Stef Wertheimer, a pioneering Israeli industrialist, philanthropist and former lawmaker who championed manufacturing as the backbone of Israel’s economy, died Wednesday at the age of 98.
Wertheimer, who immigrated to what was then Mandatory Palestine as a child fleeing Nazi Germany, rose from modest beginnings to become one of Israel’s most influential business figures.
As a young man, he joined the elite Palmach unit—an underground strike force of the Haganah—where he specialized in producing optical equipment and munitions during the pre-state years and Israel’s 1948 War of Independence. His technical skills and wartime experience later laid the groundwork for his industrial pursuits.
In 1952, Wertheimer founded ISCAR Metalworking in a backyard shed in the northern city of Nahariya, eventually building it into a global leader in precision metal-cutting tools. In 2006, he sold a controlling stake in the company to Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway in what was then the firm’s first major acquisition outside the United States.
The deal, reportedly worth $4 billion, marked a watershed moment for Israeli industry and elevated Wertheimer’s international stature. Buffett later praised ISCAR as “the kind of company we want to own,” citing its innovation and global reach.
Wertheimer was also a passionate advocate for vocational education, regional development and Arab-Jewish cooperation. He established a network of industrial parks across Israel and the region, including in Arab communities, aimed at promoting employment, coexistence and economic independence. Among them was the Tefen Industrial Park in the Galilee, which combined industry, education and culture in a campus-like setting.
Though briefly a member of the Knesset in the 1970s with the secular, pro-business Shinui Party, Wertheimer was best known for his work outside politics, pushing successive governments to support manufacturing and export-oriented industries over real estate and short-term investments.
In interviews, he frequently said that Israel’s long-term strength lay in “making things, not just inventing them,” and urged the country to invest more heavily in skilled labor and industry as a foundation for national resilience and peace.
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He viewed manufacturing not just as an engine of growth, but as a tool for social cohesion, employment and regional stability. To that end, he invested much of his energy and wealth into creating a network of industrial parks designed to foster local production, vocational training and coexistence between Jewish and Arab communities.
His flagship project, the Tefen Industrial Park in the Galilee, became a model for combining business, education and culture in a single integrated environment. These parks were not just places for factories—they included technical schools, museums and galleries.
Similar parks were later established in Nazareth, Tel Hai, Omer and other regions, each tailored to local needs. Wertheimer believed these hubs could anchor underserved areas, create high-quality jobs and offer meaningful alternatives to conflict, especially in Israel’s north and in cross-border initiatives with neighboring countries.
Wertheimer is survived by his wife, five children—including industrialist Eitan Wertheimer—and numerous grandchildren—including actress and TV host Maya Wertheimer.