# Gil Shwed

> Gil Shwed is the Israeli software engineer who co-founded Check Point Software Technologies with Marius Nacht and Shlomo Kramer in 1993. He helped develop and commercialize stateful inspection, led Check Point for three decades, and became executive chairman on December 16, 2024. His interests include making security simpler, preserving Check Point’s independence, and supporting youth education.

- **Role:** Co-founder and Executive Chairman of the Board at Check Point Software Technologies
- **Organizations:** Check Point Software Technologies, Tel Aviv University, Yeholot Association, Optrotech
- **From:** Jerusalem, Israel
- **Nationality:** Israeli
- **Education:** Computer science coursework while at secondary school; no completed degree, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Honorary Doctor of Science, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Honorary Doctor of Science, Tel Aviv University
- **Known for:** Co-founded Check Point Software Technologies in 1993., Helped develop and commercialize stateful inspection, a foundation of modern network firewalls., Led Check Point for three decades, including its 1996 Nasdaq listing.

## Career timeline

- **1980s** — Studied computing at Hebrew University while still in school; served in Unit 8200.
- **Early 1990s** — Worked as a software developer at Optrotech, where he met Marius Nacht.
- **1993** — Co-founded Check Point with Nacht and Shlomo Kramer; developed stateful inspection technology.
- **1994** — Check Point released FireWall-1 commercially.
- **1996** — Check Point listed on Nasdaq in June.
- **2005** — Received an honorary Doctor of Science from Technion.
- **2018** — Received the Israel Prize in technology and innovation.
- **2024-12-16** — Became executive chairman as Nadav Zafrir became CEO.

## Achievements

- Co-founded Check Point Software Technologies in 1993.
- Helped develop and commercialize stateful inspection, a foundation of modern network firewalls.
- Led Check Point for three decades, including its 1996 Nasdaq listing.
- Received the Israel Prize in 2018.
- Awarded honorary Doctor of Science degrees by Technion and Tel Aviv University.
- Founder of Tel Aviv University’s Check Point Institute for Information Security.

## Latest updates

- **2025-06** — At Calcalist’s Growth Conference, reflected on whether he should have handed over the CEO role earlier and expressed satisfaction with the choice of Zafrir.
- **2025-04** — In a Techzine interview at CPX in Vienna, described his reduced meeting schedule and continued daily office attendance.
- **2025-02** — Discussed AI-driven security and his wish for Check Point to remain independent in a Computer Weekly interview.
- **2024-12** — Transitioned from CEO to executive chairman effective December 16.

## Links

- Website: https://www.checkpoint.com/it//about-us/leadership/

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/gil-shwed
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-10-15