Nielsen Innovate

Esther Barak Landes is a founding partner at Alma Ventures and board director for multiple public and private companies with over 25 years of experience in Israel's technology and investment sectors. She has invested in and partnered with more than 70 startups across deep tech, climate tech, AI, fintech, biotech, and digital health, and serves on investment, audit, and compensation committees. Landes holds an Israel Innovation license and currently leads PROWOMAN while serving as a fellow at the Aspen Institute.

Guy Klajman is founder and general manager of eMonetization Ltd, a global online distribution and monetization optimization platform. With 23 years of technology sector experience across sales, marketing, business development, and strategy, he has held commercial leadership roles at companies spanning AI, fintech, gaming, cryptocurrency, and e-commerce, including positions as chief revenue officer at COTI.io and vice president of business development at Babylon. He is a four-time startup competition winner, mentor at Nielsen Innovate and Techstars, and holds a law degree from the Israeli Bar and a B.A. in IT.

Rinat Sherzer is an Assistant Professor at Parsons School of Design and a PhD candidate at RMIT whose work spans transdisciplinary design, social innovation, and biotech engineering. She founded Of Course Global, a social innovation design lab serving clients including Capital One, Pfizer, and the Swiss Government, and previously co-founded the real-tech startup fisbo. With over 15 years of experience at the intersection of technology, human-centered design, and social impact, Sherzer holds a bachelor's degree in biotechnology engineering from Ben-Gurion University and an MFA in design for social innovation from SVA, and has taught or guest lectured at institutions including Harvard, Columbia University, and NYU.

Dov Yarkoni is CEO of Nielsen Innovate, where he leads investment strategy and deal flow, drawing on over 15 years of experience building internet businesses. He previously served as SVP of Business Development and Sales at Matomy Media Group and VP of Client Services at Amadesa, where he also founded and led the company's US operations, and earlier directed the Consumer Division at Deltathree. He holds a Bachelor of Technology in Industrial Engineering and Management from Shenkar.

Liron Langer serves as Chief Investment Officer at Nielsen Innovate, where he handles commercial due diligence of applicant companies and mentors teams building tech products. He has over 20 years of high-tech experience in leadership roles across enterprise and consumer markets, including CEO, VP Products, VP Business Development, and CTO positions. His prior roles include EMEA GM at Portnox, VP Business Development at RADVISION, VP Products at Verint, Founder and CEO of CellGlide, CTO at Vocaltec, and a team lead position at Amdocs, along with six years at MAMRAM, the IDF Computer Center.

Arie Shen is the founder of Madas Inc. and serves as a board member and fractional executive. With more than a decade of experience as an executive manager for publicly traded companies, he has managed P&L operations and professional services across industries including high technology, biotechnology, aerospace, healthcare, financial services, and manufacturing. His background spans business development, sales strategy, market penetration planning, and operations across North America, Europe, and EMEA regions, with client experience that includes Fortune 1000 companies, government agencies, and organizations across B2B, B2C, and nonprofit sectors.

Aviv Hod founded STRYNC and has held roles across media and technology sectors, including positions in radio, television, newspapers, and web publishing. He has developed expertise in content editing and management, video-on-demand operations, and business development for high-tech startups. His specializations include business development, XR consulting, video and sound editing, and directing.

Bharat Sajnani is Senior Vice President of Corporate Development at Datadog, where he leads initiatives across AI startups, hyperscalers, product strategy, and AI tooling, reporting directly to the CEO. Previously, he held leadership roles at Square in payments and fintech products, and at Blackstone and Nielsen in technology investments and M&A. He holds degrees from the University of Texas in electrical and computer engineering and an MBA from Harvard Business School, with early-stage startup experience as a founding engineer at NeonYoyo.

Eli Israeli is an experienced executive in high-tech with senior roles spanning marketing, R&D, and business development. His career includes work at Scitex during the early Electronic Prepress industry, founding Elronet as Israel's first commercial Internet service provider, and management roles at Israeli startups including Optibase, Iota, and Shira. He currently invests in Israeli high-tech startups and has held positions across Europe, the USA, and Japan.

Esther Loewy has over two decades of experience working with technology startups, institutional investors, and global enterprises. She founded Upround Ventures and previously co-founded the advisory firm Bootcamp Ventures, and earlier led strategic communications and investor relations for theglobe.com through its IPO. She holds an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University and has mentored with IBM's AlphaZone and IDC's Entrepreneurship Program.

Gaby Rosenberg is a senior executive with over 40 years of experience in international media, news gathering, content production, and video distribution across digital platforms. He served as President and CEO of Jerusalem Capital Studios Group, Israel's leading private television production company, until 2010, and subsequently founded G.R. Business Management & Development Ltd, which provides senior management consulting and investment banking services to the media industry. He currently serves on the board of directors of the Jewish Broadcasting Service and the Jerusalem Press Club.

Gal Ringel is co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer of Mine, an autonomous privacy AI governance platform serving enterprises including Edgewell, Wiz, HelloFresh, and Ford. He previously served as the company's CEO for 6.5 years. Ringel's background includes six years in Israel's intelligence corps focused on cybersecurity and 4.5 years as a venture capital investor, during which he deployed approximately $50 million across more than 20 early and late-stage Israeli companies.

Hadar Tal is a senior executive with more than 30 years of experience in chief revenue officer, executive vice president, and vice president roles across sales, marketing, product management, and business development. He has served as a co-founder and led organizations in enterprise, consumer packaged goods, retail, over-the-top media, and telecommunications sectors across EMEA, APAC, and North America. He currently works as an independent consultant providing advisory services in sales and business development.

