Aurelius Capital has emerged from stealth mode with an initial fundraising round of $50 million, aiming to scale up to $150 million. The fund, headquartered in Tel Aviv, New York, and London, is positioning itself as a global force in defense innovation, blending venture-capital agility with private-equity depth, it said.
The fund is led by Alon Lifshitz and Tomer Jacob, partners at Hanaco Ventures, along with former US National Security Agency director Michael Rogers, former IAF commander Maj.-Gen. (res.) Amir Eshel, and former Mossad deputy director Udi Lavi.
Their combined expertise spans decades of strategic leadership in intelligence, cyber operations, and defense planning, Aurelius Capital said.
Lifshitz and Jacob will continue their roles at Hanaco Ventures, which manages more than $2.5 billion in assets, ensuring continuity and synergy between the two investment platforms.
Growing urgency
The timing of Aurelius’s launch reflects a growing urgency in global security circles. With ongoing conflicts in Europe, the Middle East, and Asia, and rising threats to critical infrastructure, the appetite for defense-tech innovation is surging.
Aurelius said it intends to be a key player in meeting these challenges head-on.
“The launch of Aurelius comes at a critical time,” Lifshitz said. “The demand for innovative technological solutions for both security and civilian markets is at its peak. The combination of global capital, our financial experience, and the security expertise of our partners enables us to address future threats effectively.”
This global awakening has led to unprecedented defense spending. Aurelius said it is designed to meet this momentum, with the fund’s strategy built on speed and flexibility and targeting companies with clear dual-use applications.
The fund focuses on “shields, not swords” by investing in cybersecurity, drone detection, and other nonlethal technologies, Lifshitz told The Jerusalem Post.
The fund’s strategic edge lies in its deep familiarity with defense-sector needs and its access to global capital. With more than 30 years of combined operational experience in Israeli and American defense institutions, Aurelius said its team is uniquely equipped to evaluate emerging technologies and guide them toward scalable impact.
For Lifshitz, who has been active in the Israeli tech market for two decades, the launch of Aurelius marks a turning point in how defense innovation is funded and scaled. From a closed-off and taboo market, the landscape has now changed, he said.
“What we are seeing in the last year or so is the next era of defense: It’s when national security needs meet deep-tech,” Lifshitz said, adding that the geopolitics of the past few years “was like the perfect storm. Mega powers weren’t able to win wars – for example Ukraine versus Russia; Israel versus Hamas – the geopolitical tensions in Asia are extremely high, and the Chinese military is a huge user of deep-tech and advanced technologies with AI.”
The fund said its mission was clear.
“We want to secure the future of Israel,” Lifshitz said. “Since [the October 7 massacre], our ability to give back is by supporting and building the new era of defense-tech through defense and civilian dual-use companies. Whatever secures the future of Israel will secure the future of the US, too.”