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Coming June 2026
The Network Effect:
The Origins of Israeli High Tech
The book is the first to cover the fascinating and unlikely development of the most successful high tech hub outside Silicon Valley. The narrative uncovers the origins of the industry in late 19th century Europe and moves through time to include the first computer in the Middle East built in Israel in the early 1950s to the first Israeli startups in the 1960s, the entry to Israel of the world's leading technology companies in the 1970s and the startup boom of the late 1980s and 1990s. What makes this account particularly unique is a focus on the relationships between Israel and the world, Israelis and non Israelis as the key to success.
Reviews
"Valman does an admirable job detailing and explaining the overlooked and underappreciated reasons Israel's tech sector has boomed, providing crucial lessons for startups, business and government officials, investors and others."
-Gregory Zuckerman, special correspondent Wall Street Journal and author of The Man Who Solved The Market.
"From homegrown Israeli R&D to raising foreign venture capital, and the realization that marketing and business is essential for success, The Network Effect is a well written overview of the journey of maturation of the Israeli high-tech industry".
-Danna Azrieli, chairwoman of the Azrieli Group
"In his history of the development of Israeli high tech, Meir Valman describes the people and institutions who made it happen. Valman shows how the process began before the state of Israel was declared and was able to develop thanks to close connections with those abroad."
-David Siegel, former CEO of Meetup and Investopedia, author of “Decide & Conquer”
"Fascinating, exhaustingly researched and rivetingly written, Meir Valmin explains how and why Israel became the Startup Nation, a world leader in innovation and entrepreneurship. For students of Israel history, admirers of Israeli high-tech, and the founders of cutting-edge startups, this is an essential book."
-Michael Oren, historian and former Israeli ambassador to the US
“The world knows that Israel has emerged as a high tech power from a kneeling start some 70 years ago. Meir Valman explains this phenomenon in meticulous detail. He combines compelling historical narrative, highlighting the role of key individuals from Chaim Weizmann to Uzia Galil by way of Fred Adler, with sector-by-sector analysis of how Israel reached the frontier across the spectrum of digital technologies.”
-Prof. Bill Janeway, successful venture capitalist, scholar of the economics of innovation at Cambridge University, and author of Doing Capitalism in the Innovation Economy (2nd ed., 2018)
Contact
Meirvalmanwriter@gmail.com
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