Protego Ventures, a Herzliya-based defense venture capital firm founded by two Israeli women, closes $125 million in capital commitments for its debut fund targeting battle-tested Israeli military technologies.
Founded in 2024 by IDF intelligence unit veteran Lital Leshem and veteran fund manager Lee Moser, Protego invests in young Israeli startups developing modern defense technologies, from autonomous systems, drones and agentic AI to critical infrastructure sensing and contested-environment navigation.
“Protego was built on the conviction that many of the best defense companies in the world are being built right now, in Israel, under real operational demands, iterating according to real frontline conditions, for real customers,” says Leshem. “That feedback loop produces technologies that are faster, leaner, scalable and more flexible than almost anything developed through traditional channels.”
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From the Liveblog of
Tuesday, September 29, 2026
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