In July 2024, four veterans of Israel's elite intelligence units came together with a shared realization: the Western defense establishment needed a new approach to integrate commercial technology with military systems. Led by Hamutal Meridor and CEO Alon Dror, including the former General Manager of Palantir Israel, they founded Kela to address a critical gap in modern warfare capabilities. Drawing from Israel's unique cadre of "technowarriors" - engineers who have served on the frontlines of cyber and physical conflict - Kela emerged from the intersection of necessity and ingenuity, transforming battlefield-tested insights into a scalable defense platform.
Kela has rapidly evolved into a secure, open platform that enables rapid and seamless integration of commercial and military systems in service of Western defense. Battle-tested by Israeli innovators operating under real-world conditions, the company ensures Western allies can meet today's frontline challenges while staying adaptable to tomorrow's innovations. With backing from Sequoia Capital, Lux Capital, and the CIA's venture arm, Kela is building a new kind of defense prime starting with border protection, leveraging the iterative development culture of tech companies to serve the urgent needs of national security.