Similarweb, the New York- and Tel Aviv-listed digital intelligence platform, has named Michael Akkerman as its new chief executive officer, drawing a close to a leadership chapter that stretches back nearly two decades under company founder Or Offer. The transition marks one of the more consequential executive handovers in the Israeli technology sector this year, arriving as the broader industry navigates shifting demand for data analytics and Israeli tech funding continues to attract global investor attention.

Akkerman, who had been serving in a senior operational capacity within the company, steps into the role at a moment when Similarweb faces mounting pressure to accelerate revenue growth and demonstrate a credible path to sustained profitability. The company, which trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker SMWB, has seen its share price come under pressure over the past 18 months amid a broader reassessment of high-multiple software stocks by institutional investors.

Or Offer’s Tenure and the Company He Built

Or Offer co-founded Similarweb in 2007 and guided it from a modest web measurement tool into a globally recognised platform used by enterprises, financial analysts, and marketing professionals to benchmark digital traffic and consumer behavior. Under his leadership, the company raised hundreds of millions of dollars in venture capital before completing its initial public offering on the NYSE in May 2021, pricing shares at $14 each and achieving a market capitalisation that exceeded $1.5 billion at the time of listing.

The journey was not without turbulence. Post-IPO, Similarweb faced the same valuation compression that swept through the software-as-a-service sector as rising interest rates eroded the appeal of growth-stage technology stocks. The company responded with a series of cost-reduction measures, including workforce adjustments, as management worked to bring operating losses under tighter control. Offer’s decision to step back, as reported by Calcalist Tech, appears to have been a planned and deliberate transition rather than one prompted by any immediate crisis.

Akkerman’s Mandate and the Road Ahead

Michael Akkerman inherits an organisation with a well-established product suite but an ongoing imperative to convert its large base of enterprise clients into expanding annual contract values. Similarweb reported annual recurring revenue in the range of several hundred million dollars in its most recent financial disclosures, with gross margins typical of software businesses — generally above 70 percent — providing a solid structural foundation. The core challenge for the incoming chief executive will be reigniting top-line momentum in an environment where corporate technology budgets remain scrutinised.

Analysts tracking the digital intelligence sector have pointed to artificial intelligence integration as both a threat and an opportunity for companies in Similarweb’s position. On one hand, generative AI tools threaten to commoditise certain data-aggregation functions that platforms like Similarweb have historically monetised. On the other, embedding AI-driven insights more deeply into the product could justify premium pricing and reduce churn among enterprise customers. The parallel dynamic is visible across cloud software more broadly, with Oracle cloud cuts illustrating how incumbents are restructuring to compete in an AI-dominated landscape.

Offer is expected to remain connected to the company in an advisory or board capacity, a common structure in founder transitions designed to preserve institutional knowledge while empowering new management to set strategic direction. Akkerman has not yet detailed a comprehensive strategic roadmap publicly, though observers anticipate an early focus on international expansion, deeper enterprise penetration, and potentially selective acquisitions to bolster the platform’s data assets. The appointment signals the board’s preference for an insider candidate who understands the product, culture, and client relationships that Offer spent nearly 20 years cultivating.