Following the Money in Defense Tech Stocks

Rhea-AI Summary

VisionWave Holdings (NASDAQ: VWAV) has commenced trading on the Nasdaq Global Market following its successful business combination, with shares and warrants trading under "VWAV" and "VWAVW" respectively. The company enters the market with a post-merger enterprise value of $174 million and approximately 14.3 million shares outstanding.

VisionWave specializes in AI-powered defense technology, focusing on autonomous systems and multi-domain sensing. The company is positioned to capitalize on significant market opportunities, including the $962 billion US defense budget for 2025 and projected defense-related IT spending growth of $23 billion from 2024-2028. The US government's "Big Beautiful Bill" has allocated $16 billion for military AI and $1.4 billion for DoD/NNNSA AI investments.

Positive

• None.

Negative

• Entering a highly competitive market with established players
• Early stage of commercialization with products still in pilot phase
• Manufacturing operations in US still need to be established

Insights

Defense Industry Analyst

VisionWave's NASDAQ debut leverages surging defense tech investment amid $962B defense budget and growing AI military spending.

VisionWave Holdings (VWAV) has strategically positioned its public market entry during a remarkable transformation in defense technology investment. The company's July 15th NASDAQ listing coincides with the $962 billion US defense budget for 2025 and follows a pattern of successful defense tech IPOs that have seen substantial investor enthusiasm.

What makes this listing particularly noteworthy is VisionWave's focus on AI-powered autonomy and multi-domain sensing at a time when the government has earmarked $16 billion specifically for military AI in the 2025 "Big Beautiful Bill." The company's $174 million post-merger enterprise value and relatively modest 14.3 million shares outstanding structure suggest a focused capitalization approach rather than a dilutive one.

VisionWave's technology platform addresses critical battlefield intelligence gaps by replacing legacy systems with real-time, adaptive AI that operates across air, land, and sea domains. Their engagement with Tier-1 defense manufacturers and national security programs represents established market validation rather than speculative potential.

This IPO is part of a larger pattern in defense tech. Voyager Technologies (VOYG) saw an 82% first-day increase, AIRO Group (AIRO) quadrupled its $10 IPO price before settling at $22-23, and Karman Holdings (KRMN) has more than doubled from its $22 offering price to over $56. These performance metrics demonstrate remarkable sector momentum that VisionWave is positioned to potentially capitalize on.

The timing aligns with Technavio's projection of $23 billion growth in defense-related IT spending from 2024-2028, with overall defense expenditure expected to exceed $2.3 trillion by 2028. VisionWave's strategic priorities focusing on commercialization of their Vision-RF system, proprietary AI core development, and pursuit of US defense contracts represent a coherent path to capturing market share in this expanding sector.

VisionWave (VWAV) enters markets at a moment of increased demand for intelligent defense solutions

Vancouver, Kelowna, and Delta, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - July 23, 2025) - Investorideas.com, a leading investment platform for trading and investment ideas in space and defense stocks, releases a sector snapshot highlighting recent IPOs and new listings in the defense tech industry, featuring recently NASDAQ listed, VisionWave Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: VWAV).

With significant US defense spending commitments, emerging defense companies are gaining momentum. The US defense budget for 2025 is estimated at $962 billion, making it the world's largest military budget. In 2025, the defense industry is experiencing a major transformation due to geopolitical pressures, technological breakthroughs, and shifting capital flows; and the market is paying attention.

Looking at what is happening in the sector Morningstar reported, "Voyager Technologies (NYSE: VOYG) closed its first day of trading on the New York Stock Exchange at $56.48 per share, giving it an 82% pop from its IPO price. It's a temperature check for the hottest sector in venture capital outside of artificial intelligence: defense tech."

Aiming to capitalize on this opportunity, VisionWave Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: VWAV), a next-generation defense technology company seeking to redefine battlefield superiority through AI-powered autonomy and advanced multi-domain sensing, today announced that its common stock and warrants began trading on the Nasdaq Global Market under the symbols "VWAV" and "VWAVW" on July 15, 2025, following the successful completion of its business combination.

