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‘Start-up Nation’: How owning mistakes onstage spurs Israeli innovation

The Australian Financial Review (AFR) •
November 02, 2026 • 12:56 AM
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Getting it wrong and learning from those mistakes is central to Israel’s global reputation as an innovator. The result is niche businesses in artificial intelligence.

‘Start-up Nation’: How owning mistakes onstage spurs Israeli innovation

A young woman takes to the stage to confess to a crowded room that she once blew up a successful international film project by acting like a diva and ignoring her hard-working production team.

“The main lesson is don’t be an asshole,” says Aviva Zimmerman, prompting laughter from the room. It’s “F**k Up” Night in Tel Aviv, and the audience, half of them working in the high-end tech sector, are here to learn how to embrace failure and move on from their mistakes.

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