At an Italian restaurant inside Las Vegas’s Venetian Hotel, Safra Catz, former Oracle CEO and now senior vice chair of the company, stood before the Israeli delegation attending Oracle’s AI World conference. Smiling warmly, she spoke to them in a mix of Hebrew and English — candidly, emotionally, and with deep pride. Though she no longer serves as CEO, her message was clear: she is still there for them.
Catz, who was born in Israel and moved to the United States at age six with her parents, Leonard and Judith, after her father — a physicist — took a position at MIT, is known for her strong emotional connection to Israel. Married to former kibbutznik Gal Tirosh and mother of two, she often repeats one defining phrase: “For us, it’s the U.S., Israel, and then the rest of the world. We don’t hide it.”
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Safra Catz, former Oracle CEO and now senior vice chair of the company
(Photo: Ayal Or-El)
She said it again that night. Visibly moved, Catz opened her remarks in Hebrew, welcoming the Israeli employees and customers who had come during the Simchat Torah holiday. Covering her face for a moment, her voice broke with emotion before she switched to English, saying she hadn’t stopped crying since seeing the hostages return home the previous day.
“Oracle stands with Israel”
In an interview with Ynet, Oracle Israel CEO Yael Har-Even recalled that immediately after the October 7 Hamas attack, Oracle moved quickly to post the message “Oracle stands with Israel” — in every language — across its global websites.
No one in the company, it seems, worried much about how it might play in certain markets.
Shmulik Hauser, head of Oracle’s sales division, put it bluntly: “We knew we might lose customers because of our support for Israel, but it didn’t matter to us. Supporting Israel is in our DNA — even if it costs us clients. That’s our agenda.”
Catz emphasized that she wasn’t alone in that view — Oracle founder Larry Ellison shares her admiration for Israel and its technology ecosystem. “If you look online, you’ll find footage of a young Larry speaking decades ago with awe and respect for Israel,” she said.
Both Ellison and Catz are widely admired in Israel’s tech sector, especially among startups in health technology. During the conference, both mentioned IMAGINE AI, a company founded by Dean Beitan, Yonatan Salah, and Shahar Porat, which developed technology that rapidly detects cancer.
The company’s system analyzes genomic data, biopsies, and medical records to advance clinical trials and personalized medicine — enabling early disease detection and treatment planning. “It sounds like magic — and only in Israel does this kind of magic happen,” Catz said, referring to the company’s ability to analyze a biopsy in 30 minutes instead of three weeks.
Unprecedented support for employees during the war
Oracle’s pro-Israel words have been matched by action — and few global corporations have done more for their Israeli teams since the war began.
After October 7, every Oracle employee in Israel received double salary payments for the first few months of the war — including those called up for long reserve duty. “Why? Just so they’d feel okay,” said one executive.
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Safra Catz (center) with the Israeli delegation at an Oracle event in Las Vegas
(Photo: Ayal Or-El)
The company also donated $1 million to Magen David Adom and launched a global employee fundraising campaign for Israeli nonprofits, pledging to match every dollar raised. Oracle sent supplies to IDF soldiers, relocated employees who lived near the Gaza border to central hotels, and provided them with credit cards for essentials. Those afraid to remain in Israel were offered relocation to any global office, with full pay.
When the war with Iran broke out, the company again ensured safety for employees lacking protected shelters, moving them to hotels or Airbnb apartments equipped with secure rooms.
The result? At the AI World event, Oracle employees spoke of their company with admiration bordering on reverence.
“I can say absolutely — this is the most socially responsible company I’ve ever worked for,” said Har-Even, who has been with Oracle for four years. “It’s truly a privilege to work for a company like this.”
The reporter attended Oracle’s AI World conference in Las Vegas as a guest of the company.