July 2026 Mergers, Acquisitions and Investment Highlights

Photonics is experiencing a large boom leading to thousands of inventions and new applications. Mergers and Acquisitions (M&As) and investments play a critical role in sustaining the growth of the photonics industry. Read our summary of M&A deals and investments in the photonics industry for July 2026.

Mergers & Acquisitions in Photonics

We are into the seventh month of 2026, but we are still witnessing considerable Mergers and Acquisitions (M&As) in photonics. For July 2026, we have recorded twenty-seven (27) M&As all over the globe consisting of twenty-five (25) acquisitions and two (2) mergers. Nine (9) of the acquisitions for this July were obtained by companies based in Europe while eleven (11) European companies were acquired this month.

Let’s first take a look at the mergers for July 2026. First, there’s the merger between intelligent mission-critical connectivity provider Contrivian (USA) and developer of ultra-reliable networking  software Big Network (USA) which is expected to create a “software-led provider ready to serve global demand for mission-critical connectivity.” Another merger recorded for this month is the business combination agreement between special purpose acquisition company Real Asset Acquisition Corp. (USA) and leading superconducting quantum computer company IQM Quantum Computers (Finland). With the merger with Real Asset Acquisition Corp., IQM is set to be a publicly traded company and will be listed in Nasdaq Global Exchange under the ticker “IQMX”.

Below are the M&As made by companies based in Europe for this month:

• Thales (France), an EPIC member, acquired 35.51% stake of Exail (France), another EPIC member. With the acquisition of Exail’s complementary expertise, Thales will strengthen its underwater warfare market and improve its inertial navigation systems capabilities.
• IQM Quantum Computers (Finland) acquired the proprietary software and intellectual property assets of Quantistry (Germany). This strategic asset acquisition comes after its merger with Real Asset Acquisition Corp. and will allow IQM “to bridge the gap between quantum algorithms and solutions for industrial enterprises.”
• Airties (France), an AI-driven software company, acquired Aprecomm (India), an intuitive, self-healing network and customer experience solutions provider, in a transaction expected to accelerate the expansion of Airties in high-growth broadband markets across the globe.
• ABB (Switzerland) acquired Advantics (France), a developer of Silicon Carbide-based power conversion solutions and expanded its Direct Current portfolio.
• Siemens (Germany), a member of EPIC, acquired system‑on‑a‑chip (SoC) designer Defacto Technologies (France) and improved its electronic design automation (EDA) portfolio with automated SoC design creation capabilities. In another transaction, Siemens also acquired Precision Innovations (USA) to further expand its electronic design automation (EDA) portfolio with AI-powered system-on-a-chip design exploration and optimization.
• HUBER+SUHNER (Germany ), a member of EPIC, acquired high-precision test and electrical contacting solutions Ingun Prüfmittelbau and Ingun International (Germany) to boost its test and measurement business line.
• TRUMPF (Germany), an EPIC member, acquired Mate Precision Technologies (USA) to expand its tooling portfolio for sheet metal fabricators worldwide.
• SPIE (France), a member of EPIC, acquired global open-knowledge platform The Lens (Australia) to expand its “scholarly portfolio.”

Let’s look at the M&As concerning acquired companies based in Europe other than the transactions mentioned above:

• Micross (USA), a provider of high-reliability microelectronic product and service solutions, acquired EPIC member AEMtec (Germany), a developer and producer of precision optoelectronic products. The acquisition will improve the presence of Micross in Europe as well as improve their “portfolio of high-reliability microelectronic services and products.”
• MDA Space (Canada) acquired 70% interest of AI-driven Earth observation value-added services and satellite IoT solutions provider Collecte Localisation Satellites (France) for $650 million. The acquisition is expected to expand MDA Space’s global footprint and result in the establishment of “one of the largest space-based Geointelligence businesses in the world.”
• Kraken Robotics (Canada) acquired Covelya Group (United Kingdom) for $615 million that will establish Kraken as a “global provider of mission-critical, dual-use subsea intelligence solutions.”
• IPG Photonics (USA) acquired the Medical Division of Lumibird (France) for an enterprise value of €300 million. The acquisition will expand IPG’s medical laser growth platform and is expected to help Lumibird focus on its Photonics Division and is crucial for its bid to become “one of Europe’s leading independent photonics companies.”
• Arlington Capital (USA), a private equity firm, acquired for $462 million Gooch and Housego (United Kingdom), one of the leading optical designing, testing and manufacturing companies in the world.
• Karman Space & Defense (USA) acquired Walker Precision Engineering (United Kingdom) for $94 million. Karman is a leader in the rapid design, development and production of critical, next-generation system solutions while Walker Precision Engineering is one of the European missile industry’s leading suppliers. The acquisition is expected to help Karman expand into the international market.

