Israeli drone company XTEND has announced that it will begin trading on Nasdaq at a valuation of $1.5 billion after a share merger with New York-listed JFB Construction Holdings.
Strategic investors in the merger include Eric Trump, Israeli company Protego Ventures, which led the company’s previous funding round, Unusual Machines, American VenturesLLC, Aliya Capital, and the Agostinelli Group. Eric Trump is acting advisor to drone-maker Unusual Machines.
The move comes as drones have become a top-selling item at the Pentagon and are playing a central role on the Ukrainian battlefield, where conventional warplanes are scarce, due to dense air-defense systems near the front lines.
“The demand for systems that keep operators out of harm’s way is surging as the global security environment grows more volatile, and this represents one of the largest market opportunities in defense technology today. By combining our platform with JFB [Construction Holdings], we are acquiring the resources we need to scale our manufacturing capabilities in the US – and gaining access to the US public markets,” said Xtend CEO Aviv Shapira.
The success of drones on the ground has also led to a spike in Silicon Valley investment in drone and military artificial intelligence (AI) start-ups, driving up the valuations of US firms such as Anduril Industries and Shield AI.
According to the release, “the combined company expects to be well-positioned to become a leading US provider of AI-driven autonomous defense and security solutions.”
The all-stock merger is expected to close by the middle of 2026, after which the joint company will be renamed XTEND AI Robotics and listed on Nasdaq under the ticker “XTND.”
XTEND’s success in the defense-tech field
Xtend was founded in 2018 by Shapira, Matteo Shapira, Rubi Liani, and Adir Tubi. The company specializes in human-guided autonomous machine systems for defense applications.
With their products, Xtend aims to enable pilots to control and interact with their drones and autonomous ground vehicles for various mission types – using VR/AR interfaces and AI – such as underground or other complex environments.
The company’s AI-enabled systems are being used by the US Department of Defense, Singapore, Europe, the United Kingdom, and the IDF.
XTEND delivers next-generation autonomous systems for defense, public safety, and private security applications built on its battle-proven XOS operating system. Its products utilize remote operational capabilities, enabling multiple air, ground, and maritime drones to execute complex, dynamic missions with immediate operational readiness.
Xtend was originally founded as a gaming company that used drone-based extended-reality technology along with virtual reality to simulate flight in video games. But on October 7, 2023, Shapira realized that his technology could help IDF soldiers and developed a new Concept of Operations (CONOPS) where drones enter the battlefield before the soldiers.
In an exclusive interview last year with The Jerusalem Post, Shapira explained that while 80% of their products are drones, 20% are ground platforms. All of their platforms are battle-proven, having mapped tunnels under the Gaza Strip and even intercepted Hezbollah drones in the north of the country. The company’s drones were instrumental in helping troops who arrived in devastated communities following the deadly Hamas attack.
“At XTEND, we’ve unfortunately been involved in many conflicts around the world. But that experience makes our technology truly battle-proven, something you can’t buy. And operating with remotes saves lives,” Xtend CEO Aviv Shapira told the Post.
For the self-proclaimed “rocket scientist geek” who won Emmys for VR gaming technology, “it’s been interesting to see how things evolve.”
Reuters contributed to this report.