Schneider Electric strikes $22.6bn PTC deal

BY Richard Summerfield

Schneider Electric has agreed to acquire US software maker PTC in a $22.6bn all-cash deal as it begins to expand its data centre business amid growing demand.

The deal is to be financed through an issuance of new shares worth €5bn to €6bn under an existing shareholder authorisation, and new debt of €16bn to €17bn.

Schneider will acquire PTC for $205 per share, an offer which implies an enterprise value of $23.7bn for PTC and represents a 42.3 percent premium to its last closing price before the deal was announced. The acquisition is expected to close by the third quarter of 2027, subject to approvals from PTC shareholders and regulators.

The deal for PTC comes amid concerns that advances in artificial intelligence could undermine software companies’ business models by offering cheaper alternatives to their services.

“The acquisition of PTC represents an important step forward in our ambition to lead the new era of Energy and Industrial Intelligence,” said Olivier Blum, chief executive of Schneider Electric. “Together, we are creating the industry’s most complete Software & AI powerhouse and highest-quality portfolio bridging the physical and digital worlds. By connecting and contextualizing data across the lifecycle of products and assets, we will create a unique digital thread for the next generation of Industrial AI, helping customers to optimize their systems with greater intelligence from design and build to operate and maintain.

“Together, with Cognite’s1 unique AI capabilities, we will accelerate innovation, unlock new opportunities and create long-term value for our customers, employees and shareholders as we shape the future of Energy and Industrial Intelligence,” he added.

“PTC provides the software the world’s leading manufacturers and product companies rely on to design, build, and maintain great products and unlock more value from their product data in an increasingly AI driven world,” said Neil Barua, president and chief executive of PTC. “Joining Schneider Electric is an incredible opportunity to elevate the scope and impact of what we deliver for our customers globally. We gain substantial scale and resources to accelerate innovation, advance our Intelligent Product Lifecycle vision, and expand our business into more geographies and end markets to serve more customers.”

Mr Barua added the all-cash transaction represents the culmination of the board’s efforts to maximise shareholder value, delivering clear and compelling value to shareholders while reflecting the strength of the company’s business, strategic direction and workforce.

PTC has more than 7000 employees and serves more than 30,000 customers. It generated roughly half of its revenue in the Americas in its 2025 financial year.

News: Schneider Electric to buy US software firm PTC in $22.6 billion deal

AMD to acquire World Labs in $8.2bn all-stock deal

BY Richard Summerfield

Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) has agreed to acquire artificial intelligence (AI) startup World Labs in an all-stock deal valued at $8.2bn.

The transaction is expected to bring model experts and researchers together to strengthen AMD’s ability to produce AI hardware and software systems. The acquisition is expected to close by the end of 2026, subject to regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions.

World Labs co-founder and chief executive officer Fei-Fei Li will join AMD as executive vice president and chief scientist, reporting to Lisa Su, chair and chief executive of AMD. Dr Li is a pioneer and researcher in the AI space.

World Labs’ expertise in making advanced models will give AMD “deeper insight into how workloads are evolving”, said AMD in a statement announcing the deal. The company’s move for World Labs comes as many large semiconductor designers are moving to support AI in physical AI, robotics and simulation.

“Building the compute platforms for the next generation of AI requires a deep understanding of how models are evolving,” said Dr Su. “Fei-Fei and the World Labs team bring exceptional research leadership and model expertise. Together, we can use that insight to develop the hardware, software and systems that will power the next generation of AI and strengthen the open AI ecosystem.”

“Advancing the next generation of AI technology requires close collaboration across model research, systems and compute,” said Dr Li. “Joining AMD will give our team the resources and engineering depth to accelerate our research and help define the infrastructure needed for the next era of AI.”

San Francisco-based World Labs develops spatial intelligence models used to generate and simulate 3D worlds from text, image and video inputs and tech for robotics learning and simulation. The company has around 70 staff and reportedly reached a $5bn valuation after a February funding round. AMD has been a funder of World Labs in the past.

