Last month, some of the world’s top entrepreneurs under the age of 30 took four days off from their busy worlds to gather and experience Israel.
For the very first time, debuted here in Israel, Forbes held a Forbes Under 30 Global Summit, inviting roughly 200 entrepreneurs from the U.S., Europe, Asia, and the Middle East/Africa. As Randall Lane, editor of Forbes, explained, the summit “represents a true crossroads, a meeting of people who will help run every field in every country for the next half-century.” The world leaders first met in an opening party in Tel Aviv before four days of panels, performances, product demos, keynotes, and tours of a few of Israel’s most alluring cultural treasures.
Young, inspired, and already making waves of difference in the world, the crowd of young adults each lead incredibly diverse types of dynamic lives, with remarkable backstories and far-reaching goals.
© Erez Uzir
I spoke with CEOs who haven’t spent more than a couple weeks in one country for over three years, Russian video game designers and American business owners. In a conversation with a Dutch venture capital partner, he described his genuine exhilaration for his work, constantly surrounded by passionate people with innovative ideas. While talking with an Israeli girl working for Dor Ledor, an NGO for elderly care that aims to strengthen inter-generational connections, a Taiwanese guy who recently returned from exploring 30 different volunteer programs in South America let us in on his recent travels which inspired him to stick himself at the top of the volunteerism sector in Taiwan. Now he's doing venture capital work for emerging charitable organizations, “I wanted to help more people create quality programs.”
© Erez Uzir
The vibe of the opening party felt like an eerily young, yet highly professional networking event; the beautiful beachside venue filled with 20-somethings dressed in business casual attire discussing their companies and latest projects, passing out business cards and connecting on LinkedIn. After an hour or so though, most tired of their business-minded impulses, steering dozens of conversations to topics like, “so what’s it like living in Israel?”
Their tour guided them through events and activities in Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, the Dead Sea, Masada, and other tourist hot spots. So between discussion regarding their companies, projects, and passions, the room rang with lots of variants of: “I heard the Masada hike is brutal.” “But the desert party the night before sounds sick!” “How hard do you think climbing Masada would be on no sleep?” After reassuring them that they won’t be the first or last to climb Masada hungover, the world’s most innovative 20-something year olds, ground-breaking conquerors of world’s business sectors, anxiously inquired about the majesty of Jerusalem and wonders of the Dead Sea.
The next morning, we received start-up advice from Waze co-founder Uri Levine, a keynote speech and a couple “co-founders therapy” sessions from world-renowned sex therapist and Independence war veteran Ruth Westheimer, and a large variety of other interesting Israeli and international speakers.
© Erez Uzir
The week’s events marked the third event Forbes hosted in Israel. When asked why Forbes chose Israel to debut their mega event, Lane referred to the country’s “incredible entrepreneurial culture” and its past success bringing worlds together hosting regional summits.
He explained that there’s striking and empowering going on in Israel’s innovation sector, and Forbes wanted to bring the world’s top young leaders to see and engage with the extraordinary scene here themselves. “We recognize that there is only one global economy… these are people who don’t see borders, they see opportunities.”
