10-K: Annual report [Section 13 and 15(d), not S-K Item 405]
Published on March 20, 2025
UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
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FORM 10-K
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(Mark One)
| ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934 | |||||
For the fiscal year ended December 31 , 2024
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| TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934 | |||||
For the transition period from ________ to ________
Commission file number 001-41314
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(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
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(Address of Principal Executive Offices) |
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Registrant’s telephone number, including area code
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Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:
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Securities registered pursuant to section 12(g) of the Act: None
Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act. Yes o No x
Indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Act. Yes o No x
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant: (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports); and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes x No o
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit such files).Yes x No o
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, a smaller reporting company, or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company,” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.
| Large accelerated filer | o | Accelerated filer | o | ||||||||
| x | Smaller reporting company | ||||||||||
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If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. o
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has filed a report on and attestation to its management’s assessment of the effectiveness of its internal control over financial reporting under Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (15 U.S.C. 7262(b)) by the registered public accounting firm that prepared or issued its audit report. o
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Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Act). Yes o No x
The aggregate market value of the voting and non-voting common equity held by non-affiliates of the Registrant, as of June 30, 2024 (the last business day of the registrant’s most recently completed second fiscal quarter), was approximately $50.6 million. Solely for purposes of this disclosure, shares of common stock held by executive officers and directors and by each person who owns 5% or more of the outstanding common stock as of such date have been excluded because such persons may be deemed to be affiliates. This determination of affiliate status is not necessarily a conclusive determination for other purposes.
The registrant had 117,926,808 shares of common stock outstanding as of March 13, 2025.
DOCUMENTS INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE
Portions of the registrant’s definitive proxy statement for its 2025 Annual Meeting of Stockholders (the “Proxy Statement”) to be filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission within 120 days after the end of the fiscal year covered by this Annual Report on Form 10-K, are incorporated by reference in Part III where indicated. Except with respect to information specifically incorporated by reference in this Annual Report, the Proxy Statement shall not be deemed to be filed as part hereof.
Table of Contents
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Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements in this Annual Report on Form 10-K of Amprius Technologies, Inc. (hereafter referred to as “Amprius,” the “Company,” “we,” “us,” or “our”) and in documents incorporated herein by reference may constitute “forward-looking statements” for purposes of the federal securities laws. Such forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding our expectations, beliefs, intentions or strategies regarding the future. In addition, any statements that refer to forecasts or other characterizations of future events or circumstances, including any underlying assumptions, are forward-looking statements. The words “anticipate,” “believe,” “continue,” “could,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intends,” “may,” “might,” “plan,” “possible,” “potential,” “predict,” “project,” “should,” “will,” “would” and similar expressions may identify forward-looking statements, but the absence of these words does not mean that a statement is not forward-looking. Forward-looking statements in this Annual Report on Form 10-K may include, for example, statements about:
•our financial and business performance, including financial and business metrics;
•changes in our strategy, future operations, financial position, estimated revenues and losses, projected costs, prospects and plans;
•our ability to add manufacturing capacity and the costs and timing to add such capacity;
•the expected addressable market for our products;
•developments relating to our competitors and industry;
•our expectations regarding our ability to obtain and maintain intellectual property protection and not infringe on the rights of others;
•our ability to develop a high-volume manufacturing line and otherwise scale in a cost-effective manner;
•our future capital requirements and sources and uses of cash;
•our ability to obtain funding for our operations; and
•our business, expansion plans and opportunities.
These forward-looking statements are based on information available as of the date of this Annual Report on Form 10-K, including current expectations, forecasts and assumptions, and involve a number of judgments, risks and uncertainties. Accordingly, forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as representing our views as of any subsequent date, and we do not undertake any obligation to update forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date they were made, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as may be required under applicable securities laws.
In addition, statements that “we believe” and similar statements reflect our beliefs and opinions on the relevant subject. These statements are based upon information available to us as of the date of this Annual Report on Form 10-K, and while we believe such information forms a reasonable basis for such statements, such information may be limited or incomplete, and our statements should not be read to indicate that we have conducted an exhaustive inquiry into, or review of, all potentially available relevant information. These statements are inherently uncertain and investors are cautioned not to unduly rely upon these statements.
As a result of a number of known and unknown risks and uncertainties, our actual results or performance may be materially different from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. Some factors that could cause actual results to differ include:
•our ability to execute our business model, including scaling production and increasing the addressable market for our products and services;
•our ability to raise capital;
•the ability to maintain the listing of our securities on the New York Stock Exchange (the “NYSE”);
•the possibility that we may be adversely affected by other economic, business or competitive factors, including supply chain interruptions and developments in alternative technologies, and may not be able to manage other risks and uncertainties;
•the outcome of any legal proceedings that may be instituted against us;
•changes in applicable laws or regulations;
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•the effect of macroeconomic factors, such as tariffs, trade barriers, abrupt political change, geopolitics, currency fluctuations, embargoes, shortages, terrorist activity, armed conflict and public health emergencies, on our business; and
•other risks and uncertainties described in this Annual Report on Form 10-K, including risk factors discussed in Part I, Item 1A under the heading, “Risk Factors.”
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Part I
Item 1. Business
Overview
We develop, manufacture and market lithium-ion batteries for mobility applications, including the aviation, electric vehicle (“EV”) and light electric vehicle (“LEV”) industries. Our disruptive silicon anode technology is intended to enable batteries with higher energy density, higher power density and fast charging capabilities over a wide range of operating temperatures. This results in our batteries providing superior performance compared to conventional graphite lithium-ion batteries. Our silicon anodes are a direct drop-in replacement of the graphite anode in traditional lithium-ion batteries, and our manufacturing processes leverage the manufacturing processes for conventional lithium-ion batteries and the related supply chain.
Currently, our batteries are primarily used for existing and emerging aviation applications, including unmanned aerial systems (“UAS”), such as drones and high-altitude pseudo satellites (“HAPS”). We believe our proprietary technology has the potential for broad application in electric transportation. Our batteries and their performance specifications have been tested and validated for application by various customers, including our longtime partners such as AALTO Airbus, AeroVironment, BAE Systems, Kraus Hamdani Aerospace, Teledyne FLIR and the U.S. Army. Our total customer engagements since inception grew to over 260 with shipments to 235 customers during the year ended December 31, 2024. In addition, from our inception through December 31, 2024, we have shipped over 800,000 units of batteries, which have enabled mission critical applications. Our proprietary silicon anode structures, battery cell designs and manufacturing processes are protected by our portfolio of patents, trade secrets and know-how developed over 15 years of research and development.
We currently offer high performance silicon anode batteries under the following product platforms: (i) SiCore and (ii) SiMaxx.
Our SiCore batteries were developed in collaboration with Berzelius (Nanjing) Co., Ltd. (“Berzelius”), a former subsidiary of Amprius, Inc. (“Amprius Holdings”), our former parent company. We began limited shipment of SiCore batteries in 2023, which generated a strong demand from our customers. In order to support such demand, we entered into a supply agreement with Berzelius in November 2023 (the “Exclusive Supply Agreement”), which gives us exclusive rights to purchase its proprietary silicon anode materials in the United States, Canada and Mexico. In January 2024, we announced the full commercial launch of our SiCore batteries and accelerated engagement with our addressable markets. We entered into manufacturing supply agreements with three global contract manufacturing companies, which provided us an opportunity to rapidly scale production and ship a large volume of SiCore batteries to our customers. As of December 31, 2024, we had access, through our manufacturing supply agreements with our global contract manufacturers, to annual production of up to 800 MWh of SiCore batteries in pouch form and up to 1 GWh of SiCore batteries in cylindrical form.
Our SiMaxx batteries are currently manufactured at our facility in Fremont, California. We believe that the demand for our SiMaxx batteries exceeds our existing kWh-scale manufacturing capacity and, in order to support such demand, we are expanding this facility into a MWh-scale manufacturing facility. The completion of the expansion has been delayed through the first quarter of 2025 due to a delay in our customers’ order commitments. We believe that this facility will be able to manufacture batteries up to 2 MWh capacity annually when our expansion is completed, which is approximately 10 times our existing production capacity.
In April 2023, we entered into a lease agreement to lease approximately 774,000 square feet of premises in Brighton, Colorado and announced a plan to build a GWh-scale manufacturing facility in those premises. As of December 31, 2024, we completed our pre-construction planning for this facility. However, the scope and schedule of the construction of this facility will be determined based on, among other factors, the availability and timing of funding. In addition, we are currently monitoring the larger industry dynamics. Changes in demand, supply, battery cost structure, government incentives, trade tariffs, and other considerations may also influence our decision, including whether to proceed with the construction at all.
History, Corporate Information and Website
We have been commercially producing batteries since 2018.
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On September 14, 2022, we completed a business combination pursuant to a Business Combination Agreement, dated May 11, 2022, by and among Amprius Technologies Operating, Inc. (formerly known as Amprius Technologies, Inc. or “Legacy Amprius”), Kensington Capital Acquisition Corp. IV (“Kensington”), and Kensington Capital Merger Sub Corp. (a wholly owned subsidiary of Kensington or “Merger Sub”). The business combination was effected through the merger of Merger Sub with and into Legacy Amprius, with Legacy Amprius surviving as a wholly owned subsidiary of Kensington. Upon consummation of the business combination, Kensington changed its jurisdiction of incorporation by domesticating as a corporation incorporated under the laws of the State of Delaware and changed its name to “Amprius Technologies, Inc.” The business combination was treated as a reverse recapitalization for financial reporting purposes, whereby Legacy Amprius was determined as the “accounting acquirer” and Kensington as the “accounting acquiree.” Immediately prior to the closing of the business combination, a number of private investors purchased from us an aggregate of 2,052,000 units at a price of $10.00 per share (such transaction, the “PIPE”), pursuant to separate subscription agreements. Each PIPE unit consisted of (i) one share of common stock and (ii) one warrant (each, a “PIPE warrant”) to purchase one share of common stock at an exercise price of $12.50 per share. Please refer to Note 7 to our consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K for additional information about the PIPE warrants.
On October 23, 2024, our former majority stockholder and parent company, Amprius Holdings, which owned an aggregate of 65.2 million shares, or 58.6%, of our common stock at that time, voluntarily liquidated and dissolved. As a result of such liquidation and dissolution, Amprius Holdings distributed, on a pro rata basis, an aggregate of approximately 57.2 million shares of our common stock to its stockholders, and we assumed all of Amprius Holdings’ outstanding options to purchase shares of Amprius Holdings’ Class A common stock in exchange for, among other things, Amprius Holdings contributing to us a total of 5.5 million shares of our common stock that it owned, which were immediately cancelled and returned to our authorized but unissued share capital.
Our principal executive offices are located at 1180 Page Avenue, Fremont, California 94538, and our telephone number is (800) 425-8803.
Our website is www.amprius.com. We make available free of charge through our website our Annual Reports on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and Current Reports on Form 8-K, and amendments to these reports filed or furnished pursuant to Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), as soon as reasonably practicable after we electronically file such material with, or furnish such material to, the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”). These reports and other information are also available, free of charge, at www.sec.gov. Information contained on, or that can be accessed through, the websites referenced in this Annual Report on Form 10-K are not a part of, and are not incorporated by reference into, this Annual Report on Form 10-K.
Industry Background
Traditional transportation has been powered by fossil fuel-based engines which have led to significant greenhouse gas emissions. A rising focus on sustainable energy use in transportation is leading to increased investments in technology, government incentives and consumer demand for the electrification of passenger and payload mobility. Among the mobility mediums experiencing a shift to electrification due to these trends are aircraft such as UAS, which includes drones and HAPS, and electric vertical take-off and landing (“eVTOL”) vehicles, as well as ground-based EVs and LEVs. Critical and breakthrough battery technologies can facilitate and, in certain cases, enable the mass adoption of these electric transportation mediums by improving energy density, accelerating fast charging capabilities, extending battery life, and improving safety.
Aviation Industry
Unmanned Aerial Systems: UAS are aircraft that operate with no crew or passengers onboard and are guided by remote control or autonomously. Examples of UAS include drones and HAPS. UAS are the next generation aerial transportation technology utilized for surveillance, assessment, logistics, delivery, communications, and imaging, among other uses. Emerging technologies, such as Amprius’ silicon anode battery, offer lighter weight and/or more energy dense batteries, potentially overcoming current battery technology barriers and enabling faster adoption of UAS. Based on a January 2025 Fortune Business Insights article and management estimates, the total addressable market for UAS batteries is expected to reach approximately $27.0 billion by 2030.
Drones: Drones are the most common type of UAS and are increasingly being utilized in various industries, including military and defense, agricultural, construction and logistics. One of the key barriers to wider adoption is the existing battery technology, which limits the drones’ flight range and payload capacity. Our batteries offer higher energy
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density, which enables longer range endurance, and, depending on customer specifications, lighter weight, which facilitates higher payload capacity. Amprius offers advanced battery technology suitable for application in drones, which is currently in use by the U.S. Army, AeroVironment and Teledyne FLIR.
