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Israel's startup scene is constantly moving forward and crossing new borders where innovative and revolutionary developments are concerned, with one of the country's prominent strengths being the security field. The world has always looked to Israel for groundbreaking defense and security solutions, with the main emphasis being on cyber defense developments.
One of the newest and most promising players in cyber defense is startup company GlobeKeeper. The company, founded in 2016, aims to deal with one of the most complicated challenges in the world of secure communications – the older generation of communication systems, which are not protected from cyberattacks – and has developed an advanced multichannel communications app for security entities, specialized to meet their needs and offering maximum security.
The Israeli success story of young entrepreneurs Dan Peleg and Shai Slobodov begins with their first acquaintance, at the IDF's elite Unit 81. "I came from Moshav Shilat and my partner Shai came from Lehavim. We're two moshavniks who enlisted to the Intelligence Corps with no background or financial backing, we met there and today we're marketing the system we've developed ourselves to Europe's largest law enforcement agencies. At the end of the day, if that kind of entities are using products developed in Israel, that's an Israeli success".
Q: What advantages does the app have?
"GlobeKeeper's app is installed on smartphones and replaces the old-school radios used by cops, security guards and other security officials", explains Dan Peleg. "It enables them to access all communication channels under one Virtual Command Platform (VCP): multidirectional communication, live streaming video, location sharing, chat, notifications and transferring files, images and videos. The system allows users to monitor, manage, operate and integrate all equipment in real time. Unlike WhatsApp, the communication is secure and cyber-protected using some of the strongest and strictest measures available".
Q: What was the thinking behind the solution's development?
"In the army we did something similar, a system for smartphones for field personnel which, at the time (12 years ago) was a cutting-edge solution in the IDF. After getting out of the army, I was on a trip to the U.S. when I saw that the police and security entities there were using old radios and clunky equipment. The radios operated on different frequencies and did not allow inter-agency collaboration or rich-media communication and could be easily eavesdropped, so I asked myself, why don't they use smartphones? They obviously couldn't use WhatsApp for data transfers because that app is oriented to the civil market and not secure enough; so I thought up the idea of a secure and protected platform that will allow all kinds of communication and data transfer that the security forces need".
A global vote of confidence
In the fundraising round of August 2019, GlobeKeeper raised funds from the TAU Ventures foundation, Zohar and Amit Gilon and Startups 500, and was also awarded a grant by the European Union for the purpose of developing the system for the EU countries. To date, a total of approximately 5 million dollars has been invested in the company.
GlobeKeeper currently has 20 employees and has already sold the product the various security and intelligence entities in Europe, the U.S. and South Africa. The system was initially sold to a Sheriff Department in Florida; then, GlobeKeeper went on to collaborate with Israel's General Security Service, which implemented the system and made it part of its accelerator. Today, the company is undertaking a massive pilot with the Israeli Air Force.
Q: What is the core of the company's occupation today?
"Our core occupation today is the pilot with the Israeli Air Force and several other pilots we're running with the world's largest military and security entities, including the United States".
Q: What is GlobeKeeper's greatest and most important step in recent years?
"We've recently entered the European market when we closed with the company's flagship client – Europe's largest law enforcement agency, that has purchased the system. That was a massive, significant breakthrough. GlobeKeeper is the only company to develop a completely decentralized solution which meets the standards for mission-critical communications in the aspect of data transfer speed, reliability and encryption. Another unique aspect is that we install the system on any smartphone the client chooses, in the 'bring your own device' model".
Q: What does the company see in its future?
"We envision a wider entry into the U.S. market in the future. Our goal is to reach as many people as possible – to help security forces with their important mission of saving as many people as possible".
Q: What part does Israel, or the Israeli mentality, play in your success?
"Military service, especially in the IDF's intelligence units, which provides you with technological capabilities you can't get anywhere else. Then there's the support we've been given by the local ecosystem; Israeli entrepreneurs are always there to help one another and, alongside the GSS's accelerator and the support of Tel Aviv University, have been greatly instrumental in our growth and success".
Adjusting management to the COVID-19 crisis
"During COVID, we had contracts of millions of dollars revoked and had difficulty dealing with our staff. We had to streamline and slash salaries while concurrently trying to find a way to go on selling so that we could go on generating revenues", says Peleg. "So we adjusted the product to the times, when no events were being held and almost no security teams were being deployed on-site, and governments were suspending their policing product procurement budget. We were able to adjust to the private market, where before COVID we'd sold only to the security-military market, and from that point we started selling to private security companies. All these steps allowed us to get through the crisis, and also provided us with added value – an additional market share that we're now working with regularly too".
Dan Peleg
Age: 30
Years of activity: 7 years
Peak achievement: "The grant from the EU and the European client – breaking into Europe".
Motto: "Every failure is a small stepping stone on the way to the great success".
Vision: "For our product to lead the security market and help save the lives of tens of millions of people".
A person who inspires you: "Elon Musk, a mega-entrepreneur who isn't afraid of breaking conventions".
A personal dream you'd like to accomplish: "To go to space".
Israel and I: "Are both fighting for freedom, democracy and the future of high-tech".
Where do you see yourself in 5 years: "Managing the technology department in Israel of one of the major companies in the field".
"We are two moshavniks who enlisted to the Intelligence Corps with no background or financial backing. Today we're marketing the system we've developed ourselves to Europe's largest police entity. At the end of the day, if that kind of entities are using products developed in Israel, that's an Israeli success"
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