Item 1A. RISK FACTORS
Investing in our common shares involves a high degree of risk. An investment in our securities is speculative and involves a high degree of risk due to the nature of our business and the present stage of development and commercialization of our optical communications and photonics technology. You should carefully consider the risks described below, as well as the other information in this Annual Report, including our consolidated financial statements and the related notes and Part II, Item 7. entitled “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations,” and in any documents incorporated in this Annual Report by reference, before deciding whether to invest in our common shares. The occurrence of any of the events or developments described below could harm our business, financial condition, results of operations, and growth prospects and could cause them to differ materially from the estimates described in forward-looking statements in this Annual Report. In such an event, the market price of our common shares could decline, and you may lose all or part of your investment. Although we have discussed all known material risks, the risks described below are not the only ones that we may face. Additional risks and uncertainties not currently known to us or that we currently deem immaterial may also impair our business operations. Certain statements below are forward-looking statements. See also “Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements” in this Annual Report.
Risks Related to Our Business and Industry
Changes in government trade policies, including the imposition of tariffs and export restrictions, could have an adverse impact on our business operations and sales.
The United States or foreign governments may enact changes in trade policies that could adversely impact our ability to source and sell products internationally. For example, the U.S. government has recently imposed and/or threatened tariffs on a broad range of imported goods, particularly those from China, in response to perceived unfair trade practices. In retaliation, the Chinese government has imposed significant tariffs on certain U.S. products.
We may rely on global supply chains for certain components and products used in our operations, including goods sourced from China. Governmental actions affecting international trade, such as the imposition of tariffs, quotas, export restrictions, or other trade barriers—particularly between the United States and China—could materially increase our cost of goods, delay shipments, or disrupt supply chains. In recent years, the U.S. government has imposed, and continues to consider, significant tariffs and trade restrictions on a broad range of imports from China in response to perceived unfair trade practices. In turn, China and other affected countries have implemented retaliatory measures.
Although we cannot predict future actions regarding tariffs, export restrictions, or other trade barriers—nor the products or countries that may be affected—the global trade environment remains dynamic and uncertain. Such developments could materially affect our operations, particularly if significant tariffs or restrictions are placed on goods imported from China.
While we have the ability to source certain products from alternative regions such as South Korea and Taiwan, such alternatives may not fully offset the impact of sudden or widespread trade disruptions. Further escalation of trade tensions or regulatory restrictions could adversely affect our business, financial condition, and results of operations.
We operate in the optical communications and photonics segments of the semiconductor industry, which are cyclical and subject to significant downturns.
The markets in which we operate — including optical transceivers and photonics components for high-performance computing and data center applications — are subject to cyclical trends and rapid technological evolution. These segments of the semiconductor industry are characterized by constant product innovation, evolving standards, compressed product lifecycles, and fluctuations in customer demand and capital spending. In addition, intense pricing pressure and the risk of product obsolescence may lead to inventory write-downs, margin compression, and declining average selling prices. Periods of weak demand in AI infrastructure, hyperscale data centers, or broader semiconductor markets may result in excess capacity and reduced profitability for companies like ours. If we are unable to respond swiftly to such downturns by adjusting our cost structure, R&D priorities, or go-to-market strategies, our revenue, gross margins, liquidity, and overall financial performance could be materially and adversely affected.
Our revenue growth and gross margin are substantially dependent on our successful development and commercialization of new optical transceiver products based on our proprietary microLED technology.
Maintaining or growing our revenue may depend, among other things, on our ability to timely develop and introduce new products that address evolving customer requirements for performance, energy efficiency, integration, and cost-effectiveness in the data center, AI infrastructure, and high-performance computing markets. Failure to introduce new products at sufficient volumes or on schedule could materially and adversely affect our revenue growth.
The development and commercialization of optical transceiver modules is a complex process involving advanced gallium nitride (GaN) semiconductor materials, microLED device architectures, packaging integration, and system-level performance validation. We have experienced, and may continue to experience, delays or setbacks in product development or ramping manufacturing capacity. Our ability to successfully develop products depends on various factors, including accurate anticipation of customer needs and evolving technical standards; availability of skilled engineers and manufacturing capabilities; design and production yield performance; customer acceptance of our technology; protection of our intellectual property; and securing licenses for third-party technologies when necessary.
New product development cycles in our industry typically span over one year and require substantial investment in R&D, engineering, and commercialization efforts, with potential delays before return on investment is realized. Failure to anticipate or respond promptly to technological shifts or competitive innovations could result in loss of design wins, declining market share, reduced gross margins, and adversely impact our ability to sustain or grow revenue.
The outcome of any litigation in which we are involved in is unpredictable and an adverse decision in any such matter could subject us to damage awards and lower the market price of our stock.
From time to time, we may be a party to certain litigation matters. Any such disputes, litigations, investigations, administrative proceedings or enforcement actions may divert financial and management resources that would otherwise be used to benefit our operations, result in negative publicity and harm our customer or supplier relationships. An adverse resolution of any such matter in the future, including the results of any amicable settlement, could subject us to material damage awards or settlement payments, loss of contractual or other rights, injunctions or other limitations on the operation of our business or other material harm to our business.
