Maor Shlomo: The Story of a One-Man Company's Millions
Maor Shlomo is the new face of Israeli high-tech: a solo founder who achieved an $80 million exit in just six months. In a candid interview, he discusses sleepless nights, his skepticism toward academic degrees, the tragic loss of his mother, and his mission to use AI to fight cancer.
Maor Shlomo has yet to get used to the titles. When people call him a "child prodigy" or a "rock star of the Israeli industry," he feels uncomfortable. The press has already compared his meetings to those of Mark Zuckerberg, but Shlomo admits that everything happened at such a dizzying speed that he still struggles to process his role in these events.
At the center of his story is an old laptop he refuses to replace. This computer is his personal talisman, having accompanied him throughout his journey. Shlomo even declined a new computer offered by Wix after the acquisition. "You don't change a winning horse," he explains. This laptop is living proof of the AI era, where one person can spark a global revolution.
A Startup Born in a Taxi
It all began almost by accident. After 400 days of reserve duty in Unit 8200, Shlomo wasn't planning to start another company. The revolution of Base 44 was born during a vacation while he was helping his partner, Yuval, set up software for her tattoo business.
Yuval filmed him in absurd situations—in a taxi or on the beach, always with his laptop. The name Base 44 was chosen randomly because the base.com domain was taken. Today, it is used by millions. Base 44 allows people to build software, websites, and games without technical skills: users describe their needs in plain language, and the system writes the code in the background.
Three Months Without Sleep
Success brought immense pressure. Shlomo didn't sleep for months, checking the system's stability every two hours. He was driven not by money, but by feedback from users who built businesses using his tool. "I realized this wasn't just a project; it was a dream. I want to look back at age 90 and know I changed the world for the better," he says.
Shlomo, a Haifa native and the youngest of five, never felt at home in traditional academia. He even dropped out of an honors program at the Technion. He founded his first company, Explorium, at 23 without knowing what a venture capital fund was, eventually reaching a valuation of half a billion dollars.
Personal Battle and the Fight Against Cancer
The past year has been his most difficult. Alongside the rise of Base 44, his mother was diagnosed with lung cancer. Shlomo used AI to research the disease, read studies, and consult with experts, desperately trying to save her. Sadly, she passed away four months ago. This loss led him to establish a cancer research fund: "It is unacceptable that AI can do so much, yet people are still dying from this disease."
Looking Ahead
In June 2025, Base 44 was sold to Wix for $80 million, a figure that has since grown to over $150 million. Shlomo insists that the financial aspect was secondary—he wanted global scale. At Wix, he works alongside the founding generation, and CEO Avishai Abrahami notes that Shlomo is far more sophisticated than they were at his age.
Regarding the AI revolution in the job market, Shlomo remains optimistic: "The world is changing, and we are changing with it. You shouldn't fear it; you should learn to adapt." His advice to young entrepreneurs is clear: don't waste years on a degree. Life is short, and today it is more important to develop resourcefulness and initiative by leveraging AI as a tool for success.
