Jonathan Karten
About Jonathan Karten
Jonathan Karten is a Principal at Awz Ventures. Crunchbase lists his start there as November 1, 2024, with the title Principal, M&A and Capital Strategy. His Crunchbase location is the United States, and his LinkedIn profile lists New York. He studied at Columbia University, where Crunchbase says he holds an MSc in Business Analytics and a BA in Financial Economics, Psychology and Business Management, graduating Magna Cum Laude.
Before venture capital he served as a Staff Sergeant in the Israeli Air Force Intelligence division, in a business intelligence role. His Wellfound profile also lists work for the Prime Minister's Office and the Ministry of Economy. A ZoomInfo summary describes him as an economic consultant in the Prime Minister's Office and a former financial analyst at Valley, a bank. It also lists a consulting head role at TAMID Group, a student investment and consulting organization.
He founded and ran The Iftach Consulting Group, a management consulting firm. Crunchbase lists him as CEO of Iftach Group from April 2019, and his Luma profile describes him as an exited Iftach founder. His bio also names him as former President and Founder of Democratize Value, a venture capital firm. On the personal side, he made a documentary called "Survival In The Forest, Isidore Karten & The Partisans". He volunteers as a board member with Yad Vashem and the Israeli American Council.
Crunchbase counts 21 investments and 21 portfolio companies for Karten personally. It shows 0 lead investments, 1 exit (not by IPO) and 1 company founded. Its listing names Lynk and Housetable among his angel rounds, but the dates and amounts are hidden on the public page.
In his own bio he says he raised $8 million from angel investors and did due diligence on and invested in 27 ventures. These were in PropTech, E-commerce, Marcom, Healthcare and FinTech. He also says he gave fundraising, due diligence, marketing and operational advice to 23 PropTech, FinTech and other Israeli startups. Separately, he lists underwriting and closing more than 100 commercial real estate transactions in the US, Israel and Europe.
His Wellfound profile says he has managed a family office focused on pre-seed Israeli startups entering the American market. Check sizes and ownership targets are not public.
His current role is at Awz Ventures, and his bio lists AI first among the areas he invests in, alongside cybersecurity, photonics, biotech and quantum. Awz describes its early-stage Awz X-Seed fund as targeting emerging technologies, particularly AI and cybersecurity, according to Caplight.
Caplight's Awz investment list includes DeepKeep (Seed, May 2024, Awz as lead), Promise Bio (Seed, December 2024, lead) and NanoPass Technologies (July 2024, lead). It also shows OTOPIQ Security (December 2025) and Conbo (April 2026) as co-investments. These are firm-level records. Some predate his November 2024 start at Awz, and no public source ties him personally to any of these rounds. Lounge has found no public record of AI deals he made as an individual angel.
At Awz, his stated focus is deep-tech that strengthens Israel's economy and defense capabilities. The sectors are AI, cybersecurity, photonics, biotech and quantum. His Luma profile calls the focus deep-tech dual use. His Wellfound profile says his work covers capital solutions, M&A, investment strategy and corporate development, including securing M&A and capital partnerships for Israeli companies.
A ZoomInfo summary describes his venture work as focused on Seed and Series A Israeli companies entering the US market. Earlier in his career his angel activity ran from pre-seed to early stage across PropTech, FinTech, E-commerce, Marcom and Healthcare. No personal check size is public. Awz itself is a Canadian-Israeli firm founded in 2016 and based in Toronto.
- Lynk: listed on Crunchbase as his most recent angel round; year not public.
- Housetable: listed on Crunchbase as an angel round; year not public.
- Iftach Group: management consulting firm he founded and ran; Crunchbase records one exit and one company founded.
- DeepKeep: Awz-led Seed round in May 2024 per Caplight; a firm-level deal that predates his listed start date at Awz.
- Promise Bio: Awz-led Seed round in December 2024 per Caplight; a firm-level deal.
Investing activity
Jonathan Karten has made 21 investments according to Crunchbase across 21 portfolio companies, and has seen 1 exit and founded 1 company.
Deals
Frequently asked questions about Jonathan Karten
Who is Jonathan Karten?
He is a Principal at Awz Ventures, a former Israeli Air Force intelligence Staff Sergeant and a Columbia graduate. He previously founded Iftach Consulting Group and Democratize Value.
What does Jonathan Karten invest in?
His bio lists deep-tech across AI, cybersecurity, photonics, biotech and quantum, with an Israel focus. His earlier angel deals were in PropTech, FinTech, E-commerce, Marcom and Healthcare.
What is Jonathan Karten's check size?
No check size is public, so Lounge does not list one. Crunchbase shows 21 personal investments but hides the amounts.
Does Jonathan Karten invest in AI startups?
AI is one of the sectors he names for Awz Ventures, and Awz's X-Seed fund targets AI and cybersecurity. No source ties him personally to a named AI deal.
Should an early-stage AI founder pitch Jonathan Karten?
It fits best if you are building deep-tech or dual-use AI with an Israeli connection, or are entering the US market. Outside that focus there is little public evidence of fit.
Where can founders contact Jonathan Karten?
His public profile is on LinkedIn at linkedin.com/in/jkarten, and he works at Awz Ventures (awzventures.com). No X account is listed.
Is Jonathan Karten an angel investor?
Yes. Jonathan Karten invests personally as an angel. Crunchbase counts 21 investments and 1 exit.
Where is Jonathan Karten based?
Jonathan Karten is based in United States, North America.
How can founders reach Jonathan Karten?
Founders on Lounge can see Jonathan Karten's contact details in AI Investor Contacts (paid plans), check for a warm introduction through members who worked with them under Warm Paths, and add Jonathan Karten to their Investor Pipeline to track the conversation.