We may fail to successfully acquire or integrate new businesses, products, and technology, and we may not realize expected benefits, resulting in harm to the business.
We intend to grow our business through acquisitions of complementary companies, products, or technologies that align with our strategic goals. However, identifying suitable acquisition targets can be challenging, costly, and time-consuming, and we may not always be able to successfully complete such transactions. Moreover, acquisitions could divert management’s attention from core operations, potentially impacting our business performance.
Even if acquisitions are completed, successfully integrating new organizations, products, technologies, and employees is complex and may not achieve anticipated benefits or synergies. Potential unknown issues such as product quality deficiencies, regulatory compliance gaps, or intellectual property risks—undetected during due diligence—could arise post-acquisition. Addressing such issues may be costly and time-consuming, potentially adversely affecting our financial condition and operations.
Acquisitions may also introduce unanticipated expenses, liabilities, and operational complexities, including compliance challenges under regulations such as the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. There is no assurance that acquisitions will improve profitability or cash flow, and failure to realize expected benefits could harm our business and financial results.
System security and data breaches, cyber-attacks and other related cyber security incidents could disrupt our internal operations and/or supply chain, result in the loss of our, our customers’, and our suppliers’ proprietary and confidential information, adversely impact our reputation and business, and result in potentially significant expenses, costs, liabilities and other negative consequences, any or all of which could adversely affect results of operations and our stock price.
Despite implementing security measures, we are subject to risk of attack from malicious threat actors, which could include agents of organized crime or nation-state or nation-state supported actors. We manage and store various proprietary information and sensitive or confidential data relating to our business and our employees. In addition, we manage and store a significant amount of proprietary and sensitive or confidential information from third parties. Unauthorized insiders and/or third-party threat actors may be able to penetrate our security measures, evade our controls, or exploit vulnerabilities in our systems or our third-party providers’ systems and misappropriate or compromise our, our customers’ or our suppliers’ proprietary and confidential information, including intellectual property and personal information of our current and former employees, create system disruptions, or cause shutdowns. Threat actors also may be able to develop and deploy viruses, worms, phishing attempts, ransomware, and other malicious software that attack our websites, computer systems, access to critical information, products, or otherwise exploit security vulnerabilities. The sophistication, scale and frequency of cyber-attacks has continued to increase and evolve at a rapid pace, and the risk of attack may be heightened when our employees are working remotely. Artificial intelligence and machine learning also may be used for certain cybersecurity attacks, improving or expanding the existing capabilities of threat actors in manners we cannot predict at this time, resulting in greater risks of security incidents and breaches. The risk of state-sponsored or geopolitical-related cybersecurity incidents has also increased due to ongoing geopolitical tensions with China or incidents, such as the war in Ukraine or the Israel-Hamas war. Our prioritization of security measures and remediation of known vulnerabilities may prove inadequate and we may be unable to anticipate or protect against attacks. If an incident occurs, we may be unable to detect it for an extended period of time.
Any breach of our security measures or the loss, inadvertent disclosure, or unapproved dissemination of proprietary information or sensitive or confidential data about us, our customers, our suppliers or our employees, including the potential loss or disclosure of such information or data, could result in numerous risks and adverse consequences. Such consequences include remediation costs, litigation and potential liability for us, including as a result of U.S. or foreign governmental investigations or enforcement actions, penalties for violation of applicable laws or regulations, including laws and regulations in the United States and other jurisdictions relating to the collection, use and security of user and other personally identifiable information and data, damage to our brand and reputation, the loss of sales and customer or supplier relationships, negative impacts to our employee recruiting and retention, loss of intellectual property protection, risk of inadequate insurance coverage and increased insurance premiums, and numerous other financial, legal and business risks, any or all of which could harm our business, financial condition and results of operations and result in significant stock price volatility. In addition to our own systems, our business also is reliant upon the security of various third parties in our supply chain, and any breach of their systems and securities could result in our being subjected to the numerous risks and adverse consequences noted above.
Because we operate a fabless business model, we may not be eligible for certain U.S. government incentives and tax credits offered to promote domestic semiconductor production.
From time to time, governments may provide subsidies or make other investments that could give competitive advantages to certain semiconductor companies. For example, in 2022, the U.S. government passed the Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors & Sciences Act to provide $52.7 billion of funding to U.S.-based semiconductor companies to promote domestic production. Because we operate a fabless business model, we may not be eligible for such incentives from the U.S. government at this time. However, many of our current and future competitors maintain their own fabrication facilities and may secure such funding, which could benefit them in connection with cost, capacity, and technical issues. Additionally, to remain competitive with top talent, we may need to incur additional costs to provide certain additional benefits even though we are not receiving subsidies or other government funding. These competitive pressures could adversely affect our business, financial condition, and results of operations.
We operate in intensely competitive markets. Our failure to compete effectively would harm our results of operations.
