Wix Buys AI Startup Base44 for $80M in Six-Month Sprint Deal

One founder, six months, and $80 million later, Wix just made one of its fastest AI bets yet.

The website-building giant announced its acquisition of Israeli startup Base44, founded by Maor Shlomo, for $80 million in cash.

The six-month-old company helps users build complete software applications using simple text prompts.

Basically, it's a no-code vibe-coding platform aimed at non-programmers.

“This acquisition marks a pivotal milestone in Wix’s commitment to transforming creation online,” said Avishai Abrahami, CEO and Co-founder of Wix.

“Base44 brings cutting-edge technology, strong market penetration, and visionary leadership that align with our mission to push the boundaries of AI-driven creation.”

Shlomo, who also serves as the Base44 CEO sees the partnership as a perfect match.

“Wix is probably the only company that can help Base44 achieve the scale and distribution it needs while maintaining, if not accelerating, our product velocity,” he said.

Shlomo originally started Base44 as a side project, bootstrapping the venture without outside funding.

Despite being solo-owned, Wix confirmed the team included eight employees, who are set to share $25 million from the deal as retention bonuses.

A Strong Start

In just half a year, Base44 rapidly amassed 250,000 users, reaching 10,000 sign-ups in its first three weeks alone.

Public posts from Shlomo detailed how the platform achieved profitability quickly, generating $189,000 in net profit in May despite the high costs of running large language models.

The startup's visibility grew largely thanks to Shlomo’s regular updates on LinkedIn and Twitter, where he documented his product journey, challenges, and decisions.

This includes switching to Anthropic’s Claude model for better cost-performance via Amazon Web Services.

This caught Amazon’s attention and led to an invite for Base44 to present at an AWS event in Tel Aviv.

Inside Wix's Fast-Moving Deal

While Base44’s “vibe coding” model isn’t entirely unique, its pace of growth made it stand out.

The platform allows users to input plain text prompts to generate full-stack applications complete with database, storage, authentication, analytics, email, texting, and more.

Upcoming features include enterprise-grade security support.

Shlomo was already well known in the Israeli tech scene, having previously founded data analytics firm "Explorium" and earning connections with companies like eToro and Similarweb.

His family ties to the AI world also run deep, with his brother recently raising $20 million for the AI security startup "Token Security." 

Big news: Base44 is joining @Wix! 🚀

This is huge for us, and an exciting step toward our goal: helping anyone effortlessly turn ideas into reality. 🧵 pic.twitter.com/1AJceF295N

— Base44 (@base_44) June 18, 2025

For Wix, adding a profitable LLM-powered platform enhances its growing portfolio of no-code website and app-building tools.

The acquisition is also a cost-effective move compared to larger AI deals, like when OpenAI spent $3 billion to acquire the AI startup "Windsurf."

Our Take: Is AI Changing the Definition of Who Can Build?

What strikes me here is how this pushes the idea of "creator" far beyond traditional tech circles.

With tools like Base44, small business owners and entrepreneurs can build full-scale apps by simply describing their vision.

Through this acquisition Wix is both adding features and opening doors.

In other news, DoorDash recently acquired the retail ad startup Symbiosis for $175M.

These AI companies turn data into decisions. Check out the top AI companies: