• Vanilla Vida

  Led · Equity · Aug 2025

  Vanilla Vida is a vertically integrated Ag & FoodTech company that produces sustainable vanilla through controlled and patented growing and curing methods. The company delivers high-quality vanilla beans in a reliable and sustainable manner. It is starting with vanilla, but its core technologies can be applied to other crops and natural ingredients. Vanilla Vida intends to use the funds to expand operations and its development efforts. The company is led by CEO Ilanit Bar-Zeev and was co-founded by Oren Zilberman, Shlomy Kadosh and Dr. Raz Krizevski. The company is based in Yesod Hama’ala, Israel. Vanilla Vida builds vertical-integration and supply-chain technology to grow natural vanilla in controlled environments, including smart farms and climate-controlled greenhouses. The company aims to stabilize quantity, quality, and cost amid Madagascar supply instability and climate impacts that have pushed many to synthetic vanilla. Originating from a 2019 research experiment and officially launching in 2020 at The Kitchen accelerator, Vanilla Vida ran pilots in 2021 with more than 20 companies and reports demand exceeds its current capacity. Management is using new capital to push deeper into R&D and technology, expand laboratory facilities (starting in Israel and then the U.S. and Europe), and hire while engaging large food manufacturers and flavor houses. Following its Series A, the company plans to scale facilities and continue working with existing farmers in vanilla-growing countries such as Uganda and Papua New Guinea. Leadership expects to increase volume in 2023 with visible changes to the vanilla supply chain beginning in 2024 or 2025.

• Heka

  Led · Series A · Jul 2025

  Heka builds an analyst-grade AI engine that analyzes publicly available web data to produce structured outputs—fraud indicators, updated contact details, and contextual risk signals—enabling detection of synthetic profiles, alias use, and behavioral anomalies. The platform constructs digital profiles to reveal reputational exposure and support faster, more confident decisions across fraud mitigation, account management, and recovery workflows. Heka’s AI agent is designed to operate beyond static files, scores, and blacklists, processing large volumes of web data to surface actionable intelligence. In a recent deployment with a global payment processor, Heka’s engine caught 65% of account takeover losses without disrupting legitimate users. Its technology is already integrated into workflows at leading banks, payment processors, and pension funds. The team includes founders Rafael Berber, Ishay Horowitz, and Idan Bar-Dov, alongside intel analysts, data scientists, and domain experts in fraud, credit, and compliance.

No current team members are available.