I am currently co-founding partner of an early-stage investment fund called Aviv Growth Partners. Based in Boston and Tel Aviv, AGP invests in Israeli founders who are ready to commercialize and scale in the U.S. To assist those entrepreneurs with their U.S. strategy, we have developed relationships with hundreds of Fortune 1000 companies; we use those relationships to de-risk investments, and to develop pilots, proof of concepts, and commercial relationships for our portfolio.
Previously, I spent 20+ years in the digital media business. For example, I co-founded a data and information service with Scott Kirsner (from Wired and Fast Company) called Innovation Leader. IL serves 30,000+ innovation, strategy, and R&D executives at the largest companies in the world, including Boeing, Nike, Starbucks, Disney, P&G, Exxon-Mobil, and others. I remain a member of IL’s Board of Directors.
I have also co-founded a B2B media company called Foreign Investment Watch, which provides coverage at the intersection of national security and foreign investment. That property was launched to cover the impact of global national security regimes, including the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (known as CFIUS).
Previously, I had co-founded FanTab, an early sentiment-analysis platform that tracked consumer confidence in real-time. We launched by tracking "fan confidence" in professional sports teams, and were able to quantify and chart sentiment in real-time like a stock quote. The company, which filed a patent for real-time sentiment collection, was acquired by a division of Advance Publications. They incorporated the technology into their sports offerings at The Sporting News and AOL and elsewhere.
Prior to that, I co-founded a global financial information service called Compliance Week, which was acquired by Haymarket Media in London. That service has become one of the largest publishers of regulatory compliance information in the world, and features a suite of data, event and publishing assets. While launching and growing that business, I got the pleasure to work with extraordinary leaders, including former SEC Chairman Harvey Pitt.
Earlier, I co-founded and sold a venture-backed media company called Newmediary that is now part of ViacomCBS. That company also filed some interesting patents (focused mostly on digital B2B interactions) and licensed its platform to the largest online publishers back in the day, including ZDNet, CNET, IDG, etc.
Before that, I was on the founding team of The Boston Globe's pioneering and award-winning Web site, Boston.com. At the time (early ‘90s), we were part of The New York Times Company Digital. We brought nearly every major institution in Boston online for the first time, including the Museum of Fine Arts (pictured), the Boston Symphony Orchestra, the Boston Ballet, the Boston Marathon, Reebok’s first Web site, and others. Bill Gates said we were one of the only newspapers to get it right.
I got my start in the media business at an investment of Fidelity Capital, the private-equity arm of Fidelity Investments, which had acquired 100+ newspapers in the Greater Boston area.
In addition to those companies, I have funded and/or advised several entrepreneurs and startups connected to Israel, including the augmented-intelligence platform AuI; virality prediction platform Vierally, and Zone190, the innovative basketball training device launched by “The Jewish Jordan” Tamir Goodman.
I live in the suburbs of Boston with my wife Kathy, who has a PhD in Psychology and deep expertise in nonprofit board governance, and who works with executives on leadership matters. We have three kids: Sophie (25), Mayta (23), and Zev (21), all proud graduates of The Rashi School and Gann Academy.