Hani Yakobi is the senior accountant and payroll manager at Nielsen Innovate and its portfolio companies, with more than 20 years of experience in finance. She previously held a similar role at Ultrashape Ltd, a medical device company, and worked as a payroll manager and bookkeeper at other technology companies, developing knowledge of OCS (Ministry of Economy) accounting requirements. She holds Israeli CPA payroll certification and a senior accounting certification from the College of Management in Haifa.

Illi Edry is a business and marketing strategist with experience across venture capital, corporate leadership, and startup advisory roles. He previously served as a partner at JVP VC with investment committee responsibilities and board positions at portfolio companies, and held senior positions at Microsoft and Deutsche Telekom. He founded Exitory in 2012, a business growth and storytelling agency for technology startups that has supported clients in raising hundreds of millions in funding and achieving multiple acquisitions.

Johan Sjöstrand is an executive with over 30 years of experience in management consulting and professional information services, primarily serving the fast-moving consumer goods industry. At NIQ, he led commercial operations spanning $2 billion in revenues across 80+ markets. His background includes defining corporate strategy and executing acquisitions and dispositions across complex, geographically diverse business operations.

Liat Aaronson is a Partner at venture capital and growth equity firm Marker LLC, working primarily out of its Herzliya, Israel office. She previously served as Executive Director of the Zell Entrepreneurship Program at The Interdisciplinary Center (IDC) in Herzliya, and before 2005 practiced corporate law and M&A at the Israeli firm Naschitz, Brandes & Co. She holds a B.A. from UC Berkeley, an LL.B. and MBA from Tel Aviv University, and an LL.M. in European law from the University of Leiden.

Marvin Liao is an investor and former operator who currently serves as an Investment Committee Member at Sukna Ventures and runs Sukna Holdings, an investment holding company. Previously a Partner at 500 Startups and Diaspora VC, he has invested in and worked with over 470 pre-seed and seed-stage startups across digital media, enterprise SaaS, fintech, and other sectors. He spent 10.5 years at Yahoo! in executive roles spanning sales, business development, ad operations, and marketing across multiple regions, most recently managing a business unit that achieved 100% year-over-year revenue growth.

Or Shinhertz is Head of Group Innovation at Egged Transportation Company Ltd, where he focuses on innovation strategy for the transportation sector. Previously, he served as Head of Strategy, Business Development and Operations at Oriient IndoorGPS, where he scaled the company from seed stage to millions in annual recurring revenue, establishing teams and launching in-store navigation across 1,600 retail locations. He has also held roles at Johnson Controls/Tyco managing commercial opportunities and open innovation programs, served as COO of Nielsen Innovate, and managed large-scale projects for government clients. Shinhertz holds an MA in Legal Studies from Bar-Ilan University and a BA in Business Management & Finance from The College of Management Academic Studies.

Patricia Tiram leads marketing, events, operations, and HR at Nielsen Innovate. She previously held a similar role at Terra Venture Partners and the Machava Tova Fund. She holds a Bachelor in Social Sciences from Bar-Ilan University and speaks French, English, and Hebrew.

Roni Michaely is the Rudd Family professor of finance at Cornell University's Johnson Graduate School of Management, where he teaches corporate and entrepreneurial finance at the Cornell-Tech program in NYC, and is affiliated with the Interdisciplinary Center (IDC). His research covers corporate finance, capital markets, and valuation, with a current focus on conflicts of interest in capital markets, corporate payout policy, and securities valuation. He previously served as a director of the Israeli Securities Authority (1998-2003), chaired the Tachlit investment committee, and is an associate editor for the Journal of Finance.

Sheizaf Rafaeli holds a B.A. from Haifa University, an M.A. from Ohio State University, and an M.A. and Ph.D. from Stanford University. He is founding director of the Center for Internet Research (InfoSoc) at the University of Haifa and former head of its Graduate School of Management, having earlier led the Information Systems area at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem's business school. His research focuses on computers as media and the social implications of communication technologies, and he has written columns for Israeli publications including Globes, Calcalist, and YNet.

Tal Catran is an Israeli consultant and keynote speaker with over 10 years of experience in startup ecosystems and accelerator development. He has established more than 20 tech accelerators globally since 2012, graduated over 1,000 startups across 20 countries, and served as a Navy Commander for 13 years. Catran provides advisory services to governments, municipalities, and companies, and speaks at international conferences on topics including entrepreneurship, leadership, and ecosystem building.

Timor Gordon operates an eCommerce and Digital Retail Advisory practice serving brands, companies, and entrepreneurs. He also creates the Commersation Podcast and advises on digital retail technologies and in-store digital integration.

Yakir Marziano is a Principal at Nielsen Innovate, where he handles technological due diligence of applicant companies and supports teams in building tech products. He previously worked as a Full Stack Developer at SalesPredict, a predictive analytics startup, and served for 4.5 years as a software developer in an IDF intelligence unit, gaining experience in network protocols, data mining, geolocation, and cybersecurity. He holds a B.Sc. in Mathematics with extended divisions in Economics and Philosophy from Tel Aviv University.

Yossi Konijn is a co-founder and partner at Investable Solutions, a firm that designs and operates startup acceleration programs connecting innovation ecosystems between Silicon Valley and markets in East Asia and the Middle East. With experience guiding entrepreneurs and organizations since 2007, he provides strategic advisory services including corporate innovation program management, cross-border expansion strategy for startups, and financial modeling. His client work spans South Korea, Japan, Israel, and the United States, with particular focus on MedTech companies entering international markets.