“The startups in our Israeli portfolio serve global markets, which acts as a stabilizing effect. They have managed to survive to date through the October 7th shock and unprecedented period. We were able to stabilize,” explained Oren Junger, managing partner at Notable Capital (formerly GGV). “With employees around the world, our management team has experience operating through uncertainty, and we look forward to continuing to innovate and strive for growth.”
In 2023, GGV Capital announced that it would split into two independent partnerships. They will operate as separate companies and separate brands. The US team investing in Israel announced a new name and brand: Notable Capital in March 2024.
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Oren Junger in Notable Capital
(Photo: Noah Berger)
“What stood out during my recent visit to Tel Aviv was the resilience and agility of businesses as they look to navigate the challenges of 2023,” he added. “Israeli startups have established a reputation for best-in-class innovation.”
VC fund ID
Fund name: Notable capitals
Total assets: $4.2 billion
major partners: Glenn Solomon, Managing Partner; Hans Tung, Managing Partner. Oren Junger, Managing Partner.Jeff Richards, Managing Partner
Latest investments in Israel: Gem Security – Notable Capital (formerly GGV Capital US) leads Series A in July 2023
Selected portfolio companies: Descope, Gem Security, Monte Carlo, Orca Security, Pecan, Torq, Vdoo, Wing Security, Snappy, KHealth, Hippo
From your point of view, was 2023 a “lost year” or can the events that occurred during this period be seen as a springboard for opportunities in 2024?
We do not believe that 2023 is a “lost” year. While this year has been challenging in many ways, we believe our founders and team have shown resilience and adapted quickly. Through disruption, they continue to deliver value to customers on an accelerated trajectory.
Which do you think is more important for the current state of Israeli technology: global processes and the influence of the world economy, or local events, from political protests to states of war?
Most of the Israeli technology companies in our portfolio have offices in Israel and the United States, and employees and customers around the world, so they are affected by local and global events. What stood out during my recent visit to Tel Aviv was the resilience and agility of businesses as they look to overcome the challenges of 2023.
Has the prestige of Israel’s high-tech industry been tarnished, or are the protests and war just “minor difficulties” from which the industry can recover within months?
We believe that Israeli startups have established a reputation for best-in-class innovation, particularly in critical areas such as cybersecurity and developer lifecycle, and will continue to do so. For example, just a few days ago, we announced the successful acquisition of Gem Security, one of Notable’s Israeli portfolio companies, continuing his incredible M&A run in Israel.
How much effort did it take to maintain the fund’s standing among investors in 2023? What were their main concerns and how did you address them?
Building a company is not a straight line diagonally to the right. Companies and markets are constantly changing. We have a very long-term view, and so do our investors. Our partners have been working together for an average of 13 years, giving investors and entrepreneurs great confidence in our ability to weather rocky waves like the one we saw in 2023. As a result, our team works with founders to adjust for market uncertainty. For example, throughout 2023, we worked with founders to ensure they had enough runway to withstand challenges and hardships along their journey.
How are you preparing for the most pessimistic scenarios, such as the war in Gaza continuing until 2024, the opening of a new front in the north, and further cuts in government support for high technology?
The startups in our Israeli portfolio serve global markets, which acts as a stabilizing effect. They have managed to maintain stability through shock and unprecedented times from October 7th to today. With employees around the world, our management team has experience operating through uncertainty and we look forward to continuing to innovate and grow. The Notable team takes a long-term view and has built unique operational capabilities to support the development and growth of the companies in its portfolio.
Did you raise money for an existing fund or a new fund in 2023? What are your expectations for 2024 in this regard?
Last year, GGV Capital announced it would split into two independent partnerships that would operate as separate companies and separate brands. The separation is complete, and the US team investing in Israel announced a new name and brand: Notable Capital in March 2024.
How many investments did you make in 2023? How does it compare to 2022?
Notable Capital made approximately 14 investments in 2023 and 21 investments in 2022. The company made more than twice as many new investments in 2023 as it did in 2022. The pace is likely to pick up even more in 2024 as data, cybersecurity, cloud infrastructure, and fintech continue to gain momentum. , A.I.
In your view, will the transaction value and/or number in 2024 be similar to 2023 or 2021-22?
Notable Capital’s investment pace is more likely to be closer to 2022 than 2023, especially when it comes to new investments.
Which high-tech areas will you focus on next year? Which areas will maintain their prominence and which areas will become less attractive?
