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Tel Aviv conference showcases Israeli defense advances
By Yaakov Lappin, JNS.org
Senior defense officials, tech investors, and military commanders from across the globe gathered in Tel Aviv for DefenseTech Week 2025 this month, a conference that showcases cutting-edge advances in Israeli defense technologies that shape the future of global security.
The summit is a deep dive into technologies that have been battle-tested in Israel’s ongoing multi-front conflicts against jihadist adversaries.
The event has been organized by the Defense Ministry’s Directorate of Defense Research and Development in collaboration with the Blavatnik Interdisciplinary Cyber Research Center and the Yuval Ne’eman Workshop for Science, Technology and Security at Tel Aviv University.
Col. Yishai Kohn, head of the Planning, Economics and IT Department at the DDR&D, said that the conference has grown significantly compared to last year, reflecting a clear growth of interest among international partners coming to learn from the Israeli experience.
Alongside cooperation with Israel’s large defense companies, the conference also raises awareness about the startup ecosystem “that played a significant role in the recent war—in drones, counter-UAVs, AI, and logistics,” Kohn said. “The Iron Dome, the Arrow and Trophy are the really famous systems in the world that almost every country considers purchasing, but we want to raise awareness that it is not just the big systems. It is also the issue of incubation and start-ups.”
Kohn noted that the war has accelerated the integration of “dual-use” technologies—innovations that can be sold to the civilian market and are rapidly adapted for military needs. He said that more than 100 startups have had their products integrated into Israeli combat operations over the past two years, bringing agility, speed and lower costs.
The summit comes at a time when Israel is facing intense diplomatic pressure and delegitimization campaigns. Yet, paradoxically, the demand for Israeli defense technology has never been higher. Kohn attributes this to the “Battle Lab” effect.
“There were years when we were alone in the world as a combat lab. Today, there is competition, there are wars in all sorts of other places in the world, and there are other combat labs in the world. But still, there are things where the world looks to us and sees for the first time what is happening here,” he stated.
The summit will also aim to encourage large international defense firms to set up research and development sites in Israel, much like large civilian tech firms have done.
Among those attending the conference is Michael “Mike” Dodd, Assistant Secretary of War for Critical Technologies and Acting Deputy Director of the Defense Innovation Unit, and other government representatives from around the world.
In an opening address to the conference, Defense Ministry Director General Maj. Gen. (Res.) Amir Baram said Israel has transformed from a global “Cyber Nation” into a full-scale “Defense-Tech Nation,” as wartime innovation rapidly reshapes its security and industrial landscape.
He said the country’s technological edge now spans aerial defense systems, unmanned vehicles, electronic warfare, quantum-resistant communications, cyber defense and space technologies.
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