The acquisition is AMD’s second largest on record, following the roughly $50bn it paid for Xilinx in 2022. The company is attempting to make inroads into the AI M&A market as other US tech giants also continue to pursue top engineering and research talent. In recent years, Nvidia has spent around $33bn on AI chipmaker Groq and open-source platform Hugging Face. Likewise, Meta spent around $14bn in 2025 to acquire a minority stake in Scale AI in a deal that brought in the startup’s founder, Alexandr Wang, to create up a new AI division.

News: AMD to buy Fei-Fei Li's World Labs in $8.2 billion bet on ‘physical AI’

France’s Rexel acquires US distributor GCG in $1.4bn deal

BY Fraser Tennant

In a combination that creates a leading specialty infrastructure platform, French electrical parts supplier Rexel has acquired US infrastructure distributor GCG from Audax Private Equity for $1.1bn.

Once complete, the deal is expected to position Rexel at the centre of several powerful megatrends reshaping the global economy and its electrification, including data centres, power and utilities infrastructure, grid modernisation, communications, defence, utilities and other long-term growth markets.

Rexel also expects to generate meaningful cost synergies from GCG through scale, logistics optimisation, insourcing and select efficiencies. In addition, the combination also creates significant commercial opportunities by bringing GCG’s engineered solutions and specialty distribution capabilities to Rexel’s broader customer base.

Headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, GCG operates 16 locations with approximately 950 employees. The company was acquired by Audax Private Equity through a carveout of Genuine Parts Company's Electrical Specialties Group and helped put in place and partner with GCG's management team to build the platform through organic growth initiatives and a disciplined acquisition strategy, completing multiple add-on acquisitions.

“This is an exciting milestone for GCG and a testament to the strength of our business, our culture, and, most importantly, our people,” said Glenn Pennycook, chief executive of GCG. “We believe Rexel’s strategic focus and commitment to customers and suppliers make them the right partner, while creating new opportunities for our associates, customers and supplier partners.”

The acquisition of GCG – which has been unanimously approved by Rexel’s board of directors – is fully aligned with Rexel’s strategy to accelerate further in its core geographies and is a strong driver of the its accelerated sales growth.

“The acquisition significantly expands our addressable market, strengthening our position in key, fast-growing segments,” said Guillaume Texier, chief executive of Rexel. “It moves Rexel into higher-value parts of the infrastructure value chain and creates a more complete offering across electrical power and digital connectivity.”

The transaction is expected to close by the end of 2026, subject to customary regulatory approvals and closing conditions.

Mr Texier added: “The acquisition of GCG is fully in line with Rexel’s strategy, which aims at shaping our portfolio toward more growth and more value-added, and is a significant step in the direction of achieving our mid-term objectives.”

News: France's Rexel to buy US distributor GCG for $1.4 billion

AirBaltic files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy

BY Fraser Tennant

Latvia’s airBaltic, and certain of its subsidiaries, has filed for Chapter 11 protection under Chapter 11 of the US Bankruptcy Code, as it seeks to restructure its debt and survive a deepening sector-wide crisis brought on by the Iran war.

Relief requested by the airline to continue operating normally throughout the Chapter 11 process has been granted approval by the US Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York.

The court has also approved the company’s debtor in possession (DIP) financing on an interim basis, authorising airBaltic to immediately access an initial tranche of €140m of a previously agreed €350m financing facility.

The financing is committed in tranches, with further amounts available as the restructuring progresses, subject to the terms of the financing and further court approval where applicable.

With DIP financing approved, airBaltic will continue its financial reorganisation under the supervision of the US Court and discussions with creditors and other stakeholders, with the objective to establish a more sustainable capital structure and competitive cost base.

“The court’s decisions are an important first step in our financial reorganisation, allowing us to continue operating while moving forward with the restructuring,” said Erno Hildén, president and chief executive of airBaltic. “The approval of our DIP financing provides additional financial stability as we work to build a stronger and more sustainable airBaltic.”

