Data Storage Firm Hits $1B Valuation To Become Latest Israeli Unicorn

AI data storage startup Weka.IO has become the latest Israeli-founded firm to reach the landmark valuation of $1 billion, following its Series E funding round that garnered $140 million. 

Founded in 2013, Weka’s software defined storage (SDS) technology radically simplifies the way storage is deployed in a datacenter.  

The latest round of funding, which was led by previous Chicago-based investor Valor Equity Partners, will allow the startup to scale its business in response to growing demand. Other investors included Nvidia, Hitachi Ventures and Qualcomm Ventures, the latter of which previously invested in Ring, Waze and Fitbit. 

The company, which has offices in Israel, the UK and the US, is now valued at $1.6 billion, joining the roughly two dozen Israeli startups with the exclusive unicorn status. 

According to global innovation economy research platform StartupBlink, Israel was 5th in the world in 2023 for unicorns, after the US (594 unicorns), China (144), India (68), the UK (46) and France (29).  

“The recent acceleration of generative AI and enterprise cloud adoption has triggered a sharp increase in customer demand, driving an unprecedented number of eight-figure ARR deals—an impressive feat when you factor in that Weka is a software-based business,” said Intekhab Nazeer, the company’s chief financial officer.

“The continued backing of this preeminent group of investors speaks volumes: Weka is building something truly transformative that modern data-driven organizations need now, more than ever,” said Weka co-founder and CEO Liran Zvibel.