Enterprise Weekly #443: Standing Up to Terrorism
I’m horrified by Hamas’s barbaric terrorism this week, and the countless innocent lives lost of both Israelis and Palestinians as a result.
Today, we're already seeing anti-semitism and hate spreading around the world. In the face of terror, we need more voices of all backgrounds to publicly speak out. At this moment, to stay silent is to be complicit and history has shown the evil outcomes of silence.
Our colleagues in the venture capital industry drafted the statement below with now over 600 signatures:
Over the last 24 hours, leaders from the venture capital community convened to address the recent terrorist attacks against Israelis that have taken place. We stand united in our support for the nation of Israel, and we condemn the senseless and barbaric acts of terrorism that have occurred in the past week. While we hope and pray for peace in the region, we also acknowledge Israel's right to defend itself from Hamas, and all other terrorist organizations who threaten the very existence of the State of Israel and the Jewish people.
Israel has been an enduring partner to the global innovation ecosystem, fostering groundbreaking technological advancements and startup innovation. The nation's contribution to the world in terms of technology, research, and entrepreneurship is invaluable, and we hold deep respect for its unwavering commitment to progress.
The recent terrorist attacks in Israel have been truly heart-wrenching, as we bear witness to the devastation they've wrought and the innocent lives they've tragically claimed. It is our hope that stability and safety can be restored and the hostages safely returned, enabling the talented entrepreneurs and startups in Israel and abroad to continue their vital work in shaping a better future for all.
In the spirit of peace and unity, we encourage the global venture community to support and engage with Israeli startups, entrepreneurs, and investors as they navigate through these challenging times. We believe in a brighter and more prosperous future for the region. We will continue to enable the talented entrepreneurs and startups in Israel and abroad to continue their vital work in shaping a better future for all.
Israel has shown up time and time again for the world in times of need, it is now our time to step up to the plate and to support Israel and the Jewish people.
Thank you to the companies that have led by example. First and foremost, my Work-Bench team:
We’ve seen large corporations step up, including Microsoft, Google, Salesforce, Jefferies, and more, VCs use their influence to gather donations (see here and here) and spread awareness, as well as so many from the NYC tech community band together in support. But it’s imperative even more companies and individuals come out against terrorism.
More links:
Forbes: More Than 500 VC Firms Sign Public Statement In Support Of Israel
20VC: Israeli Resilience From Tech and Beyond with Michael Eisenberg and Adi Levanon
Newsweek: Gaza Could Have Been Singapore. Hamas Turned It Into ISIS
Important resources:
Insight Partners’ is matching up to $1 million of donations across multiple charities
1100+ talented professionals across various domains are volunteering their time and expertise to help startups, while employees are called up for reserve duty:
🍻 Join more events with Work-Bench IRL:
October 17: Next NYC Marketing Night with the Head of Marketing at Mutiny and VP of Marketing at RippleMatch
October 18: NY Enterprise Tech Meetup on “Mastering GTM From Open Source to Enterprise” with the COO of Grafana, VP of Product at Vercel, and Senior Director of Developer Experience at Apollo GraphQL
📚 Read more news:
TechCrunch: We Asked 52 Founders Whether Events Are Useful
TechCrunch: Atlassian to Acquire Former Unicorn Loom for $975M and a breakdown of the math here
The Information: OpenAI’s Revenue Crossed $1.3 Billion Annualized Rate, CEO Tells Staff
Primary Venture Partners: NYC Seed Deals Slightly Dip in Q3
Work-Bench: Generative AI’s Path to Enterprise Adoption
📚 Read more (th)reads:
🌟 Company of the Week 🌟
Fantix raises $1.6M led by Gaingels, Notion Capital and Others
Data / AI / Machine Learning • Pre-Seed • New York, NY
Founders: Antonio Tomarchio (CEO), Filippo Privitera (Head of AI), Fabio Manola (Head of Ops)
Komment raises $1M led by Craft Ventures
Infrastructure / Dev Tools • Pre-Seed • Munich, Germany
Sotai raises $2M led by Four Rivers
Data / AI / Machine Learning • Seed • Los Angeles, CA
Deasie raises $2.9M led by General Catalyst, RTP Global
Data / AI / Machine Learning • Seed • San Francisco, CA
Relay raises $3.1M led by Andreessen Horowitz
Future of Work • Seed • San Francisco, CA
TabbyML raises $3.2M led by Yunqi Partners and ZooCap
Infrastructure / Dev Tools • Seed • San Francisco, CA
Anysphere raises $8M led by OpenAI’s Startup Fund
Data / AI / Machine Learning • Seed • San Francisco, CA
Plenful raises $9M led by Bessemer Venture Partners
Data / AI / Machine Learning • Seed • San Francisco, CA
Acceldata raises $10M led by Prosperty7 Ventures
Data / AI / Machine Learning • Series C • San Jose, CA
Lakera raises $10M led by Fly Ventures, Inovia and Others
Risk / Security • Seed • Zurich, Switzerland
SuperOps.ai raises $12.4M led by Addition and March Capital
Future of Work • Series B • New York, NY
Conveyor raises $12.5M led by Cervin Ventures
Risk / Security • Series A • San Francisco, CA
Harbour raises $15M led by Scribble Ventures, The Palmer Company and Jonathan Klein
Future of Work • Series A • San Francisco, CA
Modal raises $16M led by Redpoint
Data / AI / Machine Learning • Series A • New York, NY
Cleanlab raises $25M led by Menlo Ventures and TQ Ventures
Data / AI / Machine Learning • Series A • San Francisco, CA
TileDB raises $34M led by AlleyCorp
Data / AI / Machine Learning • Series B • Cambridge, MA
Prophecy raises $35M led by Insight Partners and SignalFire
Data / AI / Machine Learning • Series B • San Francisco, CA
ScyllaDB raises $43M led by Eight Roads Ventures
Data / AI / Machine Learning • Venture • Palo Alto, CA
Gutsy raises $51M led by YL Ventures and Mayfield
Risk / Security • Seed • Baton Rouge, LA
Arctic Wolf acquires Revelstoke for an Undisclosed Amount
Risk / Security • Acquisition • San Jose, CA
Atlassian acquires Loom for $975M
Collaboration / Productivity • Acquisition • San Francisco, CA