At 31, he was the youngest chancellor in Europe, and today Sebastian Kurz leads one of the most valuable cybersecurity startups in the world.
Sebastian Kurz once resided on Vienna’s Ballhausplatz in the Chancellery, which resembles a baroque city palace. Today Kurz welcomes you in a modern glass palace that fits elegantly into the Tel Aviv skyline. The places of work and working environments couldn’t be more different. The unbelievable pace has remained the same.
At the age of 27, Kurz became Foreign Minister and at the age of 31, Austrian Chancellor – the youngest ever. Today, at the age of 39, he is one of the most important startup founders in Europe and Israel. His company Dream has announced a $260 million funding round. According to the company’s own information, this increases the company’s valuation to three billion US dollars.
The new round of financing marks an important milestone for the company, which was founded just three and a half years ago. The Series C round is led by investment funds Bicycle Capital and Group 11, along with participation from Bain Capital, Tru Arrow Partners with investor James Rothschild, Norway-based Antler and other global investors.
Given the well-known names of the investors and the three billion high valuation, many other founders would float across the corridors of their company. But Sebastian Kurz and his Israeli co-founder Shalev Hulio do not show any signs of triumph. Concentrated and moving quickly, they move through the stylish, modern office space in Tel Aviv. Their tone is almost humble as they sit down in Hulio’s office.
“When we built this company from nothing three and a half years ago, we had no way of knowing whether it would work. Now we are very happy that we can continue,” says the entrepreneur Kurz, only to sound like a politician again for a brief moment: “But more important to us than our personal success are the values that we can create for entire nations.” His belief: “The next cyber war will be waged by AI against AI.”
The biggest cyber threats come from China, Russia, Iran and North Korea
In order to protect states, militaries, security authorities, health data and critical infrastructure from cyber attacks, Kurz and Hulio developed the idea of bringing together two previously separate worlds: the expertise of the best hackers and the power of artificial intelligence. On this basis, the company developed an AI model specifically designed for cybersecurity, which was trained by leading international experts. This resulted in a platform that detects and defends against state-controlled cyberattacks at an early stage – before they can damage critical infrastructure or state facilities.
“Most of the attacks we were able to prevent came from China, Russia, Iran and North Korea,” explains Hulio, who is responsible for technology within the company. He brings a wealth of experience as co-founder and later head of the NSO Group, an Israeli tech company known for its Pegasus spyware. “Russia is using large-scale phishing campaigns. China is building AI-powered attack structures.”
The unique selling point of Dream is that it allows states to become independent when it comes to cyber defense. “Countries should not be dependent on the US or China. We are developing solutions that governments can own, operate and control themselves. The data does not need to be uploaded to a cloud and is not shared with anyone.” The customer base is growing rapidly – in Europe, the Middle East and Southeast Asia. Sales to date have amounted to around $300 million. The company and its 350 employees have been profitable since this year, says Kurz.
Given the rapid growth, are the founders of Dream already dreaming of an IPO like Elon Musk just did with SpaceX? “An IPO is an option, a very realistic option for a growing company like ours,” says Kurz. The next big operational step is the expansion of the location in Abu Dabi. The decision was also made to establish a research and development center in Germany. They just haven’t decided on the location yet, says Hulio. “It is important for us to have a direct flight connection to Tel Aviv.”
Why Kurz and Hulio fit together so well
The combination of Israeli and Western European mentalities and skills seems to be one of Dream’s secrets to success. The chancellor and the Israeli tech guru only differ in terms of fashion. Short is clean-shaven and wears a white shirt. Hulio wears a black T-shirt, has a beard and stands out with his cheerful smile. At the beginning, the cultural differences between the reasons were sometimes noticeable, says Hulio. “Sebastian can squeeze 20 meetings into an hour. He is very disciplined. Someone has to imitate him first. And anyone who comes a minute late to a meeting is considered unpunctual in Sebastian’s eyes. As an Israeli, I had to get used to that,” says Hulio and laughs.
He has already worked with some good people during his career. However, Sebastian Kurz is the best partner he has ever had. “What he achieved in politics in a very short space of time, he is now succeeding in the tech world. Sebastian is a brilliant mind. If he had decided on entrepreneurship as a young person, he would already be on a par with Elon Musk today,” says Hulio very seriously.
The former chancellor is once again full of praise for his co-founder, who was already considered a star in the Israeli tech industry before Dream. “For me, Halev is a genius. When someone tells him there is no solution to a technical problem, it spurs him on and he pushes the team to the limit. During his career, he has repeatedly achieved technological breakthroughs that were never thought possible.” This sentence probably also applies to him to some extent. While other top politicians often search in vain for a role in the economy or, like former Chancellor Gerhard Schröder, make their money as gas lobbyists for dictators, Kurz has impressively achieved his breakthrough as an entrepreneur.
