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Yuval Avnon is Intel Senior Principal Engineer and Intel Ignite Global CTO, where he works closely with startup founders on their products and technology. Having built Intel Ignite’s due diligence, selection, technology and product mentorship processes, Yuval accelerated 216 deep tech startups that raised more than $4 billion in follow-on funding and acquisitions. He also spearheaded a strategic pathway between startups and Intel, resulting in a successful corporate impact model. Yuval’s passion for translating groundbreaking deep tech innovations into a viable startup business model has helped hundreds of startups turn unconventional ideas into some of the most significant companies of our time.
Before playing a key role in establishing Intel Ignite, Yuval ran the strategic product planning of Intel’s client computing chipsets – Intel’s flagship product and one of the highest revenue drivers in the semiconductor industry, powering 80% of laptops and desktops worldwide. With his knack for connecting technological understandings to business implications and monetization through product innovation, it’s no surprise that Yuval took the helm as Intel Ignite’s Chief Technology Officer when he was approached to drive an initiative to connect Intel with the startup ecosystem.
From building the program since its inception to scaling the blueprint the team first created in Tel-Aviv globally, Yuval planted the seeds for Intel Ignite to leave its footprint on the startup ecosystem worldwide. As the Global CTO of Intel Ignite, Yuval works with all the local CTOs and deal flow managers to maximize the impact on Intel and the startups on a global scale.
From the beginning, it was clear that to fully realize the potential of Intel Ignite and achieve the program’s goals, the best startups had to be identified. To enable that, Yuval crafted a deep technological due diligence process that was proven to predict the future success of the selected companies. Having an intimate knowledge of what technologies are strategic to Intel’s business needs, Yuval built a data-driven process to guide the hub CTOs and deal flow managers on the right companies to select and the technological focus areas.
As the program expanded globally, Intel Ignite was introduced to large quantities of invaluable information on new trends, technologies, and markets. However, the team was challenged with how to preserve this data, analyze it, and make it accessible to the relevant audiences within Intel. In response, Yuval developed a structured research capability, extracting these insights through mentoring reports and trend research, all indexed in a repository. The Intel Ignite Insights internal repository provides this wealth of knowledge to Intel’s business and technology leaders.
Recognizing that startup collaboration with corporates often face challenges and difficulties, Yuval has built a method that maximizes value for both Intel and the startups. By selecting the best startups from the outset of the program and strategically managing them within Intel, Yuval created, managed, and optimized a highly effective process that has proven to significantly benefit Intel – whether from a technological, business or organizational and culture change perspective. Dozens of successful POCs were carried out, leading to many business collaborations. It is no surprise the startups continuously voted the Intel collaboration Yuval led as the most impactful part of the program.
Developing a blueprint and fine-tuning it to produce the best results possible enabled Yuval and the team to scale their success further. This resulted in the opening of additional cohorts across the globe in Europe, the US, and the UK—locations selected deliberately due to the overlap of a happening startup ecosystem and a significant Intel presence. Yuval was key in building those local teams and working closely with them to make sure the model is scaling successfully.
Much of the success stemming from the corporate impact model that Yuval developed can be attributed to the mentorship program he initiated. This begins with Yuval and his team’s thoughtful and personal selection of each mentor. By pairing startup founders with Intel’s top technological leadership and talent whose expertise most closely matches their needs and actively leading the tech and product interactions, Yuval forges a bridge between startups and Intel that results in wins for both sides. While founders have their innovations championed by individuals who have the power to drive their influence at Intel, the mentors reinvigorate Intel’s technology, business, and culture with the startup mindset they bring back from their work with the founders. It is a win-win two-way collaboration.
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