The continued involvement of EPIC members in M&As in Europe and throughout the world are reflected through several M&As recorded this July. As mentioned above, there’s the transaction between EPIC members Thales (France) and Exail (France) whereby Thales acquired Exail’s 35.51% stake as well as the acquisition by HUBER+SUHNER, an EPIC member from Germany, of another German company Ingun Prüfmittelbau and Ingun International. Also, as stated above, there’s the strategic acquisition by EPIC member TRUMPF (Germany) of American company Mate Precision Technologies and the acquisition by SPIE (France) of The Lens (Australia). Lastly, there’s the acquisition of EPIC member IBM (USA) of silicon-spin qubits and quantum sensing expert HRL Laboratories (USA) which is expected to boost IBM’s bid “to scale increasingly powerful quantum computers and accelerate its quantum vision.”

Rounding up the M&As for this month are the other significant transactions all throughout the globe. First, there is the acquisition for $3.45 billion by Lockheed Martin (USA) of global defense company Ultra Maritime (USA) which is a provider of autonomous maritime sensing platforms, among others. Next, Ondas (USA), a provider of advanced autonomous systems and next-generation defense and security technologies, acquired DZYNE Technologies (USA) for $875.8 million in order to create a “leading autonomous defense platform spanning persistent intelligence, aerial security and autonomous effects.” Lastly, leading semiconductor product provider Diodes (USA) acquired fabless semiconductor company ElevATE Semiconductor (USA) for $250 million to expand its analog and mixed-signal portfolio.

Investments

A total of thirty-three (33) investments in photonics and related industries have been noted for the month of July, with twenty (20) European companies securing needed funding to fuel and/or expand their activities and capabilities. Let’s take a look at some of the key investments secured by companies based in Europe this July:

• Helsing (Germany), a defense AI company, secured a Series E funding worth $1.8 billion which will aid in its goal to “develop and integrate entirely new AI platforms into the defence capabilities of its growing number of partner nations.”
• Quantum Systems (Germany), a deep-tech defence prime company, raised €1 billion in its Series D funding round “to accelerate growth and scale software-defined autonomous systems across air, land and sea.”
• Kraken Technology (United Kingdom),a maritime defense company, obtained a Series B $175 million capital to support the development of its “uncrewed surface vessels and payload capabilities” as well as to support the expansion of its localized manufacturing facilities throughout the globe.
• Humanoid (United Kingdom), an AI and robotics company, finished its recent Series A investment round to secure a $152 million funding to support its next-generation robot development, among others.

Key investments were likewise made by photonics companies across the globe for this month:

• ATOMS (USA), a robotics startup, secured an equity investment for $1.7 billion to fuel its mission to “build physical automation to transform industry and move the world.”
• Oratomic (USA) secured in a Series A funding round $300 million in order to support its mission to build a fault-tolerant quantum computer.
• TerraFirma (USA), a robotics startup, raised $115 million in a Series A round to accelerate and expand its “manufacturing, software, operations and construction deployments.”
• Holiday Robotics (South Korea) raised $105 million in its Series A funding round which will support its goal to build a wheeled humanoid designed for industrial work.

Of course, EPIC members also secured and provided funding opportunities for July 2026. CCRAFT, an EPIC member and deep-tech company from Switzerland, secured a $7.8 million investment which will help in the expansion of the manufacturing capacity of its foundry in Neuchâtel, the first independent foundry for Thin-Film Lithium Niobate (TFLN) photonic chips. Pilot Photonics (Ireland), a member of EPIC and integrated photonics firm, secured an investment of €10.4 million from the European Innovation Council to aid the company in the next phase of its growth, including product qualification, high-volume manufacture, and expansion of its team in Ireland as well as internationally. Fusion Bionic (Germany), an EPIC member and Fraunhofer IWS spin-off specializing in industrial surface functionalization using Direct Laser Interference Patterning (DLIP) technology, secured €8.2 million in its seed round to support its bid for the industrialization of DLIP system solutions. There’s also the acquisition of EPIC member AEMtec (Germany) by Micross (USA) in a transaction that will expand the footprint of Micross in Europe, as mentioned above. Lastly, the venture-capital arm of EPIC member TNO (TNO Ventures) participated in the Series A funding round of Keiron Printing Technologies which helped the company raise €20.7 million to revolutionize Laser-Induced Forward Transfer (LiFT) precision solder paste printing for high-reliability electronics.

Note: The mergers and acquisitions (M&As) as well as the investments compiled in this article are based on information readily available at the date of the publication of this article. EPIC shall update the article whenever it comes across publication of other transactions after the release of this article. Readers are encouraged to inform EPIC in case of an omission of a particular M&A or investment for the subject month. Feel free to give us an email at info@epic-photonics.com for inquiries.