David Barnea will head the American defense concern Ondas after leaving the Mossad

Barnea is subject to restrictions on holding positions in certain Israeli entities for a certain time after completing his service with the Mossad, but this is not expected to affect employment with the American company.

Ondas said Barnea’s appointment was reviewed by the Mossad’s legal advisory body and received full approval.

At the beginning of 2025, the young American concern raised $2 billion from investors with an option to double this amount and has since been actively buying up defense startups, primarily Israeli ones, trying to create synergy between them and become a significant defense group.

Although the company is American, its headquarters are in Israel. The core leadership consists largely of Israelis, led by co-director Oshri Lugasi.

For Barnea, a man who ran an intelligence-political organization with a budget of billions of shekels, this will be his first experience in the business sector.

Ondas has not yet disclosed Barnea’s compensation, but an analysis of the company’s financial statements shows that directors’ compensation costs $100,000 a year and board members’ compensation costs a quarter of a million dollars a year.