Israeli and Palestinian Entrepreneurs Form Joint Startups in Accelerator Program

Mixed teams attend workshops, lectures and mentoring sessions before pitching their projects to investors in Boston. The company is developing AI cameras to detect and prevent insects in greenhouses.

The accelerator was co-founded in 2019 by Israeli-American Amir Grinstein and later partnered with Tel Aviv University and Northeastern University. Grinstein said creating a business together requires equality, shared goals and mutual reliance. The program has faced repeated disruptions from COVID-19 and regional conflict.

This year more than half the participants joined the Boston session by video because of the ongoing war.

Hussein said a previous venture ended after the October 7, 2023 attacks because of internal tension and external pressure. He said some people have called him a "normalizer," but he continues because he does not want his children to live in a world of hatred.

Shaulov said she grew up in a mixed Haifa neighborhood and views coexistence as necessary. " Aviv Meir, a 27-year-old Israeli participant, said it is difficult to understand the other side but that bridge-building efforts have continued since her teenage years.

Palestinian participant Salah Elsadi said he joined for business reasons and later engaged in direct conversations about personal losses on both sides. Grinstein said the program is not a political organization. Its structure is intended to let participants see each other as individuals rather than adversaries.