The semiconductor industry is extremely competitive. Palomino currently competes with a number of large domestic and international companies in the field of high-performance optical electronic and optical interconnect solutions, some of which have greater financial, technical, and management resources than we do. In addition, efforts to introduce new products into markets with established competitors expose us to additional competitive pressures. Our primary markets include AI servers, data centers, and high-speed optical interconnects, where customer expectations and requirements are rapidly evolving. For example, customers will expect us to provide turnkey system-level solutions and to commit to future roadmaps that entail technical risks.
Some of our competitors may be better positioned to meet changing customer needs and secure design wins. Increasing competition in the markets in which we operate may negatively impact our revenue and gross margins. For example, competitors with greater financial resources may be able to offer lower prices, additional products, services, or other incentives that we may not be able to match.
We may also face discriminatory or anti-competitive practices from our competitors that could impede our growth, cause us to incur additional expenses, or otherwise negatively affect our business. Additionally, some competitors may use their market power to discourage customers from purchasing our products.
Moreover, many of our competitors operate and maintain their own fabrication facilities, and have longer operating histories, greater brand recognition, larger customer bases, and more extensive sales, marketing, and distribution resources than we do.
Furthermore, the semiconductor industry has experienced significant consolidation in recent years. Such consolidation has altered and may continue to alter the competitive landscape, capabilities, and market shares of industry participants, which could put us at a competitive disadvantage and harm our results of operations.
Costs related to defective products could have a material adverse effect on us.
We are currently developing and will sell highly complex optical transceiver modules and micro-LED-based photonics components, and accordingly, there is a risk of defects in our products. Such defects could lead to significant costs, including customer warranty claims, the cost of replacement products, increased support and service efforts, or loss of customer goodwill. Moreover, since the cost of replacing defective products used in high-value data center or industrial systems is often much higher than the price of the components themselves, we may be subject to claims from customers for damages exceeding the amounts paid to us, including consequential damages.
In addition, because our optical components are typically expected to be integrated into customer systems that support mission-critical applications such as data center infrastructure, high-performance computing, or medical imaging equipment, any malfunction or defect in our products that contributes to the failure of these systems could expose us to liability claims, reputational harm, or the loss of future business. Our customers may be required to recall or replace their end-products if a defect is traced back to our components, and in such cases, they may seek indemnification or cost-sharing from us. If such product issues arise in high-volume or high-stakes markets, we could incur substantial expenses and reputational damage. Any such defect-related costs could materially and adversely affect our business, results of operations, and financial condition.
If we fail to maintain effective internal control over financial reporting, or if we identify material weaknesses in the future, our ability to produce accurate and timely consolidated financial statements could be impaired, which may adversely affect investor confidence in our company and the value of our securities.
We have not yet fully developed or maintained an effective control environment that meets the requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. Our limited resources, lack of sufficient personnel with appropriate expertise in U.S. GAAP and SEC reporting requirements, and evolving internal processes have contributed to material weaknesses in our internal control over financial reporting.
If our remediation efforts are insufficient or if we identify additional material weaknesses in the future, our ability to record, process, and report financial information accurately and on a timely basis could be adversely affected. Any such failure could result in misstatements in our consolidated financial statements, delays in required filings, loss of investor confidence, potential delisting from a securities exchange, and a decline in the market price of our securities.
We have generated no revenue from commercial sales to date and our future profitability is uncertain.
We have a limited operating history and our business is subject to all of the risks inherent in the establishment of a new business enterprise, which make our prospects hard to evaluate. Any evaluation of our business and our prospects must be considered in light of the uncertainties, problems, expenses, difficulties, complications and delays frequently encountered in connection with development and expansion of a new business enterprise. Since inception, we have incurred losses and expect to continue to operate at a net loss for at least the next several years as we commence our research and development efforts and develop manufacturing, sales, marketing and distribution capabilities. There can be no assurance that the products under development by us will be approved for sale in the United States or elsewhere. Furthermore, there can be no assurance that if such products are approved they will be successfully commercialized, and the extent of our future losses and the timing of our profitability are highly uncertain. Many of these factors are beyond the control of our management. If we are unable to achieve profitability, we may be unable to continue our operations.
We have limited access to the capital markets and even if we can raise additional funding, we may be required to do so on terms that are dilutive to you.
We have limited access to the capital markets to raise capital. The capital markets have been unpredictable in the recent past for unprofitable companies such as ours. In addition, it is generally difficult for development stage companies to raise capital under current market conditions. The amount of capital that a company such as ours is able to raise often depends on variables in market conditions that are beyond our control. As a result, we may not be able to secure financing on terms attractive to us, or at all. If we are able to consummate a financing arrangement, the amount raised may not be sufficient to meet our future needs. If adequate funds are not available on acceptable terms, or at all, our business, including our results of operations, financial condition and our continued viability will be materially adversely affected. If we are able to secure future financing, it may be done on terms that are potentially dilutive to you.
We may, in the future, seek to enter into collaborations with third parties for the development and commercialization of our technologies. If our collaborators cease development efforts under our collaboration agreements, or if any of those agreements are terminated, these collaborations may fail to lead to commercial products and we may never receive milestone payments or future royalties under these agreements.
