Israeli Startup Geniez AI Acquired for Up to $100 Million After 14 Months

By מערכת ice

Translated & summarized from Ice by baba

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Hebrew · 2 newsrooms covering

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American firm Rocket Software is acquiring Israeli startup Geniez AI for up to $100 million, just 14 months after its founding. The company, with only six employees, developed AI agents to manage complex mainframe systems for financial institutions. Founders Gil Peleg and Dan Shprung, who previously sold Model9 for $40 million, are set to profit significantly. The acquisition is driven by Geniez AI's rapid market penetration and its innovative solution to a major challenge in the financial sector.

The story in 6 lines · by baba

Rocket Software is acquiring Israeli startup Geniez AI for up to $100 million.
Geniez AI was founded only 14 months ago and has just six employees.
The startup developed AI agents to manage complex mainframe systems for financial institutions.
Founders Gil Peleg and Dan Shprung previously sold Model9 for $40 million.
Geniez AI secured pilot programs with three major U.S. banks within months.
The company raised $6 million in seed funding led by StageOne Ventures and Canapi Ventures.

American company Rocket Software is acquiring Israeli startup Geniez AI for approximately $100 million, according to a report by "TheMarker." The deal is considered exceptional due to Geniez AI's age, having been founded only 14 months ago in September 2025, and its lean operation of just six employees, two of whom are in Israel. The startup was founded by Gil Peleg, a former Mamram unit veteran with mainframe experience, and Dan Shprung, ex-Senior Vice President of Revenue at Model9. The pair previously had a successful exit when they sold Model9 to BMC for about $40 million after seven years.

Interestingly, Rocket Software, owned by Bain Capital and specializing in IT infrastructure modernization, had previously competed to acquire Model9 but lost. Rocket Software initially declined an offer to participate in Geniez AI's first funding round about a year ago. However, after eight months, recognizing the technology's rapid market penetration and growth, they returned with a full acquisition offer.

The high valuation for the small company stems from the challenge large financial organizations face in modernizing their core operations, which still run on complex mainframe systems. Due to strict regulations, data privacy, and security risks, migrating these systems to the cloud is a lengthy and costly process. Geniez AI has developed AI agents that enable these organizations to manage and decipher mainframe operations, utilizing advanced language models while maintaining a security layer to prevent sensitive data leakage. This technology has quickly gained traction, securing contracts and pilot programs with three major U.S. banks within months.

Geniez AI initially raised a modest $6 million seed round, led by StageOne Ventures and Canapi Ventures. Because the initial funding was small, the founders and employees retained a significant stake in the company, meaning they are poised to make tens of millions of dollars, even if the final acquisition amount is tied to future milestones. The company attributes its rapid success with a small team to an AI-native development approach, where each employee leverages multiple AI models, a process that previously would have required dozens of additional engineers. The combination with Rocket Software's financial backing and market reach is expected to provide banking clients with the confidence needed for large-scale technology adoption.