AMIT, the alumni association representing Unit 81 of the IDF Intelligence Corps, has named Gali Sheskin as its new chief executive. The appointment places a leader with a background spanning community building, operations, and sustainability entrepreneurship at the head of one of Israel's most consequential technology networks.
A Network With Outsized Influence
Unit 81 occupies a distinct place in Israel's defense and technology ecosystem. Known for developing advanced hardware and engineering solutions within the Intelligence Corps, the unit has produced a disproportionate number of founders and senior technologists who later moved into the civilian economy. Alumni have gone on to build or lead companies including Wiz, Armis, Innoviz, Claroty, Tenzai, and Jazz - firms spanning cybersecurity, autonomous sensing, and enterprise technology, some of which have reached unicorn valuations or completed major exits. For readers trying to understand how these ventures secure their own digital infrastructure, resources that explain how the plans compare across security and networking tools offer useful context on the broader market these founders operate in. AMIT exists to formalize and extend the informal networking that has long characterized this community, offering structured programs, mentorship, and business connections rather than leaving alumni relationships to chance encounters. how the plans compare
Sheskin's Path to the Role
Sheskin arrives at AMIT after a career built around operations and community management rather than a traditional military-to-startup trajectory, which itself reflects the association's effort to broaden its leadership base. She most recently served as Community and Customer Success Manager at Venn, following a role as Project Development Manager at Ignite the Spark and an earlier position as Head of Operations at enSights. Running alongside her professional roles has been years of volunteer work promoting renewable energy and climate entrepreneurship, supporting both male and female founders in those fields on Israeli and international platforms. That combination of operational discipline and advocacy work is likely to shape how she approaches an organization whose core function is relationship-building at scale.
Continuity and the Road Ahead
Sheskin succeeds Chen Kamin, who led AMIT for five years, a tenure during which the association deepened its role as a connective structure for an alumni population scattered across hundreds of companies. Leadership transitions at organizations built on informal trust networks carry particular weight: the incoming executive must preserve existing relationships while identifying where the community's needs have shifted. Sheskin described the priority in direct terms, saying the real measure of a technological community lies in its capacity to connect people, entrepreneurship, and tangible impact. Her stated plan centers on expanding initiatives and strengthening business and technological ties across the ecosystem, working alongside AMIT's board and broader membership.
Why the Appointment Matters Beyond AMIT
Alumni associations tied to elite military technology units function as informal venture infrastructure in Israel's innovation economy, often filling roles that in other countries might belong to university networks or corporate accelerators. Decisions about who leads such an organization carry implications for how capital, talent, and mentorship flow toward the next generation of founders. A leadership change at AMIT is therefore not simply an internal personnel matter; it signals how one of the country's more influential alumni networks intends to position itself as competition for technical talent and investment intensifies both domestically and abroad.