In 1985 I founded the Israel High-Tech and Investment Report. The monthly newsletter focused not only on the technology but on the investment worthiness of the companies described. At the outset there did not seem to be enough material for a 12-page publication. As the years moved on there was more news than space available. Many companies went public and required follow on coverage. As the markets warmed up we created a Model Portfolio of Israeli high-tech companies. Among others it included such stars as CheckPoint and Comverse.
At the end of the 1990s we were busy figuring out the hodgepodge created by the era of the dot.coms. It was a period of gamblers' delight. Some of us even made money. The most difficult period consisted of the three years that followed 2000. The bubbles had burst and we began to concentrate on fundamentals.
In the 1990s Israel's strength in high-tech had grown substantially and companies, once again, began to flourish. Investment funds flowed more freely and even Internet companies were acquiring a following.
Our web site is experiencing a growing following and statistics indicate that in the past twelve months there were more than 400,000 entries.
Perhaps the heroes for the next generation will not be the swinging high-techies but Nobel Prize winners. In case you haven't noticed we have six of them now.
We are celebrating 20 years of publishing the Israel High-Tech and Investment Report. It has been an exciting period in our lives and we hope to continue way into the foreseeable future.
In 1977, I woke up one morning infused with the notion that Israel's future, as an independent nation, would rest on the prowess of its science based industries. Shortly afterward in the International Edition of the Jerusalem Post appeared a series with my articles describing the activities of six science based companies. President Ephraim Katzir, a chemist by profession, urged me to continue to report on Israeli developments in science and technology. Articles penned by me appeared in the Wall Street Journal, Business Week and in many other prestigious publications. Time Magazine chose to interview me. I became a source for information. I published four books and at least one was widely read. Barron's Magazine chose to interview me about Israel's high tech. I had fulfilled the President's directive.