Israeli Startups Born from Reserve Service Showcase Innovations at Bezeq Event

A special "Demo Day" event held last week in Bezeq's offices featured around 40 Israeli startups founded or advanced by entrepreneurs serving extended reserve duty during the Iron Swords war. The event was organized by Bezeq in collaboration with the Israel Innovation Authority and the Ministry of Defense's department for discharged soldiers and reservists. Its goal was to present unique military and civilian technological solutions to Bezeq executives, senior defense officials, and investors, while supporting entrepreneurs whose business activities were delayed by the conflict.

Central to the initiative is Bezeq's "Connected Fund," established after the war to support reservists, wounded soldiers, and their families through investments in rehabilitation, resilience, employment assistance, and innovation. Bezeq CEO Nir David emphasized that the event aimed not only to showcase startups but also to facilitate connections with investors and potential business partners, and possibly invest in ventures that could become leading Israeli companies.

Highlighted projects included Digital Combat Academy (DCA), led by Or Ben-Shabat, which uses gaming and VR technologies to train military and police forces in realistic decision-making scenarios without live ammunition. Sparseon, founded by Niv Padida, developed a novel video file format that enables AI systems to analyze video content faster and more efficiently. Vilo offers a digital platform to enhance employee well-being and prevent burnout by personalizing workplace experiences.

Other notable ventures are Octopus.ai, which provides AI-driven operational management for complex engineering projects; RDF, an AI-based system managing autonomous robotic fleets for military use without GPS; Tactinium, an off-grid energy solution producing electricity and water for maneuvering forces; VELQOR Dynamics, which uses AI to monitor and analyze military communication networks in real time; and Doto, a learning platform that helps reservists and students focus on critical exam content by analyzing long video lectures.

Among the founders is Aryeh Holtzberg, who combined his ultra-Orthodox background with academic excellence and military reserve service to lead technological units developing operational applications still in use. These startups reflect a growing synergy between military experience and technological entrepreneurship in Israel, aiming to address urgent battlefield challenges and civilian needs alike.