Ackman Sees Israeli Company Reaching $1 Trillion Within Five Years

Bill Ackman said he would be surprised if an Israeli company did not reach a $1 trillion market capitalization within five years, forecasting a longer horizon of up to a decade. The Pershing Square Capital Management founder made the prediction at Sheba Medical Center’s ARC summit in Tel Aviv on October 22. Ackman described Israel’s technology sector as increasingly mature, saying entrepreneurs are more often choosing to expand their companies rather than sell them early to multinational firms. He presented that trend, alongside the country’s concentration of talent, as support for his forecast. The projection is Ackman’s assessment, not an announced company plan or an established outcome. He also argued that Israel’s relatively small population could become an advantage as artificial intelligence reshapes economies. In his view, a smaller population can mean a lighter fiscal burden than that faced by larger countries. He pointed to the United States’ debt as an example of the costs associated with supporting a large population. Ackman said he had become more optimistic about Israel’s economy and financial markets since the October 7, 2023, attacks. He described the economy as...