High Altitude Pseudo Satellites: HAPS are alternatives for traditional satellites. When deployed, HAPS typically operate at stratospheric altitudes, approximately 12 miles (approximately 65,000 feet) above sea level. HAPS are being increasingly utilized to provide high-quality broadcast features, particularly in remote regions, which have limited terrestrial network coverage. HAPS generally use solar energy and battery storage as the power source to operate for long durations of time. As a result, lightweight, higher energy density batteries with the ability to operate in extreme temperature and pressure conditions are critical enablers. Amprius offers advanced battery technology suitable for application in HAPS, which is currently in use by prominent aerospace companies, including AALTO Airbus and BAE Systems.
Electric Air Transportation: Population growth and urbanization are key megatrends that are stretching ground transportation infrastructure to its limits and resulting in significant greenhouse gas emissions. A potential mitigation strategy is expanding intracity and other short-distance travel into the air utilizing eVTOL vehicles, which include passenger aircraft that use electric power to hover, takeoff, and land vertically. Historically, the electrification of passenger and cargo aircraft has lagged the adoption of electric automobiles in part because of the greater technical challenges. However, over the last few years there have been significant advancements in the key enabling technologies for eVTOL aircraft, including the high energy density and robust performance batteries offered by Amprius. Continued improvements in battery energy density could allow eVTOL aircraft to increase their range, speed and payload, dramatically expanding the range of trips and further accelerating the adoption of electric air mobility. Based on a January 2025 Skyquest report and management estimates, the total global addressable electric air mobility battery market is expected to reach approximately $2.9 billion by 2032.
Electric Vehicle Industry
The electrification of ground transportation is being accelerated by regulatory pressure to meet sustainability benchmarks and growing consumer preference. For example, some states in the United States had promulgated regulations mandating automobile manufacturers to sell 100% of new vehicles in those states that have zero-emission by 2035. Based on a February 2025 Markets and Markets report and management estimates, the global EV battery market is expected to reach approximately $251.3 billion by 2035. While multiple battery chemistries exist today that meet current EV specifications, we believe there is room for significant improvement. Our batteries, which have been tested and validated by the U.S. Advanced Battery Consortium (“USABC”), as further described below, have the potential to help address both these concerns. As such, while our EV capable battery needs to be improved with respect to cycle life, form factor, cost and production quantity, for us to compete with existing commercially available EV batteries, we believe that, as we grow and improve, we may be able to compete in the EV battery market.
Light Electric Vehicle Industry
The LEV market is expected to grow rapidly primarily due to the rising demand for e-motorcycles. Based on a January 2025 report from The Business Research Company, the LEV market size is expected to reach approximately $136.0 billion by 2029. As this market grows, we expect an increase in demand for high-performance batteries across the LEV sector. We believe that the form factor and cost-competitiveness of our high-energy-density SiCore batteries can support such growing demand in the LEV sector. As of December 31, 2024, we had access, through our manufacturing supply agreements with our global contract manufacturers, to annual production of up to 800 MWh of SiCore batteries in pouch form and up to 1 GWh of SiCore batteries in cylindrical form.
Battery Requirements for Electric Transportation
Current battery technology creates a barrier in the near-term for the electric transportation market, especially for electric air mobility applications, as battery weight, size and recharging times would need to be improved for these operations to become commercial. The battery system must fulfill several key requirements:
•high energy density and specific energy in order to achieve long range endurance while enabling lighter weight;
•high power density to provide sufficient power at a specific instance, such as during aircraft take-off or landing;
•fast charging capabilities to enable high infrastructure throughput;
•operational in wide temperature and pressure ranges;
•safe to operate in a wide variety of conditions;
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•a long calendar life and cycle life; and
•acceptable cost, which varies by application.
Our Solution
Today’s batteries typically utilize graphite as the anode material. Based on management’s estimates, we believe that graphite anodes have reached their theoretical limits for energy storage. We estimate that graphite anodes can only provide up to 355 mAh/g capacity for lithium storage, which can further degrade in extreme environments. We believe additional increases in the energy density for lithium-ion batteries are possible only by using active anode materials that have a higher capacity for lithium storage. Among such active materials, silicon is known to have the highest lithium storage capacity per unit mass or volume over any other element besides lithium itself.
Our SiCore and SiMaxx batteries have replaced the graphite anode with a highly engineered silicon material that has a lithium storage capacity of approximately up to 3,400 mAh/g, which is nearly 10 times the highest capacity of known graphite anodes. By replacing graphite with silicon in the anode, we have significantly enhanced performance in batteries across energy density, power, charging time, safety and ability to operate in extreme environments.
Our Competitive Strengths
SiCore and SiMaxx performance greatly exceeds conventional lithium-ion batteries commercially available today. We believe that our battery cells significantly outperform commercially available conventional graphite battery cells. As shown in the table below, as of December 31, 2024, our batteries, particularly our SiMaxx batteries, have approximately double the specific energy and energy density of graphite battery cells, and enable significantly faster charging time. We believe other next-generation battery technologies will require significant additional research, development and investment prior to being commercially viable.
| Performance Metric |
Graphite Anode
Battery Cells (1)
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(2)
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| Specific Energy (Wh/kg) | ~215-285 |
320-500 (3)
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| Energy Density (Wh/L) | ~530-715 |
805-1,300 (3)
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| Charging Time to 80% | 30 minutes |
<6 minutes (4)
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| Rate Capability/Power | Up to 10C | Up to 10C | ||||||
| Cycle Life | 500-1,000 cycles | 200-1,200 cycles | ||||||
| Operating Temperature |
-20 to 60oC
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-30 to 55oC
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(1) Other than cycle life, based on a survey of 18,650 technical datasheets (e.g., Panasonic NCR18650G), Sony VTC6 technical datasheet, iFixit reports on iPhone and Samsung batteries, and Y. Sun et al: Li-ion Battery Reliability – A Case Study of the Apple iPhone. For cycle life, based on Shmuel De-Leon: Li-Ion NCA/NMC Cylindrical Hard Case Cells Market 2021.
(2) Includes both released and unreleased SiMaxx battery cells with energy and power cell designs.
(3) Based on SiMaxx 500 Wh/kg, 1,300 Wh/L battery cells that were in the development stage as of December 31, 2024.
(4) Based on SiMaxx High Power cells commercially available in 2024.
Unique suitability for aviation markets that require high power, specific energy and energy density. We believe the increased performance of our SiCore and SiMaxx batteries enable certain electric aviation applications. For example, our batteries have high specific energy and energy density to maximize payload and reduce weight, thereby extending flight radius; high power density, to enable vertical take-off and landing functionality; fast charge, to minimize the time required to recharge a battery; wide operating temperature, for high altitude applications operating in extremely low temperatures; and cycle life parity with graphite batteries, depending on customer specifications.
In January 2025, we announced the expansion of our SiCore product platform with a SiCore battery cell that provides energy density of 370 Wh/kg, extending runtimes while still exceeding 3,000 W/kg, with discharge rates of up to 10C without cooling and 15C with active cooling. This SiCore battery cell ensures quick power delivery without
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compromising runtime, which makes it ideal for aviation applications, including drones, as well as high-performance electric vehicle applications that require both endurance and rapid energy delivery.
In August 2023, we unveiled a breakthrough battery cell chemistry and design that enables 400 Wh/kg energy density with 10C continuous discharge capability. The energy and power delivered by this ultra-high-power-high-energy lithium-ion battery make it an ideal solution for electric mobility applications. This battery, which is part of our SiMaxx product platform, became commercially available in 2024.
In March 2023, we unveiled a prototype battery cell that delivers an energy density of >500 Wh/kg and >1,300 Wh/L at 25°C. The performance of this battery cell was verified by a leading testing house offering comprehensive battery regulatory compliance, safety and performance testing. At approximately half the weight and volume compared to other existing state-of-the-art, commercially available lithium-ion cells, we believe that this type of battery will deliver a potential industry-disrupting performance. As of December 31, 2024, this battery cell, which will be part of our SiMaxx product platform, was in the development stage.
We will continue to develop next-generation battery cells, and we believe that when they become commercially available, those battery cells will have the potential to expand boundaries for our customers and provide a tailored solution for applications that require heightened discharge times without compromising key features, such as aircraft payload, and without having to increase vehicle weight.
First mover advantage in emerging aviation markets. As a result of our success with AALTO Airbus and other tier-one customers, we have become an established market pioneer in providing high performance batteries to the aviation industry. Our reputation and commitment to delivering ultra-high performance batteries have enabled us to enter into several development and master supply arrangements with our customers. From our inception through December 31, 2024, over 260 customers had tested and validated our SiCore and SiMaxx batteries for their applications, and we believe our market leadership in aviation will enable us to continue to grow our customer base.
Proven performance in demanding and abuse-tested environments. Safety is recognized as one of the most important factors of lithium-ion battery technology. Our silicon anodes operate at a voltage that is at least 100 mV higher than that of graphite anodes, which not only enables faster charging but also cell operation at lower temperatures, thereby improving cell safety and mitigating the risk of overcharging. Our batteries are also designed to be ultra-resilient and undergo rigorous abuse testing, including air cargo certification and specific tests for defense applications.
For example, in December 2022, an independent third-party testing lab validated that our SiMaxx 390 Wh/kg polymer electrolyte cell successfully passed the nail penetration test per the requirements of section 4.7.4.4. of the MIL-PRF-32383 (Military Performance Specification). The test is used to determine the feasibility of a specific product in combat scenarios. Cells tested in accordance with section 4.7.4.4. should not burn or explode, and the external temperature of each test sample should not be greater than 338 degrees Fahrenheit (170 degrees Celsius) when penetrated by sharp objects. When conducting the test, a 0.113-inch diameter stainless steel nail is driven through a fully charged cell at a prescribed speed. The cell is deemed to have passed if there is no smoke or flame following the nail penetration.
Robust IP portfolio and know-how related to our silicon nanowire ecosystem. Our silicon anode technology has been refined and improved upon for over 15 years, and is protected by over 80 patents that were issued to us or are pending applications as of December 31, 2024. Core aspects of our technologies and processes are also protected by know-how and trade secrets developed by our team for over 15 years.
Our Products and Customers
As evidenced by customer validation, design wins and recurring orders with AALTO Airbus, AeroVironment, BAE Systems, Kraus Hamdani Aerospace, Teledyne FLIR and the U.S. Army, among others, our battery technology is well positioned to address the rapidly growing markets within the aviation industry, specifically UAS and eVTOL, as well as LEVs. UAS and eVTOL applications have historically used conventional lithium-ion batteries as a means to promote product prototypes, but market participants are seeking advancements in battery technology. We believe that our silicon anode technology can be part of the solution.
We currently offer high performance batteries under the following product platforms: SiCore and SiMaxx. In addition, we are also currently developing EV-capable products.
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SiCore Product Platform
Our SiCore batteries, which were developed in collaboration with Berzelius and launched commercially in January 2024, are based on an innovative, proprietary silicon anode material system delivering high-energy-density silicon anode batteries that surpass current state-of-the-art graphite cell performance. The silicon anode cell chemistry in our SiCore batteries is designed to offer high energy density, up to 400 Wh/kg, and long cycle life, as long as 1,000 cycles. Our SiCore battery cell chemistry may be combined with other materials, such as binders and conductive agents, including graphite, to meet performance specifications.
We offer our SiCore batteries with the following design and performance factors: Energy, Power and Balanced Energy/Power.
Energy. This design of SiCore battery cell delivers a specific energy of up to 400 Wh/kg or 872 Wh/L at a maximum discharge rate of up to 1C and a cycle life of up to 300 cycles at full depth of discharge.
Power. This design of SiCore battery cell delivers a specific energy of up to 360 Wh/kg or 800 Wh/L at a maximum discharge rate of up to 5C and a cycle life of up to 300 cycles at full depth of discharge.
Balanced Energy/Power. This design of SiCore battery cell delivers a specific energy of up to 355 Wh/kg or 805 Wh/L at a maximum discharge rate of up to 3C, and a cycle life of up to 700 cycles at full depth of discharge or 1,000 cycles at approximately 90% depth of discharge.
Our SiCore batteries have been validated across various applications in the electric mobility market, and since we began our limited shipment in 2023 and our commercial launch in January 2024, they have garnered positive feedback from customers with demanding performance requirements. Our SiCore battery chemistries are applied into a wide range of form factors, including both pouch and cylindrical cells. The cylindrical cell form factors offer balanced energy and power capabilities providing an industry leading capacity of 4Ah in 18650 format and 6Ah in 21700 format, and a cycle life of up to 600 cycles.
As of December 31, 2024, we had access, through our manufacturing supply agreements with our global contract manufacturers, to annual production of up to 800 MWh of SiCore batteries in pouch form and up to 1 GWh of SiCore batteries in cylindrical form.
SiMaxx Product Platform
We offer our SiMaxx batteries with the following design and performance factors: High Energy, High Power and Balanced Energy/Power.
High Energy. Our SiMaxx high energy battery cells are designed to maximize specific energy for applications with low power requirements. For applications that have a continuous discharge rate of less than 2C, these battery cells deliver a specific energy of up to 500 Wh/kg or 1,300 Wh/L at a discharge rate up to 1C. SiMaxx high energy battery cells are most frequently used by HAPS, which are designed to carry a payload at high altitudes for extended periods, typically for weeks or months at a time, as they rely on solar power for operations during the day and need to store sufficient energy in the battery to keep the aircraft aloft during the night.
