Eyal Waldman, the founder of Mellanox, which was sold to Nvidia five years ago for $7 billion, feels that in hindsight he should have opposed the deal although he is also satisfied with the results of the acquisition. Waldman was being interviewed on the new Tech & Tonic podcast of the Sphera-Tech hedge fund, presented by Nadav Zeller and Eli Uzan.
The interview began with the question – why did you sell Mellanox? Waldman answered, “As a public company, when you receive an offer that is 40% above the market value, you cannot say no. “I was against. I told the board that the company could succeed independently. In hindsight, I was right, we could have remained independent and then merged, but overall the merger was good – it’s a merger between two very good technology companies, and $97 billion and $7 billion (the market cap of the companies in the merger) together created $3 trillion (Nvidia’s market cap today), which is a very good result for employees and investors.” The process began after an activist investor demanded cost cuts and tried to lead to a change in the board of directors, a period that Waldman describes as “an unpleasant experience, nine months in which I hardly slept.”
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According to Waldman, even when other companies were interested in acquiring Mellanox, he turned to Nvidia. According to him, Mellanox has made a significant contribution to its success: “The synergy between the processors that Nvidia brings to the connectivity that Mellanox brings is what makes Nvidia so great. “This is a significant advantage in the market.” In general, he estimates, Nvidia has a very large advantage over its competitors that he expects it to maintain.
“An opportunity that must not be missed”
When Waldman was asked whether AI would replace us all (in the job market), he said no: “People bring innovation. It will be difficult for a machine to bring a spark of ‘let’s do things differently,’ because it learns from the past.” He also believes that the development of AI will mean that in a decade we won’t have to drive. “There will be many things that will make the world safer, fewer accidents, crime, black money. We are moving in that direction.”
Waldman was asked if he would return to the world of entrepreneurship. He said, “Personally, I’m done. It’s so hard to start a company and make it successful. You’re fighting 24/7 and there are a lot of worries.” He said about his current activities: “I do things that are important to me and important on a geopolitical level. There is a tremendous opportunity with Syria and Lebanon in the near future, also with the Saudis of course, and I hope also with the Palestinians after we finish this story. There is an opportunity that must not be missed.”
Published by Globes, Israel business news – en.globes.co.il – on June 12, 2025.
© Copyright of Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd., 2025.
