March 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 March 2026.

Mergers & Acquisitions in Photonics

We have concluded the first quarter of this year and significant M&As in the photonics industry are still being recorded all throughout the world. For the month of March, a total of twenty (20) M&As were noted. Seven (7) of these acquisitions were headed by companies based in Europe. Of these acquisitions, five (5) of the acquired companies are likewise from Europe. On the other hand, a total of eight (8) European companies were acquired by companies that are either based in Europe and the USA. Below are some of the notable M&As involving European companies:

• Rheinmetall, the defense giant from Germany, acquired 51% stake in DOK-ING  from Croatia and expanded its portfolio in the field of uncrewed and autonomous systems.
• Infinite Orbits, a GEO in-orbit services provider from France, acquired United Kingdom-based Lúnasa, marking the establishment of its operations in the United Kingdom and representing “a further step in Infinite Orbits’ European expansion.”
• HENSOLDT, a defense specialist from Germany, acquired Dutch optronics specialist NEDINSCO to strengthen its “technological capabilities in a strategically relevant segment”, secure “critical supply chains” and expand “its industrial presence in Europe.”
• Electro-Photonics, an American photonics company, concluded a strategic acquisition of ELECTRONICS COMPONENTS from the United Kingdom to expand its presence in Europe.
• Ondas, a US-based autonomous aerial and ground robot intelligence specialist, acquired Rotron Aerospace, a developer of advanced unmanned aerial systems and long-range autonomous platforms from the United Kingdom. With the acquisition, Ondas expanded its long-range propulsion technologies for advanced unmanned systems for defense.
• Rivr, a physical AI and robotics developer from the Switzerland was acquired Amazon (USA) to fuel its mission to build “General Physical AI through doorstep delivery, bringing robotics and AI closer to real-world deployment at scale.”

EPIC members likewise participated in M&As in the photonics industry for this month. EPIC member Jenoptik (Germany) acquired the Intelligent Transportation Systems business of FIMA (Lithuania), thereby expanding its presence in the Baltic region. Also, VIGO Photonics, a member of EPIC from Poland, acquired USA-based InfraRed Associates in a strategic acquisition that marked VIGO’s global expansion strategy and improved its “ability to serve the defense and high-tech sectors.”

Rounding up the M&As for March 2026 are some significant transactions. First, Apollo Funds (USA) acquired for $3.7 billion Nippon Sheet Glass (Japan), one of the leading supplier of glass and glazing systems in the fields of Architectural, Automotive, and Creative Technology. Leonardo (Italy) acquired the Defence Business IDV and ASTRA brands of Iveco Group (Italy) for €1.6 billion to become a “leading, fully integrated Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) in the land defence domain.” Lastly, there’s the acquisition by high-performance semiconductor, Internet of Things (IoT) systems and cloud connectivity service solutions provider Semtech (USA) of high-efficiency Indium Phosphide (InP) optoelectronic devices HieFo (USA) for $34 million.

Investments

We’re also continuing to witness significant investments in the third month of the year. For March, we have recorded forty-two (42) investments. Nineteen (19) of these were obtained by companies based in Europe, including the following:

• Pasqal , one of the global leaders in quantum solutions based in France, raised €340 million and will used the capital to support its further development and to support its upcoming public listing.
• PLD Space, an international space transportation company from Spain, closed a Series C €180 million funding round led by Mitsubishi Electric to fuel its mission to “accelerate global access to space.”
• Oxa, a United Kingdom-based autonomous vehicle technology specialist, raised $103 million             in a Series D funding round to help in its “focus on commercialising solutions for Industrial Mobility Automation (IMA).”
• IQM, a Finland-based full-stack superconducting quantum computers specialist, secured a €50 million funding to accelerate its global growth.
• PAVE Space from Switzerland raised $40 million to aid in its bid to accelerate satellite deployment.

Likewise noted in March are several significant investments all throughout the globe, including:

• Shield AI (USA) , a deep-tech company, closed a $1.5 billion Series G funding round wherein a portion will be used in its acquisition of Aechelon Technology (USA), one of the leaders in simulation and training systems with focus in geo-specific flight simulators and physics-based sensor AI training.
• Sierra Space (USA), a leading defense-tech space company, finished a Series C round to secure $550 million to help in the delivery of “solutions for the nation’s critical missions.”
• Ayar Labs (USA) raised $500 million in a Series E round to accelerate “volume production of co‑packaged optics.
• Mind Robotics (USA) secured a Series A $500 million capital which will aid its goal to “support deployment of AI-powered robots at industrial scale.”

EPIC members were also active in either securing or providing funding opportunities for this month. First, EPIC member Femtum (Canada) secured a $16 million Series A funding to scale laser solutions for advanced semiconductor manufacturing, whereby one of the investors is the venture capital arm of another EPIC member Hamamatsu (Hamamatsu Ventures). There’s also the investment made by Bosch Ventures, the venture capital arm of EPIC Member Bosh, in Eridu (USA) in the latter’s Series A round which secured a funding of $200 million “to break through the network wall and unlock faster AI.” Lastly, EPIC member Intel (through Intel Capital) were among the investors in the $21 million Series A round closed by EPIC Microsystems (USA) which will provide needed funding in its goal to “power next-gen AI data centers.”

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.