: Investment models for startups looking to grow in global markets
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From Seed to growth: Investment models for startups looking to grow in global markets
Michael Marx, Head of UST Innovation Israel, Alon Leibovich, Managing Director at Intel Ignite Tel Aviv, and Ornit Shinar, Global Head of External Innovation and Venture Investing at Citi Innovation Labs, came together on a panel to discuss the different ways in which their hubs help startups achieve success
Panel with Ornit Shinar, Michael Marx and Alon Leibovich
(Sinai David)
Michael Marx, Head of UST Innovation Israel, Alon Leibovich, Managing Director at Intel Ignite Tel Aviv, and Ornit Shinar, Global Head of External Innovation and Venture Investing at Citi Innovation Labs, came together on Wednesday on a panel, moderated by Noa Gadot, to discuss the different ways in which their hubs help startups achieve success.
When asked how they help companies from seed to growth, Marx addressed what he calls the "hidden valley of death". “We found that the Israeli ecosystem is very unique in that there are young startups with very aggressive sales capabilities toward corporations and we can fill in a lot of their gaps in their journey towards scale and success which I call the hidden valley of death. The valley of death is the way to capitalize on a deal, not stretch the POCs (proof of concept) too long."
Leibovich then stated Intel’s approach. “There are two pain pillars of value Intel brings to portfolio companies: one of them is the big blue Intel. We attach them to a team of mentors from their domains and help them with everything they don't know that they don't know. Also, we use the giant Intel machine and offer them to market to Intel's clients."
Leibovich explained that this is done only for select companies. "The other pillar is human personnel; we talk to them with no BS. I was an entrepreneur myself and I know the mental health issues, how hard it is to build a business and how it is not only top line, but also bottom line, etc. The company building pillar really draws from boots on the ground."
When asked how they choose which startups to work with Shinar replied: “We have a number of criteria, the first is they need to pass my team of exceptional individuals. Some are ex-Gartner, some are significant leaders from the product space, some are actual bankers, and all of them look at the companies and try to understand what could be valuable. The next step is to find a stakeholder who is an MD that is interested in engaging with the company and if we don't find someone senior enough that's interested we don't want to waste anyone's time."
You can watch the full panel in the video above.
