The turbulent year of 2023 significantly impacted the Israeli tech sector, with the government’s attempted judicial overhaul and the ongoing conflict with Hamas in Gaza leaving a lasting imprint on the local ecosystem. Merav Bahat, former Microsoft GM and the founder and CEO of cloud security remediation startup Dazz, is a rare female chief executive in the predominantly male-dominated tech sector.

She has emerged as a prominent spokesperson for the local community, asserting that Israeli tech firms can rise to the occasion despite disruptions like staffing shortages due to widespread military mobilizations. “The need for cybersecurity products has never been this high,” she told Fortune magazine in November 2023.

In her interviews with CNN’s “Quest Means Business”, Fortune, Bloomberg, AFP and others, Bahat has strongly underscored the resilience of the startup nation and its ability to swiftly overcome hurdles and turn challenges into opportunities.