From the news: VisionWave enters the public markets at a moment of increased demand for intelligent defense solutions. According to Technavio, a leading global technology research and advisory company, global defense-related IT spending is set to grow by over $23 billion from 2024 to 2028 consistent with overall defense expenditure expected to surpass  $2.3 trillion by 2028.

Moreover, the U.S. government's 2025 "Big Beautiful Bill" earmarks approximately $16 billion for military AI, along with at least $1.4 billion in targeted DoD/NNNSA AI and autonomy investments. VisionWave believes it is strategically positioned during this period of expected market transformation.

"VisionWave was founded to lead the next evolution of defense autonomy, scaling technologies that respond in real time and adapt in the field with the goal of outperforming legacy systems-saving lives and changing how wars are won," said Noam Kenig, CEO of VisionWave.

At the heart of VisionWave's offering is a real-time, adaptive AI core that powers high-resolution radar, low-SWaP RF imaging, and multispectral sensing. These proprietary systems enable autonomous operation across air, land, and sea that are designed to deliver actionable intelligence and mission-critical awareness in seconds, not minutes.

The platform is designed to replace legacy systems that are slow, siloed, and outdated, giving war fighters, border patrol, and homeland security forces a decisive edge in modern threat environments.

VisionWave is already engaged with Tier-1 defense manufacturers and national security programs across the U.S. and allied nations, with several pilots and technical evaluations underway.

Near-term priorities include:

• Accelerating commercialization of Vision-RF, super-resolution radar, and AI sensing systems
• Investing in the Company's proprietary AI core, the foundation of all products
• Establishing U.S. manufacturing operations and expanding R&D capabilities in Canada
• Fast-tracking co-development partnerships with leading defense integrators
• Pursuing active defense contracts with U.S. agencies and Golden Dome initiatives

These strategic moves are designed to rapidly scale operations, solidify VisionWave's competitive edge, and generate long-term value for shareholders.

Douglas Davis, Executive Chairman of VisionWave, added:
"The Nasdaq listing is not just a milestone—it is a launchpad. We have built the tech, the team, and the partnerships. Now we are scaling to meet global demand for intelligent, mission-adaptive defense systems."

Business Combination Highlights:

• Post-merger enterprise value of approximately $174 million
• Approximately 14.3 million shares of common stock outstanding
• No PIPE or minimum cash condition at closing
• Bannix Acquisition Corp. and VisionWave Technologies now wholly owned by VisionWave Holdings, Inc.

On June 16, 2025 AIRO Group Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: AIRO), a company specializing in advanced aerospace and defense technologies, announced the closing of its initial public offering of 6,900,000 shares of its common stock, including the full exercise of the underwriters' option to purchase 900,000 additional shares, at a public offering price of $10.00 per share.

The stock traded as high as over $39 following its IPO and is currently trading in the $22-23.00 range.

AIRO is organized into four operating segments, each of which represents a critical growth sector in the aerospace and defense market: Drones, Avionics, Training, and Electric Air Mobility.

AIRO recently announced plans to expand its US footprint with the addition of a new manufacturing and engineering development facility. This strategic move builds on the success of AIRO's existing operations and is driven by the growing global demand for AIRO's flagship product, the RQ-35 ISR Drone.

The RQ-35 ISR Drone has rapidly gained international recognition for its reliability, performance, and mission versatility across defense and security sectors. Known in military applications as the RQ-35 Heidrun, the system offers significant advantages over existing micro-ISR drones due to its combination of full autonomy, long flight endurance, and ease of operation. It has been rigorously tested and deployed in harsh electronic warfare and GPS-denied environments, including active conflict zones, where it has demonstrated exceptional resilience and effectiveness.

In February, Karman Holdings Inc. (NYSE: KRMN), a leader in the rapid design, development and production of critical next-generation system solutions for launch vehicle, satellite, spacecraft, missile defense, hypersonic and UAS customers, announced the pricing of its initial public offering of 23,000,000 shares of its common stock at a public offering price of $22.00 per share.

