In recent weeks, an increasing number of investors in top-tier US funds have been introduced to an intriguing investment opportunity: joining a future financing round for a cyber company that has not yet been founded. Although its founders are currently employed elsewhere, the venture is already generating major interest among industry leaders.
The yet-to-be-named company will be founded by Idan Nurick, CEO of cyberattack company Paragon and a business partner of former Prime Minister Ehud Barak. Nurick is scheduled to step down from Paragon in two months. He has already announced his resignation after being asked to remain with the company until the end of 2026. He will be joined eventually by his co-founder at Paragon, Brig. Gen. (Res.) Ehud Schneorson, formerly the commander of the elite Israeli army intelligence Unit 8200 - though the timing for this move has not yet been set.
Two years ago, Nurick and Schneorson, along with Barak, sold Paragon to US defense-tech investment fund AE for $900 million. AE has announced that Paragon and REDLattice will merge with the Nasdaq-listed SPAC Bold Eagle at a valuation of $1.25 billion. According to the announcement, the combined companies produce $267 million in annual revenue.
Investor community buzzing
Nurick told AE’s executives of his desire to launch a new company and leave the firm, receiving approval to pursue this initiative alongside his current role. He worked on recruiting an additional partner and securing investors who are committed to backing the future venture with a valuation in the hundreds of millions of dollars, including Sequoia Capital’s Sean Maguire and former NBA star Omri Casspi’s Swish Fund.
Nurick’s former partner ultimately decided not to join him from the outset, and instead, a senior military officer currently in the process of transitioning to civilian life emerged as a candidate: Lieutenant Colonel D., an officer in a technological unit. It was recently revealed that Lt. Col. D. holds frozen shares in a venture capital fund named Netz-Gaia Capital, which has invested in Israeli cybersecurity companies including Decart, a firm that was nearly sold to Anthropic for $6 billion.
Lt. Col. D. recently began his pre-discharge leave and has received numerous job offers. However, many investors evaluating the potential investment in Nurick’s new cyberattack company believe D. might join as the firm’s technology partner.
But *Globes* has learned that D.’s involvement is not yet finalized, and Nurick is still seeking additional partners with whom to launch the company. In the meantime, the mention of Nurick’s name and the possibility of D. joining have stirred excitement within the investment community, particularly among US funds active in the Israeli cyber sector, some of which have offered to participate in follow-on funding rounds at a projected future valuation of $1.5 billion.
The target: IDF Unit 8200 veterans
Lt. Col. D. is a graduate of the Israeli army’s Talpiot program who went to study at Stanford University, sponsored by the IDF about four years ago. There, he founded the venture capital fund Netz-Gaia alongside his fellow students: Lia Weiner-Tsur, who is a partner in the fund, and Alon Dror, who later became the CEO of defense-tech unicorn Kela. Over the years, investors in Netz Capital have included US funds such as Sequoia and Greylock, as well as Israel’s Vintage Investment Partners. D. subsequently returned to military service, though his shares in the venture capital fund were frozen.
Sequoia, one of Silicon Valley’s giant funds, known for being an early investor in Google, Apple, and Cisco, has repeatedly bet in recent years on Israeli cybersecurity companies founded by 8200 veterans, backing them from their earliest stages. It was a cornerstone investor in the $60 million initial funding round of the unicorn Cyera, back when its founders, Yotam Segev and Tamar Bar-Ilan, had just been discharged from the military.
It also led the $20 million seed round for Decart, founded by 8200 veterans, and was an early investor in Wiz, which was sold for $32 billion to Google. The fund partners most closely associated with Israeli investments - Sean Maguire and Israeli-born Dean Meyer - have made it their mission to reach out to any Israeli cybersecurity company with the potential to lead new categories in the future.
The second investor who has already committed in principle to the future company is Omri Casspi. Earlier this month, he announced the raising of a third fund for Swish totaling $250 million. Since striking out on his own in recent years, Casspi has invested in companies that have emerged as promising unicorns.
Many of these have been cybersecurity firms such as Wiz, Tenable, and PointFive as well as fast growing AI companies like Israel’s Wonderful and US-based Cognition. This success is due, in part, to the close ties Casspi has forged with top-tier investors such as Peter Thiel (Founders Fund), Joe Lonsdale (8VC), and Joshua Kushner (Thrive Capital).
A similar scenario unfolded at Decart, a portfolio company of Netz-Gaia. Orian Leitersdorf, brother of the company’s CEO, Dean Leitersdorf, recently completed his military service in a technological unit. On his discharge, he immediately became a cofounder and shareholder at Decart. The cases of Leitersdorf and Lt. Col. D. illustrate the enthusiasm generated among partners at US funds when the names of active-duty officer are linked to future ventures. Although these officers have no direct contact with investors, the mere association with civilian initiatives, even if currently on hold, could alter the dynamics of their ongoing interactions with others, as they plan their future transition to civilian life.
A statement on behalf of Idan Nurick read: "Nurick is spearheading an examination into founding an AI company, though no such company has yet been formed. Needless to say, every step has been and will continue to be coordinated with REDLattice and AE. There is significant interest in the prospective company and a desire among leading entities to invest in it, but no official investment has been finalized yet. Once the company is established and funding is secured - expected towards the end of the year - details can be shared."
No response has been forthcoming from Lt. Col. D. or the IDF Spokesperson’s Unit.
Published by Globes, Israel business news - en.globes.co.il - on September 28, 2026.
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