We continue to make improvements on our SiMaxx high energy battery cells. For example, in November 2023, we developed and delivered three additional formats of 450 Wh/kg cells. These custom cells were made in collaboration with our strategic customers to address their unique HAPS qualification requirements and to assist in operating in highly challenging environments. With greater energy density and longer cycle life than our previous high-energy batteries, we believe that our 450 Wh/kg cells are the only commercially available batteries of their kind known to us that can provide enough power and endurance for HAPS’ overnight stratospheric flight.
Our SiMaxx high energy battery cells have also powered AALTO Airbus’ Zephyr S stratospheric vehicle to numerous records since 2018. The Zephyr S is designed to fly for months at a time, at an altitude of approximately 70,000 feet. After integrating our battery cells into the Zephyr S, AALTO Airbus set endurance and altitude records by flying continuously for over 25 days in 2018 and 64 days in 2022. We continue to support the Zephyr S program and were presented the 2021 Innovative Supplier of the Year Award by Airbus.
High Power. Our SiMaxx high power battery cells are designed for applications that place a premium on power. These high power battery cells offer 400 Wh/kg and 820 Wh/L energy density with up to 10C continuous discharge
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capability. This performance is well suited for the air transportation industry, which requires high power capabilities to lift the aircraft from the ground into the air. In addition, our SiMaxx high power battery cells are capable of fast charging, from 0% to 80% in less than 6 minutes. This level of power capability, energy density, and fast charge capability is optimal for urban air mobility and other air transportation industry applications. Once the vehicle has landed, the turnaround time to get the vehicle back into the air becomes critical, which is why we have designed our SiMaxx high power batteries with fast charge capabilities.
Since 2021, we have engaged in technical evaluations with certain tier-one eVTOL manufacturers to develop an eVTOL-optimized battery system to support the development and commercialization of their eVTOL fleet. We plan to continue expanding our technical evaluation engagements with other eVTOL manufacturers as the eVTOL market grows.
Balanced Energy/Power. We designed our SiMaxx balanced energy/power battery cells for applications that require a balance between power and energy. These battery cells offer energy density as high as 395 Wh/kg or 800 Wh/L at up to 4C discharge rate. This range of power capability is important to customers in the UAS sector. Our SiMaxx balanced energy/power battery cells typically meet the requirements of UAS devices’ needs for high initial power, as well as higher energy requirements for longer sustained cruising.
Since 2021, our SiMaxx balanced energy/power battery cells have been designed into UAS programs at AeroVironment and Teledyne FLIR, with commercial shipments since 2022.
EV capable Products
We are also currently developing an EV capable cell. Competition in the EV industry is intense, with high production volume requirements, low pricing, and balanced performance criteria, creating a high barrier to entry against the incumbent solutions. Prior to us being able to effectively compete in the EV space, we will need to further improve cycle life, increase cell form factors, increase production quantity and reduce our costs.
Since 2017, we have been sampling our batteries with USABC, which had independently verified that we have met or exceeded the majority of their 2025 EV cell performance goals, including usable energy density, usable specific energy, power density and charge time.
In November 2024, we shipped to USABC our SiMaxx A-Sample EV cells. Our testing of SiMaxx A-Sample EV cells showed that the cells can achieve a specific energy of 360 Wh/kg at the beginning of life, which surpassed USABC’s target of 275 Wh/kg at end of life, and deliver a power density of 1,200 W/kg. We believe that this development could result in a significant increase in range compared to most commercial EV batteries available today. In addition, the SiMaxx A-Sample EV cells can charge up to 90% of their rated energy in just 15 minutes, which exceeds USABC’s target of 80% within the same timeframe.
Our Technology
SiCore
Our SiCore batteries are based on an innovative, proprietary silicon anode material system, delivering batteries with high-energy-density and long cycle life. Developed in collaboration with Berzelius, the anode in our SiCore batteries have a unique bottom-up structure with an ultra-fine silicon nanostructure interior and multilayer surface protection. This silicon anode technology may also be combined with other active materials, such as binders and conductive agents, including graphite. The particle type of our SiCore anode materials can be processed in the same equipment and environment as graphite anode materials, offering a drop-in replacement of graphite materials and fast transfer to manufacturing of our SiCore cell designs. Due to their robust structure, our SiCore materials can be pressed into high density and thin electrodes, a precondition for high energy density and fast charge capability.
SiMaxx
Our proprietary SiMaxx silicon anode technologies solve for the inherent limitations of silicon anodes in lithium-ion cells. Silicon has historically been investigated as an anode material due to its intrinsic capability to store larger quantities of lithium per unit mass and volume compared to graphite. The main barrier preventing silicon from becoming more widely adopted across the battery industry is that the silicon material expands during charging as it absorbs lithium ions. For example, silicon particles may expand up to 300% during charging. After multiple charge and discharge cycles, silicon particles will crack, causing anode degradation and device breakdown.
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Our proprietary SiMaxx silicon anode technology solves for the material expansion inherent in silicon. Our nanowire anodes start with a metal foil that is layered with a nanowire template and metallurgically attached to the metal foil substrate by a growth process. The nanowire template is coated with a low-density silicon and then encased by a thin layer of high-density silicon.
Our SiMaxx silicon anode generally contains more than 1,000,000 nanowires per square centimeter. The nano-porosity of the low-density layer of silicon on each nanowire and the micro-porosity between the wires in our technology allows the silicon to expand at nano- and micro- meter levels when the anode is charged, with little to no damage to the anode.
Our SiMaxx anode structure also enables ions and electrons to travel in a straight path between and through the nanowires. In contrast, a particle structure results in ions and electrons traveling in a nonlinear, tortuous path. The straight path of our anode facilitates high electric and ionic conductivity, enabling high power and fast charging. Nanowires are always in electrical contact with the metal foil due to their growth rooted fabrication, while particles have to rely on particle-to-particle contact for electron transfer, which can easily be broken during cycling.
Our SiMaxx silicon anodes are considered 100% silicon based on their actual silicon content, which ranges from 99.5% to 99.9% and meets the acceptable purity standards for classification 100%.
Manufacturing and Supply
We invented the proprietary silicon anode and its fabrication process for our SiMaxx batteries. Our silicon anode is fabricated using chemical vapor deposition (“CVD”) technology, and consists of three sequential steps. First, the nanowire template is grown by a thermally activated chemical reaction. Second, a low-density silicon coating is deposited by plasma enhanced CVD. Third, a high-density thin silicon surface layer is deposited by a thermally activated CVD process. These three steps replace all powder processing steps typically used in making graphite anodes, including powder mixing, slurry mixing, slurry coating, electrode drying and electrode calendaring. After fabrication, our product is the fully processed anode. This anode can then be assembled in cells with cathodes produced by manufacturing lines similar to those used in graphite anode cells. This fabrication process has been in commercial operation since 2018 at our manufacturing facility in our Fremont headquarters.
To develop the high-volume anode fabrication tool needed for a GWh-scale manufacturing line, we have partnered with centrotherm international AG (“centrotherm”), a leading global supplier of tools used to produce solar cells. We received large-scale anode production equipment from centrotherm as part of our ongoing expansion of our manufacturing line at our Fremont headquarters into a MWh-scale facility. The equipment supplied by centrotherm requires certain modifications for our needs, which includes designing and developing automated material handling for the foils and processes for silicon deposition. These hardware design modifications are in progress. Completing design and development of the tool as well as the automated material handling and high-volume production processes requires significant engineering. Moreover, our manufacturing costs will depend not only on the cost of the tools but also on throughput, yield, efficiency of silane gas utilization, among other factors. The ability to design and develop this tool successfully and the timing of this effort may be subject to unforeseen complexities, component supply delays and other risks. For more information, see the section titled “Risk Factors” below.
Although our anode manufacturing processes differ from traditional anode manufacturing, the cathode and the rest of the cell, including electrolytes and separators, use conventional lithium-ion battery manufacturing tools and materials. Our silicon anodes are a direct drop-in replacement of the graphite anode in traditional lithium-ion batteries. The dominant raw materials for our silicon anode include silane gas, which is used in making the silicon anodes, and nickel foil, which is used for the anode current collector substrate. As we increase our manufacturing capacity, we expect to procure the silane gas from a global supplier of silane and silicon materials and will procure nickel foil from global suppliers of metals. Both silane gas and nickel foil are available commodity materials.
Due to its high capacity to store lithium relative to cathode materials, and to further increase the available lithium in the cell, the silicon anode can be prelithiated to a certain level (i.e., 10% to 20%) of its capacity before cell assembly. Prelithiation can be done electrochemically at low scale and by physical vapor deposition for large manufacturing volume. Equipment vendors have scaled-up or are scaling lithium evaporation equipment to GWh+ manufacturing volumes. We use electrochemical prelithiation in our current SiMaxx production and will integrate lithium evaporation steps in the anode manufacturing line.
In order to support the demand for our batteries, we are currently expanding our existing kWh-scale manufacturing facility in Fremont, California into a MWh-scale manufacturing facility; are planning to expand our contract manufacturing
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partnerships globally; and may build a GWh-scale manufacturing facility in our leased premises in Brighton, Colorado. The completion of the expansion of our Fremont facility has been delayed through the first quarter of 2025 due to a delay in our customers’ order commitments. We believe that this facility will be able to manufacture batteries up to 2 MWh capacity annually when our expansion is completed, which is approximately 10 times our existing production capacity. Also, as of December 31, 2024, we completed pre-construction planning to build a GWh-scale manufacturing facility at our leased premises in Brighton, Colorado. However, the scope and schedule of the construction of this facility will be determined based on, among other factors, the availability and timing of funding. In addition, we are currently monitoring the larger industry dynamics. Changes in demand, supply, battery cost structure, government incentives, trade tariffs, and other considerations may also influence our decision, including whether to proceed with the construction at all.
As of December 31, 2024, we produce SiCore batteries by leveraging Berzelius’ existing production line and through our manufacturing supply agreements with three global contract manufacturers. In order to meet the increased demand for our SiCore batteries, we are planning to expand our contract manufacturing partnerships globally. Some of the challenges that we may encounter when we enter into a manufacturing supply arrangement include, among others, risk of losing control over the manufacturing process of our SiCore batteries, which could lead to quality control issues, delay in production, increase in production costs, and non-compliance with our established standards. In addition, we may encounter a risk of losing control of some of our intellectual property. While we plan to set up business processes, including adding oversight and quality control procedures, in order to manage our contract manufacturing supply arrangements, there can be no assurance that such processes will be effective. As of December 31, 2024, we had access, through our manufacturing supply agreements with our global contract manufacturers, to annual production of up to 800 MWh of SiCore batteries in pouch form and up to 1 GWh of SiCore batteries in cylindrical form. For more information, see the section titled "Risk Factors" below. In addition, if we partner with other contract manufacturers in the future, we plan to select large, experienced and reputable contract manufacturing companies.
Our Growth Strategy
Our goal is to become the market leader in high performance lithium-ion batteries for the transportation industry. In order to achieve that goal, we are pursuing the following growth strategies:
Leverage existing contract manufacturing capacity to produce SiCore batteries. We believe that our existing Exclusive Supply Agreement with Berzelius, which gives us exclusive rights to purchase Berzelius’ proprietary silicon anode materials in the United States, Canada and Mexico, and our existing manufacturing supply agreements with three global contract manufacturers will allow us to continue supporting the increasing demand for our SiCore batteries. As of December 31, 2024, we had access, through our manufacturing supply agreements with our global contract manufacturers, to annual production of up to 800 MWh of SiCore batteries in pouch form and up to 1 GWh of SiCore batteries in cylindrical form.
Expanding existing manufacturing facility to meet increase in demand and optimize costs. Although we had access to annual production of up to 800 MWh of SiCore batteries in pouch form and up to 1 GWh of SiCore batteries in cylindrical form through our existing manufacturing supply agreements with our global contract manufacturers as of December 31, 2024, we believe that expanding our existing manufacturing facility would help us meet the growing demand of our customers and optimize costs in the long-term. We currently operate a kWh-scale manufacturing line for our SiMaxx batteries at our facility in Fremont, California and are expanding it into a MWh-scale manufacturing facility. The completion of the expansion has been delayed through the first quarter of 2025 due to a delay in our customers’ order commitments. We believe that this facility will be able to manufacture batteries up to 2 MWh capacity annually when our expansion is completed, which is approximately 10 times our existing production capacity. In April 2023, we announced a plan to build a GWh-scale manufacturing facility in our leased premises in Brighton, Colorado. As of December 31, 2024, we completed our pre-construction planning for this facility. However, the scope and schedule of the construction of this facility will be determined based on, among other factors, the availability and timing of funding. In addition, we are currently monitoring the larger industry dynamics. Changes in demand, supply, battery cost structure, government incentives, trade tariffs, and other considerations may also influence our decision, including whether to proceed with the construction at all.
