Israel: second largest concentration of startups per capita following Silicon Valley

Jonathan Medved is the founder of Israel Seed , a Jerusalem based VC , and also serves as the CEO of Vringo, an Israeli startup developing video ringtones. Jon, a California native, talked to the Washington Post about Israel’s unique tech industry and drew similarities between Israel and Silicon Valley.

Israel is a small country with seven million people, mostly unfriendly neighbors, and relatively high taxes. So why does it have the second-largest concentration of startups per capita after Silicon Valley? Jon says the two places are more similar than one would think.

• Both Sillicon Valley and Israel share energized entrepreneurial spirit, informal work atmosphere, pioneering risk-taking ethos and a large number of high-quality immigrants.
• 400 Israeli start ups emerge annually, more than any European country.
• The number of funded startups has doubled since 2000.
• Next to the US, Israel has more stocks traded on NASDAQ than any other country. High tech (which is minimally vulnerable to terrorism and political instability) accounts to 50% of Israel’s exports – about $15BN annually.
• Israeli companies have easier access to Asian markets, since they are not perceived as a commercial threat.

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Jon Meved of Vringo speaks to the Washington Post:

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