# Ronen Lavi

> Ronen Lavi is the CEO and co-founder of Navina, which he founded with Shay Perera in 2018. His previous 24-year career included Israeli military intelligence, Unit 8200, and the Prime Minister’s Office. He established and led a military intelligence AI laboratory and received the National Security Award in 2018. His public interviews discuss user trust, founder focus, and the demands of scaling a company.

- **Role:** CEO and Co-founder at Navina
- **Organizations:** Navina, Israel Defense Forces, Unit 8200, Israeli Prime Minister’s Office
- **Nationality:** Israeli
- **Known for:** Established and led the military intelligence AI laboratory., Received Israel’s National Security Award in 2018., Co-founded Navina in 2018 and led it through its 2025 Series C.

## Career timeline

- **—** — Spent 24 years in military intelligence and the Prime Minister’s Office; retired as a lieutenant colonel.
- **2014** — Established an AI unit in Israeli military intelligence.
- **2018** — Received the National Security Award, also awarded to future co-founder Shay Perera.
- **2018** — Co-founded Navina with Shay Perera, becoming CEO.
- **2022** — Co-authored a November announcement of a $22 million Series B.
- **2025** — Navina announced a $55 million Series C led by Growth Equity at Goldman Sachs Alternatives, bringing announced total funding to $100 million.
- **2026** — Discussed entrepreneurship with CatAmmon CEO Gilad Lando in the Growth+ initiative.

## Achievements

- Established and led the military intelligence AI laboratory.
- Received Israel’s National Security Award in 2018.
- Co-founded Navina in 2018 and led it through its 2025 Series C.

## Latest updates

- **2026-07** — Appeared in a Grove Ventures Founder Stories conversation with Lotan Levkowitz.
- **2026-03** — Participated in Growth+ with CatAmmon CEO Gilad Lando, discussing focus and entrepreneurial commitment.
- **2026-01** — Reported that Navina doubled ARR in 2025 for the third consecutive year and planned to do so again in 2026.

## Links

- Website: https://www.navina.ai/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ronen-lavi-702115172/

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/ronen-lavi
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-10-24