Behind the Investment

In 2018, quantum computing was still an unproven market, and most investors considered it far too early. Rona Segev made the decision to back Quantum Machines within an hour of meeting its founders.In this episode of Behind the Investment, Rona Segev sits down with Itamar Sivan, Co-Founder and CEO of Quantum Machines, to reflect on their journey together, the company's evolution, and the breakthroughs transforming quantum computing today.In this episode:00:00 - The story behind TLV Partners' investment in Quantum Machines01:06 - Why Itamar left academia to become a founder04:20 - Betting on quantum computing before the market was ready09:20 - What's driving the quantum computing boom?13:15 - How Quantum Machines unlocks the power of quantum processors15:56 - The intersection of AI and quantum computing19:39 - Breakthroughs accelerating practical quantum computing23:21 - Will quantum computing have its own "ChatGPT moment"?From the early days of Quantum Machines to the latest advances in quantum technology, Rona and Itamar discuss what has changed in the industry, what lies ahead, and the decisions that shaped their journey together.Speakers:Rona Segev, Co-Founder & Managing Partner at TLV PartnersItamar Sivan, Co-Founder & CEO of Quantum Machines

What does it take to build a cybersecurity startup in one of the fastest-moving markets in tech?

In this episode, TLV Partners' Brian Sack sits down with Shahar Tal, Co-Founder and CEO of Cyata, to discuss the company's journey from its original vision through a major pivot into AI security, and ultimately its acquisition by Check Point.

The conversation explores:

• Knowing when to pivot and how to make that decision
• Finding product-market fit in an emerging market
• Building credibility through world-class security research
• Competing in a crowded AI security landscape
• Founder dynamics and decision-making under uncertainty
• Navigating strategic acquisition conversations while continuing to build the business

Recorded shortly after the acquisition, this conversation reflects on the decisions, tradeoffs, and lessons that shaped Cyata's journey.

Speakers:

Brian Sack, Partner at TLV Partners

Shahar Tal, Co-Founder & CEO of Cyata

In this conversation, Yonatan Mandelbaum, Partner at TLV Partners, sits down with Maor Greenberg, Co-Founder & CEO of Spacial. After more than two decades running construction and development projects, Maor knew exactly where the bottlenecks were. One of the biggest: a fragmented, manual engineering and permitting process that can take months before a single home is approved to build. Spacial was built to change that. By combining AI with a team of real engineers, the company automates structural and MEP design and delivers permit-ready plans in a fraction of the time. They talk about what it means to build a vertical AI company in a highly regulated industry, why Spacial chose a human-in-the-loop model from day one, and how working directly with customers shapes the product as it evolves.

From discovering novel CRISPR systems using machine learning to building a generative lab for drug discovery. Dov Gertz, Co-founder and CEO of Converge Bio, sat down with Shahar Tzafrir to talk about his journey, the inflection point we are seeing in AI and biology, and what it really takes to turn AI from promise into real impact. We are proud to be early partners to Dov, Oded Kalev and Iddo Weiner, and to continue supporting them as they push the frontier of AI and biology. Congratulations to the entire Converge team on the $25M Series A and the momentum behind it.

Our relationship with Port began long before the company was founded. Zohar first joined TLV Partners as an Engineer in Residence, and it was clear from the start that he approached developer experience with unusual depth and clarity. He later played key roles in two TLV Partners portfolio companies, becoming one of the first employees at Rookout (acquired by Dynatrace) and co-founding Aporia (acquired by Coralogix). So when Zohar and Yonatan came to us with the earliest idea that would become Port, the conviction was immediate. We backed them from day one and have been proud partners ever since. Seeing that early spark grow into a category-defining company has been inspiring, and today’s $100M Series C funding is a testament to the scale of what the team is building and the impact they are already creating across the industry.