~ More Than $27 Million in Publicly Announced Defense Orders Since the February 2026 Merger Announcement ~
~ JFB and XTEND announce $500+ Million Active Pipeline ~
~ XTEND Advanced to Gauntlet II of the $1 Billion U.S. Drone Dominance Program, Secured New U.S. Patents, and Supported the British Army in a Major Autonomous Strike Exercise ~
~ XTEND Expects to Deliver Drone Systems Next Week for the Gauntlet II Phase of the $1 Billion U.S. Drone Dominance Program, Under Which the Department of War Plans to Procure 60,000 Drone Systems From Top-Performing Participants ~
TAMPA, Fla. and PALM BEACH, Fla., July 30, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- JFB Construction Holdings (Nasdaq: JFB), a real estate development and construction company, and XTEND, a leader in software systems and artificial intelligence-powered robotics, provided a consolidated update on the commercial, program and transaction milestones publicly announced following the parties’ entry into their definitive business combination agreement on February 17, 2026.
Announced Defense Orders YTD
Following the announcement of the proposed business combination, XTEND has publicly announced defense orders totaling more than $27 million across customers in the Middle East, Europe, Asia-Pacific and Israel, including:
- April 21, 2026: a $1.67 million (NIS 5 million) contract with the Israeli Ministry of Defense to supply operational drone systems and services, with delivery expected during 2026.
- May 1, 2026: a contract valued at approximately $2.2 million from a leading Middle East defense customer for the development of advanced autonomous aerial defense systems addressing emerging airborne threats.
- May 7, 2026: an order valued at approximately $8.25 million from a European defense customer for advanced autonomous drone systems, including indoor operational platforms and tactical strike systems, with delivery expected during 2026.
- June 9, 2026: a multi-million-dollar strategic defense contract for the delivery of more than 100 XOS-powered Scorpio drone systems to a defense customer in the Asia-Pacific region, XTEND’s most significant contract in that region to date.
- June 23, 2026: approximately $9.0 million in defense orders to expand autonomous multi-drone operations and advanced mission capabilities for a Middle East defense customer.
- June 25, 2026: a $3 million follow-on order from an existing defense customer supporting one of XTEND’s largest autonomous system deployments to date, bringing announced defense procurement to more than $12 million across two distinct customer programs within 24 hours.
XTEND’s systems have been delivered at scale, with more than 12,500 systems deployed in over 30 countries and operational validation in five combat zones.
U.S. and Allied Government Validation
- July 2, 2026: XTEND announced its successful qualification in the $1 billion U.S. Drone Dominance Program and its advancement, among 19 companies selected, to the Gauntlet II phase. According to the Department of War, the program plans to procure 60,000 drone systems from top-performing participants. XTEND expects to deliver drone systems next week for the Gauntlet II phase.
- July 16, 2026: XTEND announced that it supported the British Army during Ex RHINO BIZZ, a major drone and electronic warfare exercise at BATUS in Canada, where 2 PARA independently operated five SCORPIO 1000 autonomous strike systems under contested, GNSS-denied conditions. XTEND’s platforms were the only autonomous systems authorized to carry live kinetic payloads, enabling the British Army’s first validation of long-range autonomous strike missions with live kinetic payloads.
Expanding Intellectual Property Portfolio
- March 30, 2026: XTEND announced that it received a limited operational assessment approval from the U.S. Army Fuze Safety Board for its high-voltage safety and arming system for FPV attack drones, becoming the first U.S. company to receive this assessment. The system moves critical safety and arming functions into software, and the approval positions XTEND in a category where U.S. defense budgets for tactical strike and defense programs are projected to exceed $100 billion annually, with loitering munitions, launched effects and related attritable unmanned strike systems having already received more than $1.5 billion in combined procurement and RDT&E funding in 2026.
- June 19, 2026: XTEND announced a patent protecting UAV control under degraded communications and high-latency conditions.
- June 30, 2026: XTEND announced the grant of U.S. Patent No. 12,222,735, protecting autonomous navigation technology for unmanned systems.
"The momentum we've built in 2026, from qualifying for Gauntlet II in the U.S. Drone Dominance Program to supporting the British Army's first live kinetic autonomous strike missions, reflects the operational maturity our platforms have reached at scale. Combining with JFB gives us the public company structure and capital access to meet the demand we see from defense customers globally, at a moment when autonomous systems are moving from proof of concept to programs of record. We look forward to closing this transaction and building XTEND AI Robotics as a public company positioned to lead this category," said Aviv Shapira, Chief Executive Officer of XTEND.
