Hetz Ventures Is Betting on Cybersecurity's Next Wave

The intersection of artificial intelligence and cybersecurity has evolved from a novel frontier into an omnipresent reality. For venture capital firms, navigating this hyper-accelerated landscape requires shifting away from long-term forecasting and focusing strictly on the immediate horizon.

As Pavel Livshiz, General Partner at Hetz Ventures, notes in an interview with Cybertech, the firm is looking past the usual timelines. "We’re trying to think about how AI will look not in 12 months, but in the next 6 months—sometimes even one quarter ahead," he explains. He notes that mapping out that immediate, fast-moving future is the real question.

That mindset has shaped Hetz Ventures' investment strategy since the beginning. Founded in 2018 by Judah Taub, Lord Andrew Feldman, and Stuart Roden, the early-stage Israeli venture capital firm—where Livshiz leads the cybersecurity investment strategy—now manages nearly $500 million in assets. Hetz has solidified its strategy around two strict verticals: cybersecurity solutions sold directly to CISOs, and data or AI infrastructure sold to CTOs, CDOs, and infrastructure leaders. 

From "Generation One" to the "Do It Yourself" Enterprise

Hetz’s track record suggests they have a knack for spotting these technical shifts early. "I think we were probably one of the earliest believers in both security for AI and AI for security," Livshiz notes to Cybertech. He recalls a pivotal 2022 board meeting—four months before ChatGPT’s public release—where the co-founder of portfolio company BlinkOps, revealed they had already built 4,000 workflows using OpenAI. 

That early signal kicked off what Livshiz calls "generation one" for the firm. By 2023, a period when Claude barely existed and ChatGPT was the sole industry benchmark, Hetz backed pioneering startups like Prompt Security to protect early corporate AI adoption. 

Fast forward to 2026, and the landscape has completely transformed. Today, companies like BlinkOps provide an army of automated agents handling tasks across enterprise security organizations, and the integration of AI is no longer a differentiator—it is the baseline. 

"There is almost no startup that is not utilizing AI in some way," Livshiz explains, "either to make cybersecurity more efficient, faster, more secure, or to protect new AI-driven attack surfaces across enterprises." 

This democratization of AI tools has triggered an unexpected trend: a shift toward internal development. Within Hetz’s CSO network, a growing number of security leaders are opting out of buying traditional startups entirely. Instead, they are using enterprise-grade and open-source AI tools to build parts of their own security stacks—like static analysis—internally. When enterprises can spin up custom solutions, incoming cyber startups are forced to offer deeper, irreplaceable value to win deals.

The Resilient "Secret Sauce" of a Constant War Zone"

Operating and investing from Israel means navigating a landscape defined by geopolitical tension. Yet, even while working within a constant war zone, the tech ecosystem has proven fiercely resilient, begging the question: does the legendary Israeli "secret sauce" still hold up in an era where engineering talent is expensive and AI can write code? 

Livshiz’s answer is definitive. "The answer is absolutely yes. In cyber, Israel is and will continue to be a global focal point. That hasn’t changed."

The data firmly backs this up. Rather than capital fleeing, international investors are doubling down on the ecosystem. 2025 marked an all-time high for investments into Israeli startups, with most of it coming from outside Israel, and 2026 has started strong as well. 

This momentum is anchored by a track record that boasts more than $1 billion in total exit value—powered by major acquisitions like Granulate by Intel, Silk Security by Armis, and Prompt Security by SentinelOne. It is this deep market confidence that paved the way for Hetz's recent closure of its $140 million Fund IV. Raised entirely amidst wartime and global economic uncertainty, the new fund serves as a massive vote of confidence. 

Armed with this fresh capital, Hetz is moving far beyond modest seed tickets to lead heavy rounds. The firm can write checks up to $10 million per company, allowing them to lead large rounds or take a significant portion in companies raising $40–60 million rounds from stealth or early breakout stages.

A Mega Hint Before Black Hat

While AI might commoditize basic coding, it cannot replicate the operational agility and deep architectural understanding required to defend enterprise networks. Livshiz dropped a mega hint that this thesis will soon be on full display, teasing that a fresh wave of Hetz portfolio companies will be coming out of stealth next month, striking even before Black Hat.

"There will be a few interesting announcements," he says, without disclosing more than a smile. 

What separates the winners from the rest in this volatile market isn't just technology, but the sheer execution power of the people behind it. When looking for founders to back, Livshitz isn't looking for standard corporate playbooks. Instead, they look for teams that embody a rare blend of speed and relentless drive. As Livshiz concludes: "We are drawn to flexibility, agility, and a killer instinct—teams capable of coming into the room and closing the deal." 

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