Erel Margalit

Erel Margalit was born in 1961 in Na'an

Erel Margalit was born in 1961 in kibbutz Na'an, the eldest of three children. His father, Itzik, was an officer in the Armored Corps. In 1969 the family moved to Detroit, and in 1971 it returned to Israel, living first in Karmiel and later in Jerusalem.

He went to Rene Cassin High School in Jerusalem. He studied philosophy and English literature at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. In 1985 he began doctoral studies in philosophy at Columbia University and completed his dissertation in 2007.

During the First Intifada he helped set up a dialogue group for Israeli and Arab students on 8 US campuses. In 1990 he returned to Israel and joined the Jerusalem Development Authority, working to bring technology companies to the city.

In 1993 he founded the venture capital firm Jerusalem Venture Partners, with offices in Jerusalem and New York. He also founded the nonprofit groups Bakehila and Israel Initiative. He chairs the boards of several technology companies, among them Earnix and ThetaRay.

He was elected to the Knesset for the Labor Party in 2013 and served until he resigned in 2017. He is married to Debbie and has three daughters.