Transaction Progress Toward Anticipated Third Quarter Closing
On July 20, 2026, JFB and XTEND filed its second amended registration statement on Form S-4 with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, incorporating updates from the SEC review process, transactional updates and marking continued progress toward effectiveness and completion of the business combination. Following the expected closing, the combined company is expected to be renamed XTEND AI Robotics and is anticipated to trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker “XTND,” with closing currently anticipated in the third quarter of 2026, subject to customary conditions.
Separately, JFB announced that it anticipates an approximately 150% increase in revenue for the second quarter of 2026 compared to the second quarter of 2025, following the initiation of high-profile commercial projects for nationally recognized franchises.
About XTEND
XTEND is a leader in software systems and artificial intelligence-powered robotics, deployed in high-threat, complex operational environments where human exposure carries significant risk. Powered by its proprietary XTEND Operating System (XOS), XTEND's integrated software and advanced robotic hardware solutions are designed to provide autonomy at the edge. Operating across defense, law enforcement, and private security missions through a platform of robots, drones, and robotic subsystems, XTEND's open architecture platform facilitates scalability across partners and third-party applications. With over 12,500 systems deployed in over 30 countries, XTEND's solutions have been validated in five combat zones and operationally deployed by national defense, special-mission units, and security organizations across the globe. Founded in Tel Aviv, Israel, and headquartered in Tampa, Florida, XTEND delivers NDAA-compliant solutions through a global network of regional XFAB manufacturing facilities located in the U.S., the U.K., Singapore, Israel, and Latvia. For more information, visit www.xtend.me.
About JFB Construction Holdings
JFB Construction Holdings (Nasdaq: JFB) is a real estate development and construction company that has provided general contracting and construction management services in 36 U.S. states. For more information, visit the company's SEC filings at www.sec.gov.
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This communication contains, and oral statements made from time to time by our representatives may contain, forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "Securities Act"), and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. These forward-looking statements generally include statements regarding the anticipated timing and completion of the potential transaction between XTEND Reality Expansion Ltd. ("XTEND") and JFB Construction Holdings ("JFB"), including the anticipated effectiveness of the registration statement on Form S-4 and the anticipated closing of the transaction in the third quarter of 2026, the anticipated listing of XTEND AI Robotics, Inc. ("NewCo") on the New York Stock Exchange, the anticipated delivery of XTEND's announced defense orders and the conversion of XTEND's backlog and pipeline into revenue, the anticipated delivery of drone systems for the Gauntlet II phase of the U.S. Drone Dominance Program and the anticipated timing thereof, the Department of War's announced plans to procure drone systems under that program, the expected size of U.S. defense budgets for tactical strike and defense programs, the impact of XTEND's receipt of a limited operational assessment approval from the U.S. Army Fuze Safety Board for its high-voltage safety and arming system for FPV attack drones, JFB's preliminary expectations regarding its revenue for the second quarter of 2026, and the expected impacts and benefits of the potential transaction and strategic initiatives for NewCo following the closing. All statements other than statements of historical facts contained in this communication may be forward-looking statements. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by terms such as "may," "will," "outlook", "should," "expects," "plans," "anticipates," "could," "intends," "targets," "projects," "contemplates," "believes," "estimates," "predicts," "potential" or "continue" or the negative of these terms or other similar expressions. The forward-looking statements in this communication are only predictions. XTEND's and JFB's management have based these forward-looking statements largely on their current expectations and projections about future events and financial trends that management believes may affect its business, financial condition and results of operations. These statements are neither promises nor guarantees and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other important factors that may cause actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from what is expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to: XTEND's selection to participate in the Gauntlet II phase of the U.S. Drone Dominance Program does not constitute a procurement award, and XTEND may not receive any purchase order or award under the program; the timing and outcome of the Gauntlet II evaluation, including the timing of XTEND's anticipated deliveries in connection therewith, may change; XTEND's announced orders, backlog and pipeline may not convert into revenue in the amounts or on the timing anticipated, or at all; JFB's expectations regarding its revenue for the second quarter of 2026 are preliminary, are based on information available to management as of the date of this communication, remain subject to the completion of JFB's financial closing and reporting procedures and may change; NewCo may not satisfy the applicable initial listing standards of the New York Stock Exchange; the transaction