Sivers Semiconductors Lands $6.6M Pentagon Grant as Nasdaq Ambition Reshapes Board and Books

Sivers Semiconductors gets $6.6M DoD funding, revamps board for Nasdaq listing, restates financials, raises SEK 125M. Stock surges, short interest at 7.23%.

Sivers Semiconductors has secured a fresh $6.6 million injection from the U.S. Department of Defense, extending its EW-STAR project under the Microelectronics Commons program. The funding will accelerate development of broadband antenna technologies for next-generation electronic warfare and secure communications – a clear sign that the Swedish chip maker is deepening its footprint in the American defense sector.

The project is being executed in partnership with BAE Systems, the MIT Lincoln Laboratory and Columbia University, focusing on radio-frequency and millimeter-wave solutions with both military and commercial applications. For Sivers’ wireless division, the government backing provides planning stability as it pushes to expand its U.S. market presence.

But the defense contract is only one piece of a broader transformation. The company is simultaneously overhauling its board and financial reporting to clear the path for a dual listing on the Nasdaq in New York. The nomination committee has proposed a five-member board, adding Joakim Nideborn – a former CFO of several technology firms who will serve as vice chair and oversee Scandinavian stakeholders – and Helena Svancar, who brings more than two decades of cross-border M&A experience. They replace departing directors Tomas Duffy, Erik Fallstrom and Keith Halsey.

The board shake-up is no coincidence. Sivers has already restated its 2024 and 2025 consolidated financial statements to align with U.S. Public Company Accounting Oversight Board standards, a prerequisite for the Nasdaq move. The revised 2025 figures show net sales of SEK 306.6 million, slightly above the original estimate, but an operating loss of SEK 177.8 million – significantly worse than initially reported, driven by revised inventory valuations and writedowns on capitalized development costs.

To shore up liquidity during the transition, an extraordinary general meeting on May 11 approved a directed share issue. Sivers placed 8.62 million new shares at SEK 14.50 each with institutional investors including DNB Disruptive Opportunities and Storebrand Sverigefond, raising approximately SEK 125 million.

The stock has been on a tear, recently trading around SEK 78-80 after hitting a 52-week high of SEK 89.45 on Monday. Since the start of the year, the share price has multiplied several times over. Yet short sellers remain entrenched: as of May 27, they control 7.23% of outstanding shares, with two funds still holding positions above the 0.5% reporting threshold. Some large funds have trimmed their bets, but the risk of a short squeeze persists.

Sivers is betting on two growth engines: photonics for AI data centers and wireless technology for 5G, 6G and satellite communications. The Q1 2026 interim report, due on May 29, will be the first test under the new U.S. accounting standards – and a critical milestone on the road to the Nasdaq. The ordinary general meeting has been rescheduled to June 15, where the board is expected to provide further details on the listing process.