Erik Herlyn (CEO) Xer Tech

Erik Herlyn (CEO) Xer Tech

This interview is part of a paid collaboration.

 

Company: Xer Tech
Sector: Defence Tech
Product: Heavy-duty drones
Egde: Xer Techs drones can fly up to four times longer than conventional electric multicopter drones, reaching up to three hours of flight time with heavy payloads, even in adverse weather conditions.

 

Introduction to thie interview

Xer Tech is a Swedish defence-tech and dual-use drone company that develops long-endurance multicopter platforms capable of flying up to four times longer than conventional electric drones. This enables mission-critical applications in defense, energy, and infrastructure at a significantly lower cost than helicopter-based solutions. Powered by a proprietary hybrid propulsion system and combined with advanced sensors, onboard AI computing, and a recurring revenue model, Xer Tech has already secured 16 paying customers worldwide and achieves blended profit margins of approximately 50%. With a planned public listing via a reverse takeover and new capital to support scaling, the company aims to double revenue in 2026 and establish a market-leading position in long-endurance drone solutions. In this interview, CEO Erik Herlyn shares insights into Xer Tech’s technology, the capabilities of its drones, the secret behind their exceptional endurance, and why the company represents a compelling investment opportunity today.

 

1a: What product does Xer Tech offer, and what makes it superior to competing solutions?

Erik Herlyn (CEO) Xer Tech:

Xer Tech, soon to be listed as Xer Tech Holding AB (Ticker: XER), is a Swedish defence-tech and dual-use company that develops and produces a long-range, heavy-duty multicopter drone platform in Switzerland. Our core advantage is endurance: our drones can fly up to four times longer than conventional electric multicopter drones, reaching up to three hours of flight time with heavy payloads, even in adverse weather conditions.

This means our platform can perform many missions typically reserved for unmanned helicopters, but at a fraction of the cost and with dramatically reduced operational complexity. This capability is particularly powerful in our four core verticals: military intelligence, military landmine detection, methane emission monitoring for the oil and gas industry, and powerline inspection.

 

1b: What is the secret behind the extreme endurance?

Erik Herlyn (CEO) Xer Tech:

Our proprietary propulsion system combines a fuel engine with electric uplift motors. The engine generates electricity onboard, which powers the motors throughout the flight. Weight is critical in aviation, and fuel has roughly ten times the energy density of batteries at the same weight.

This architecture enables long endurance, high reliability, and refueling instead of recharging, which is essential for continuous and mission-critical operations.

 

2: How many different types or models of drones do you currently offer?

Erik Herlyn (CEO) Xer Tech:

Currently, we offer one commercial model, the X8, which can fly approximately 2.5 hours with a 3-kilogram payload. However, our customers are ultimately interested in data generated onboard. The real value lies in combining long endurance with high-end sensors and onboard AI computing, which makes our solutions fundamentally different from conventional drone offerings.

In addition, we have a larger model at prototype stage that can fly up to four hours with a 20-kilogram payload. This platform is designed for missions that are typically carried out by significantly larger and more expensive helicopter drones.

 

3a: What is your revenue model?

Erik Herlyn (CEO) Xer Tech:

Our drone platform is the enabler. It allows us to carry advanced sensors and powerful computing payloads longer than any other multicopter system. In a recent delivery, the revenue composition was approximately 20 % drone platform, 60 % sensors, and 20 % software and services.

We resell payloads and software from selected third-party partners at attractive margins and integrate them into complete solutions. In addition, we generate recurring revenue through leasing of drone systems, software licensing, and maintenance and service contracts.

 

3b: Where are your drones manufactured, and what do your margins look like?

Erik Herlyn (CEO) Xer Tech:

Our drones are manufactured in Switzerland, which is a leading hub for advanced drone technology in Europe. On a blended basis, including drone platform, payloads, services, and software, we achieve profit margins of around 50 %.

 

3c: Do you have any commercial sales or signed customer contracts today?

Erik Herlyn (CEO) Xer Tech:

Yes. We currently have 16 paying client projects, primarily with energy companies and defense-related customers.

 

4: Where are your customers located, and what is your strategy for growth and international expansion?

Erik Herlyn (CEO) Xer Tech:

Our drones are currently operating on five continents, with the majority of our customers located in Europe. The United States is the largest economy in the world and, with its strong oil and gas industry, represents a particularly important market for us.

We already deliver systems to U.S. oil and gas supermajors as well as oil service providers in North America, and we see significant further growth potential in this region.

 

5: Could you tell us a bit about yourself and your professional background?