Given our current early stage of development, we may in the future seek collaborations with academic institutions, component manufacturers, or other players in the optoelectronics sector to advance the commercialization of our microLED-based interconnect platform. If we fail to enter into suitable agreements, or if such collaborations are not successful, we may be unable to leverage external resources to further our product development and commercialization efforts.
With both our existing license agreement and any future collaborations, we will have limited control over how much and when collaborators commit resources, set development timelines, or choose technology directions. As a result, our ability to derive value from these arrangements depends heavily on the collaborators’ ability to perform their assigned responsibilities.
Collaborations may expose us to the following risks:
Collaborators may devote fewer resources or less effort to the project than we expect;
Collaborators may suspend or terminate development due to internal strategy shifts, lack of funding, or external events such as mergers and acquisitions;
Collaborators may delay prototyping, halt development plans, or require changes in our designs that increase cost or time;
Collaborators may independently develop or co-develop competing technologies if they perceive better commercial potential;
Even if they hold distribution rights, collaborators may not dedicate sufficient resources to market our products;
Collaborators may mishandle or inadequately protect our IP, or misuse proprietary information, exposing us to litigation or loss of rights;
Disputes with collaborators could delay or terminate projects and drain our resources;
If agreements are terminated, we may be forced to continue development alone, assuming all associated costs.
As a result, our current or future collaborations may fail to advance our platform efficiently or at all. If a collaborator undergoes a major business change—such as a merger or restructuring—they may reduce or cease focus on our projects, potentially harming our business, financial condition, results of operations and future prospects.
Moreover, if a collaboration is terminated, we may have to independently fund pre-commercialization efforts, handle marketing, or defend IP—any of which could alter our business strategy and materially impact our financial and operational trajectory.
Our products are in the early stages of development.
Our products are at an early development stage. Further laboratory testing, engineering validation, and specific qualification processes will be required before our products can be commercially launched. Adverse or inconclusive results from pre-commercial testing or qualification procedures may substantially delay or halt the further development or commercialization of one or more of our products.
We currently have no sales and marketing organization. If we are unable to establish satisfactory sales and marketing capabilities and/or secure a sales and marketing partner, we may not successfully commercialize our products.
We do not have direct experience in sales or marketing. To commercialize our products, if and when they are ready for market, we must build our marketing, sales, managerial, and other non-technical capabilities or make arrangements with third parties to perform these functions, which may not be successful. Despite the technical expertise of our leadership team, we have limited experience as a company in sales and marketing, especially in the semiconductor and optoelectronic markets. Building and managing a sales organization involves significant challenges, including hiring, retaining, and incentivizing qualified personnel, generating sales leads, providing adequate training, and managing a geographically dispersed team.
In addition, we may not be able to enter into collaboration agreements with sales and marketing partners on acceptable terms or at all. Even if such partnerships are formed, we may have limited control over the sales, marketing, and distribution activities of third parties. Our future revenues may heavily depend on these partners’ efforts. If we choose to build our own sales and marketing infrastructure, we may not achieve a positive return on this investment. Furthermore, we must compete with established, well-funded semiconductor and technology companies to recruit, hire, and retain skilled sales personnel.
Factors that may inhibit our commercialization efforts without strategic partners include:
Our inability to recruit and retain sufficient, effective sales and marketing personnel;
Challenges for sales personnel in accessing or persuading target customers such as hyperscale data center operators, AI system integrators, and semiconductor OEMs;
The absence of a broad product portfolio, which may place us at a competitive disadvantage relative to companies with more extensive offerings; and
Unanticipated costs and expenses associated with developing an independent sales and marketing organization.
If we fail to attract, hire and retain qualified personnel, we may not be able to develop, market, or sell our products or successfully manage our business.
Competition for highly qualified personnel in our industry, particularly for employees with technical backgrounds, is intense. Some companies in our industry have adopted flexible remote work arrangements providing more flexibility than ours that further increase competition for talent. Accordingly, we expect competition for qualified personnel to intensify because there are only a limited number of individuals in the job market with the skills that we require. There also is a risk that changes in immigration laws and regulations, or their administration or enforcement, can impair our ability to attract and retain qualified engineering personnel. In the U.S., where a significant portion of our research and development teams are located, tightening of immigration controls may adversely affect the employment status of non-U.S. engineers and other key technical employees or further impact our ability to hire new non-U.S. employees. Moreover, certain immigration policies in the U.S. may make it more difficult for us to recruit and retain highly skilled foreign national graduates of universities in the U.S., additionally limiting the pool of available talent. There are significant costs to the Company associated with attracting and retaining qualified personnel in key technology positions. Recruiting and employee costs, such as cash and stock-based compensation, have increased relative to historic levels and may continue to increase, which could adversely affect our results of operations. Further, the loss of the services of key personnel or our inability to hire new personnel with the requisite skills or to assimilate talent could restrict our ability to develop new products or timely enhance existing products, sell products to our customers, or manage our business effectively.
We are currently dependent upon our only key executives.
Our success depends, in part, upon the continued services of the key members of our management. Our executives’ knowledge of the market, our business and our Company represents a key strength of our business, which cannot be easily replicated. The success of our business strategy and our future growth also depend on our ability to attract, train, retain and motivate skilled managerial, sales, administration, development and operating personnel.
