Assaf Rappaport is the visionary co-founder and CEO of Wiz, a cloud security leader that achieved unprecedented growth through a blend of military-honed discipline and customer-centric innovation. Having previously co-founded Adallom and served as the head of Microsoft’s Israel R&D Center, Rappaport’s career serves as a masterclass in hyper-growth, team dynamics, and the evolution of cloud architecture.

Part 1: The Entrepreneurial Mindset & Vision

  1. On Winning: "If you really are going to win, you have to assume you're going to win. You have to build with the expectation that you're going to win." — Source: Index Ventures
  2. On Market Timing: "Looking back, if you asked me to choose the best time in history to start a cybersecurity company in the cloud, I would have to say March 2020." — Source: YouTube / Candid Podcast
  3. On Strategic Pivoting: "Companies should be open to pivoting their business strategies and exploring alternatives while adjusting expectations." — Source: AWS Blog
  4. On Long-term Value: "There is a tension that you need to play with that you're solving an important problem from the get-go, but that you also need to be sure you're building for the future." — Source: Index Ventures
  5. On Company Scale: "We believe the company that is going to own cloud security in the world is going to be a $100 plus billion dollar company." — Source: YouTube / Interview
  6. On Decision-Making Scale: "When you're turning down an offer [like $23 billion], you're thinking about how you build a hundred billion dollar company—that’s the shift in mindset required." — Source: YouTube / No Priors Podcast
  7. On Economic Crises: "We did not think we would build a company for two or three years; it is good for us to deal with a crisis because it proves the resilience of the model." — Source: Calcalist
  8. On Opportunity Identification: "Having a long-term vision and goals are what allow you to identify new opportunities and create competitive advantage." — Source: AWS Blog
  9. On Growth Speed: "Being the fastest-growing company, the pace is very fast; everyone is always running together, and a great product helps align the whole company." — Source: Index Ventures
  10. On Embracing Uncertainty: "Startups are built in dynamic environments; their life cycles are filled with uncertainty, which can be energizing if the team remains focused." — Source: AWS Blog

Part 2: Building High-Performance Teams & Culture

  1. On Co-founder Synergy: "Part of the magic of the relationship is how different we all are; each co-founder has a distinct personality that brings out the best in the others." — Source: Index Ventures
  2. On Priorities: "You have to understand that it's about people and processes first; only once you understand the people can you create the products." — Source: Index Ventures
  3. On Hiring Potential: "When recruiting, look beyond past experience; prioritize a candidate's potential to adapt and innovate in a rapidly evolving field." — Source: YouTube / Startup Session
  4. On Growth Through Failure: "Our teams are willing to try new ideas with the knowledge that failure equals growth and learning." — Source: AWS Blog
  5. On Employee Well-being: "Tough economic times have a tremendous impact on morale; the well-being of your employees should never be taken for granted." — Source: AWS Blog
  6. On Local Talent Hubs: "Israeli high-tech will not disappear because the talent here is among the best in the world." — Source: Calcalist
  7. On Compensation Philosophy: "Anyone who thinks that salaries in high-tech will fall is wrong; demand for workers remains consistent." — Source: Calcalist
  8. On Leadership Betting: "When I need to bet, I'm betting on my people and their execution abilities." — Source: YouTube / No Priors Podcast
  9. On Collaborative Speed: "In a startup, speed is the most important thing; it is the primary advantage we have over incumbents." — Source: Forbes
  10. On Iterative Cycles: "I believe in working in quick and iterative cycles to build the confidence of teams to be bold in execution." — Source: AWS Blog

