Assaf Rappaport

Background

Assaf Rappaport was born on August 28, 1983, in Israel ¹. He graduated from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem with a bachelor’s degree in computer science, physics, and mathematics, and earned a master’s degree in computer science from the Technion — Israel Institute of Technology ².

Rappaport served as a Captain in the IDF’s elite Unit 8200 intelligence unit, where he managed software engineering and strategy-focused projects from 2004 to 2010 ^{1 2}. He then worked as a consultant at McKinsey & Company from 2010 to 2012 ².

In 2012, Rappaport co-founded Adallom, a cloud access security broker (CASB) that specialized in protecting data in SaaS applications ¹. Adallom was acquired by Microsoft in July 2015 for approximately $320 million ¹. Following the acquisition, Rappaport was appointed head of Microsoft’s Israel Research & Development Center and served as General Manager of the Cloud Security Group from 2015 to 2020 ².

In January 2020, Rappaport left Microsoft to co-found Wiz with Ami Luttwak, Roy Reznik, and Yinon Costica ¹. Wiz provides a cloud security platform for real-time risk assessment across AWS, Azure, and Google Cloud. By 2023, Wiz served over 40% of Fortune 100 companies ¹. On March 18, 2025, Alphabet announced an agreement to acquire Wiz for $32 billion in cash — the largest acquisition in Google’s history and the largest acquisition of an Israeli technology company ¹. Rappaport holds an estimated 10% stake, valued at over $3 billion ¹.

Beyond direct angel investing, Rappaport is a Founding LP and Investment Committee Member at Mensch Capital Partners (since 2021) and a member of Cyberstarts (since 2020) ².

Stated Thesis

Rappaport has not published a formal investment thesis, but his public statements reveal a focus on security, enterprise infrastructure, and backing founders who tackle important problems.

On what drives his interest in startups: “The first priority should always be the customer” and companies should be “exploring gaps in the industry, continuing conversations with customers, and driving forward in a way that aligns with their needs for innovation and scale” ³.

On founder qualities he values: “I believe in working in quick and iterative cycles, and in building the confidence of my teams to be bold in both their ideas and execution” ³.

Inferred Thesis

Based on 11 verified investments (including 3 exits) compiled from Tracxn, CB Insights, NFX Signal, and funding announcements. Sample size is small; qualitative descriptions used where percentages would be unreliable.

Sector distribution (11 verified investments): - Cybersecurity: 6 of 11 (55%) — Clover Security, Spirit, Twine Security, Talon Cyber Security (exited), Atmosec (exited), Eureka (exited) - Enterprise applications / sales: 2 of 11 (18%) — Demostack, Descope - AI infrastructure: 1 of 11 (9%) — Atero - Identity / auth: 1 of 11 (9%) — Descope - Other enterprise: 1 of 11 (9%) — Daylight

Stage distribution (8 investments with confirmed round data): - Seed: 5 of 8 (63%) — Twine Security, Clover Security (seed), Spirit, Atmosec, Eureka - Series A: 3 of 8 (38%) — Clover Security (Series A), Daylight, Demostack

Geographic concentration: Overwhelmingly Israeli startups, with some US presence. This reflects Rappaport’s deep roots in the Israeli cybersecurity ecosystem and his connections through Unit 8200, Cyberstarts, and Mensch Capital Partners.

Check size: NFX Signal reports $5K-$50K with a sweet spot of $25K ². This is consistent with a founder-operator angel profile — small personal checks alongside his operating role at Wiz.

Exit track record: 3 exits from 11 investments (27% exit rate). All exits are cybersecurity companies: Talon Cyber Security, Atmosec, and Eureka ⁴.

Co-investor patterns: Rappaport frequently co-invests with Wiz co-founder Yinon Costica and prominent Israeli cybersecurity founders including Shlomo Kramer (Cato Networks) ⁵. He invests through the Cyberstarts ecosystem, where many Israeli cyber founders participate as angels ⁶.

Notable pattern: Rappaport’s investments cluster tightly in the Israeli cybersecurity ecosystem. His angel activity appears driven by his network from Unit 8200 and his position at the center of the Israeli cloud security community rather than a broad investment thesis.

Portfolio

This table includes 11 verified investments. Rappaport invests small personal checks as an angel alongside his operating role at Wiz.

In Their Own Words

On building startups: “There is a tension that you need to play with that you’re solving an important problem from the get-go, but that you also need to be sure you’re building for the future” ⁸.

On customer focus: “The first priority should always be the customer” ³.

On team culture: “Our teams are willing to try new ideas and move beyond boundaries, but they are only able to do that with the knowledge that failure equals growth and learning” ³.

On iteration: “I believe in working in quick and iterative cycles, and in building the confidence of my teams to be bold in both their ideas and execution” ³.

On long-term vision: “Having a long-term vision and goals are what allow you to identify new opportunities and create competitive advantage” ³.

On resilience: “Startups are often built in fast-paced, dynamic environments, and their life cycles are naturally filled with uncertainty” and “Companies should be open to pivoting their business strategies and exploring alternatives while adjusting expectations” ³.

On relationship building, a Sequoia Capital investor noted: “No CEO has ever asked me for more introductions than Assaf has” ⁹.

What Founders Say

No independently sourced founder testimonials found for Rappaport’s angel investing activities. His investments are primarily small checks in the Israeli cybersecurity community where he is deeply networked.

Sources