With the stock closing at over $56.00 on July 21st, the company announced preliminary second quarter fiscal year 2025 financial results in connection with an underwritten public offering (the "Offering") of 20,000,000 shares of its common stock being offered by certain selling stockholders. The selling stockholders expect to grant the underwriters a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional 3,000,000 shares of common stock. The Company is not selling any shares of common stock and will not receive any proceeds from the sales of shares in the Offering. The Company also announced it will issue financial results for the Company's second quarter fiscal year 2025 after financial markets close on Thursday, August 7, 2025.

From the news: For the three months ended June 30, 2025, we expect net income to be between $6.17 million and $6.20 million, compared to net income of $4.60 million for the three months ended June 30, 2024.

For the three months ended June 30, 2025, net income margin is expected to be 5.4%, compared to net income margin of 5.4% for the three months ended June 30, 2024.

For the three months ended June 30, 2025, we expect funded backlog to be between $712.00 million and $715.00 million, representing an estimated increase of approximately 34.8% and 35.4%, compared to funded backlog of $528.01 million for the three months ended June 30, 2024.

Defense tech, and specifically AI-driven defense technology, is making headlines based on money flow. On July 4, 2025, President Donald Trump enacted the 'One Big Beautiful Bill Act', allocating billions of dollars to US technology, defense, infrastructure and border security.

Companies like AI /Defense tech company Palantir Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ: PLTR) paved the way for investors in 2025 with its performance, and new defense stocks are now benefiting from the momentum.

Get more defense aerospace stock investing ideas with Investorideas.com free stock directory

Sign up for free trading and stock news alerts at Investorideas.com
https://www.investorideas.com/Resources/Newsletter.asp

About Investorideas.com - Big Investing Ideas
Investorideas.com is the go-to platform for big investing ideas. From breaking stock news to top-rated investing podcasts, we cover it all.

Disclaimer/Disclosure: VisionWave Holdings, Inc. is a paid monthly featured defense stock on Investorideas.com. Investorideas.com is a digital publisher of third party sourced news, articles and equity research as well as creates original content, including video, interviews and articles. Original content created by investorideas is protected by copyright laws other than syndication rights. Our site does not make recommendations for purchases or sale of stocks, services or products. Nothing on our sites should be construed as an offer or solicitation to buy or sell products or securities. All investing involves risk and possible losses. Contact management and IR of each company directly regarding specific questions. More disclosure info can be found here. More disclaimer info: https://www.investorideas.com/About/Disclaimer.asp. Learn more about publishing your news release and our other news services on the Investorideas.com newswire https://www.investorideas.com/News-Upload/.

Global investors must adhere to regulations of each country. Please read Investorideas.com privacy policy: https://www.investorideas.com/About/Private_Policy.asp

Learn more about our news, PR and social media, podcast and ticker tag services at Investorideas.com
https://www.investorideas.com/Investors/Services.asp

Advertising agencies -Learn more about digital advertising and guest posts at Investorideas https://www.investorideas.com/Advertise/

Follow us on X @investorideas @stocknewsbites
Follow us on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/Investorideas
Follow us on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/c/Investorideas

Contact Investorideas.com
800 665 0411

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/259701

FAQ

What is VisionWave's (VWAV) post-merger enterprise value?

VisionWave's post-merger enterprise value is approximately $174 million, with about 14.3 million shares of common stock outstanding.

How much funding is allocated for military AI in the 2025 US defense budget?

The 2025 'Big Beautiful Bill' earmarks approximately $16 billion for military AI, along with $1.4 billion in targeted DoD/NNNSA AI and autonomy investments.

What are VisionWave's (VWAV) main products and technologies?

VisionWave's core offerings include real-time adaptive AI, high-resolution radar, low-SWaP RF imaging, and multispectral sensing systems designed for autonomous operation across air, land, and sea.

What are VisionWave's (VWAV) near-term business priorities?

Key priorities include accelerating Vision-RF commercialization, investing in AI core development, establishing US manufacturing, expanding R&D in Canada, fast-tracking defense partnerships, and pursuing US defense contracts.

How does VisionWave (VWAV) fit into the current defense spending landscape?

VisionWave is positioned within the $962 billion US defense budget for 2025, with defense-related IT spending projected to grow by $23 billion from 2024-2028.