Made in Jerusalem

Made in Jerusalem (MadeinJLM) functions as a non-profit umbrella organization fostering Jerusalem's startup and tech ecosystem. It specializes in building and connecting the local innovation community, providing resources and a platform for entrepreneurs, and promoting the city's technological advancements. The organization facilitates various initiatives to strengthen the city's position as a vibrant tech hub.

The organization was co-founded by Roy Munin, Uriel Shuraki, and Hanan Brand, with Munin also serving as CEO. Established in the mid-2010s, their foundational insight centered on uniting and empowering Jerusalem's burgeoning tech talent, creating a cohesive community to elevate the city's presence within the global startup landscape. This collective effort aimed to overcome fragmentation and unlock the city's innovation potential.

Made in JLM serves the diverse tech and startup community within Jerusalem, including innovators, entrepreneurs, and established companies. Its overarching mission is to connect, support, and promote this ecosystem, envisioning Jerusalem as a leading hub for technology and innovation on an international scale, attracting talent and investment to the city.

High-Level Overview

Made in JLM ("Made in Jerusalem") is a nonprofit organization founded in 2012 that serves as the umbrella for Jerusalem's tech and startup ecosystem, connecting over 10,000 participants across 50 professional groups and coordinating a forum of 250 stakeholders from industry, academia, and government.[1][2] Its mission centers on economic development and employment by fostering communities, providing resources like job boards, events, grants, and data, and tackling barriers such as talent attraction, office space, and diversity.[2][6] Key sectors include biotech (150 companies as of 2016), internet/mobile/software (250 companies), and cleantech/energy/semiconductors (100 companies), with a track record of supporting over 500 startups and enabling 100+ new ones annually since 2014.[1] The organization has significantly impacted Jerusalem's ecosystem by building infrastructure for events, courses, and networking, helping position the city as a global tech hub—highlighted by TIME Magazine in 2015 as one of the top 5 emerging tech hubs.[1][2]

Origin Story

Made in JLM was founded in 2012 by Hanan Brand (Chairman), Roy Munin (CEO), Uriel Shuraki (VP), with current leadership including Rachel Wagner Rosenzweig (COO) and Yehuda Leibler (CTO).[1][2][4] The idea emerged from founders observing talented friends leaving Jerusalem due to limited tech opportunities, believing the city's legendary potential could support thriving businesses if the ecosystem was connected.[2] Early efforts focused on uniting entrepreneurs, startups, R&D centers, academics, service providers, and investors; by 2014, they launched a blog on local innovation, and by 2015, their work contributed to Jerusalem's recognition as a top tech city.[1][2] Pivotal moments include growing to 4,000+ active members and 500+ database startups by 2016, while incubating sub-communities for developers, marketers, designers, cybersecurity experts, and more.[1]

Core Differentiators

• Community Incubation and Scale: Supports leaders running 50 professional groups, events, courses, and branding for 10,000+ participants, creating talent-reaching infrastructure unlike fragmented local efforts.[2][6]
• Resource Hub: Offers comprehensive tools like job boards, internships, company lists, grants, investor directories, government RFPs, office maps, and fiscal hosting for tech projects—directly aiding startups and talent.[2][6]
• Collaborative Problem-Solving: Forum of 250 stakeholders from industry, government, and philanthropy addresses growth barriers like multinational attraction (e.g., Microsoft, Apple), junior training, office space via new innovation parks, and diversity.[1][2]
• Proven Impact and Recognition: Award-winning with TIME Magazine endorsement; maintains data on 500+ startups and drives 100+ annual launches, emphasizing Jerusalem-specific branding and networking.[1][2]

Role in the Broader Tech Landscape

Made in JLM rides the trend of secondary city tech hubs emerging globally, transforming Jerusalem from a historical center into a "Startup Nation" outpost amid Israel's dominance in biotech, cybersecurity, and cleantech.[1][7] Timing aligns with influxes like multinationals (Microsoft, Apple) opening R&D centers, new infrastructure (HUJI parks, fast train, millions of sqm office space), and post-2015 momentum that elevated Jerusalem to one of the world's top 30 tech cities.[2] Market forces favoring it include government-academia-industry synergy, rising junior jobs from global firms, and barriers it uniquely solves like talent retention and branding in a diverse, challenged urban environment.[2][6] It influences the ecosystem by distributing opportunities, hosting events (meetups, hackathons, conferences), and fostering cross-sector ties, amplifying Israel's innovation spillover to underrepresented areas.[1][6]

Quick Take & Future Outlook

Made in JLM is poised to capitalize on Jerusalem's expanding infrastructure and multinational growth, potentially scaling its 10,000-member community further through AI-driven talent matching, diversity initiatives, and hybrid events.[2][6] Trends like remote work, cleantech demand, and biotech booms will shape its path, especially with new office spaces and population influxes creating junior roles.[2] Its influence may evolve into a model for other non-Tel Aviv Israeli hubs or global "legacy cities" building tech ecosystems, solidifying Jerusalem's role in the Startup Nation. As the connector keeping talent in a city of immense potential, Made in JLM exemplifies how targeted nonprofit infrastructure turns local challenges into global innovation hubs.[1][2]