may not be consummated; there may be difficulties with the integration and in realizing the expected benefits of the transaction; XTEND and JFB may need to use resources that are needed in other parts of its business to do so; there may be liabilities that are not known, probable or estimable at this time; the transaction may result in the diversion of management's time and attention to issues relating to the transaction and integration; expected synergies and operating efficiencies attributable to the transaction may not be achieved within its expected time-frames or at all; there may be significant transaction costs and integration costs in connection with the transaction; the possibility that JFB will not have sufficient cash at close to satisfy the minimum cash condition; unfavorable outcome of legal proceedings that may be instituted against JFB and XTEND following the announcement of the transaction; risks inherent to the business may result in additional strategic and operational risks, which may impact XTEND's, NewCo's and JFB's risk profiles, which each company may not be able to mitigate effectively; JFB's ability to complete construction projects or other transactions on schedule and budget; changes in weather and occurrence of natural disasters and pandemics; disruptions in supply chains; recent imposition of tariffs by governments on construction materials, such as steel, aluminum and lumber; increase in the cost of labor and construction materials; JFB's ability to maintain safe work sites; XTEND's dependence on a limited number of defense and governmental security customers for a substantial portion of its business; significant delays or reductions in appropriations, XTEND's programs and certain government fundings and programs more broadly, including as a result of a prolonged continuing resolution and/or government shutdown, and/or related to the global security environment or other global events; increased competition within JFB's and XTEND's markets and bid protests; changes in procurement and other U.S. and foreign laws, including changes through executive orders, contract terms and practices applicable to our industry, findings by certain applicable governments as to our compliance with such requirements, more aggressive enforcement of such requirements and changes in XTEND's customers' business practices globally; the improper conduct of employees, agents, subcontractors, suppliers, business partners or joint ventures in which XTEND participates, including the impact on XTEND's reputation and its ability to do business; cyber and other security threats or disruptions faced by XTEND and JFB, its customers or its suppliers and other partners, and changes in related regulations; and XTEND's ability to innovate, develop new products and technologies, progress and benefit from digital transformation and maintain technologies to meet the needs of XTEND's customers. In addition, a number of important factors could cause JFB's, XTEND's or NewCo's actual future results and other future circumstances to differ materially from those expressed in any forward-looking statements, including but not limited to those important factors discussed in the section entitled "Risk Factors" in the registration statement on Form S-4 filed by NewCo and JFB, as amended, as any such factors may be updated from time to time in other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"), including without limitation XTEND's investor relations site at https://www.xtend.me/newsroom and JFB's investor relations site at https://investors.jfbconstruction.net/. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made and, except as may be required under applicable law, neither XTEND nor JFB undertakes any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
Important Information for Investors and Stockholders
This communication is for informational purposes only and is not intended to, and does not, constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any securities or a solicitation of any vote or approval, nor shall there be any issuance or sale of securities in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such jurisdiction. No offer of securities shall be made except by means of a prospectus meeting the requirements of Section 10 of the Securities Act. In connection with the transaction, NewCo and JFB filed a registration statement on Form S-4, which will include an information statement of JFB and a preliminary prospectus of NewCo. After the registration statement is declared effective, JFB will mail to its stockholders a definitive information statement that will form part of the registration statement. This communication is not a substitute for the information statement/prospectus or registration statement or for any other document that JFB may file with the SEC and send to its stockholders in connection with the transaction. INVESTORS AND SECURITY HOLDERS OF XTEND AND JFB ARE URGED TO READ THE INFORMATION STATEMENT/PROSPECTUS OR REGISTRATION STATEMENT AND ANY OTHER DOCUMENT THAT WILL BE FILED WITH THE SEC CAREFULLY AND IN THEIR ENTIRETY WHEN THEY BECOME AVAILABLE BECAUSE THEY WILL CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION. Investors and security holders will be able to obtain free copies of the information statement/prospectus (when available) and other documents filed with the SEC by JFB through the website maintained by the SEC at https://www.sec.gov. Copies of the documents filed with the SEC by JFB will be available free of charge on JFB's website at https://investors.jfbconstruction.net/.
JFB Construction Holdings Contact:
CORE IR
Mike Mason
516-222-2560
[email protected]
XTEND Media Contact:
Headline Media
Sarah Small
929-255-1449
[email protected]
XTEND Investor Relations:
MZ North America
Shannon Devine
203-741-8811
[email protected]