Registry · RNO
Does Renault Group support Israel?
Yes — Renault Group has documented support for Israel on record. Every claim below links to its source.
Filed under: Car & automotive brands · Companies that support Israel
Background
Renault has no plant or sales subsidiary in Israel. Its cars are imported and distributed there by Carasso Motors, a privately held Israeli company founded by the Carasso family in 1933 that has been Israel's exclusive Renault importer since 1948 and also imports Dacia, Nissan, Infiniti and Chinese brands. The importer's own commercial decisions and its owners' philanthropy are not Renault Group's. Renault's history in the country runs the other way as often as it runs towards it: the company was blacklisted by the Arab League in 1955 and in 1959 it bowed to the boycott, suspending its licence with the Kaiser-Ilin/Kaiser-Frazer assembly plant in Haifa and stopping sales in Israel — a withdrawal that pushed Israel to build its own car industry, and one that Renault reversed only after the boycott weakened. Renault Group's documented corporate ties to Israel today are innovation and venture activity: the Alliance Ventures investments in Israeli mobility technology (Maniv Mobility 2018, Upstream Security 2019) and the Tel Aviv innovation lab opened in 2019. No Renault corporate donation to Israeli government bodies, the military or Israel-linked charities is documented.
Haaretz — Renault importer Carasso finally preparing to go public (exclusive importer since 1948) Jewish Telegraphic Agency (archive) — Israel to produce own autos, spurred by Renault's withdrawal Fershtman & Gandal, 'The Effect of the Arab Boycott on Israel: The Automobile Market' (Tilburg University repository) Jewish Weekly archive (11 December 1959) — Charge made in row over Renault
Timeline of documented support
Documented support
| Type | Date | Amount | Recipient | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Investment / program | 2018-05 | — | Maniv Mobility (Tel Aviv automotive venture-capital fund) Alliance Ventures — the joint venture-capital fund launched in January 2018 by Renault, Nissan and Mitsubishi Motors, with Renault as the Alliance's lead member — made its first Israeli investment, committing an undisclosed amount to the Tel Aviv mobility fund Maniv Mobility in order to deepen the Alliance's involvement in the Israeli market. The commitment belongs to the joint Alliance fund, of which Renault is one of three partners, not to Renault alone. | |
| Operations in Israel | 2019-06-06 | — | Alliance Innovation Lab Tel Aviv (Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi joint facility) Renault and Nissan opened the Alliance Innovation Lab Tel Aviv, a 1,600-square-metre facility giving Israeli start-ups office space and room to test technologies on real vehicles, focused on autonomous driving, cybersecurity, data and AI. The lab is a joint Alliance facility in which Renault is a partner; Renault Group continues to run a Tel Aviv innovation lab under its own name. This is a corporate operation in Israel, not a donation. | |
| Investment / program | 2019-10-21 | — | Upstream Security Ltd. (Herzliya automotive-cybersecurity company) Alliance Ventures, the joint Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi fund, led the $30 million Series B round of Israeli automotive-cybersecurity company Upstream Security, alongside Volvo Group, Hyundai and Nationwide. The $30 million is the round total; the Alliance's individual share was not disclosed and the investment belongs to the joint fund rather than to Renault alone. |
Frequently asked questions
Did Renault Group donate money to Israel or Israeli causes?
We have no records of cash donations, but Renault Group has documented support of other kinds (Investment / program, Operations in Israel). See the records on this page.
Where does this information come from?
Every record on this page links to its source — news reports, official company statements, tax filings, or government records. 11 distinct sources are cited for Renault Group. Our methodology page explains the full verification process.
Sources & citations
Record last updated: 2026-07-30
- Calcalist CTech — Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi invests in Tel Aviv-based automotive VC Maniv calcalistech.com
- Times of Israel — Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi sees Israeli tech as key to future of cars timesofisrael.com
- Alliance Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi (official release, 6 June 2019) alliancernm.com
- Times of Israel — Renault, Nissan open innovation lab in Tel Aviv timesofisrael.com
- Jerusalem Post — Renault, Nissan, Mitsubishi alliance launch Tel Aviv innovation lab jpost.com
- PR Newswire — Upstream Security closes $30 million Series B from Renault, Volvo Group, Hyundai, Nationwide prnewswire.com
- Tech.eu — Upstream Security gets $30 million Series B tech.eu
- Haaretz — Renault importer Carasso finally preparing to go public (exclusive importer since 1948) haaretz.com
- Jewish Telegraphic Agency (archive) — Israel to produce own autos, spurred by Renault's withdrawal jta.org
- Fershtman & Gandal, 'The Effect of the Arab Boycott on Israel: The Automobile Market' (Tilburg University repository) repository.tilburguniversity.edu
- Jewish Weekly archive (11 December 1959) — Charge made in row over Renault cdnc.ucr.edu