The data and reading that backs our thesis.
The numbers behind the movement for immigrant founders and the Aliyah to Israel, alongside selected articles shaping our views.
The data that backs this up
Here are the numbers behind the movement for immigrant founders and the Aliyah to Israel.
Aliyah is growing fast
France jumped approximately 45% to roughly 3,300 olim.
The UK rose 19% to 840 olim, marking its second straight year of growth.
About 30,000 aliyah files were opened worldwide in 2025, with the sharpest growth in the UK (up 70%) and Australia (up 67%). Files opened are the leading indicator because arrivals lag applications.
North American aliyah applications rose roughly 50% between 2022 and 2025, from 8,943 to 13,389.
Western Europe plus North America sent over 9,000 olim in 2025, nearly double 2023's 4,954.
Israel's 2025 arrivals skewed young: roughly a third of all olim were aged 18 to 35, and North Americans landing through Nefesh B'Nefesh averaged just 31 years old.
New olim owe no Israeli income tax on salary or business earnings for five straight tax years, with ceilings peaking at ₪1 million in 2027 and 2028. The benefit stacks on top of the existing 10-year exemption on foreign source income.
Immigrants make great founders
Immigrants founded or cofounded 59% (455 of 775) of America's billion-dollar private companies.
Nearly 80% of US unicorns have an immigrant founder or an immigrant in a key leadership role such as CEO or VP of Engineering.
The collective value of immigrant-founded US unicorns rose from $168 billion to $5.0 trillion between 2016 and 2026.
Further Readings
Israel Unveils 0% Tax Rate for 2026's Immigrants and Returning Residents
New immigrants and returning residents arriving in 2026 will be offered a zero-percent income tax rate for their first two years after moving to Israel, under a dramatic new tax reform designed to attract skilled professionals, entrepreneurs and investors.
Immigrant Founders & Venture Capital: New Evidence from Harvard Business School
A rigorous academic study examining the outsized contribution of immigrant founders to the US venture capital ecosystem, with new data on funding outcomes and company performance.
Foreign-Born Entrepreneurs Drive America's Unicorn Boom
Nearly half of America's billion-dollar startups were founded by people born outside the United States. Stanford's Venture Capital Initiative analysis of 1,078 founders behind 500 U.S. unicorns found that 474 founders — 44% — were born abroad. Israel ranks #2 by country of origin.
New Plan Seeks to Attract Talented and Wealthy Jews to Immigrate to Israel
A new government program offers grants of up to NIS 400,000 and enhanced incentives to attract skilled Jewish professionals — from doctors and AI experts to finance leaders — to immigrate to Israel and fill critical vacancies in the economy.
The Need for a Jewish Sovereign Wealth Fund
A compelling essay arguing that the golden age of American Jewry is ending and that the Jewish community must build new, self-reliant financial foundations — including a sovereign wealth fund — for its next phase of achievement.