Reduce our SiMaxx battery manufacturing costs. We believe our ability to reduce the manufacturing costs of our SiMaxx batteries on a $/kWh basis will accelerate the adoption of our SiMaxx batteries and allow us to further broaden our customer base. As we scale, we believe we will benefit from reduced per-unit costs, including overhead, labor and capital expenditures, improved tool utilization and volume pricing for equipment and materials. We will also seek to reduce SiMaxx battery costs by optimizing material utilization, throughput and yield. However, until we are able to complete our optimization process, including designing and implementing our silicon anode production process, we cannot accurately
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forecast our manufacturing costs. Since our SiMaxx silicon anode process requires different equipment than traditional anode manufacturing, our capital equipment costs are likely to be higher than the equipment used for production of graphite anodes.
Extend first-mover advantage to become the market leader in lithium-ion batteries for aviation. We believe we are the leading company in the market today with a high-performance battery that can meet the requirements of aviation applications. We have built a strong reputation in the industry by delivering ultra-high performance batteries with high safety standards that meet or exceed industry standards and customer requirements. We expect to extend our presence in the aviation market, while also serving other transportation-related markets that require improvements in their electrification solutions. From our inception through December 31, 2024, over 260 customers had tested and validated our batteries for their applications.
Further improve performance characteristics of our anode and battery cells. We believe we have the highest-performing commercially available batteries in the market. We intend to maintain our performance advantage by continuing to invest in our anode and cathode chemistries. We expect to continue to increase the performance characteristics of our batteries, particularly around power, energy density and cycle life. For example, in March 2023, we unveiled the development of a battery cell that delivers an energy density of >500 Wh/kg and >1,300 Wh/L at 25°C. The performance of this battery cell was verified by a leading testing house offering comprehensive battery regulatory compliance, safety and performance testing. As of December 31, 2024, this battery cell, which will be part of our SiMaxx product platform, was in the development stage. We believe our next-generation cells, when commercially available, will have the potential to expand boundaries for our customers and provide a tailored solution for applications that require heightened discharge times without compromising key features, such as aircraft payload, and without having to increase vehicle weight. We plan to continue to invest in optimizing combinations of these performance characteristics as well as the requisite form factors to meet the specific needs of our customers and drive adoption of our battery cells in other areas of electrified transportation. As a result of these efforts, our goal is to fully realize the benefits of our silicon anode technology and develop the highest performing products in the market.
Expand our end markets and applications. As we increase our production capabilities and partnership with global contract manufacturers, we will be able to supply our batteries in larger volumes to fulfill our customers’ battery prototyping and procurement requirements. Our current customer base consists primarily of aviation and other air transportation companies. We believe the batteries we have developed for the aviation industries can be adapted for larger form factors to meet the energy density and fast-charge requirements of the EV market once we are able to improve the cycle life, increase form factors, reduce cost and improve production quantity for our EV capable battery cells.
Research and Development
Our original silicon anode technology was developed at Stanford University in 2008, and for over 15 years, we have refined and improved upon the technology for use in commercial applications. We have conducted research and development initiatives focused on improving certain performance characteristics and expanding the applications of our silicon anode battery technology. We expect to continue our research and development efforts in the following areas:
•Improving battery life. We are working with chemical compounds as potential additives to the silane gas we use to produce our silicon anodes which have demonstrated the potential to improve cycle life without negatively impacting other performance characteristics such as energy density.
•Further improvements to energy density. We are engaged in ongoing development activities to explore different cathode materials, including a conversion cathode, to further improve the energy density of our batteries.
•Advanced cell chemistries and designs. We have developed advanced battery cell designs tailored to respond to our customers’ requirements for high performance, including extreme high power and fast charge performance, safety, wide operating temperature range, and calendar life. Our proprietary electrolyte formulations enhance operations at high voltage and high temperature. In addition, our polymer/semi-solid formulations add safety to nail and ballistic performance.
•Larger cell form factors. The batteries we have developed and are developing for our customers are typically approximately up to 15Ah for small-sized aircraft. As we expand our customer base, we are in the process of developing larger form factor batteries for broader aviation applications as well as LEV and EV customers.
We utilize our research and development capabilities not only to improve existing products but also to build custom-designed batteries for our customers. We have generated revenue from these design services. However, as we grow our manufacturing capacity, we expect that the relative percentage of our revenue from these activities will decrease.
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Intellectual Property
Our proprietary silicon anode technologies, including the related processes, design and manufacturing, are protected by our patent portfolio and know-how and trade secrets.
As of December 31, 2024, we had a total of 86 patents, which consisted of:
•74 patents issued to us (35 patents issued in the United States and a total of 39 patents issued in the European Union, Korea, Japan, China, Taiwan and Israel) with expiration periods ranging between 2030 and 2039;
•10 patent applications that are pending (2 patent applications in the United States and a total of 8 patent applications in the European Union, Korea, Japan, China and Taiwan); and
•2 U.S. patents that we licensed from Stanford University.
As of December 31, 2024, we also held a total of 10 registered trademarks that were issued to us, which consisted of 2 trademarks issued in the United States and a total of 8 trademarks issued in the European Union, Great Britain, Japan, Korea and China.
Our patents cover the following:
•Silicon structures – rooted nanowire template, tapered morphology, silicon dopants and multi-layered structure;
•Materials technologies – solid electrolyte interphase formation, electrolyte formulations and scalable prelithiation; and
•Silicon anode manufacturing processes, design and equipment.
In addition, we rely on non-disclosure agreements with employees, independent contractors, customers and other third parties to protect our intellectual property and proprietary rights.
Circumstances outside our control could pose a threat to our intellectual property rights. For more information, see the section titled “Risk Factors” below.
Competition
We compete directly and indirectly with current battery manufacturers and with an increasing number of companies that are developing new battery technologies and chemistries to address the growing market for electrified mobility solutions. Specifically, within the aviation markets, we primarily compete with conventional graphite anode batteries and silicon composite anode batteries. Silicon composites are graphite-based anodes that incorporate some silicon, typically in the form of particles of silicon or silicon monoxide.
Graphite anode battery companies include tier-one manufacturers such as Amperex Technology Limited (ATL), Contemporary Amperex Technology Co., Limited (CATL), LG Chem Ltd., Murata Manufacturing Co., Ltd., Panasonic Industry Co., Ltd., and Samsung SDI Co., Ltd., which provide higher quality and higher performance solutions, and tier-two manufacturers which provide lower cost solutions. We expect the manufacturers of those batteries will continue to invest in improving the capabilities of their batteries.
While we believe we are currently the only known battery manufacturer making approximately 100% silicon anodes, there are many companies making or developing silicon composite batteries or anode materials and companies seeking to develop 100% silicon anodes. Companies making or developing silicon composite anodes or materials include both large manufacturers as well as many well-funded new technology companies. These include Berzelius, BTR New Energy Material Ltd., Enevate Corporation, Enovix Corporation, Group 14 Technologies, Inc., Nexeon Ltd., Shanshan Corporation, Sila Nanotechnologies Inc., and Storedot Ltd. Silicon composite anodes may offer higher energy density and other improvements over conventional graphite anodes, and may be less expensive to manufacture than our silicon anodes.
For aviation applications, we believe that the defining characteristics of our battery cells make our silicon anode technologies the only battery solutions currently available and suitable for broad aviation adoption. These characteristics of industry-leading specific energy and energy density, high power density, low operating temperature and fast charge capability, in addition to commercial validation, significantly differentiates us from graphite anode and silicon composite anode alternatives. However, we expect additional competitors to enter the market as their battery technologies continue to improve.
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The EV and LEV battery industries are fast-growing and highly competitive. Unlike the aviation industry, where there are a limited number of commercially available batteries that meet the minimum performance specifications, there are many battery manufacturers in the EV and LEV industries that can produce commercially acceptable batteries, and they may be able to produce those batteries at lower cost and higher volumes than we are currently able to. Future entrants may include companies developing different technologies, such as lithium metal anodes, which are not yet in commercial production. In order to effectively compete, we will need to further improve our batteries’ life cycles, increase their form factors, increase their production quantity and reduce their production costs.
Many of our competitors and potential future entrants, both in the aviation, EV and LEV industries, may be better capitalized and have greater resources to commercialize and expand their production capacities. These competitors may have greater access to customers and may be able to establish cooperative or strategic relationships amongst themselves or with third parties that may further enhance their resources and competitive positioning. If there are significant advances in battery chemistries that we cannot adapt, or if competitors are able to scale their production capacities before we are able to, our business may be materially impacted. For more information, see the section titled “Risk Factors” below.
Government Regulation and Compliance
Our business activities are global and are subject to various federal, state, local, and foreign laws, rules and regulations. For example, there are various government regulations pertaining to battery safety, transportation of batteries, use of batteries in vehicles, factory safety, and disposal of hazardous materials.
In many cases, our products are or may in the future be subject to trade and export control laws and regulations in the United States and other jurisdictions where we do business. Such laws include the Export Administration Regulations, trade and economic sanctions maintained by the Office of Foreign Asset Control as well as foreign direct investment rules and regulations, tariffs and quotas, and other related regulations in jurisdictions in which we operate, and we may in the future be subject to other laws and regulations, such as the International Traffic in Arms Regulations, among others. In particular, the export or re-export of our products and technology to certain countries or end-users or for certain end-uses in some cases requires an export license or may be prohibited. Additionally, we may be required to register with the Directorate of Defense Trade Controls in order to conduct some aspects of our future business activities and we may be required to obtain licenses in order to conduct development activities. Obtaining the necessary export license for a particular sale or offering or business activity may not be possible or may be time-consuming and may result in the delay or loss of sales opportunities. Any failure to adequately address these legal obligations could result in civil fines or suspension or loss of our export privileges, any of which could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition, and results of operations.
In addition, our business is subject to the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and other anti-corruption, anti-bribery, and anti-money laundering laws and regulations in the jurisdictions in which we have offices or do business, both domestic and abroad. Any failure to adequately comply with any of these obligations, or future changes with respect to any of these legal regimes, could cause us to incur significant costs, including the potential for new overhead costs, fines, sanctions, and third-party claims.
As a government contractor and/or subcontractor, we must comply with laws, regulations, and contractual provisions relating to the formation, administration, and performance of government contracts and grants, which affect how we and our partners do business with government agencies. Government contracts often contain provisions and are subject to laws and regulations that provide government customers with additional rights and remedies not typically found in commercial contracts. Ensuring compliance with government contracting laws, regulations, or contractual provisions may impose other added costs on our business, and failure to comply with these or other applicable regulations and requirements could lead to claims for damages, civil or criminal penalties, termination of contracts and/or suspension or debarment from obtaining government contracts and grants. Any such damages, penalties, disruption, or limitation in our ability to do business with a government could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, financial condition, public perception and growth prospects.
Human Capital
We believe that our success is driven by our team of technology innovators and experienced business leaders. We also believe that our employees are the foundation for developing and commercializing our silicon anode technology. Many on our leadership team have been with us for over a decade. We seek to hire and develop individuals who are dedicated to our strategic mission.
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As of December 31, 2024, our total headcount was 108, which consisted of 99 full-time employees and 9 temporary hires and contractors. Our employees are primarily located in our headquarters in Fremont, California.
As of December 31, 2024, a total of 27 full-time employees worked in research and development (“R&D”) and a total of 52 full-time employees worked in manufacturing. Certain employees in the R&D and manufacturing departments hold a Ph.D. or an advanced degree in material science, chemical, aerospace, structural and nanoscale engineering, physics or chemistry.
We are committed to maintaining equitable compensation programs including equity participation. In order to attract or retain team members capable of making exceptional contributions to our success, we offer market-competitive salaries and strong equity compensation. Our compensation decisions are guided by the external market, role criticality and the contributions of each team member.
To date, we have not experienced any work stoppages and we consider our relationship with our employees to be good. None of our employees are either represented by a labor union or subject to a collective bargaining agreement.
Item 1A. Risk Factors
Investing in our securities involves a high degree of risk. Before making an investment decision, you should carefully consider the risks and uncertainties described below, together with all of the other information in this Annual Report on Form 10-K, including the section titled “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” and our consolidated financial statements and related notes thereto included elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K. Our business, financial condition, results of operations or prospects could also be harmed by risks and uncertainties not currently known to us or that we currently do not believe are material. If any of the risks actually occur, our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects could be adversely affected. In that event, the market price of our securities could decline, and you could lose part or all of your investment.
Summary of Risk Factors
Certain of the material risks that we face include:
•If our batteries fail to perform as expected, our ability to develop, market and sell our batteries would be adversely affected.
•Our reliance on third parties to manufacture certain of our batteries or battery materials subjects us to certain risks.
•We may not succeed in developing new high-volume manufacturing lines that meet our requirements for cell quality, yield, throughput and other performance metrics.
•We may not meet our manufacturing cost targets, which would limit the size of our market opportunities.
•We rely on, and will continue to rely on, complex equipment for our operations, and production involves a significant degree of risk and uncertainty in terms of operational performance and costs.
•Our establishment of a volume manufacturing facility is subject to many risks, including, among others, risks relating to construction, permitting, delays, cost overruns, supply chain constraints, and operating in a new geographic area away from our headquarters.
