MIAMI, July 21, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Defiance ETFs, a leader in thematic and leveraged exchange-traded funds, today announced the launch of the Defiance AI Hyperscale Leaders ETF (NASDAQ: AIHY), the world’s first ETF designed to provide exposure to the leading AI hyperscalers. The Fund seeks long-term capital appreciation by investing in the companies building and operating the compute backbone of AI, spanning: AI compute infrastructure, cloud platforms, emerging AI-native cloud providers, data centers, AI model deployment infrastructure, AI model and ecosystem development, semiconductors, and AI-related software platforms. In short, AIHY targets the AI companies that are scaling profitably rather than those that are simply attached to the AI narrative.
As capital pours into the AI buildout, not every company riding the theme is converting that spending into efficient, profitable growth. AIHY is built to make that distinction. The Fund applies a defined set of criteria to identify what it calls AI Hyperscale Leaders. To qualify, a company must have a substantial AI business, meaning at least 50% of its revenues, assets or capital expenditures, or research and development spending tied to AI infrastructure, platforms, models, semiconductors, or AI-related software. It must also demonstrate scalability, with revenue growing faster than operating expenses; positive year-over-year revenue growth based on the most recently reported fiscal year; and profitability, with a positive gross profit margin based on the most recently reported fiscal quarter.
One of the defining questions of the AI trade is shifting from who participates in AI to who is scaling it profitably. AIHY is designed to give investors focused exposure to the companies that meet that standard, in a single ticker.
“Every week brings another company claiming an AI story, but very few are converting AI spending into efficient, profitable growth,” said Sylvia Jablonski, Chief Investment Officer of Defiance ETFs. “AIHY holds the theme to a clear standard: a substantial AI business, revenue growing faster than expenses, positive revenue growth, and positive gross margins. We believe the hyperscale leaders that clear that bar are the companies best positioned as the AI buildout matures.”
For full fund details, the prospectus, holdings, and performance current to the most recent month-end, visit defianceetfs.com/AIHY or call 833.333.9383.
About Defiance ETFs
Founded in 2018, Defiance is a leading ETF issuer specializing in thematic, income, and leveraged ETFs. Our first-mover leveraged single-stock ETFs empower investors to take amplified positions in high-growth companies, providing precise leverage exposure without the need to open a margin account.
Media Contact: Brenda Hentschel | [email protected] | 201.705.3758
IMPORTANT DISCLOSURES
Tidal Investments LLC is the Fund’s investment adviser. Defiance ETFs, LLC serves as the Fund’s sponsor.
The Fund’s investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses must be considered carefully before investing. The prospectus and summary prospectus contain this and other important information about the investment company. Please read the prospectus and/or summary prospectus carefully before investing. For a prospectus or summary prospectus with this and other information, go to defianceetfs.com. Hard copies can be requested by calling 833.333.9383.
Investing involves risk. Principal loss is possible. As an ETF, the Fund may trade at a premium or discount to NAV. Shares are bought and sold at market price (not NAV) and are not individually redeemed from the Fund. A portfolio concentrated in a particular industry or sector, or in a small number of holdings, may be subject to a higher degree of risk. There is no guarantee the Fund will achieve its investment objective, and an investor may lose some or all of its investment.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) Investing Risks. The Fund invests in companies that derive a substantial portion of their revenues or operating activities from AI-related technologies and services, which may cause the Fund’s investments to be more volatile than those of more diversified funds. Companies engaged in AI typically face intense competition, potentially rapid product obsolescence, and heavy dependence on intellectual property rights. These companies are potential targets for cyberattacks, and AI technology could face increasing regulatory scrutiny that may limit its development and impede the growth of companies that develop or utilize it.
Management Risk. The Fund is actively managed and is subject to the risk that the Adviser’s investment decisions and the criteria used to identify AI Hyperscale Leaders will not produce the desired results. There is no guarantee that companies meeting the Fund’s criteria will outperform, or that the strategy will achieve its intended results.
Concentration Risk. The Fund’s investment exposure will be concentrated in companies in the AI industry and in industries that develop, deploy, or operate AI-related technologies and services. In such an event, the value of Shares may rise and fall more than the value of shares of a fund that invests in a broader range of industries.
Semiconductor Companies Risks. Competitive pressures may have a significant effect on the financial condition of semiconductor companies. The semiconductor sector is highly cyclical, faces high capital costs and aggressive pricing, and the stock prices of companies in the sector have been, and may continue to be, extremely volatile.
Software Companies Risk. Software companies can be significantly affected by intense competition, aggressive pricing, technological innovations, and product obsolescence, and many have limited operating histories. Prices of these companies’ securities historically have been more volatile than other securities.
Technology Companies Risk. The value of stocks of technology companies is particularly vulnerable to rapid changes in technology product cycles, rapid product obsolescence, government regulation, and competition, both domestic and international. Technology companies are heavily dependent on patent and intellectual property rights.
Derivatives Risk. The Fund may invest in derivative instruments, including options, swaps, and futures contracts, to gain exposure to the equity securities of AI Hyperscale Leaders. Derivatives involve risks different from, and possibly greater than, the risks associated with investing directly in securities, including counterparty, liquidity, and valuation risks.
Depositary Receipt Risk. The Fund may invest in American Depositary Receipts (ADRs), which involve risks similar to those of investing in foreign securities, including currency, political, and economic risks. ADRs may not provide a return that corresponds precisely with that of the underlying foreign shares.
Foreign Securities Risk. The Fund will not invest directly in foreign securities but may gain exposure to foreign issuers indirectly through exchange-listed ADRs, which involve risks not typically associated with U.S. investments, including currency fluctuations, political or economic instability, and less publicly available information about issuers.
ETF Risks. As an ETF, the Fund is subject to risks that include a limited number of Authorized Participants, market makers, and liquidity providers; trading costs and bid-ask spreads; the potential for Shares to trade at a premium or discount to NAV; and the possibility that an active trading market for Shares may not develop or be maintained, or that trading may be halted.
Non-Diversification Risk. Because the Fund is non-diversified, it may invest a greater percentage of its assets in a single issuer or a smaller number of issuers than a diversified fund. As a result, the Fund may be more sensitive to adverse developments affecting a single issuer or a small number of issuers, which may increase the Fund’s volatility.
New Fund Risk. The Fund is a recently organized investment company with no operating history. As a result, prospective investors have no track record or history on which to base their investment decision.
Brokerage commissions may be charged on trades.
Distributed by Foreside Fund Services, LLC.
A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/14a2fa0e-d6ab-4e47-a1ec-fb4995ac1e1e