Part 3: The Evolution of Cloud Security

  1. On the Cloud Problem Space: "The cloud security problem is huge; it is definitely bigger than endpoint or network security." — Source: YouTube / Interview
  2. On Product Scalability: "Staying at Microsoft taught us the critical importance of building products that scale from day one." — Source: Index Ventures
  3. On Market Consolidation: "The market is looking for consolidation; it's truly more valuable for a CISO to have everything in one platform." — Source: YouTube / No Priors Podcast
  4. On Platform Necessity: "If you understand that vulnerabilities, misconfigurations, and data are all connected, you must have a platform." — Source: YouTube / Interview
  5. On Security Scanning: "Modern security requires scanning cloud storage providers like AWS and Azure without agents to identify vulnerabilities instantly." — Source: Forbes
  6. On Bridging Gaps: "We saw a fundamental gap between security teams and DevOps; Wiz was built to bridge that divide." — Source: Index Ventures
  7. On Agentless Technology: "The shift from agent-based to agentless security was the turning point for cloud adoption at scale." — Source: YouTube / Startup Grind
  8. On Contextual Security: "Vulnerabilities alone don't tell the story; you need the full context of the cloud environment to prioritize risk." — Source: Forbes
  9. On Security as an Enabler: "Security should be an enabler of the business, moving as fast as the developers, not a blocker." — Source: AWS Blog
  10. On Cloud Visibility: "You cannot protect what you cannot see; total visibility is the first step in any cloud security strategy." — Source: Forbes

Part 4: Hyper-growth, Sales, and Market Dominance

  1. On Customer Discovery: "We talked to 100 CISOs before writing a single line of code for Wiz to ensure we were solving the right problem." — Source: Index Ventures
  2. On Quality Control: "We are constantly asking ourselves, 'How do we grow and still keep the highest bar for the product?'" — Source: Index Ventures
  3. On Financial Discipline: "We are entering a period where the main thing for a startup is the rate of cash burning." — Source: Calcalist
  4. On Inorganic Growth (M&A): "M&A is all about people; it's about the people's interaction with the market and the key learnings from their past mistakes." — Source: YouTube / Interview
  5. On Constant Feedback: "It is vital to explore gaps in the industry through continuous conversation with customers." — Source: AWS Blog
  6. On Customer Priority: "The first priority of the organization should always be the customer." — Source: AWS Blog
  7. On Scaling Discipline: "Sometimes you must prioritize scalability and core architecture over adding every new customer-requested feature." — Source: Index Ventures
  8. On Global Ambition: "To build a generational company, you have to target the world's largest corporations from the start." — Source: Forbes
  9. On Sales Momentum: "When you have a product that solves a burning pain, sales becomes an engine of momentum rather than a struggle." — Source: Index Ventures
  10. On Revenue Milestones: "Reaching $100M ARR in record time was a validation of our focus on the cloud security platform shift." — Source: Forbes

Part 5: Leadership Lessons & Global Impact

  1. On Military Foundations: "Meeting my co-founders in Unit 8200 provided a foundation of trust and technical excellence that defines us." — Source: Forbes
  2. On Post-Acquisition Learning: "Spending time at Microsoft after the Adallom exit was essential for learning how to manage at a global scale." — Source: Index Ventures
  3. On Learning from Mistakes: "We made tons of mistakes with Adallom; those mistakes were the best training for making Wiz successful." — Source: YouTube / Podcast
  4. On Technology Humanism: "Of course we love technology, but it’s the human aspect—understanding CISO priorities—that made Wiz successful." — Source: Index Ventures
  5. On Boldness: "I believe in building the confidence of my teams to be bold in both their ideas and their execution." — Source: AWS Blog
  6. On Maintaining Advantage: "Long-term vision allows you to create competitive advantage that goes beyond just feature sets." — Source: AWS Blog
  7. On Brand Simplicity: "The name 'Wiz' represents speed, magic, and simplicity—core values we wanted our product to embody." — Source: Index Ventures
  8. On the Israeli Ecosystem: "The resilience of the Israeli tech ecosystem is built on the talent and dedication of people who thrive in uncertainty." — Source: Calcalist
  9. On the Alphabet Acquisition (2026): "The acquisition of Wiz for $32 billion by Alphabet marks a new era for cloud security and global technical integration." — Source: Forbes
  10. On Earning Dedication: "You must earn the continued dedication and confidence of your talent every single day." — Source: AWS Blog