We may have conflicts with our partners that could delay or prevent the development or commercialization of our product.
We may have conflicts with our partners, such as disputes concerning the interpretation of technical milestones, ownership of jointly developed intellectual property, fulfillment of development obligations, payment for services, or the interpretation of contractual terms. If conflicts arise, a partner may act in a manner that is contrary to our business interests. Any such disagreement could result in one or more of the following outcomes, each of which could delay or prevent the development, commercialization, or deployment of our technology solutions and, in turn, negatively impact our ability to generate revenue.
Any such disagreement could result in one or more of the following, each of which could delay or prevent the development or commercialization of our products, and in turn prevent us from generating revenues: unwillingness on the part of a partner to pay us milestone payments or royalties we believe are due to us under a collaboration; uncertainty regarding ownership of intellectual property rights arising from our collaborative activities, which could prevent us from entering into additional collaborations; unwillingness by the partner to cooperate in the development or manufacture of the product, including providing us with product data or materials; unwillingness on the part of a partner to keep us informed regarding the progress of its development and commercialization activities or to permit public disclosure of the results of those activities; initiating of litigation or alternative dispute resolution options by either party to resolve the dispute; and attempts by either party to terminate the agreement.
Such outcomes could materially impact our operations, delay our go-to-market strategy, or harm our reputation with future partners or customers.
Risks Related to Our Intellectual Property
We may incur liabilities for claims of intellectual property infringement relating to our products.
The semiconductor industry is generally subject to frequent litigation regarding patents and other intellectual property rights. In the future be we may be subject to claims that we have breached, infringed or misappropriated patent, license or other intellectual property rights. Our customers may assert claims against us for indemnification if they receive claims alleging that their or our products infringe upon others’ intellectual property rights, and have in the past and may in the future choose not to purchase our products based on their concerns over such a pending claim.
In the event of an adverse result of any intellectual property rights litigation, we could be required to incur significant costs to defend or settle such litigation, pay substantial damages for infringement, expend significant resources to develop non-infringing technology, incur material liability for royalty payments or fees to obtain licenses to the technology covered by the litigation or be subjected to an injunction, which could prevent us from selling our products, and materially and adversely affect our revenue and results of operations. Any claims relating to the infringement of third-party proprietary rights, even if not meritorious, could result in costly litigation, lost sales or damaged customer relationships and diversion of management’s attention and resources.
Our limited ability to protect our proprietary information and technology may adversely affect our ability to compete.
Our future success and ability to compete is dependent in part upon our protection of our proprietary information and technology through patent filings, enforcement of agreements related to intellectual property and otherwise. We cannot be certain that any patents we apply for will be issued or that any claims allowed from pending applications will be of sufficient scope or strength to provide meaningful protection or commercial advantage. Our competitors may also be able to design around our patents. Similarly, counterparties to our intellectual property agreements may fail to comply with their obligations under those agreements, requiring us to resort to expensive and time-consuming litigation to protect our rights, which may or may not be successful. Although we intend to vigorously defend our intellectual property rights, we may not be able to prevent misappropriation of our technology or may need to expend significant resources in defending our rights.
In addition, we rely on trade secrets, technical know-how and other unpatented proprietary information relating to our product development and manufacturing activities. While we enter into confidentiality agreements with employees and other parties to protect this information, we cannot be sure these agreements will be adequate or that our trade secrets and proprietary know-how will not otherwise become known or independently discovered by others.
Additionally, our competitors may independently develop technologies that are substantially equivalent or superior to our technology. Despite our efforts to protect our proprietary rights, unauthorized parties may attempt to copy or otherwise obtain or use our products or technology. Patent litigation is expensive and our ability to enforce our patents and other intellectual property is limited by our financial resources and subject to general litigation risks. If we seek to enforce our rights, we may be subject to claims that the intellectual property rights are invalid, unenforceable, or licensed to the party against whom we assert a claim. Our assertion of intellectual property rights could also lead to counterclaims, which is a frequent occurrence in such litigations.
Certain of our products will incorporate technology licensed or acquired from third parties and we expect our products in the future to also require technology from third parties.
If the license to such technology that we currently hold with UCSB becomes unavailable or the terms on which it is available becomes commercially unreasonable, or if we are unable to acquire or license necessary technology for our products in the future from UCSB or other entities, our business could be adversely affected.
We will sell products in markets that are characterized by rapid technological changes, evolving industry standards, frequent new product introductions and increasing levels of integration. Our ability to keep pace with these markets at times depends on our ability to obtain technology from third parties on commercially reasonable terms to allow our products to remain competitive.
If licenses to such technology are not available on commercially reasonable terms and conditions or at all and we cannot otherwise acquire or integrate such technology, our products or our customers’ products could become unmarketable or obsolete, we could lose market share and our revenue and results of operations could materially decline.
In addition, disputes with third party licensors over required payments, scope of licensed rights and compliance with contractual terms are common in our industry and we have in the past and may in the future be subjected to disputes over the terms of such licenses which could result in substantial unanticipated costs or delays in developing substitute technology to deliver competitive products, damaged customer and vendor relationships, indemnification liabilities and declining revenues and profitability. Such events could have an adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.
