Former IAI chief's drone company sold to U.S. defense-tech group
VisionWave acquires a 51% stake in Meteor Aerospace, pending successful flight testing of its flagship UAV.
The U.S. defense technology company VisionWave Holdings is acquiring a controlling stake in Israeli defense company Meteor Aerospace, founded by former Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) CEO Itzhak Nissan and businessman Hezi Bezalel. Meteor develops and manufactures unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and other defense systems.
Under the agreement, VisionWave will acquire a 51% stake in Meteor at a company valuation of $40 million through the issuance of VisionWave common shares worth approximately $20.4 million. Completion of the transaction is subject to legal, financial, and technological due diligence, as well as the successful completion of a flight test of Meteor's Impact-700 UAV.
The Impact-700 is capable of operating at altitudes of up to 18,000 feet, remaining airborne for more than 20 hours, flying missions at ranges of up to 200 kilometers, and carrying payloads exceeding 100 kilograms.
In addition to UAVs, Meteor develops and manufactures unmanned ground and maritime vehicles, long-range precision weapon systems, and technologies for electronic warfare and intelligence gathering.
Following completion of the transaction, Nissan's and Bezalel's ownership stakes will each be diluted from 50% to 24.5%. As the controlling shareholder, VisionWave will have the right to appoint a majority of Meteor's board of directors and integrate the company's technologies into its broader portfolio.
VisionWave is a NASDAQ-listed defense technology holding company focused on acquiring and developing defense technologies, robotics, cybersecurity, and AI-based systems. The company expanded into Israel in March under the leadership of Adir Sabag. Since entering the Israeli market, VisionWave has acquired a server farm project in Beit Shemesh, acquired Foresight Autonomous Holdings, which develops computer vision and telemetry systems, and acquired xClibre, a company specializing in AI-powered real-time video rendering.
Nissan is expected to continue leading Meteor's technology activities and will later assume a senior management or advisory role to support the company's long-term development.
Commenting on the planned acquisition, VisionWave Chairman Douglas Davis said: "We believe this transaction has the potential to create a leading platform for advanced defense technologies."
The sale follows an earlier unsuccessful attempt to sell Bezalel's stake in Meteor to IAI, which Nissan previously led. In 2023, Meteor and IAI negotiated a deal under which IAI would acquire Bezalel's shares for $28 million. However, the transaction was blocked by the Government Companies Authority, which questioned the rationale for the acquisition given IAI's existing leadership in the UAV sector.
After the IAI deal collapsed, efforts were made to sell the stake to Israel Shipyards, but those negotiations also failed.
