Key Takeaways
- • Bill Ackman, founder and CEO of Pershing Square Capital Management, told Calcalist that he has invested close to $100 million in Israel and expects a trillion-dollar company to emerge from Israel within five to ten years, with AI reducing the advantage of scale.
- • Ackman said the greatest risk to the American economy is political polarization, and he warned that the rise of democratic socialism threatens the U.S. economy, Israel and the Jewish people.
- • Ackman disclosed participation in the latest funding round of defense-tech unicorn Kela, an investment in AI training startup Two Delta, and active investments in several Israeli cybersecurity firms.
- • Ackman and his wife Neri Oxman acquired a roughly 5% stake in the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange shortly after October 7, 2023 for $25 million, which he said is now worth $250 million.
- • Pershing Square Ventures, a venture capital fund that will be a small fraction of the $33 billion Pershing Square AUM, is being established to make further Israeli investments alongside philanthropy.
Summary
Bill Ackman, founder and CEO of Pershing Square Capital Management, told Calcalist in an interview conducted after his appearance at the Sheba Medical Center ARC Summit that AI will enable small, highly skilled teams to compete effectively, making a trillion-dollar Israeli company achievable. He argued that Israel's small population of about 10 million is less of a structural weakness in the AI era, since concentrated talent matters more than scale. He said that only a handful of model-builders such as Anthropic and OpenAI will capture the bulk of AI value, with most value created by companies that apply the technology. He sees defense technology and cybersecurity as natural areas of Israeli strength and said AI significantly amplifies cyber risk.
Ackman disclosed that he has invested close to $100 million in Israel and is still actively seeking further investments, some through Pershing Square and others privately. He said he participated in the latest funding round for Kela and invested in Two Delta. He described a roughly 5% stake in the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange, acquired with Oxman about a week after October 7, 2023, following a one-hour presentation, which he said is now worth $250 million from $25 million. He is establishing Pershing Square Ventures, which will be a small portion of the firm's $33 billion in assets under management. He said he is working with two Israeli universities on a philanthropic commitment and may announce it toward year-end. He also noted that John Paulson recently donated $250 million to the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and that Jon Gray of Blackstone donated $125 million to Tel Aviv University's Faculty of Medicine about a year earlier.
On politics, Ackman said the greatest risk to the U.S. economy is political polarization and expressed deep concern about the rising influence of Democratic Socialists ahead of the U.S. midterm elections. He criticized New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani's rhetoric, saying it increases the risk of antisemitic incidents, and cited tax-driven departures such as Ken Griffin's move, arguing that capital and talent are shifting toward lower-tax jurisdictions such as Florida. In a separate statement posted on X, he clarified that his comments about Israeli politics reflected his perspective as an American and that he does not intend to weigh in on the upcoming Israeli election. He had earlier remarked that his wife Neri Oxman would be in Israel to vote, prompting speculation he later addressed.
Ackman also described a $400 million initiative to accelerate medical innovation, inspired by his daughter Lucy's recovery from a brain hemorrhage in February. According to Ackman, data from her Oura Ring indicated the bleed began more than 19 hours before emergency surgery was completed, complicating treatment.
Ackman disclosed that he has invested close to $100 million in Israel and is still actively seeking further investments, some through Pershing Square and others privately. He said he participated in the latest funding round for Kela and invested in Two Delta. He described a roughly 5% stake in the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange, acquired with Oxman about a week after October 7, 2023, following a one-hour presentation, which he said is now worth $250 million from $25 million. He is establishing Pershing Square Ventures, which will be a small portion of the firm's $33 billion in assets under management. He said he is working with two Israeli universities on a philanthropic commitment and may announce it toward year-end. He also noted that John Paulson recently donated $250 million to the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and that Jon Gray of Blackstone donated $125 million to Tel Aviv University's Faculty of Medicine about a year earlier.
On politics, Ackman said the greatest risk to the U.S. economy is political polarization and expressed deep concern about the rising influence of Democratic Socialists ahead of the U.S. midterm elections. He criticized New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani's rhetoric, saying it increases the risk of antisemitic incidents, and cited tax-driven departures such as Ken Griffin's move, arguing that capital and talent are shifting toward lower-tax jurisdictions such as Florida. In a separate statement posted on X, he clarified that his comments about Israeli politics reflected his perspective as an American and that he does not intend to weigh in on the upcoming Israeli election. He had earlier remarked that his wife Neri Oxman would be in Israel to vote, prompting speculation he later addressed.
Ackman also described a $400 million initiative to accelerate medical innovation, inspired by his daughter Lucy's recovery from a brain hemorrhage in February. According to Ackman, data from her Oura Ring indicated the bleed began more than 19 hours before emergency surgery was completed, complicating treatment.
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