Our ability to protect and enforce our patents any patents we may obtain does not guarantee that we will secure the right to commercialize such patents.
A patent is a limited monopoly right conferred upon an inventor, and his or her successors in title, in return for the making and disclosing of a new and non-obvious invention. This monopoly is of limited duration but, while in force, allows the patent holder to prevent others from making and/or using his or her invention. While a patent gives the holder this right to exclude others, it is not a license to commercialize the invention, where other permissions may be required for permissible commercialization to occur. Further, the invention, even if patented itself, cannot be commercialized if it infringes the valid patent rights of another party.
Any inability to protect intellectual property rights in the United States and foreign countries could limit our ability to manufacture or sell products.
We rely on patent protection, in some cases trade secrets, unpatented proprietary know-how, and continuing technological innovation to preserve our competitive position. Our patents and licensed patent rights may be challenged, invalidated, infringed or circumvented, and the rights granted in those patents may not provide proprietary protection or competitive advantages to us. We may not be able to develop patentable products with acceptable patent protection. Even if patent claims are allowed, the claims may not issue, or in the event of issuance, may not be sufficient to protect the technology owned by or licensed to us. If patents containing competitive or conflicting claims are issued to third parties, we may be prevented from commercializing the products covered by such patents, or may be required to obtain or develop alternate technology. In addition, other parties may duplicate, design around or independently develop similar or alternative technologies.
We may not be able to prevent third parties from infringing or using our intellectual property, and the parties from whom we may license intellectual property may not be able to prevent third parties from infringing or using the licensed intellectual property. We plan to control and limit access to, and the distribution of, our product documentation and other proprietary information. Despite efforts to protect this proprietary information, unauthorized parties may obtain and use information that we may regard as proprietary. Other parties may independently develop similar know-how or may even obtain access to these technologies.
The laws of some foreign countries do not protect proprietary information to the same extent as the laws of the United States, and many companies have encountered significant problems and costs in protecting their proprietary information in these foreign countries.
We rely on confidentiality agreements to protect our trade secrets. If these agreements are breached by our employees or other parties, our trade secrets may become known to our competitors. We may not have any remedies against our competitors and any remedies that may be available to us may not be adequate to protect our business or compensate us for the damaging disclosure. In addition, we may have to expend significant resources to protect our interests from possible infringement by others.
If we or our third-party suppliers are found to be infringing patents or trade secrets owned by others, we may be forced to cease or alter our product development efforts, obtain licenses to continue the development or sale of our products, and/or pay damages.
As the semiconductor and optoelectronics industries rapidly evolve, and more patents are issued, the risk increases that our or our suppliers’ manufacturing processes and potential products may give rise to claims that they infringe patents, trademarks, copyrights, trade secrets, or other intellectual property rights of others. Although we have reviewed certain third-party patents that we believe may be relevant to our microLED-based optical transceiver technology and products, we have not conducted a comprehensive freedom-to-operate search or analysis, and may be unaware of patents or pending applications that, if granted, could block us from commercializing our technology or products.
Therefore, we cannot guarantee that our products or commercialization activities do not and will not infringe any third party’s intellectual property. From time to time, we may be notified of claims that we or our suppliers infringe third-party intellectual property rights, including from potential competitors. We cannot assure that others will not pursue infringement claims against us or the third-party technologies we license in the future. If found to infringe, or if we fail to obtain or renew licenses under third-party patents or intellectual property rights, we may be required to pay damages. Other parties may also seek legal action to enjoin clinical testing, manufacturing, or marketing of affected products or processes.
If such actions succeed, we may be required to obtain licenses to continue testing, manufacturing, or marketing, but required licenses may not be available on acceptable terms or at all. Litigation outcomes are uncertain and may consume significant financial resources and personnel efforts. Litigation involving our suppliers could also hinder product development and commercialization.
Moreover, rights granted under licensing agreements may not provide us with a competitive advantage. Enforcement of patent rights is costly and may fail. Others may independently develop similar or superior technologies, or our technology may infringe others’ patents. Therefore, patents licensed or held by us may not afford meaningful competitive advantages. Our confidentiality agreements may also fail to protect proprietary information adequately. Failure to maintain our intellectual property rights could materially harm our business, financial condition, and results of operations.
Other parties may claim that we infringe their intellectual property or proprietary rights, which could cause us to incur significant expenses or prevent us from selling our semiconductor products.
Our success depends in part on our ability to operate without infringing the patents and proprietary rights of third parties in the semiconductor and optoelectronics industries. The development, manufacture, use, and sale of new semiconductor and optoelectronic products are frequently subject to substantial patent litigation. Such disputes often relate to the validity and alleged infringement of patents or proprietary rights held by others.
Third parties, including semiconductor companies, research institutions, or universities, may have filed patent applications or obtained patents that cover technologies relevant to our microLED-based optical transceivers or other platform technologies. Existing or future patents held by others may contain claims that could cover our products or technology.
