Prominent Israeli tech investor Gilli Cegla has announced the launch of a new $10 million fund under the intriguing brand name Unicamel. 

This fund marks Cegla’s second venture in the investment space, following the success of his Direct Round fund.

Cegla, a seasoned entrepreneur and longtime advocate for Israel’s thriving tech ecosystem, aims to focus the Unicamel fund on early-stage investments in Israeli startups specializing in deep tech.

The creation of a new early-stage investment fund illustrates a recovery for budding startups in Israel: recent months have seen an increase in smaller funding rounds, indicating strong early-stage activity. Investors are likewise growing more confident in young Israeli companies, as shown by an increase in the size of early-stage investments.

“My belief is that Israeli startups founded in ’24 and ’25 are excellent candidates for success,” said Cegla. “Economic theories repeatedly prove that investments during crisis times lead to impressive results, especially in areas that are ahead of trends.”

Direct Round’s portfolio boasts promising ventures such as BeeHero, Mitia, Nimble Beauty, Qbiq and Sightful. The fund also saw a successful exit with Minerva, which was acquired by Rapid 7 in 2023. 

Notably, Direct Round has maintained its investment momentum even in challenging times, backing three new startups since the onset of recent conflicts.

Cegla expressed admiration for the resilience of Israeli startups, which continue to innovate and deliver results despite global financial instability and regional tensions. He noted that many of these companies are demonstrating “wonderful innovative capabilities” in the face of adversity.

The “Unicamel” branding for the new fund is more than just a catchy name. Cegla explained that it’s intended to replace the overused startup term “unicorn” (a privately held startup that has reached $1 billion in valuation).

“The resilience of Israeli startups and entrepreneurs requires a new icon that will represent them properly,” he said.

The camel metaphor, according to Cegla, encapsulates the tenacity of Israeli entrepreneurs, whom he lauded as having “impressive survivability in difficult conditions, with orientation, improvisation and navigation capabilities in unknown environments.”