Notable Capital focuses on investing in cloud infrastructure, business and consumer applications. Within these categories, we expect to see growth and new innovations in data, AI stacks, and developer lifecycles, as well as continued interest in cybersecurity companies where data privacy is a top priority. On the application side, we see opportunities emerging in real-time financial decision-making, embedded fintech for commerce, and applications for efficiency and technology adoption in small and medium-sized businesses. The transformative role of AI will be seen in every sector.
Which type of company is more likely to attract attention from VC funds this year: early stage rounds or advanced rounds?
AI is likely to absorb the lion’s share of the funding pie at every stage, making it the outlier that continues to see rising valuations. Late-stage companies that demonstrate strong business fundamentals and efficient ARR growth will be in high demand. Companies with low discipline may find it more difficult to obtain financing. Interest in early-stage companies remains strong, but these companies will face significant competition as investors flock to AI in general. While 2023 was a good-sized year, there is optimism for 2024, especially as public markets begin to open up.
What changes will you make in your approach to evaluating startup investments next year compared to the past two years? What practices will you abandon and what criteria will you demand from founders going forward? ?
The Notable Capital team is very team-oriented and does not anticipate any major changes to our sourcing and due diligence processes, which may differ from some other venture investors. We first identify areas of opportunity where we have significant experience and networks. We find founders and entrepreneurs who share our enthusiasm for this opportunity and invest in what they’re building. Our diligent process allows for one-on-one meetings and technology reviews with both investment and platform teams, so founders can quickly learn about us and understand where and how they can add value. We can learn about the company, their vision, and the company. How they work – often in a very limited time frame. You can also leverage sector-specific operator networks to dig deeper into your product and how it is perceived by buyers.
Do you think 2024 is likely to see more IPOs, more unicorns, or more notable exits?
In the words of Morgan Stanley, the “low-key” IPO market is over. Market conditions are stabilizing and AI is creating a lot of excitement and momentum. This is being replaced by a new wave of M&A and IPOs.
Can you give me an example of an interesting investment you made in 2023? What is unique about this company or its field?
In July 2023, Notable Capital led a $23 million Series A round in Gem Security, a startup changing the way organizations identify and stop attacks in the cloud. Over the past five to 10 years, enterprises have shifted their infrastructure focus to the cloud, and traditional security operations have not kept up. Gem’s cloud detection and response platform enables security operations teams to be faster, smarter, and better prepared while eliminating the need for teams to spend months building custom solutions.
The best thing about Gem is the team. Our relationship with Gem began when Orca Security’s founder first introduced us to Wing Security’s co-founders, Noam Shaar and Galit Lubetzky, and his second generation in Notable’s portfolio. It can be traced back to many founders. About 18 months ago, Noam and Galit joined forces with a talented team led by serial entrepreneur Arie Zylberstein, a former member of Noam’s Unit 8200 team, and CTO Ron Konigsberg, also a member of the Unit 8200 team. He told us we had to meet the talented team led by him and VP of Product Phil Bruckner. . Their leadership qualities, product vision, and experience in incident response were evident in the company they were building.
Practical and up-to-date tips for founders planning upcoming fundraising efforts:
Tell a compelling story. Be clear about your vision, why it matters, why now, and why you. Especially in volatile markets, it’s important to clearly explain whether a product is a must-have or a nice-to-have.
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Understand what you need and don’t go overboard. Demonstrate operational discipline and efficiency to manage long-term business building.
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Notice how you were able to receive feedback and iterate quickly. We understand that building a startup is not a straight line to the right, and we want to work with founders who can move quickly and grow.
Name two portfolio companies that you think will grow in 2024:
monte carlo
sector: Data observability
Investment amount + total: $236 million raised to date
Founder + Year Founded: Founded in 2019 by Barr Moses (CEO) and Lior Gavish (CTO).
Why this year?
The company is gaining momentum with large customer wins such as JetBlue, Affirm Autotrader, Compass, Cisco, Pepsico, GitLab, Asics, and GoodRx. The rise of AI has made businesses more reliant on data to drive efficiency and innovation. Monte Carlo allows businesses to trust their data and ensure that it can be used in production. We believe this is a major tailwind for both the mid-market and businesses.
Dorata
sector: Continuous security and compliance automation platform
Investment amount + total: Raised $328 million to date
Founder + Year Founded: Founded in 2020 by Adam Markowitz (CEO), Daniel Marashulyan (CTO), and Troy Markowitz (COO).
Why this year?
Trust is becoming the bedrock of every business, B2B and B2C. Drata has grown rapidly in its first three years in business, serving over 4,000 customers and gaining momentum in mid-market and large enterprises. This year, Drata will become a complete GRC platform and launch several major initiatives that will begin to compete with slower-moving incumbents.
