OpenAI is reportedly preparing to establish a commercial presence in Israel, starting with business development rather than an engineering base, according to a report.

A senior Israeli executive who until recently led Amazon Web Services for Startups in Israel has joined OpenAI in a Europe, the Middle East, and Africa role reporting to London and is expected to focus mainly on Israel.

If the operation expands, OpenAI may later appoint a country manager to lead local activities.

OpenAI’s careers page also shows it is hiring for an “Account Director, Digital Natives – Israel” role.

The listing points to Israel-focused commercial hiring, though it does not by itself confirm a local office or define the role’s in-country scope.

The move comes as Israel emerges as a significant enterprise AI market. A 2026 5W study citing Anthropic’s AI Usage Index said Israel ranked first globally in Claude usage relative to its share of the world’s working-age population, with a score of 4.9x.

Any local sales push would also come amid evolving regulation, with Israel’s Privacy Protection Authority issuing draft guidelines saying privacy law applies across AI development and deployment.

🔗 Source: Calcalist