We expect to face infringement claims from time to time in the ordinary course of business, and third parties may assert claims against us regarding our current or future products or licensed technologies. Any such claims or litigation could require us to:
cease or delay the manufacturing, use, or sale of products incorporating or made with the challenged intellectual property;
pay damages; or
enter into licensing or royalty agreements, which may not be available on acceptable terms or at all.
Regardless of the outcome, any litigation or administrative proceedings could delay product development and commercialization, incur substantial costs, and divert significant management and technical resources.
We are obligated to develop and maintain proper and effective internal control over financial reporting. If we fail to develop and maintain an effective system of disclosure controls and internal control over financial reporting, our ability to produce timely and accurate consolidated financial statements or comply with applicable laws and regulations could be impaired. In addition, the presence of material weaknesses increases the risk of material misstatement of the consolidated financial statements.
Our disclosure controls and procedures are designed to ensure that the information we are required to disclose in reports that we file or submit under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”) is recorded, processed, summarized, and reported within the time periods specified in SEC rules and forms, and that such information is accumulated and communicated to our management to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure.
Based on such evaluation, our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Accounting Officer have concluded that as of such date, our disclosure controls and procedures were not, in design and operation, effective at a reasonable assurance level due to the material weaknesses in internal control over financial reporting described as follows. Because of our limited operations, we have a limited number of employees which prohibits a segregation of duties. In addition, we lack a formal audit committee with a financial expert. As we grow and expand our operations, we will engage additional employees and experts as needed. However, there can be no assurance that our operations will expand.
Risks Relating to Our Common Stock
The price of our Common Stock may be volatile and may be influenced by numerous factors, some of which are beyond our control.
Factors that could cause volatility in the market price of our Common Stock include:
actual or anticipated fluctuations in our financial condition and operating results;
actual or anticipated changes in our growth rate relative to our competitors;
commercial success and market acceptance of our products;
success of our competitors in commercializing products;
strategic transactions undertaken by us;
additions or departures of key personnel;
product liability claims;
prevailing economic conditions;
disputes concerning our intellectual property or other proprietary rights;
U.S. or foreign regulatory actions affecting us or our industry;
sales of our Common Stock by our officers, directors or significant stockholders;
future sales or issuances of equity or debt securities by us;
business disruptions caused by natural disasters; and
issuance of new or changed securities analysts’ reports or recommendations regarding us.
In addition, the stock markets in general have experienced extreme volatility that have been often unrelated to the operating performance of the issuer. These broad market fluctuations may negatively impact the price or liquidity of our Common Stock. In the past, when the price of a stock has been volatile, holders of that stock have sometimes instituted securities class action litigation against the issuer. If any of our stockholders were to bring such a lawsuit against us, we could incur substantial costs defending the lawsuit and the attention of our management would be diverted from the operation of our business.
You may experience dilution of your ownership interests because of the future issuance of additional shares of our Common Stock or preferred stock or other securities that are convertible into or exercisable for our Common Stock or preferred stock.
If our existing stockholders exercise warrants or sell, or indicate an intention to sell, substantial amounts of our Common Stock in the public market, the price of our Common Stock could decline. The perception in the market that these sales may occur could also cause the price of our Common Stock to decline.
In the future, we may issue authorized but previously unissued equity securities, resulting in the dilution of the ownership interests of the then current stockholders. We are authorized to issue an aggregate of 300,000,000 shares of Common Stock, par value $0.0001 per share. We may issue additional shares of our Common Stock or other securities that are convertible into or exercisable for our common stock in connection with hiring or retaining employees, future acquisitions, future sales of our securities for capital raising purposes, or for other business purposes. The future issuance of any such additional shares of our Common Stock may create downward pressure on the trading price of the Common Stock. We may need to raise additional capital in the near future to meet our working capital needs, and there can be no assurance that we will not be required to issue additional shares, warrants or other convertible securities in the future in conjunction with the capital raising efforts, including at a price (or exercise prices) below the price you paid for your stock.
Our Common Stock may be deemed a “penny stock” which may reduce the value of an investment in the stock.
Rule 15g-9 under the Exchange Act establishes the definition of a “penny stock,” for the purposes relevant to us, as any equity security that has a market price of less than $5.00 per share or with an exercise price of less than $5.00 per share, subject to certain exceptions. For any transaction involving a penny stock, unless exempt, the rules require: (a) that a broker or dealer approve a person’s account for transactions in penny stocks; and (b) the broker or dealer receive from the investor a written agreement to the transaction, setting forth the identity and quantity of the penny stock to be purchased.
In order to approve a person’s account for transactions in penny stocks, the broker or dealer must: (a) obtain financial information and investment experience objectives of the person and (b) make a reasonable determination that the transactions in penny stocks are suitable for that person and the person has sufficient knowledge and experience in financial matters to be capable of evaluating the risks of transactions in penny stocks.
