Dream raises $260 million at a $3 billion valuation
Dream’s round is one of the strongest examples this year of how AI, cyber and national security are converging. The company is focused on defending governments and critical infrastructure, including water, energy and oil and gas systems, from AI-enabled cyber threats. Why it matters: sovereign AI is moving from policy slogan to procurement category. As states worry about cyber autonomy, supply-chain dependency and AI-enabled attacks, companies that can sell into governments and critical infrastructure may sit in a very different venture category from ordinary enterprise software.
NewCore emerges from stealth with $66 million to rebuild identity for the AI era
NewCore, founded by cybersecurity veterans Zohar Alon, Amihai Neiderman and Erez Yarkoni, is building identity security infrastructure for human users, enterprise systems and autonomous AI agents. The company emerged with $50 million in Series A funding and a previously undisclosed $16 million seed round. Why it matters: AI agents are becoming a new class of enterprise actor. That changes identity from an HR and IT admin problem into a security architecture problem. The question is no longer only “who has access?” but also “which agent, machine, workflow or credential is acting, and under what rules?”
1Password buys Apono and SailPoint buys Entro as non-human identity heats up
1Password acquired Apono, an Israeli just-in-time access governance startup, in a reported $250 million-$300 million deal. SailPoint also agreed to acquire Entro Security, reportedly for about $200 million, to strengthen its non-human identity capabilities. Why it matters: the same trend that is driving new funding rounds is also driving strategic M&A. Enterprises are adopting AI agents, automated workflows, scripts and machine identities faster than their legacy access controls can keep up. That makes Israeli identity-security startups highly relevant to global security platforms.
monday.com launches Monday Ventures, a $200 million corporate AI fund
monday.com launched Monday Ventures, a corporate venture arm that plans to invest up to $200 million in startups building the next generation of workplace AI. The initial allocation is reportedly $50 million, with checks of $1 million-$5 million per startup and early investments including Blocks.diy and Guidde. Why it matters: scaled Israeli software companies are becoming capital allocators. monday.com is no longer only building its own AI roadmap. It is trying to position itself closer to the startup layer that may define the future of work.
Tel Aviv remains the world’s No. 4 startup ecosystem
Tel Aviv was ranked the world’s fourth-leading startup ecosystem by Startup Genome, behind only Silicon Valley, New York and London. The report put Tel Aviv’s ecosystem value at $250.3 billion between July 2023 and December 2025, up 162% from the previous ranking period. Why it matters: the ranking is another reminder that Israel’s startup ecosystem remains globally relevant despite war, political uncertainty and a tougher venture market. The sectors driving the ranking — AI, big data, analytics, cyber and life sciences — are also the areas where Israeli founders continue to attract strategic capital.
Israeli Startup M&A in H1 2026: Strategic Buyers Are Back
According to the Israel Innovation Authority’s State of High-Tech 2026 report, Israeli high-tech generated approximately $84 billion in exits in 2025, alongside $85 billion in exports and nearly $15 billion in fundraising. High-tech output grew by 8.2%, and the sector accounted for 58% of Israel’s total exports. The first half of the year has already produced a long list of strategic acquisitions involving Israeli startups. The buyers include some of the world’s most important technology companies: Apple, Nvidia, Cisco, Palo Alto Networks, CrowdStrike, ServiceNow, Motorola Solutions, Medtronic, PayPal, Akamai, SailPoint, 1Password, Western Union, Nuvei and others.
