1Point 8 – Israeli high-tech industry’s unique new initiative for investment in Israeli society

The high-tech world is taking responsibility and giving back: 1point8 – ‎https://1point8.net/  a unique initiative established by a group of senior figures in Israeli high-tech from diverse fields, supported by Amnon Shashua, Gigi Levy-Weiss, Assaf Harlap, Eli Wurtman, Gil Sheratzky, and many more.

In this first-of-a-kind social initiative, every worker in the Israeli high-tech industry is invited to join the 1point8 community and set aside 1.8% of the shares or options they hold to donate to social organizations. Every few months, the community will hold a Demo Day for all the social projects with measurable goals and innovative thinking. The leaders of the organizations will present their vision to the community (TED Talk-style), and the participants will vote on the allocation of resources for the upcoming quarter on a designated platform.

1point8 is open to everyone at any stage, whether an old or new employee, company founder, HR manager, or programmer. Similar to the initiative created by Bill Gates and Warren Buffet, members will join by signing a pledge – a non-legal document in which investors state that they will give 1.8% of their options to the 1point8 fund. Upon signing, investors gain membership to the community and can take part in the decisions on fund allocation.

The initiative is led by senior executives in the Israel high-tech community, among them Yaniv Rivlin, CEO of Bird; Yael Wissner-Levy, VP Communications at Lemonade; Tal Kirschenbaum, Melio; Dror Spindel and Orre Tendler, business development managers at Monday and Similarweb, respectively; Dona Raz Levy, Public Policy Manager at Google; Omer Zerahia, founder at MSICS; Stav Erez, partner at LABS/02; Ben Kaminski, partner at Target Global, Eran Haggiag, founder of ClearX, and more.

The initiative has the professional support of two main entities: Start-Up Nation Central, led by CEO Avi Hasson, which leverages the organization’s deep ties in the Israeli technological ecosystem as well as in the non-profit and social investment sector to closely monitor the 1point8 initiative as a founding partner. The Social Solidarity Foundation is a public benefit organization established by Anat and Amnon Shashua. The foundation assists in the development and growth of thousands of small businesses in Israel while emphasizing solidarity and innovation.

Keshet (Donor-Advised Fund) and leading philanthropists will provide professional guidance in selecting social ventures for investment. The organizations that receive the funds will be required to meet measurable and clear goals, to ensure that every shekel will have the greatest impact on Israeli society.

Background:

Israel is home to 16% of the global tech unicorns. In the past year alone, Israeli companies have raised $24 billion, twice as much as companies across Europe, and that is only part of the total equity potential, which is growing rapidly. The surge in new high-tech wealth opens up countless opportunities and potential capital that can be diverted to creating dramatic social change.