In the wake of October 7, Israel’s tech ecosystem, long celebrated as the country’s economic engine, faced unprecedented challenges. Yet amid the uncertainty, three leading women in technology are determined not only to preserve Israel’s global standing but also to redefine the role of women in shaping the industry’s future.
A global network tested by crisis
Anna Baer, co-founder of Women in Tech Israel and a former diplomat, recalls her first concern after the attacks: whether the global network of women in technology would remain intact. Women in Tech is a worldwide NGO with 60 chapters, including in countries without formal ties to Israel. “We received compassion from women in tech abroad that others did not,” Baer explains. “It was vital to preserve the strength of this network and ensure Israel’s branch was not disconnected.”
Baer, who has spent years fostering Franco-Israeli relations, warns that much of the diplomatic progress achieved since the 1990s has been jeopardized. She sees Women in Tech as a form of “alternative diplomacy,” where women’s networks can bridge divides even when official channels falter. “Not one woman was at the negotiating table for the hostages,” she notes. “But in civil society, it was women who made the difference. When there is a table, women are absent. When there is no table, women are there.”
For Baer, the tech sector is both Israel’s most empowering industry for women and its most unbalanced. While high-tech accounts for 53% of Israel’s exports, only 33.5% of its workforce are women-and just 10% hold highly technical positions.
“We must encourage women to enter the most technological disciplines,” she stressed in an interview to The Jerusalem Post ahead of the Women in Tech conference held Wednesday in Tel Aviv. “When you are highly technological, you are irreplaceable.”
AI as a reset button for gender equality
Keren Fanan, Board Member of Women in Tech Israel and Co-Founder and CEO of Myop, has spent the past five years in Women in Tech and the past two years building AI-powered coding tools. For her, the war underscored the resilience required of Israeli women balancing startups, careers, and family life. “The show must go on,” she says. “War cannot be a reason to hold things back-especially when it comes to AI.”
Fanan believes artificial intelligence offers a rare chance to reset the gender gap. “You don’t need to be a developer to use AI. Vibecoding, telling AI what you want to build and letting it generate it, has the power to disrupt traditional R&D,” she explains. But she warns that early signs show men adopting these tools faster than women. “We’re calling on women engineers to jump on this train. Those who do will open doors to new opportunities.”
And her concern is deeply personal. As a mother of two daughters, she studies how past technological revolutions-from the Industrial Age to the internet-initially widened gender gaps before ultimately narrowing them. “With AI, we have the awareness to ensure equal access from the start. Companies need champions to adopt new tools, and that’s an equal opportunity for men and women alike.”
From hype to implementation
For Yarden Israeli, Head of Data Science at KPMG Israel, the challenge is moving AI from hype to practical use. Leading a consulting group that operates like an R&D unit, she spends her days shaping AI roadmaps for clients and working hands-on with new models. “It feels like everything is back to normal, but the unknown still lingers—both in tech and in the country,” she reflects.
Israeli recalls being one of only five women in her Technion degree program a decade ago. “It was about surviving and delivering,” she says. Today, she sees progress: more women are not only in the game but beginning to shape it. Still, she acknowledges that most C-level meetings remain male-dominated. “Women like to explore and overthink-and right now, that’s exactly what AI needs. There’s a big place for women at this moment.”
She emphasizes the importance of safe spaces, like women-focused conferences, where female professionals can share experiences and strategies. “We’re in a new game,” she says. “While men still hold most of the main roles, women are no longer alone. We must strengthen this space so others feel they can succeed.”
Looking ahead
Despite the ongoing uncertainty, Baer, Fanan, and Israeli share a conviction: Israel’s women in tech are not only surviving the crisis but are starting to seize the opportunity to lead. Whether through global networks, AI adoption, or reshaping corporate culture, Women in Tech Israel is determined to ensure that women are not left behind in the next wave of innovation.
As Baer puts it, “This is our chance to make women’s presence in technology not just visible, but indispensable.”