•We may not succeed in retaining and attracting key employees, particularly technical talent, needed to operate and build our business successfully.
•We have pursued new product platforms and expanded our product portfolio. We may expend our limited resources to pursue a particular product and fail to capitalize on products that may be more profitable or for which there is a greater likelihood of success.
•We may encounter delays and technical obstacles in developing new battery products such as different cell formats to meet varied market requirements.
•Certain components of our batteries are hazardous and pose safety risks that may cause accidents in our manufacturing facility.
•We may be subject to financial and reputational risks due to product recalls and product liability claims, and we could face substantial liabilities that exceed our resources.
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•We may not be able to accurately estimate the future supply and demand for our batteries, which could result in a variety of inefficiencies in our business and hinder our ability to generate revenue. If we fail to accurately predict our manufacturing requirements, we could incur additional costs or experience delays.
•We may not be able to establish supply relationships for necessary finished batteries, materials, components or equipment or may be required to pay more than anticipated for components or equipment, which could negatively impact our business.
•The battery market is intensely competitive. Competitors include new entrants and established companies, many of which have significantly greater resources than us.
•Our future sales opportunities depend in part on the growth of markets for battery-powered applications. These applications may develop slower or at a size that is less than expected, to the extent they develop at all.
•Developments in alternative technology or other fossil fuel alternatives may adversely affect the demand for our battery products.
•We have pursued and may continue to pursue development agreements and other strategic alliances, which could have an adverse impact on our business if they are unsuccessful.
•If our customers choose to reduce purchases, or do not purchase at all, batteries manufactured outside of the United States, our revenue could decline and our prospects may be adversely affected.
•We may require additional capital to support business growth, and this capital might not be available on commercially reasonable terms or at all.
•We are an early-stage company with a history of financial losses and expect to incur significant expenses and continuing losses for the foreseeable future.
•We are obligated to develop and maintain proper and effective internal control over financial reporting. If we are unable to develop and maintain an effective system of internal controls and procedures required by Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, we may not be able to accurately report our financial results in a timely manner, which may adversely affect investor confidence in us and materially and adversely affect our stock price, business and operating results.
•We have customers from the public sector, and our failure to receive and maintain government contracts or changes in the contracting or fiscal policies of the public sector could have a material adverse effect on our business.
•We rely heavily on our intellectual property portfolio. If we are unable to protect our intellectual property rights, our business and competitive position would be harmed.
•We may need to defend ourselves against intellectual property infringement claims, which may be time-consuming and could cause us to incur substantial costs.
•Our operations expose us to litigation, environmental and other legal compliance risks. Compliance with laws and regulations can be expensive, and our failure to comply with these laws and regulations may result in monetary damages and fines, adverse publicity and a material adverse effect on our business.
•We are or will be subject to anti-corruption and anti-bribery and anti-money laundering and similar laws, and non-compliance with such laws can subject us to administrative, civil and criminal fines and penalties, collateral consequences, remedial measures and legal expenses, all of which could adversely affect our business, results of operations, financial condition and reputation.
•Recent and potential tariffs imposed by the United States government or a global trade war could increase the cost of our products, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
•Our reliance on suppliers in foreign countries, including China, subjects us to risks and uncertainties relating to foreign laws and regulations and changes in relations between the United States and such foreign countries.
•There can be no assurance that we will be able to comply with the continued listing standards of the NYSE.
•Sales of substantial amounts of our common stock in the public markets, or the perception that such sales could occur, could cause the market price of our common stock to drop significantly, even if our business is doing well.
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•There is no guarantee that our warrants will be in the money, and they may expire worthless.
Risks Related to Our Technology, Products and Manufacturing
If our batteries fail to perform as expected, our ability to develop, market and sell our batteries would be adversely affected.
Our batteries may contain defects in design and manufacture that may cause them to not perform as expected or that may require repairs, recalls and design changes. Our batteries are inherently complex and incorporate technology and components that have not been used for certain applications and that may contain defects and errors, particularly when first introduced to such applications. Although our batteries undergo quality control testing prior to release for shipment, there can be no assurance that we will be able to detect and fix all defects prior to shipment, and nonconformances, defects or errors could occur or be present in batteries that we release for shipment to customers. If our batteries fail to perform as expected, our customers may delay deliveries, or terminate orders, or we may initiate product recalls, each of which could adversely affect our sales and brand and could adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.
Our battery architecture is different from our peers’ and may behave differently in customer use applications, certain applications of which we have not yet evaluated. This could limit our ability to deliver to certain applications. In addition, our historical data on the performance and reliability of our batteries is limited, and therefore, our batteries could fail unexpectedly in the field resulting in significant warranty costs or brand damage in the market. Further, the silicon anode structure of our battery is different from traditional lithium-ion batteries and therefore, our batteries could be susceptible to different and unknown failure modes leading our batteries to fail and cause a safety event in the field. Such an event could result in the failure of our end customers’ product as well as the loss of life or property, resulting in severe financial penalties for us, including the loss of revenue, cancellation of supply contracts and the inability to win new business due to reputational damage in the market. In addition, some of our supply agreements may require us to bear certain costs relating to recalls and replacements of end products when such recalls and replacements are due to defects of our battery products that are incorporated in such end products.
Our reliance on third parties to manufacture certain of our batteries or battery materials subjects us to certain risks.
Our SiCore batteries are based on the innovative, proprietary material system developed by Berzelius and are currently manufactured by our manufacturing partners. Our SiCore batteries have been produced under contract manufacturing agreements with Berzelius and other partners. However, to facilitate this product expansion, we entered into the Exclusive Supply Agreement with Berzelius, pursuant to which Berzelius agreed, among other things, (i) to manufacture for, and sell exclusively to, Amprius its proprietary silicon anode materials in the United States, Canada and Mexico and (ii) to use best efforts to prioritize fulfillment of Amprius’ forecasted orders, if any. The Exclusive Supply Agreement does not include any commercial terms, and until such time as we are able to establish mutually agreeable commercial terms thereunder, if we are able to at all, the purchase of the materials under the Exclusive Supply Agreement by Amprius will be specified in written purchase orders mutually agreeable to the parties. In addition, as of December 31, 2024, we had access, through our manufacturing supply agreements with our global contract manufacturers, to annual production of up to 800 MWh of SiCore batteries in pouch form and up to 1 GWh of SiCore batteries in cylindrical form, and are engaging with potential additional partners across a network of established Asia-based contract manufacturers. Our reliance on Berzelius or other third parties to manufacture our batteries or battery materials subjects us to certain risks, including but not limited to:
•Because we have not established commercial terms for future SiCore battery or battery material purchases and, therefore, must agree to commercial terms on each of our purchase orders, if Berzelius or our manufacturing partners increase their prices, we may not be able to establish commercially reasonable terms for future purchases;
•We may purchase SiCore battery materials from Berzelius or our manufacturing partners before we receive purchase orders for our SiCore batteries from our customers, or we may accept purchaser orders for SiCore batteries from our customers before establishing any commercial terms with Berzelius or our manufacturing partners, and if we cannot establish commercially reasonable terms with Berzelius or our manufacturing partners, we may not be able to fulfill customers’ orders or we may incur losses when trying to meet our obligations, which may result in our customers seeking alternative batteries, and in turn, we could lose customers and face reputational harm or penalties;
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•If any of our manufacturing partners cease to provide manufacturing services to us, either permanently or temporarily, we may be required to arrange for alternative manufacturing arrangements, which we may not be able to arrange on financially attractive terms, on a timely basis or at all;
•We do not control Berzelius or other third party manufacturers, and there is no guarantee that these partners will reserve any capacity for us, they will not have disruptions in their supply chain or manufacturing processes, and that our batteries or battery materials will be delivered to us within the agreed timeline, or at all, or be free from defects;
•If we do not receive the batteries on time or if the batteries contain defects, we may have to delay deliveries, and our customers may terminate their orders or we may initiate product recalls;
•If we are unable to grow the market for SiCore batteries manufactured by Berzelius or our manufacturing partners within our product portfolio, our business, financial condition and results of operations will be adversely affected;
•Although we have exclusive rights to purchase Berzelius’ proprietary silicon anode materials in the United States, Canada and Mexico, we do not have exclusivity arrangements with respect to marketing, and there is no guarantee that Berzelius will not compete with us for customers;
•We plan to establish a global network of contract manufacturing partnerships in the future and we may face certain risks as part of this process, including, among other things, the risk of losing control over the manufacturing process of our SiCore batteries, which could lead to quality control issues, delay in production, increase in production costs, and non-compliance with our established standards, or we may encounter a risk of losing control of some of our intellectual property, and while we plan to set up business processes, including oversight and quality control procedures in order to manage our contract manufacturing arrangements, there can be no assurance that such processes will be effective; and
•Relying on global third parties subjects us to certain risks beyond our control including, tariffs, currency fluctuations, geopolitics, trade barriers, or other general economic or political conditions, any of which may materially and adversely affect our business.
In the event any of the above risks, or any other adverse events resulting from our reliance on third parties, including those risks described below, occurs, our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects may be adversely affected.
We may not succeed in developing new high-volume manufacturing lines that meet our requirements for cell quality, yield, throughput and other performance metrics. Additionally, assuming we are able to develop the high-volume manufacturing lines, they may be unreliable, require regular and significant maintenance and could be capital and resource intensive to operate.
To date, we have manufactured on a kWh-scale capacity. Our ability to manufacture our batteries at scale depends on the successful development of an automated, high-volume manufacturing line for our SiMaxx silicon anode that meets our requirements for cell quality, throughput, yield, and other performance metrics. Currently, we do not have a manufacturing line capable of producing our silicon anode batteries at scale. As part of our manufacturing expansion plans, in addition to designing a GWh-scale manufacturing facility, we are in the process of developing an automated, high-volume manufacturing line.
We have been customizing our first large-scale anode equipment for our SiMaxx production processes and have recently completed the qualification process for this equipment. Before we use the equipment for production purposes, we must complete tuning and testing. There is no guarantee that the customization, development, testing and implementation of this equipment will be successful. In addition, there is no guarantee that we will also be able to correspondingly expand our manufacturing capacity for other battery components. We and our potential suppliers and other equipment vendors may encounter significant engineering challenges, performance issues, delays, unforeseen development costs and other obstacles in building the high-volume manufacturing lines, and if we are not successful, or if we encounter significant delays, our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects would be adversely affected.
We are reliant on Berzelius and third party manufacturers to provide us the necessary technology and support to build our own manufacturing line to produce the SiCore batteries. In that process, we may encounter significant engineering challenges, performance issues, permitting issues, delays, unforeseen development costs and other obstacles.
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In addition, in order for us to produce our batteries at scale and at a cost advantage, we must achieve levels of quality, throughput, and yield demonstrated for mature battery production. As we have not yet produced our batteries at such scale, our ability to achieve such rates is untested and subject to significant constraints and uncertainties. Operational performance and costs can be difficult to predict and are often influenced by factors outside of our control, such as, but not limited to, failures by suppliers to deliver necessary components of our batteries in a timely manner and at prices and volumes acceptable to us, environmental hazards and remediation costs, costs associated with commissioning of machines, difficulty or delays in obtaining governmental permits, damages or defects in electronic systems, industrial accidents, fires, seismic activity and natural disasters, and problems with equipment vendors. Should operational risks materialize, they may result in lower yield, which would negatively affect our revenue growth and profitability.
Additionally, the development of the manufacturing line will require us to make intensive capital expenditures before we are able to benefit from such development. The manufacturing line may also suffer unexpected malfunctions from time to time and will depend on repairs and spare parts to resume operations, which may not be available when needed. Further, unexpected equipment malfunctions may significantly affect the intended operational efficiency.
We may not meet our manufacturing cost targets, which would limit the size of our market opportunities.
We may require significant capital to develop and grow our business and expect to incur significant expenses, including those relating to the expansion of our manufacturing capacity, development and establishment of our high-volume manufacturing lines, raw material procurement, leases, sales and distribution as we build our brand and market our batteries, and general and administrative costs. Our profitability will not only depend on our ability to successfully market our batteries, but also our ability to control our costs. Some of the processes in the manufacturing of our silicon anodes require chemical vapor deposition, for which equipment is more costly than those involved in standard anode production techniques. If we are unable to cost efficiently, design, manufacture, market, sell and distribute our batteries, our margins, profitability and prospects would be materially and adversely affected. We have not yet commenced high-volume production of our batteries, and any cost advantage for the production of our batteries at scale, compared to conventional lithium-ion batteries, will require us to manufacture at rates of cell quality, throughput, and yield demonstrated for mature batteries and battery material that we have not yet achieved. If we are unable to achieve these targeted rates, our business will be adversely impacted.
We rely on, and will continue to rely on, complex equipment for our operations, and manufacturing involves a significant degree of risk and uncertainty in terms of operational performance and costs.