The broker or dealer must also deliver, prior to any transaction in a penny stock, a disclosure schedule prescribed by the SEC relating to the penny stock market, which, in highlight form: (a) sets forth the basis on which the broker or dealer made the suitability determination; and (b) confirms that the broker or dealer received a signed, written agreement from the investor prior to the transaction. Generally, brokers may be less willing to execute transactions in securities subject to the “penny stock” rules. If our Common Stock is or becomes subject to the “penny stock” rules, it may be more difficult for investors to dispose of our Common Stock and cause a decline in the market value of our Common Stock.
Disclosure also has to be made about the risks of investing in penny stocks in both public offerings and in secondary trading and about commissions payable to both the broker or dealer and the registered representative, current quotations for the securities and the rights and remedies available to an investor in cases of fraud in penny stock transactions. Finally, monthly statements have to be sent disclosing recent price information for the penny stock held in the account and information on the limited market in penny stocks.
The sales practice requirements of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority’s (“FINRA”) may limit a stockholder’s ability to buy and sell our Common Stock.
FINRA has adopted rules requiring that, in recommending an investment to a customer, a broker-dealer must have reasonable grounds for believing that the investment is suitable for that customer. Prior to recommending speculative or low-priced securities to their non-institutional customers, broker-dealers must make reasonable efforts to obtain information about the customer’s financial status, tax status, investment objectives and other information. Under interpretations of these rules, FINRA has indicated its belief that there is a high probability that speculative or low-priced securities will not be suitable for at least some customers. If these FINRA requirements are applicable to us or our securities, they may make it more difficult for broker-dealers to recommend that at least some of their customers buy our Common Stock, which may limit the ability of our stockholders to buy and sell our Common Stock and could have an adverse effect on the market for and price of our Common Stock.
Our operating results for a particular period may fluctuate significantly or may fall below the expectations of investors or securities analysts, each of which may cause the price of our Common Stock to fluctuate or decline.
We expect our operating results to be subject to fluctuations. Our operating results will be affected by numerous factors, including:
variations in the level of expenses related to future development plans;
changes in the cost or availability of key raw materials, wafers, substrates, components, and outsourced manufacturing services;
inability to obtain sufficient quantities of wafers, substrates, components, or manufacturing capacity from our suppliers on acceptable terms and timelines;
level of customer demand for our products and the timing of commercialization and market adoption;
any intellectual property infringement lawsuit or opposition, interference or cancellation proceeding in which we may become involved;
regulatory developments affecting us, our suppliers, or our competitors; and
If our operating results for a particular period fall below the expectations of investors or securities analysts, the price of our Common Stock could decline substantially. Furthermore, any fluctuations in our operating results may, in turn, cause the price of our Common Stock to fluctuate substantially. We believe that comparisons of our financial results from various reporting periods are not necessarily meaningful and should not be relied upon as an indication of our future performance
Issuance of stock to fund our operations may dilute your investment and reduce your equity interest.
We may need to raise capital in the future to fund the development and commercialization of our photonics business. Any equity financing may have significant dilutive effect to stockholders and a material decrease in our stockholders’ equity interest in us. Equity financing, if obtained, could result in substantial dilution to our existing stockholders. At its sole discretion, our board of directors may issue additional securities without seeking stockholder approval, and we do not know when we will need additional capital or, if we do, whether it will be available to us.
We do not anticipate paying any cash dividends on our common stock in the foreseeable future therefore capital appreciation, if any, of our Common Stock will be your sole source of gain for the foreseeable future.
We have never declared or paid cash dividends on our Common Stock. We do not anticipate paying any cash dividends on our common stock in the foreseeable future. We currently intend to retain all available funds and any future earnings to fund the development and growth of our business. As a result, capital appreciation, if any, of our common stock will be your sole source of gain for the foreseeable future.
The Company qualifies as an “emerging growth company.” The reduced public company reporting requirements applicable to emerging growth companies may make the Common Stock less attractive to investors.
We qualify as an “emerging growth company” under SEC rules. As an emerging growth company, we are permitted and plan to and do rely on exemptions from certain disclosure requirements that are applicable to other public companies that are not emerging growth companies. These provisions include, but are not limited to: (1) an exemption from compliance with the auditor attestation requirement in the assessment of internal control over financial reporting pursuant to Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act; (2) not being required to comply with any requirement that may be adopted by the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board regarding mandatory audit firm rotation or a supplement to the auditor’s report providing additional information about the audit and the consolidated financial statements; (3) reduced disclosure obligations regarding executive compensation arrangements in periodic reports, registration statements and proxy statements; and (4) exemptions from the requirements of holding a nonbinding advisory vote on executive compensation and stockholder approval of any golden parachute payments not previously approved. Further, Section 102(b)(1) of the JOBS Act exempts emerging growth companies from being required to comply with new or revised financial accounting standards until private companies (that is, those that have not had a Securities Act registration statement declared effective or do not have a class of securities registered under the Exchange Act) are required to comply with the new or revised financial accounting standards. The JOBS Act provides that a company can elect to opt out of the extended transition period and comply with the requirements that apply to non-emerging growth companies but any such election to opt out is irrevocable. As a result, the information we provide will be different than the information that is available with respect to other public companies that are not emerging growth companies. If some investors find the Common Stock less attractive as a result, there may be a less active trading market for the Common Stock and the market price of the Common Stock may be more volatile.
