Base44 Acquisition: Wix Buys 6-Month-Old Solo Coder Project for $80M

The Rise of AI-Powered Solo Ventures

Within the startup ecosystem, there's increasing discussion regarding the potential of Artificial Intelligence to dramatically enhance individual productivity, potentially fostering a new wave of “solo unicorns” – single-person companies valued at over $1 billion.

While a truly independent unicorn remains largely theoretical, Israeli developer Maor Shlomo recently presented compelling evidence suggesting this concept may not be entirely unattainable.

Base44 Acquisition by Wix

Shlomo successfully sold his six-month-old, self-funded vibe-coding startup, Base44, to Wix for $80 million, as announced by Wix on Wednesday. The transaction was completed entirely in cash, as confirmed by Wix to TechCrunch.

It’s important to note that this figure, while substantial, did not reach the billion-dollar mark. Furthermore, Shlomo wasn’t operating entirely alone; he had a team of eight employees, according to Wix. These employees are slated to receive a collective $25 million of the $80 million total as a “retention” incentive. Specific details regarding the payout schedule for this bonus were not disclosed by Wix.

Rapid Growth and Profitability

Base44’s swift ascent and impressive sale price have generated considerable buzz within the vibe-coding community.

During its six months of independent operation, Base44 reportedly amassed 250,000 users, achieving 10,000 users within its initial three weeks. Shlomo’s updates on X and LinkedIn reveal the company was profitable, generating $189,000 in profit during May, even after accounting for significant LLM token expenses, which he openly documented.

Organic Growth and Community Engagement

The platform’s expansion was largely driven by word-of-mouth marketing, as 31-year-old programmer Shlomo actively shared his development process on LinkedIn and Twitter. The project initially began as a side endeavor, as he revealed to Israeli tech news outlet CTech.

“Base44 represents an ambitious experiment – empowering individuals, regardless of their technical expertise, to construct software without writing any code,” he articulated on LinkedIn upon the platform’s public launch.

Vibe-Coding and Platform Capabilities

Base44 is among the latest generation of vibe-coding tools designed for users without programming backgrounds. The platform allows users to input text prompts, which are then utilized to build complete applications, encompassing database functionality, storage, user authentication, analytics, and integration capabilities.

It also provides support for email, text messaging, and maps, with plans to incorporate more robust enterprise-level security features in the future.

While not the only player in this space – companies like Adaptive Computer offer similar infrastructure services – Base44’s rapid growth has been particularly noteworthy.

Shlomo’s Background and Partnerships

Shlomo was already a recognized figure in the Israeli startup scene through his previous venture, Explorium, a data analytics company backed by Insight Partners. His brother is also a co-founder of Token Security, an AI security startup that recently secured $20 million in funding led by Notable Capital and a consortium of Israeli tech investors.

Base44 quickly established partnership agreements with prominent Israeli tech firms, including eToro and Similarweb.

Strategic Technology Choices and Acquisition Rationale

Shlomo publicly shared his decision to utilize Anthropic’s Claude LLM via AWS, rather than models from OpenAI, primarily due to cost-effectiveness. This led to an invitation from Amazon for Base44 to present a demonstration at an AWS event in Tel Aviv last month, an event Shlomo documented.

“An incredibly fast journey thus far,” Shlomo posted on LinkedIn when announcing the acquisition. He decided to sell his bootstrapped company despite its growth and profitability, recognizing that “the level of scale and volume we require is beyond what we could achieve organically.” He expressed excitement about the accelerated pace possible with Wix’s resources.

Wix’s Strategic Investment

Wix acquired a proven, rapidly expanding, locally-developed vibe-coding platform at a relatively modest price, considering its early stage. This acquisition is particularly noteworthy when compared to OpenAI’s $3 billion purchase of Windsurf in 2021.

Wix already provides no-code website building tools that enable the creation of professionally designed websites. Integrating a profitable LLM-powered vibe-coding product into its offerings represents a logical strategic expansion.

Attempts to reach Shlomo for further comment were initially unsuccessful.