For our SiMaxx batteries, we rely heavily on, and will continue to rely heavily on, complex equipment for our operations and the production of our batteries, which involves a significant degree of uncertainty and risk in terms of operational performance and costs. Our manufacturing equipment consists of many components, which may suffer unexpected malfunctions from time to time and may depend on repairs and spare parts to resume operations, which may not be available when needed. Problems with our manufacturing processes could result in the loss of manufacturing equipment, damage to manufacturing facilities, monetary losses, delays, unanticipated fluctuations in production and personal injury to or death of workers. Should our precautions be inadequate or an event be larger than expected, we could have significant equipment or facility damage that would impact our ability to deliver our battery products and require additional resources to recover. In addition, in some cases, operational problems may result in environmental damage, administrative fines, increased insurance costs and potential legal liabilities. Any of these operational problems, or a combination of them could have a material adverse effect on our cash flows, business, financial condition, results of operations or prospects.
Furthermore, manufacturing technology may evolve rapidly, and we may decide to update our manufacturing processes more quickly than expected. Moreover, as we scale the commercial production of our batteries, our experience may cause us to discontinue the use of already modified or installed equipment in favor of different or additional equipment. The useful life of any equipment that would be retired early as a result would be shortened, causing the depreciation on such equipment to be accelerated, and our results of operations could be negatively impacted.
Our establishment of a volume manufacturing facility is subject to many risks, including, among others, risks relating to construction, permitting, delays, cost overruns, supply chain constraints, and operating in a new geographic area away from our headquarters.
Our Fremont, California facility currently operates only at a kWh-scale manufacturing capacity and we are in the process of expanding this facility into a MWh-scale manufacturing facility. In April 2023, we entered into a lease agreement for premises consisting of approximately 774,000 square feet of space located in Brighton, Colorado and announced a plan to build a GWh-scale manufacturing facility in those premises. As of December 31, 2024, we completed
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our pre-construction planning for this facility. However, the scope and schedule of the construction of this facility will be determined based on, among other factors, the availability and timing of funding. In addition, we are currently monitoring the larger industry dynamics. Changes in demand, supply, battery cost structure, government incentives, trade tariffs, and other considerations may also influence our decision, including whether to proceed with the construction at all. If we decide not to proceed with the project, we may incur significant costs, which may adversely affect us, our financial condition and our growth prospects.
We may need to operate the new manufacturing facility in this new geographic area away from our headquarters. Our potential suppliers and other equipment vendors may also encounter delays, additional costs, and other obstacles in building our manufacturing lines, which are currently unknown. Additionally, although we have tested and validated the performance of our SiMaxx batteries on one of our suppliers’ platform, there is uncertainty as to whether manufacturing SiMaxx batteries in the new manufacturing facility will be successful. Further, if we manufacture SiCore batteries at the new manufacturing facility, our ability to manufacture them depends on our ability to establish mutually agreeable commercial terms with Berzelius under the relevant purchase orders. If we fail to achieve large-scale production of our SiCore batteries, due to our inability to reach an agreement with Berzelius, or if we encounter significant engineering or other challenges, performance issues, delays, unforeseen development costs and other obstacles in building the manufacturing line for SiCore batteries, we may have to continue purchasing SiCore materials and batteries to support our customers’ demands, our results of operations would be negatively impacted.
Achieving capacity at commercial scale of high energy density lithium-ion batteries may require us to make significant and increasing capital expenditures to scale our production capacity and improve our supply chain processes. Further, because our silicon anode process requires different equipment than traditional anode manufacturing, our capital equipment costs are likely to be higher than equipment used for production of graphite anodes. Although, we completed our pre-construction planning to build a GWh-scale manufacturing facility on our leased premises in Brighton, Colorado as of December 31, 2024, the scope and schedule of the construction will be determined based on, among other factors, the availability and timing of funding. The actual costs and time to complete our silicon anode process may materially exceed our estimates, if we are able to complete it at all. Even if we are successful in the establishment of the new facility, our manufacturing capabilities could be affected by cost-overruns, permitting issues, unexpected delays, equipment failures, supply chain constraints, natural disasters, including earthquakes, fire, floods and typhoons, power failures, telecommunications failures, break-ins, war, riots, terrorist attacks, pandemics, and numerous other factors that could prevent us from realizing the intended benefits of our manufacturing strategy, or cause the loss or corruption of data or malfunctions of software or hardware, and have a material adverse effect on our business.
We may not succeed in retaining and attracting key employees, particularly technical talent, needed to operate and build our business successfully.
Our success depends on our ability to attract and retain our executive officers, key employees and other qualified personnel, particularly technical talent, and as a relatively small company with key talent residing in a limited number of employees, our operations may be severely disrupted if we lost their services. In particular, we are highly dependent on the services of Dr. Kang Sun, our Chief Executive Officer (“CEO”), and other senior technical and management personnel, including our executive officers, who would be difficult to replace.
If Dr. Sun or any other key personnel were to depart, we may not be able to successfully attract and retain senior leadership necessary to grow our business. As we build our brand and become better known, there is increased risk that competitors or other companies will seek to hire our personnel. The failure to attract, integrate, train, motivate and retain these personnel could seriously harm our business and prospects.
In addition, designing, building and operating our new manufacturing facility and large-scale production tools will require us to hire highly skilled personnel, including battery factory design and operations experts. There are currently a limited number of people with this experience in the United States. Recruiting and training skilled engineers, workers and other laborers will take significant cost and time, and an inability to do so timely or at all would inhibit the successful design, build-out and operation of the new manufacturing facility, thus negatively affecting our business and our results of operations.
We have pursued new product platforms and expanded our product portfolio. We may expend our limited resources to pursue a particular product and fail to capitalize on products that may be more profitable or for which there is a greater likelihood of success.
We recently expanded our product portfolio with the addition of SiCore and have made substantial investments to develop new products and enhancements to our existing products. We may forgo or delay pursuit of other opportunities
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that could have had greater commercial potential. Our resource allocation decisions may cause us to fail to capitalize on viable products or profitable market opportunities. If we fail to pursue products that meet market demand, we may lose our competitive position, our products may become obsolete, and our business, financial condition and results of operations could be adversely affected.
Certain of our officers and directors provide services to other entities formerly affiliated with Amprius Holdings.
Dr. Kang Sun, our CEO and a member of our board of directors, serves on the boards of certain entities that were formerly affiliated with Amprius Holdings, including serving on the board of directors of Berzelius. There could be competition for the time and effort of such officers and directors and, further, potential conflicts of interests in our transactions with such entities. If such officers and directors do not devote sufficient attention to the management and operation of our business or if such conflicts of interest are not resolved, our business and financial results may suffer.
We may encounter delays and technical obstacles in developing new battery products such as different cell formats to meet varied market requirements.
Our customers may require unique battery configurations or custom designs for their products. Once we enter into contracts with customers to produce batteries for their products, we may expect to tailor the design of our batteries specifically to the products that these customers manufacture. This development process requires not only substantial lead time between the commencement of design efforts for customized batteries and the commencement of volume shipments of the battery cells to the customer, but also the cooperation and assistance of the customer in order to determine the requirements for each specific application. Technical problems may arise that affect the acceptance of our battery products by the customers. Our ability to tailor our batteries to meet the needs of our customers is affected by whether we can, amongst other things:
•receive and maintain necessary intellectual property protections;
•obtain governmental approvals and registrations;
•comply with governmental regulations;
•further develop and refine our technology; and
•anticipate customer needs and preferences successfully.
If we are unable to design and develop new battery products that meet our customers’ requirements, we may lose opportunities to obtain purchase orders, and our reputation and prospects may be damaged.
Certain components of our batteries are hazardous and pose safety risks that may cause accidents in our manufacturing facility. We may be subject to financial and reputational risks due to product recalls and product liability claims, and we could face substantial liabilities that exceed our resources.
Due to the high energy density inherent in lithium-ion batteries, our batteries can pose certain safety risks, including the risk of fire. Accidents causing death, personal injury or property damage, can occur, and no high energy density battery will ever be 100% safe. For example, under certain abuse conditions, lithium-ion batteries can go into thermal runaway, which can result in fire. Although we incorporate safety procedures in the research, development, manufacture and transportation of our batteries that are designed to minimize safety risks, the manufacture or use of our battery products may still cause accidents. Any accident, whether occurring at our manufacturing facilities or from the use of our battery products, may result in significant production interruption, delays or claims for substantial damages caused by personal injuries or property damage.
In addition, due to the harsh environments in which batteries are used including extremely low temperature and pressure, and combat for military applications, our batteries go through rigorous testing to ensure safe behavior under abuse-case conditions. Although such tests have been successful to date, we cannot assure you such tests will be successful in the future. If we have to make design changes to address any safety issues, we may have to delay or suspend our planned production, which could materially damage our brand, business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.
Product liability claims, even those without merit or those that do not involve our battery products, could harm our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.
A successful product liability claim against us, resulting from safety issues or otherwise, could require us to pay a substantial monetary award. We may not be able to cover any substantial monetary judgment against us. Moreover, a
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product liability claim against us or our competitors could generate substantial negative publicity about our battery products and could have a material adverse effect on our brand, business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.
We may not be able to accurately estimate the future supply and demand for our batteries, which could result in a variety of inefficiencies in our business and hinder our ability to generate revenue. If we fail to accurately predict our manufacturing requirements, we could incur additional costs or experience delays.
We anticipate being required to provide forecasts of our demand to our current and future suppliers prior to the scheduled delivery of products to potential customers. Currently, there is limited historical basis for making judgments on the demand for our batteries and our ability to develop, manufacture, and deliver our battery products. Our customers’ final purchase orders may not be consistent with our estimates. If we overestimate our requirements, our suppliers may deliver excess inventory, which indirectly would increase our costs and may result in unprofitable sales or write-offs. Given that our batteries may be customized to meet our customers’ specifications, they are susceptible to obsolescence due to their limited shelf life. Because we have no history of large-scale production, we may also be unable to forecast accurately the pace of manufacturing or the take-up of our battery products by our customers.
If we underestimate our requirements, our suppliers may have inadequate inventory, which could interrupt manufacturing of our battery products and result in delays in shipments and revenues. In addition, lead times for materials and components that our suppliers order may vary significantly and depend on factors unique to the specific supplier, contract terms and demand for each component at a given time. If we fail to order sufficient quantities of battery components in a timely manner, the delivery of our batteries to our potential customers could be delayed, which would harm our business, financial condition and results of operations. Producing additional battery products to make up for any shortages within a short time frame may be difficult, making us unable to fulfill the purchase orders, especially due to the customized nature of our batteries. In either case, our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects may be adversely affected.
We may not be able to establish supply relationships for necessary finished batteries, materials, components or equipment or may be required to pay more than anticipated for components or equipment, which could negatively impact our business.
We rely on third party suppliers, including Berzelius and other manufacturing partners, for batteries and components necessary to develop and manufacture our batteries, including key supplies such as our anode materials, electrolytes, separators, and cathode materials. We face risks relating to the availability of these materials and components, including that we will be subject to demand shortages and supply chain challenges and generally may not have sufficient purchasing power to eliminate the risk of price increases for the raw materials and lines we need. To the extent that we are unable to enter into commercial agreements with any of our suppliers on beneficial terms, or any of our suppliers experience difficulties ramping up their supply of materials to meet our requirements, the production of our batteries will be delayed and we will not be able to meet our production timelines.
Separately, we may be subject to various supply chain requirements regarding, among other things, conflict minerals and labor practices. We may be required to incur substantial costs to comply with these and potential future requirements, which may include locating new suppliers to replace existing ones. We may not be able to find any new suppliers for certain raw materials or components required for our operations, or such suppliers may be unwilling or unable to provide us with products.
We expect to incur significant costs related to procuring various materials required to manufacture and assemble our batteries that will require us to negotiate purchase agreements and delivery lead-times on advantageous terms. We may not be able to control fluctuation in the prices for these materials or negotiate agreements with suppliers on terms that are beneficial to us. Substantial increases in the prices for our raw materials, or our inability to reduce our raw material costs as we scale, would negatively impact our prospects.
Any disruption in the supply of components or materials could temporarily disrupt research and development activities or production of our batteries until an alternative supplier is able to supply the required material. Changes in business conditions, unforeseen circumstances, governmental and regulatory changes, and other factors beyond our control or which we do not presently anticipate, could also affect our suppliers’ ability to deliver components to us on a timely basis. Any of the foregoing could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.
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We are actively monitoring the impacts of armed conflicts between Russia and Ukraine and in the Middle East and are continuing to assess their potential to adversely affect our business. Our business has not been directly impacted by these ongoing armed conflicts, as we have no assets or operations, and we have not purchased materials from Russia, Belarus, Ukraine or the Middle East. To date, we have not experienced any material disruption in our business. Accordingly, we have not yet taken measures to mitigate potential adverse effects of such armed conflicts. However, the length and outcome of such conflicts is highly unpredictable. These conflicts may continue to cause significant market and other disruptions, including significant volatility in commodity prices, supply of components and supply chain interruptions, which could adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.
Currency fluctuations, geopolitics, trade barriers, embargoes, tariffs or shortages and other general economic or political conditions may limit our ability to obtain key components for our batteries or significantly increase freight charges, raw material costs and other expenses associated with our business, which could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.
