Israeli defense technology startup D-Fend has been acquired for $1.5 billion by the U.S. company Motorola Solutions. D-Fend operates in the rapidly growing counter-drone sector, specifically focusing on neutralizing hostile drones, a capability that has become increasingly relevant in Israel and globally.
The company’s technology enables hostile drones to be taken over using RF (radio frequency) signals without the need for kinetic interception. However, its solution is less effective against optical, camera-guided drones, which rely on visual navigation rather than RF communication links.
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D-Fend Solutions founders.
(Photo: D-Fend Solutions)
Although D-Fend is not a young company, it was founded in 2016, the exit represents a highly profitable outcome. To date, it has raised only $67 million. In its last funding round, held nearly two years ago, the company was valued at approximately $250 million.
The largest beneficiaries of the deal are its three founders: Zohar Halachmi, CEO and Chairman; Assaf Monsa, CTO and Vice President; and Yaniv Benbenisti, Chief Product Officer and President, who together own about 25% of the company. Each is expected to receive roughly $125 million before taxes. Additional significant gains go to investors led by Vertex Ventures and Vertex Growth funds, which have participated in all funding rounds and remain the largest shareholders. Vertex’s 17% stake in the company is worth approximately $255 million in the deal, representing a substantial return on its initial $6 million investment made in the company’s first funding round at a relatively low valuation. The investment was led by Yoram Oron, a veteran of Israel’s venture capital industry.
IGP, which led the company’s 2024 round, is expected to achieve a roughly 6x return. Claridge Israel, which led the second round in 2019, is also among the notable winners.
The company employs around 200 people, most of them in Ra’anana, with additional offices in the United States and the United Kingdom.
In recent years, D-Fend has grown at an annual rate of about 50%, accelerating to nearly 100% in the past year. It ended 2025 with revenues close to $100 million and is expected to reach $185 million this year.
Its flagship product, EnforceAir, detects a drone’s communication protocol, takes control of it remotely, and forces it to land at a predefined location. The system, available in both portable and vehicle-mounted configurations, as well as fixed installations, has expanded into additional product lines. D-Fend’s solutions are used by security agencies and civilian law enforcement bodies worldwide, and are sold in more than 30 countries, including the United States, Canada, and Australia.
The company’s advisory board includes former senior officials from the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration and the U.S. military, strengthening its position in the American market.
The buyer, Motorola Solutions, is a legacy offshoot of the historic Motorola brand, once a household name in Israel due to its mobile phones. After missing the smartphone revolution, Motorola was split: its handset business was sold to Lenovo, while Motorola Solutions repositioned itself as a major player in communications, video, and public safety technologies.
Today, Motorola Solutions is listed on the New York Stock Exchange with a market value of approximately $65 billion and has recently embarked on an acquisition spree, particularly in drone and autonomous systems technologies. The company maintains a development center in Israel focused on critical communications, video, and RF solutions, and continues to work closely with Israeli defense and security agencies.
The wars in Israel and Ukraine have made the drone market one of the fastest-growing segments in the defense sector. While Israel itself continues to struggle with countering certain drone threats, it has become a major exporter of technologies and companies in this field.
Jefferies and Goldman Sachs acted as financial advisers to the company in the transaction, while Meitar acted as legal counsel.
Against this backdrop, Israeli drone startup XTEND is preparing for a Wall Street listing via a merger with a SPAC at a valuation of approximately $1.5 billion. At the same time, UVision is planning an IPO on Nasdaq at a valuation of around $5 billion and has hired JPMorgan to lead the process.
