In this episode of Yalla, Let’s Go!, Erica and Abbey sit down with Daniil Chernov — Russian-born oleh, co-founder of The Reboot Startup Nation, Nevo Network board member, and an analytics leader who has worked at some of Israel’s biggest tech companies — for a conversation about arriving with a job but no network, building community from scratch, and what eight years in Israel taught him about impact.
Daniil grew up in a small city near Moscow, studied theoretical physics, decided it was too theoretical, and moved into tech. He made aliyah in 2018 while working at Gett — an arrival so smooth he calls it his “golden aliyah” — and then discovered that having a job is not the same as having a professional network. He and Katerina Greenstein launched The Reboot Startup Nation the day before Russia invaded Ukraine, and pivoted overnight from serving Russian-speaking olim already in Israel to absorbing an entire new wave of them. After October 7th, he turned that same community into Israel Delivery Aid, a volunteer logistics operation that ran roughly 1,000 rides carrying gear, food, water, mattresses, and evacuees across the country.
Also in the episode:
Making aliyah from Moscow in 2018 with Gett — and why he calls it a “golden aliyah”
The specific loneliness of arriving with a job but no professional network
Launching The Reboot Startup Nation the day before the war in Ukraine began
Israel Delivery Aid: 1,000 volunteer rides organized out of a tech community after October 7th
Co-founding with a Ukrainian partner while Russia and Ukraine were at war
Moderating 14,000 community members through the hardest conversations
Why he has more ability to create impact in Israel than he ever had in Russia
Hit by a car on an electric scooter — and what the Israeli healthcare system did next
His wife Ksusha and the reality of building a music career in Israel
Aliyah advice: learn Hebrew, even if it’s only the alphabet
This is a practical, funny, and quietly moving conversation about networks, generosity, and what one person can actually build in a country this small.
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KEY TOPICS
0:00 – Intro
0:56 – Meet Daniil Chernov: Russian Oleh, Israeli Tech Leader, and Community Builder
2:19 – Life Story in One Minute: Theoretical Physics to Israeli Tech
2:59 – Making Aliyah from Moscow in 2018 with Gett: The “Golden Aliyah”
4:02 – Two Very Different Aliyahs: His Experience vs. His Wife’s
5:16 – The LinkedIn Party That Showed Him He Had No Network in Israel
6:00 – Launching The Reboot Startup Nation the Day Before the Ukraine War
6:08 – Building a Russian-Language Tech Community for Olim in Israel
8:11 – After October 7th: How Israel Delivery Aid Was Built
9:30 – 1,000 Volunteer Rides: Gear, Food, Water, and Evacuations
11:39 – Co-Founding With a Ukrainian Partner While Russia and Ukraine Were at War
11:57 – Moderating 14,000 Community Members Through the Hardest Conversations
13:26 – Why He Has More Impact in Israel Than He Ever Had in Russia
14:32 – How Israelis Help Strangers: One Cold LinkedIn Message
15:28 – Hit by a Car on an Electric Scooter in Tel Aviv
15:59 – The Doctors’ Protest, the Ambulance, and the Emergency Room
17:29 – Waiting a Week for Surgery: Inside the Israeli Healthcare System
19:25 – Shoulder Surgery, Private Clinics, and Insurance Through Work
19:48 – Would He Ever Leave Israel? Not Back to Russia
20:52 – His Wife Ksusha and the Israeli Market for Non-Mizrahi Music
22:13 – What He Loves Most About Israel: Freedom and People Who Show Up
23:03 – Aliyah Advice: Learn Hebrew, at Least the Alphabet
23:34 – How Good Is His Hebrew After Eight Years?
23:59 – Rapid Fire: Entrecote in a Tortilla, Tachles & “Who Is a Jew?”
RESOURCES
Follow Daniil on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/daniilchernov/
Learn more about The Reboot Startup Nation: https://www.israel-reboot.com/
Subscribe to Yalla, Let’s Go here: https://www.aleph.vc/yalla-lets-go
Learn more about Aleph: aleph.vc
Sign up for Aleph’s monthly email newsletter: https://newsletter.aleph.vc/
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CREDITS
Hosts: Erica Marom, Abbey Onn
Executive Producer: Sarah Bard
Producer: Sofi Levak, Dalit Merenfeld, Myron Shneider
Video and Editing: Nadav Elovic
Music and Creative Direction: Uri Ar
Content and Editorial: Jackie Goldberg
Design: Nimrod Sapir
