On July 8, 2025, Israeli army reservist Zach Bergerson’s startup, SkyHoop, emerged as a leader in Israel’s booming defence tech sector, with its wearable drone-detection device piloted in Ukraine and eyed by the U.S. Department of Defence.
Bergerson, 36, developed SkyHoop, a wearable device that utilises mobile technology to alert troops to aerial threats, addressing soldiers’ reliance on manual drone detection, as Reuters reported. SkyHoop has recently emerged from stealth mode and is currently undergoing trials in Ukraine while also engaging in discussions with the U.S. Department of Defence. Its success highlights the significant growth of Israel’s defence technology sector, as more than one-third of the over 600 startups registered with Startup Nation Central were founded after the Hamas attack on October 7, 2023.
Israeli startups are drawing investment from US and Israeli venture capital firms and looking to build on a growing European market for Israeli defense exports https://t.co/RSswqvXo0j
— Rappler (@rapplerdotcom) July 8, 2025Israel’s defence exports reached a record $14.8 billion in 2024, with 50% going to Europe, up from 35% in 2023, despite boycott calls, per Israel’s Defence Ministry. Reservist Lital Leshem’s Protego Ventures raised $100 million to fund four defence startups by year-end, per Reuters. Companies like Elbit, Rafael, and Israel Aerospace Industries are acquiring startups to scale innovations, per Startup Nation Central.
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The Russia-Ukraine war and NATO’s new 5% GDP defence spending plan, up from 2%, drive demand for Israel’s battle-tested tech. Reserve Brigadier General Yair Kulas noted Europe’s preference for quality despite political backlash over Gaza’s 57,000 deaths, per Reuters. Startups encounter challenges in scaling and regulatory compliance, but the success of Israel’s cyber industry indicates potential. Trump’s Gaza ceasefire, announced in July 2025, has increased investor confidence.