Erik Herlyn (CEO) Xer Tech:

I am a mechanical engineer by training. After several years in strategy consulting and banking, I served as CEO of two oil exploration and production companies. In that role, I raised approximately SEK 2 billion, took both companies public, and subsequently made commercial oil discoveries.

Throughout my career, timing and working with exceptional technical teams have been critical. Owning a game-changing drone technology in today’s political and technological environment represents a strong foundation for the next phase of growth.

 

6a: Xer Tech is planning to enter the public markets through a reverse takeover with Renewable Ventures Nordic. Can you tell us more about this transaction and the expected timeline?

Erik Herlyn (CEO) Xer Tech:

After evaluating different listing alternatives, the reverse takeover (RTO) with Renewable Ventures Nordic (RVN) was the most efficient and value-creating way to go public. RVN has a strong track record of RTOs and was a particularly good fit for Xer Tech given its previous RTO of the defence company Scandinavian Astor Group. As a result, RVN has a shareholder base of around 2,000 defence-focused investors, creating clear synergies for Xer Tech.

The RTO will result in RVN becoming Xer Tech Holding AB and continuing to operate Xer Tech’s business with a new management and board of directors. Through the RTO, RVN will transfer its cash and equivalents of approximately SEK 20 million to Xer Tech.

In addition, a directed share issue of SEK 80 million will be carried out in connection with the RTO, to investors such as Investment AB Spiltan, Cidro Förvaltning AB and Gainbridge Capital I AB, Öresund Growth Partner AB, Selandia Alpha Invest A/S, as well as myself and our CTO Waldemar Schäfer.

The RTO is progressing according to plan, with the last formal condition, an extraordinary general meeting in Xer Tech’s owner Rex International Holding Ltd., scheduled for January 28, 2026. The decision is supported in advance by the controlling shareholders of Rex, and the RTO is expected to be completed within one week following the meeting.

 

6b: How many shares are currently outstanding in Xer Tech, and what will the share structure look like after the reverse takeover is completed?

Erik Herlyn (CEO) Xer Tech:

The RTO and directed share issue will increase the number of shares in RVN by 52,272,727 shares to 58,593,394 shares. Following completion of the RTO and the directed share issue, the current owners of Xer (Rex International Holding Ltd., through the subsidiary Rex Technology Investments Pte. Ltd. (RTI), and Monarch Marine Holding Ltd.) will hold approximately 75 % of the shares. Investment AB Spiltan, Öresund Growth Partner AB, Cidro Förvaltning AB, and Selandia Alpha Invest A/S will be among the largest owners after RTI and Monarch Marine Holding Ltd.

 

7: What are Xer Tech’s capital requirements over the next 12 months?

Erik Herlyn (CEO) Xer Tech:

Xer Tech expects to use approximately SEK 30 million of the capital raised through this transaction over the next 12 months.

 

8: Do you have any defined financial targets or milestones going forward?

Erik Herlyn (CEO) Xer Tech:

The most critical milestones achieved so far were the development and successful testing of our technology under extreme operating conditions. This has translated into strong validation by paying customers, who benefit from significant cost savings, improved reliability, and faster data acquisition.

The next milestone is scaling our solutions within the defense and energy sectors. We expect this to result in a doubling of revenue during 2026.

 

9: Where do you see Xer Tech positioned in two years’ time?

Erik Herlyn (CEO) Xer Tech:

Our four defined use cases represent very large and growing markets. Over the next two years, we aim to deepen our expertise in these areas to achieve a market-leading position while expanding our market share in the rapidly growing drone industry.

Our long-term ambition is to position Xer Tech as a provider that enables customers to reliably acquire actionable data in demanding and mission-critical environments.

 

10: Why should investors consider investing in Xer Tech right now?

Erik Herlyn (CEO) Xer Tech:

Xer Tech is at an inflection point. We have already completed the technically most challenging phase: developing, testing, and validating a fundamentally new drone architecture under extreme real-world conditions. The technology is proven, customers are paying, and the use cases are clearly defined.

We are now transitioning from validation to scaling. Our platform addresses mission-critical applications in defense, energy, and infrastructure, where endurance, reliability, and data quality are decisive factors. These markets are large, growing, and less price-sensitive than consumer or commodity drone markets. At the same time, our business model is capital-efficient and margin-driven by payloads, software, and services rather than hardware alone.

For investors, Xer Tech represents an opportunity to invest in a drone company with proven technology, more than SEK 165 million invested to-date in product development, real customer traction, scalable economics, and exposure to long-term structural growth trends in defense, energy, and automation.

 

Dagens Börs would like to warmly thank Erik Herlyn, CEO of Xer Tech, for a truly engaging and insightful interview, and we wish him and the entire Xer Tech team continued success in the future.