Trax Founder Reflects on Unicorn Rise and Fall, Launches Sports-Tech and Mentoring Ventures
Trax, a retail tech company founded by Yoel Bar-El and Dror Feldheim, epitomized the 2021 tech bubble with a peak valuation exceeding $3 billion. The company raised approximately $1.2 billion, half of which was secondary funding benefiting early investors, employees, and founders. Trax’s technology used computer vision and AI to provide real-time shelf data to consumer packaged goods companies and retailers, digitizing physical store shelves across 3.5 million stores monthly worldwide. At its height, Trax generated $180 million in annual sales and employed around 850 people across 24 countries.
However, the sharp rise in interest rates starting in 2022 led to a rapid market correction, forcing Trax to prioritize operational balance through significant layoffs. By mid-2024, the company reached operational break-even and was sold to the private equity firm GEM, which merged it into a larger global entity named FORM. Bar-El and Feldheim stepped down from daily operations following the sale. Bar-El declined to disclose the sale price, but estimates suggest it was in the hundreds of millions, a steep decline from the peak valuation.
Bar-El’s career began in financial technology with Mint (later Carmel and Viola), followed by leadership roles in Asia-Pacific and New York. He founded his first startup, TERSUS, and later acquired and sold Centrai before co-founding Trax. Reflecting on Trax’s journey, Bar-El highlighted the company’s pioneering role in retail tech and its early partnerships with major clients like Procter & Gamble and Coca-Cola.
After stepping back from Trax, Bar-El launched two new initiatives: Sweesh, a sports-tech company applying computer vision and AI to basketball courts for real-time game analysis, and the Bar-El Center, a mentoring hub for early-stage Israeli entrepreneurs. Sweesh’s first major partner is the NBA, which plans to deploy the technology initially in schools and colleges. The Bar-El Center aims to provide strategic advice, mentoring, and investor connections to help new startups navigate growth and challenges, leveraging Bar-El’s extensive entrepreneurial experience.