Risks Related to Our Business and Industry
The battery market is intensely competitive. Competitors include new entrants and established companies, many of which have significantly greater resources than us. Our battery products must compete with advances in new battery chemistries and manufacturing methods as well as continued improvements in conventional batteries and battery anodes.
The battery market in which we compete continues to evolve rapidly and is highly competitive. To date, we have focused our efforts on our silicon anode technology, which is designed to outperform conventional lithium-ion battery technology and other battery technologies. However, lithium-ion battery technology has been widely adopted and our current competitors have, and future competitors may have, greater resources than us and may also be able to devote greater resources to the development of their current and future technologies. These competitors also may have greater access to customers and may be able to establish cooperative or strategic relationships amongst themselves or with third parties that may further enhance their resources and competitive positioning. In addition, lithium-ion battery manufacturers may make improvements in energy density faster than they have historically, continue to reduce cost and expand supply of conventional batteries and therefore reduce our energy density advantage, which would negatively impact the prospects for our business or negatively impact our ability to sell our battery products at a market-competitive price and with sufficient margins.
There are a number of companies seeking to develop alternative approaches to lithium-ion battery technology. We expect competition in battery technology to intensify. Developments in alternative technologies or improvements in batteries technology made by competitors may materially adversely affect the sales, pricing and gross margins of our batteries. If a competing technology is developed that has superior operational or price performance, or if we fail to accurately predict and ensure that our battery technology can address customers’ changing needs or emerging technological trends, or if our customers fail to achieve the benefits expected from our silicon anode technology, our business prospects would be adversely affected.
We expect to commit significant resources to scale our battery manufacturing capacity, including partnering with global contract manufacturers, and maintain a competitive position, and these commitments may be made without knowing whether such investments will result in products potential customers will accept. There is no assurance we will successfully identify new customer requirements, develop and bring our batteries to market on a timely basis, or that products and technologies developed by others will not render our batteries obsolete or noncompetitive, any of which would adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Customers will be less likely to purchase our batteries if they are not convinced that our business will succeed in the long term. Similarly, suppliers and other third parties will be less likely to invest time and resources in developing business relationships with us if they are not convinced that our business will succeed in the long term. Accordingly, in order to build and maintain our business, we must maintain confidence among current and future partners, customers, suppliers, analysts, ratings agencies and other parties in our long-term financial viability and business prospects. Maintaining such confidence may be particularly complicated by certain factors including those that are largely outside of our control, such as our limited operating history, market unfamiliarity with our battery products, any delays in scaling manufacturing, delivery and service operations to meet demand, competition and uncertainty regarding our production and sales performance compared with market expectations.
Our future sales opportunities depend in part on the growth of markets for battery-powered applications. These applications may develop slower or at a size that is less than expected, to the extent they develop at all.
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Our growth and future demand for our battery products is dependent in part upon the adoption by consumers of alternative fuel vehicles in general and battery-powered aviation applications and other electrically powered modes of transportation in particular. The market for new energy vehicles is still evolving, characterized by changing technologies, competitive pricing and competitive factors, evolving government regulation and industry standards, and changing consumer demands and behaviors.
Market estimates and growth forecasts are also subject to significant uncertainty and are based on assumptions and estimates that may prove to be inaccurate. For example, if the assumptions that we base our market forecasts on, including the continued development and availability of high performance batteries at a competitive price point, OEM investment in aircraft, cars and software, consumer preference and, with respect to electric air transportation, regulatory approval and the requisite infrastructure, are incorrect, this expected growth may occur slower than expected, if it occurs at all. If the market for battery-powered applications in general does not develop as expected, or develops more slowly than expected, our business, financial condition, prospects and results of operations could be adversely affected.
Developments in alternative technology or other fossil fuel alternatives may adversely affect the demand for our battery products.
Significant developments in alternative technologies, such as fuel cell technology, advanced diesel, ethanol or natural gas, or breathing batteries, may materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects in ways that we may not currently anticipate. Existing and other battery technologies, fuels or sources of energy may emerge as customers’ preferred alternatives to our battery products. Any failure by us to develop new or enhanced technologies or processes, or to react to changes in existing technologies, could materially delay our development and introduction of new and enhanced alternative products, which could result in decreased revenue and adversely affect our prospects.
Our research and development efforts may not be sufficient to adapt to changes in alternative fuels or aviation and EV technology. As technologies evolve, we plan to develop more efficient manufacturing processes, and advanced battery chemistry, which may also negatively impact the adoption of our other battery products. However, we may not compete effectively with alternative systems if we are not able to develop, source and integrate the latest technology into our battery products.
We have pursued and may continue to pursue development agreements and other strategic alliances, which could have an adverse impact on our business if they are unsuccessful.
We have entered into development agreements and master supply agreements with certain of our customers, and may in the future enter into similar arrangements and development agreements with our customers, including with AALTO Airbus and the U.S. Army. While offering potential benefits, these strategic alliances with OEMs and others could subject us to a number of risks, including risks associated with sharing proprietary information, non-performance by our partners and costs of establishing and maintaining new strategic alliances, any of which may materially and adversely affect our business. We may have limited ability to monitor or control the actions of our partners and, to the extent any of them suffers negative publicity or harm to their reputation from events relating to their business, we may also suffer negative publicity or harm to our reputation by virtue of our association with them. For example, if we rely on our partners’ manufacturing facilities, those operations would be outside of our control. We could experience delays if our partners do not meet agreed-upon timelines or experience capacity constraints, and in turn, we could lose customers and face reputational harm.
Our ability to grow will depend, in part, on our ability to contract with aviation, EV and LEV OEMs to incorporate our batteries in their products, which will require significant time and expense, and may not come to fruition.
Our success, and our ability to increase revenue and operate profitably, depends in part on our ability to contract with aviation, EV and LEV OEMs. This process will require significant time and resources, especially for incorporation into EVs. For example, EV manufacturers frequently require several years of evaluation prior to incorporating new products, like our batteries, into their EVs. This evaluation process includes, among other things, extensive safety and abuse tests, performance tests and cost modeling. We have not begun this process with any EV manufacturers. Thus, our efforts to expand our manufacturing and sales to OEMs may not be successful, and may never result in products that achieve market acceptance, create additional revenue or become profitable, thus adversely impacting our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.
Our research and development efforts strive to create products that are on the cutting edge of technology and meeting the evolving requirements of our customers, but competition in our industry is high. To secure acceptance of our battery
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products, we must also constantly develop and introduce cost-effective, increasingly more scalable silicon anode batteries with enhanced functionality and performance to meet evolving industry standards. If we are unable to retain and grow our existing customer relationships, or convert early trial deployments into meaningful orders, our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects could be materially adversely affected.
If existing customers do not make subsequent purchases from us or renew their contracts with us, our revenue could decline, and our results of operations would be adversely impacted.
Historically, we derived a significant portion of our revenue from existing customers that expand their relationships with us. Increasing the size and number of the deployments of our existing customers is an important part of our growth strategy. We may not be effective in executing this or any other aspect of our growth strategy.
For our customers who individually represent 10% or more of our revenue, three customers together accounted for approximately 47% and 67% of our revenue during each of the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively. Certain of our customers, including customers that represent a significant portion of our business, have in the past reduced their spend with us or terminated their agreements with us, which has reduced our anticipated future cash receipts or revenue from these customers. It is not possible for us to predict the future level of demand from our larger customers for our battery products, and there can be no assurance that our existing customers will continue to purchase from us.
Achieving renewal or expansion of deployments may require us to increasingly engage in sophisticated and costly sales efforts that may not result in additional sales. In addition, our customers’ decisions to expand the use of our battery products depends on a number of factors, including general economic conditions, the functioning of our batteries, and our customers’ satisfaction with our battery products. If our efforts to expand within our existing customer base are not successful, our business may suffer.
If our customers choose to reduce purchases, or do not purchase at all, batteries manufactured outside of the United States, our revenue could decline and our prospects may be adversely affected.
Our SiCore batteries are based on the innovative, proprietary material system developed by Berzelius, which is a Chinese corporation, and are currently manufactured by our manufacturing partners in China. Our customers may choose to reduce future purchases, or not purchase at all, SiCore batteries manufactured outside of the United States. As such, if the construction of our large-scale facility or our development of manufacturing lines that can produce SiCore batteries are delayed, our business and prospects may be materially and adversely affected.
We may require additional capital to support business growth, and this capital might not be available on commercially reasonable terms or at all.
On October 2, 2023, we entered into the At Market Issuance Sales Agreement (the “Sales Agreement”) with B. Riley Securities, Inc., Cantor Fitzgerald & Co. and H.C. Wainwright & Co., LLC, as sales agents (collectively, the “Sales Agents”), pursuant to which we may offer and sell, from time to time, through or to any Sales Agent, shares of our common stock with an aggregate offering price of not more than $100.0 million (the “At Market Financing”), as described in the prospectus supplement dated October 10, 2023 filed with the SEC.
We may need additional capital before we commence production at scale, and it may not be available on acceptable terms, if at all. For example, our capital forecast assumes, among other things, that our development timeline progresses as planned and our corresponding expenditures are consistent with current expectations, both of which are subject to various risks and uncertainties, including those described herein, and, as needed, that we are able to utilize the At Market Financing.
More specifically, while the construction schedule for our GWh-scale manufacturing facility will be determined based on, among other factors, the availability and timing of funding, we expect our capital expenditures and working capital requirements may increase materially, if we construct our automated, high-volume manufacturing lines and scale up production. Additionally, we expect our operating expenses may increase substantially on account of increased headcount and other general and administrative expenses necessary to support a rapidly growing company.
As a result, we expect to need to access the debt and equity capital markets, including through the At Market Financing, to obtain additional financing in the future. However, these sources of financing may not be available on acceptable terms, or at all. Our ability to obtain additional financing will be subject to a number of factors, including:
•market conditions;
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•the level of success with our current manufacturing capabilities;
•our operating performance;
•investor sentiment; and
•our ability to incur debt in compliance with any agreements governing our then capital structure.
Further, abrupt political change, terrorist activity, and armed conflict has had an impact on the global economy and financial markets. Although our business has not been directly impacted by such events, as we have no assets or operations, and we have not purchased materials from, Russia, Belarus, Ukraine or the Middle East, it is impossible to predict the extent to which our operations, or those of our customers, suppliers and manufacturers, will be impacted in the short and long term, or the ways in which the conflict may impact our business. The extent and duration of military action, sanctions and resulting market disruptions are impossible to predict, but could be material.
In addition, actual events involving limited liquidity, defaults, non-performance or other adverse developments that affect financial institutions or the financial services industry generally, or concerns or rumors about any events of these kinds or other similar risks, have in the past and may in the future lead to market-wide liquidity challenges. These factors may make the timing, amount, terms or conditions of additional financings unattractive to us. If we raise additional funds by issuing equity, equity-linked or debt securities, those securities may have rights, preferences or privileges senior to the rights of our currently issued and outstanding equity or debt, and our existing stockholders may experience dilution. If we are unable to generate sufficient funds from operations, raise additional capital or access our existing funds, we may be forced to take actions to reduce our capital or operating expenditures, including by eliminating redundancies, or reducing or delaying our production facility expansions, which may adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.
It is not possible to predict the actual number of shares we will sell under the Sales Agreement, if any, or the gross proceeds resulting from those sales.
Under the Sales Agreement, we may offer and sell, from time to time, through the Sales Agents, shares of our common stock with an aggregate offering price of not more than $100.0 million. During the year ended December 31, 2024 and from the date of the Sales Agreement through December 31, 2024, we sold shares of our common stock under the Sales Agreement resulting in aggregate net proceeds of approximately $33.4 million and $33.8 million, respectively.
Subject to certain limitations in the Sales Agreement and compliance with applicable law, we have the discretion to deliver a placement notice to any Sales Agents at any time throughout the term of the Sales Agreement. The number of shares that are sold to or through the Sales Agents after delivering a placement notice will fluctuate based on a number of factors, including the market price of our common stock during the sales period, the limits we set with the Sales Agents in any applicable placement notice, and the demand for, and trading volume of, our common stock during the sales period. Because the price per share of each share sold will fluctuate during the sales period, it is not possible to predict the number of shares that will be sold or the gross proceeds to be raised in connection with such sales.
Our future growth and success depend in part on our ability to grow our customer base and effectively sell to a wide variety of customers.
Our future success will depend on our ability to grow our customer base and effectively sell to a wide variety of customers. Potential customers include manufacturers of products that tend to be large enterprises or governmental agencies. Sales to these end-customers involve risks that may not be present (or that are present to a lesser extent) with sales to smaller customers. These risks include, but are not limited to, (i) increased purchasing power and leverage held by large customers in negotiating contractual arrangements with us and (ii) longer sales cycles and the associated risk that substantial time and resources may be spent on a potential end-customer that elects not to purchase our solutions.
Large organizations often undertake a significant evaluation process that results in a lengthy sales cycle. In addition, product purchases by large organizations are frequently subject to budget constraints, multiple approvals and unanticipated administrative, processing and other delays. Finally, large organizations typically have longer implementation cycles, require greater product functionality and scalability, require a broader range of services, demand that vendors take on a larger share of risks, require acceptance provisions that can lead to a delay in revenue recognition and expect greater payment flexibility. All of these factors can add further risk to business conducted with these potential customers.
