Alan Weinkrantz, Rackspace’s Brand Ambassador to Israel, shares his insights on Israel’s startup and innovation economy at Café Commerce / San Antonio.
Weinkrantz has traveled to Israel more than 50 times in the last 20 years and has just returned from an initial four month engagement to introduce and promote the Rackspace Startups program. Israel is now the world’s second largest startup ecosystem after Silicon Valley and ranked. He returns to Israel April 4.
Weinkrantz is a contributing columnist to "The Times of Israel" and "Geektime," where he covers the narrative of the startup economy.
In this talk Weinkrantz will shares his insights, compelling facts, photography and his view of how and why Israel has become a startup and innovation economic power house that last year saw over $3 billion in startup exits.
2. BACKGROUND
• Based in San Antonio - for 27 years
• Tech PR / Startup Communications Consultant - 35 years
• Part of Israel’s startup economy for 22 years
• 51 trips to Israel
3. BACKGROUND
• Worked on….
• VoIP
• WiFi
• IPTV
• Tablet PC
• Enterprise everything
OEMs & ODMs who
shaped the plumbing of
the Internet
4. NOW…
• Rackspace Brand Ambassador to Israel (contractor)
• Applying same skills sets and background… sponsored by
Rackspace…
• Focus on Rackspace Startups program
7. WHY ISRAEL?
• Sell into - to sell out of.
• Startups built to scale globally
• English is the main language
• Best test bed in the world - in every language in the world
10. 2014 - A BANNERYEAR
• $3.4 billion raised inVC funding
• 7 IPO’s - $3.5 billion - largest one in the middle of Gaza War
• NY-based Israeli companies raised $1 billion / 235 in NYC alone
• 1,000 new startups
12. UNIQUE…
• Military service… can be a rough neighborhood :)
• Geographic contiguity & efficiency to get things done
• Everyone is degrees of separation
• Blending of cultures from all over the world
21. ISRAEL NEXT:
• Solving problems of humanity - the API of humanity
• U.S. not always the place to grow
• Developing countries - especially Africa
22. WHAT EXCITES ME
• Cross section of cultures
• Democratization of startups across all socio- economic spectrum
• Human R&D lab
• Film / Music / Art
23. GOING FORWARD
• San Antonio /Tel Aviv ( all of Israel)
• Following the migration patterns of startups to NY / Silicon
Valley / Boston
• Story telling and sharing content
24. OPPORTUNITIES FOR SAN
ANTONIO
• Cybersecurity
• Health Care - especially Diabetes
• Energy
• Water
• Agriculture
• Texas A&M Campus