A US-based artificial intelligence startup is betting on Israel's skilled workforce with plans to create dozens of engineering jobs in Tel Aviv by year's end, marking a significant investment in the country's tech sector at a time when access to quality employment remains a priority for workers.
Fundamental, a San Francisco-based company led by Israeli entrepreneur Gabriel Suissa, announced Tuesday that it will open a new engineering hub in Tel Aviv on June 2. The startup plans to hire dozens of employees for engineering and infrastructure roles by the end of 2026, expanding its current workforce of 70 people across offices in San Francisco, Barcelona and a small Tel Aviv presence.
Building on Local Talent
Founded in October 2024 by Suissa and serial entrepreneur Jeremy Fraenkel, Fundamental develops an AI foundational model designed to analyze large databases that underpin enterprise decision-making and predict risks and trends such as financial fraud, pricing and customer churn. "At Fundamental, we are building a new category of AI designed for the data that is the backbone of the business world, from financial systems to supply chains to hospitals," Suissa said.
The decision to establish a substantial engineering presence in Israel reflects the company's recognition of the country's deep technical expertise. "To solve a technology problem of this magnitude, we need to recruit the best talent in the world, which is why the decision to open an engineering hub in Israel felt natural and obvious to us," Suissa said. He emphasized that "this is a long-term strategic investment on our part."
Technology Designed for Enterprise Data
Fundamental's Nexus model, built by former DeepMind alumni including Marta Granelo, is trained on billions of tabular datasets and is designed to analyze raw tables with almost no need for complex configuration, sometimes using just a "single line of code." The startup says the model can process massive databases without the inaccuracies typically associated with traditional AI models.
In February, Fundamental emerged from stealth with its AI model and secured $275 million in funding from investors at a $1.45 billion company valuation. The funding round was led by US fintech investor Oak HC/FT, with participation from Valor Equity Partners, Battery Ventures, Salesforce Ventures and Hetz Ventures. Among the startup's angel investors are Wiz CEO Assaf Rappaport, Perplexity CEO Aravind Srinivas, Brex co-founder Henrique Dubugras and Datadog CEO Olivier Pomel.
Strategic Partnerships Across Sectors
Fundamental recently entered into a partnership with SAP to integrate its Nexus model into the software provider's business AI platform. The collaboration is designed to help organizations analyze large volumes of tabular data and generate more accurate business predictions across areas such as finance, supply chains, operations and risk management.
Earlier this year, Fundamental inked a partnership deal with Amazon Web Services to sell its Nexus AI model. Alongside the partnerships, the startup said it has signed "seven-figure contracts" with Fortune 100 enterprises in the fields of oil and gas, finance and healthcare sectors.
Why This Matters:
The expansion of Fundamental's engineering operations in Tel Aviv represents meaningful job creation in high-skilled technical roles at a time when workers increasingly seek stable, well-compensated positions in the technology sector. The company's decision to invest in local talent rather than relying solely on offshore development or contracting arrangements provides Israeli workers with direct employment opportunities and career development pathways. As AI technology reshapes industries from healthcare to finance, ensuring that the workforce developing these systems has access to quality jobs with fair compensation and benefits becomes critical. The establishment of this hub also reflects how public investment in education and technical training can attract private sector investment, creating a cycle that benefits workers and communities when companies commit to long-term local presence rather than short-term cost optimization.