Founded in 1995, airBaltic is the national airline of Latvia and the leading carrier in the Baltic States. The airline operates a modern and one of Europe’s youngest fleets of Airbus A220-300 aircraft. In 2025, airBaltic became the first European airline to introduce free high-speed SpaceX Starlink internet onboard its flights.

Flights and services are expected to continue without interruption throughout the Chapter 11 process. All flights will operate as scheduled, tickets and reservations remain valid, and passengers can continue to book and travel as usual.

“Our aim is to complete the process with a financially stronger airBaltic and a substantially reduced level of obligations that the company can sustainably manage over the long term,” said Andrejs Martinovs, chairman of the supervisory board of airBaltic. “We have a strong management team and experienced advisers with hands-on experience of implementing Chapter 11 processes.”

News: AirBaltic Has Filed For Chapter 11. Here’s What Happens Now

Telix Pharmaceuticals to acquire Isotope Technologies for $1.65bn

BY Richard Summerfield

Australian biotechnology firm Telix Pharmaceuticals Limited has agreed to buy Germany-based ITM Isotope Technologies Munich SE in a deal worth around $1.65bn.

The transaction will see Telix pay ITM shareholders around $11.84 per share, valuing the company at $1.65bn, with ITM shareholders expected to receive ​about $1.25bn after taking into account debt and cash reserves. Upon completion of the deal, ‌Telix ⁠shareholders will own about 76.3 percent of Telix shares, while ITM shareholders will own around 23.7 percent. Telix will also assume $302m of ITM’s net debt at closing, alongside $96m of management equity rollover and transaction expenses payable by sellers, subject to closing adjustments.

The transaction is expected to close by the end of fiscal year 2026, subject to Telix Shareholder approval, regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions.

Upon completion of the deal, the newly combined organisation is expected to generate unaudited pro forma 2026 revenue and income exceeding $1.3bn, based on management estimates.

Continued growth from manufacturing, cost savings and further targeted synergies and pipeline optimisation are expected to support a positive earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) contribution in 2027 and onward.

If approved by health regulators, the launch of ITM-11 – a novel therapeutic candidate for gastroenteropancreatic neuroendocrine tumours (GEP-NETs), which has completed phase three development – is expected to drive further upside, with the potential to generate additional high-margin therapeutic revenue in the near term.

The ​deal also includes contingent consideration of up to $700m, payable ​upon achievement of specified regulatory approvals and sales milestones for ITM-11. A further $100m is tied to approval in another GEP-NET indication by the end of 2030.

“This merger positions Telix at the forefront of the consolidation that is occurring as the industry matures,” said Christian Behrenbruch, managing director and group chief executive of Telix. “ITM is the leader in radioisotope production, with deep scientific expertise and a track record of value-adding innovation. We have enjoyed a close working relationship with ITM for many years and there is strong management alignment for the rationale behind this transaction.

“By combining our complementary strengths, we will create a company with commercial scale, world-leading supply and the most exciting theranostic drug portfolio in the sector. Importantly, this combination further expands our late-stage therapeutic pipeline with two completed Phase 3 trials and deepens radioisotope security, while bringing together the mission-critical capabilities needed to deliver radiopharmaceutical treatments to patients around the world,” he added.

“Joining two radiopharmaceutical pioneers creates a company with unmatched breadth and depth across the value chain, supported by deep expertise and talent,” said Andrew Cavey, chief executive of ITM. “Our management teams have a track record of working together and a nuanced understanding of our respective commercial strengths and customer relationships. Together, we believe Telix and ITM will be uniquely positioned to capitalize on rapidly growing global demand for radiopharmaceuticals to the benefit of both shareholders and patients.”

News: Australia's Telix Pharma agrees to buy Germany's ITM Isotope for about $1.65 billion