Israel has 14 cities in the top 1000 and has a vibrant startup scene that ranks 3rd within the competitive global top 10.
Israel’s startup scene remains stable in 2023 on the 3rd position, having gained 1 more city in the global top 1000.
Israel is known as the startup nation for a good reason; it’s a small country which still manages to leave a substantial mark on the global startup ecosystem. The Israeli startup ecosystem has not only survived but thrived in multiple challenges over the years. Most of those challenges have been external, and seem to have only increased the Israeli ecosystem potency and ability to innovate. This year, however, the situation is very different, as the nation's startup ecosystem is faced with a challenge from within. The controversial proposal for a judicial overhaul threatens to impact investment in the country's startup ecosystem and break the trust between the country and its entrepreneurs. Regardless of the need for judicial reform, the way it has been introduced has infuriated the vast majority of the Israeli tech scene and its entrepreneurs. It is extremely rare to see a country that blatantly engages in policies which alienate the majority of its most successful entrepreneurs. It is worthwhile for the same decision makers who until recently successfully promoted the narrative of the “Startup Nation” to make sure they are not taking steps that will be almost impossible for the ecosystem to recover from in the foreseeable future. Israeli entrepreneurs are targeting a global market, and can easily relocate to other ecosystems if pushed to do so. It should be noted, however, that the civil backlash caused by the proposed overhaul was so powerful that it resulted in delay, showing how vibrant and strong Israel’s democracy is.
This reflects a massive gap between the quality of local entrepreneurs and the ability of public sector policy makers to create an environment that encourages vibrant startup ecosystems. In the last decade, there have been some positive signs that this gap can be narrowed, and if it will, Israel has a massive potential to produce a substantially better startup ecosystem than it has already.
Recent decades in Israel showcase how startups can transform a low productivity, developing economy into a high efficiency, developed economy. The Israeli startup ecosystem is a cash cow, generating tax revenue for the country both from exits and high salaries.
Israeli apps like Waze, Wix, Fiverr, and Viber have made their mark around the world, but a few, like Mobileye (sold to Intel for US$ 15 billion), are the hidden powerhouses within the ecosystem.
There is a wide variety of industries where Israel excels, including autonomous driving (Mobileye, Waze), advertising (Taboola), and services (Fiverr). One maturing industry that shows substantial potential is cybersecurity, leveraging the unique challenges that the Israeli army faces.
We believe that Israel relies on an important ingredient: the quality and mindset of its entrepreneurs. As long as the country manages to keep them happy, the Israeli ecosystem should continue to thrive.
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The health check tables allow you to look at the performance Israel has in each of the parameters that are part of StartupBlink's ranking algorithm. There are five tables, corresponding to the three subscores, the subscore analysis and industry ana...
Israel is ranked within the top 10 startup ecosystems globally.
Israel’s startup scene is best represented in Software & Data, Hardware & IoT, and in and Healthtech.
2023 National Rank & Change | City | Global Rank & Change | Total Score | Quantity Score | Quality Score | Business Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1st 0 | 10th - 1 | 56.774 | 00.00 | 00.00 | 00.00 | |
2nd 0 | 79th + 7 | 8.476 | 00.00 | 00.00 | 00.00 | |
3rd 0 | 133rd + 11 | 5.255 | 00.00 | 00.00 | 00.00 | |
4th 0 | 295th + 13 | 1.394 | 00.00 | 00.00 | 00.00 | |
5th 0 | 324th - 13 | 1.164 | 00.00 | 00.00 | 00.00 | |
6th 0 | 378th - 38 | 0.912 | 00.00 | 00.00 | 00.00 | |
7th + 1 | 484th + 30 | 0.525 | 00.00 | 00.00 | 00.00 | |
8th - 1 | 499th + 12 | 0.500 | 00.00 | 00.00 | 00.00 | |
9th 0 | 543rd - 20 | 0.427 | 00.00 | 00.00 | 00.00 | |
10th + 1 | 617th - 7 | 0.338 | 00.00 | 00.00 | 00.00 |
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