From soldiering to start-ups: Israel's Druze community builds its own tech ecosystem

Israel's Druze community, known for its loyalty and resilience, is actively building its own start-up ecosystem. This initiative aims to create new opportunities for young Druze individuals, particularly veterans transitioning from military service.

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Our young people are our future.

Koftan Halabi, a Druze hi-tech entrepreneur and founder of the Druze tech center in Isfiya, emphasized the community's Israeli national identity and the importance of providing diverse career paths. "Our young people are our future," Halabi stated. He highlighted the goal of offering viable options through higher education and direct entry into the hi-tech job market for discharged soldiers.

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We proudly say our national identity is Israeli. Most of our young people enlist in the IDF or do National Service. After completion of their service, many choose the Israel Defense Forces as their career or enter other types of security work.

The Druze Technological and Empowerment Center (D-TEC), established in Isfiya in 2025, is at the forefront of this movement. Recently, the center hosted a hi-tech festival to launch the BEYOND-D innovations program and an investment fund. "It is a historic milestone," Halabi said, describing the initiative as the "fruit of years of trust, strategic proposals, and a strong desire to pave new paths for the younger generation."

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We came to the realization that there needs to be more choices, and it is our goal to provide viable options for IDF veterans through higher education, which will enable entrance into technological fields and the hi-tech job market.

Lawyer Anan Kheir, a co-founder of the Isfiya Druze tech initiative, explained that the fund is designed to support start-ups and technology ventures, not individual grants. The fund will evaluate applicants based on their team's capabilities, product, ideas, and growth potential. "Overall, our goal is to create a practical mechanism that connects entrepreneurs with professional mentoring, strategic partners, industry leaders, and investment capital," Kheir added.

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In addition, we have now created a fund to advance their creative, technological ideas. Therefore, the discharged soldiers will have the monetary support to enter the hi-tech start-up ecosystem and become entrepreneurs.