If we were unable to maintain or increase our customer retention rates or generate new customers in a cost-effective manner, our business, financial condition and results of operations would likely be adversely affected. We cannot assure
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you that we will be able to maintain or grow our customer base in a cost-effective way. If we are unable to develop high quality products at scale, or introduce new products, we may fail to attract new customers or lose our existing customers, which could adversely affect our growth and profitability.
Our business model has yet to be tested and any failure to realize our strategic plans would have an adverse effect on our operating results and business, harm our reputation and could result in substantial liabilities that exceed our resources.
There is additional risk associated with new enterprises like Amprius, that are encountering new challenges and issues for the first time, many of which are beyond our control, including substantial risks and expenses in the course of establishing or entering new markets, implementing novel manufacturing processes, organizing operations and undertaking marketing activities. The likelihood of our success must be considered in light of these risks, expenses, complications, delays and the competitive environment in which we operate. There is, therefore, nothing at this time upon which to base an assumption that our business plan will prove successful, and we may not be able to generate significant revenue, raise additional capital or operate profitably. We will continue to encounter risks and difficulties frequently experienced by early commercial stage companies, including scaling up our infrastructure and headcount, and may encounter unforeseen expenses, difficulties or delays in connection with our growth. In addition, as a result of the capital requirements of our business, we can be expected to continue to sustain substantial operating expenses without generating sufficient revenue to cover expenditures. Any investment in our company is therefore highly speculative and could result in the loss of some or all of your entire investment.
It is difficult to predict our future revenues and appropriately budget for our expenses, and we have limited insight into trends that may emerge and affect our business. In the event that actual results differ from our estimates or we adjust our estimates in future periods, our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects could be materially affected.
We are an early-stage company with a history of financial losses and expect to incur significant expenses and continuing losses for the foreseeable future.
We have incurred net losses since our inception. For example, during the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, we generated net losses of $44.7 million and $36.8 million, respectively, with revenue of $24.2 million and $9.1 million, respectively. We may continue incurring net losses in the future as we, among other things, endeavor to hire the experienced scientific, quality-control, and manufacturing personnel needed to operate our scaled manufacturing processes; increase our sales and marketing activities; expand our distribution infrastructure; and increase our general and administrative functions to support our growing operations. We may find that these efforts are more expensive than we currently anticipate or that these efforts may not result in revenues, which would further increase our losses.
If we fail to effectively manage our future personnel growth, we may not be able to market and sell our batteries successfully.
Our future success depends upon our ability to grow, and if we are unable to manage our personnel growth effectively, we may incur unexpected expenses and be unable to meet our eventual customers’ requirements, all of which could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects. To manage our current and anticipated future growth effectively, we must continue to maintain and enhance our infrastructure, financial and accounting systems, and controls. We must also attract, train and retain a significant number of scientists, engineers, sales and marketing personnel, technical and manufacturing personnel, and management personnel, and the availability of such personnel may be constrained. See above for more information about the risk on retaining and attracting key employees.
As we continue to grow, including from the integration of employees and businesses acquired in connection with future acquisitions, we may find it difficult to maintain important aspects of our corporate culture, which could negatively affect our profitability and our ability to retain and recruit qualified personnel who are essential for our future success. If we do not effectively manage our growth, we may not be able to execute on our growth plan, respond to competitive pressures, take advantage of market opportunities, satisfy customer requirements or manufacture high-quality battery products. Additionally, we may not be able to expand and upgrade our infrastructure to accommodate future growth.
Failure to effectively manage our growth could also lead us to over-invest or under-invest in development and operations; result in weaknesses in our infrastructure, systems or controls; give rise to operational mistakes, financial losses, loss of productivity or business opportunities; and result in loss of employees and reduced productivity of remaining employees. Our growth may require significant capital expenditures, which may lower our earnings, and may divert
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financial resources from other projects such as the development of new products and services. If we are unable to manage our growth effectively, our expenses may increase more than expected, our revenue may not increase or may grow more slowly than expected and we may be unable to implement our business strategy.
Certain members of our management do not have experience in operating a public company.
Certain of our executive officers have limited experience in the management of a publicly traded company. Public companies are subject to significant regulatory oversight and reporting obligations under federal securities laws and the continuous scrutiny of securities analysts and investors. As a result, we may be required to pay higher outside legal, accounting or consulting costs than our competitors, and our management team members may have to devote a higher proportion of their time to issues relating to compliance with the laws applicable to public companies, both of which might put us at a disadvantage relative to competitors.
Our insurance coverage may not be adequate to protect us from all business risks.
We may be subject, in the ordinary course of business, to losses resulting from product liability, accidents, acts of God, and other claims against us, for which we may have no insurance coverage. As a general matter, the policies that we do have may include significant deductibles or self-insured retentions, and we cannot be certain that our insurance coverage will be sufficient to cover all future losses or claims against us. A loss that is uninsured or which exceeds policy limits may require us to pay substantial amounts, which could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Our cash and money market funds could be adversely affected if the financial institutions in which we hold our cash and money market funds fail.
We deposit and maintain our cash and money market funds with third party financial institutions. A failure of these financial institutions to return our cash deposits and money market funds, or if a depository institution is subject to other adverse conditions in the financial or credit markets, could impact our access to our cash or money market funds and could adversely impact our operating liquidity and financial performance.
We are obligated to develop and maintain proper and effective internal control over financial reporting. If we are unable to develop and maintain an effective system of internal controls and procedures required by Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, we may not be able to accurately report our financial results in a timely manner, which may adversely affect investor confidence in us and materially and adversely affect our stock price, business and operating results.
Effective internal control over financial reporting is necessary for us to provide reliable financial reports in a timely manner. The effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting is subject to various inherent limitations, including cost limitations, judgments used in decision making, assumptions about the likelihood of future events, the possibility of human error and the risk of fraud. If we are unable to develop and maintain effective internal control over our financial reporting, or remediate any material weaknesses we identify in the future, we may not be able to accurately report our financial results in a timely manner, or prepare our financial statements within the time periods specified by the forms of the SEC, which may adversely affect our reputation and business and the market price of our common stock. In addition, any such failures could result in litigation or regulatory actions by the SEC or other regulatory authorities, loss of investor confidence, delisting of our securities and harm to our reputation and financial condition, or diversion of financial and management resources from the operation of our business.
During the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, we identified material weaknesses in our internal control over financial reporting pertaining to the inadequate design and maintenance of our internal control over our financial reporting and close activities and inadequate segregation of duties. Although those material weaknesses were remediated and there were no material weaknesses identified as of December 31, 2024, there can be no assurance that we will not experience additional material weaknesses in the future. We continue to assess our internal controls and procedures and intend to take further actions as necessary or appropriate to address any other matters we may identify in the future. We cannot assure you that the measures we have taken to date and may take in the future, will be sufficient to prevent or avoid potential future material weaknesses in internal control over financial reporting. In addition, it is possible that control deficiencies or significant deficiencies could be identified by our management or by our independent registered public accounting firm in the future or may occur without being identified. Such a failure could result in regulatory scrutiny and cause investors to lose confidence in our reported financial condition, lead to a default under future indebtedness, and could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flow or results of operations.
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As a public company, we are required, pursuant to Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, to furnish a report by management on, among other things, the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting for annual reports on Form 10-K that we file with the SEC. In such report, we are required to disclose any material weaknesses identified by our management on our internal control over financial reporting. Additionally, we are required to disclose changes made on our internal control over financial reporting on a quarterly basis. Failure to comply with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act could potentially subject us to sanctions or investigations by the SEC, the applicable stock exchange or other regulatory authorities, which would require additional financial and management resources. As of December 31, 2024, management assessed the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting and concluded that such internal controls and procedures were effective. See the section titled "Controls and Procedures – Management's Report on Internal Control over Financial Reporting" for more information.
Eventually, it is possible that our independent registered public accounting firm will also be required to audit the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting in future annual reports on Form 10-K to be filed with the SEC.
Our ability to utilize our net operating losses, tax credit carryforwards, and certain other tax attributes to offset future taxable income may be subject to certain limitations.
In general, under Section 382 of the Internal Revenue Code, a corporation that undergoes an “ownership change” is subject to limitations on its ability to use its pre-change net operating loss carryforwards (“NOLs”) to offset future taxable income. The limitations apply if a corporation undergoes an “ownership change,” which is generally defined as a greater than 50 percentage point change (by value) in its equity ownership by certain stockholders over a three-year period. If we experienced an ownership change at any time since our incorporation, we may already be subject to limitations on our ability to utilize our existing NOLs and other tax attributes to offset taxable income or tax liability. In addition, future changes in our stock ownership, which may be outside of our control, may trigger an ownership change. Similar provisions of state tax law may also apply to limit our use of accumulated state tax attributes. As a result, even if we earn net taxable income in the future, our ability to use our NOL carryforwards and other tax attributes to offset such taxable income or tax liability may be subject to limitations, which could potentially result in increased future income tax liability to us. Further, because we and Amprius Holdings were members of a consolidated group for U.S. federal income tax purposes up to September 14, 2022, the closing date of our business combination with Kensington, NOLs and our other tax attributes are available to be utilized by any member of the consolidated group. Accordingly, our existing NOLs and other tax attributes may not be available to offset future income tax liabilities.
With the recent change in presidential administration, there is also a risk that there will be substantial changes in law or regulations. In addition, many of the states are seeking to increase tax revenues. Such changes may include, but are not limited to, changes in the tax rate or possible suspensions on the use of net operating losses, tax credits, and other tax attributes. The Internal Revenue Code now requires taxpayers to capitalize research and development expenditures and to amortize domestic expenditures over five years and foreign expenditures over 15 years. If Congress does not modify or repeal this provision, it may result in the acceleration of future taxable income (and associated income tax liabilities) for us. Any resulting income tax liabilities may reduce our future cash flows.
The unavailability, reduction or elimination of government and economic incentives could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.
We benefit from certain government subsidies and economic incentives from time to time, including tax credits, rebates and other incentives that support the development and adoption of clean energy technology. For example, the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 introduces or extends a number of tax credits to promote clean energy development. We cannot assure you that we will be able to benefit from such programs or that these subsidies and incentive programs will be available to us at the same or comparable levels in the future, including as a result of changes to the leadership within the United States government administration.
We have received commitments of state and local incentive packages providing approximately $10.0 million in total tax incentives relating to our design and buildout of a GWh-scale facility in Brighton, Colorado. Specifically, the Colorado Economic Development Commission approved up to approximately $5.5 million in Job Growth Incentive Tax Credits for us, over an eight-year period, which are contingent upon us meeting net new job creation and salary requirements. The City of Brighton also approved incentives with a total estimated value of approximately $0.9 million, including a five-year property tax rebate of 100% and a 50% rebate on the city’s use tax collected on construction materials. In addition, the Adams County Regional Economic Partnership approved incentives in the form of tax abatement with performance-based
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contingencies. If we are not able to achieve the performance-based goals set for the incentives, we may not receive any funding or benefits from the state and local governments of Colorado.
Further, government incentives are subject to uncertainties and may be discontinued at any time. Any reduction, elimination or discriminatory application of government subsidies and economic incentives because of policy changes, or the reduced need for such subsidies and incentives due to the perceived success of clean and renewable energy products or other reasons, may require us to seek additional financing, which may not be obtainable on commercially attractive terms or at all, and may result in the diminished competitiveness of the battery cell industry generally or our silicon anode battery cells in particular. Any change in the level of subsidies and incentives from which we benefit could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.
We have customers from the public sector, and our failure to receive and maintain government contracts or changes in the contracting or fiscal policies of the public sector could have a material adverse effect on our business.
We have contracts with certain government agencies of the United States (as a prime contractor or subcontractor).
Sales to government agencies are subject to a number of challenges and risks. Selling to government agencies can be highly competitive, expensive, and time-consuming, often requiring significant upfront time and expense without any assurance that these efforts will generate a sale. We also must comply with laws and regulations relating to the formation, administration, and performance of contracts, which provide public sector customers rights, many of which are not typically found in commercial contracts.
Accordingly, our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects may be adversely affected by certain events or activities, including, but not limited to:
•changes in fiscal or contracting policies or decreases in available government funding;
•changes in government programs or applicable requirements;
•changes in the political environment, including before or after a change to the leadership within the government administration, and any resulting uncertainty or changes in policy or priorities and resultant funding;
•appeals, disputes, or litigation relating to government procurement, including but not limited to bid protests by unsuccessful bidders on potential or actual awards of contracts to us or our partners by the government;
•the adoption of new laws or regulations or changes to existing laws or regulations;
•influence by, or competition from, third parties with respect to pending, new, or existing contracts with government customers; and
•increased or unexpected costs or unanticipated delays caused by other factors outside of our control, such as performance failures of our prime contractors or subcontractors.
Any such event or activity, among others, could cause governments and governmental agencies to delay or refrain from purchasing our battery products in the future, reduce the size or payment amounts of purchases from existing or new government customers, or otherwise have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.
Government contracts often also contain provisions and are subject to laws and regulations that provide government customers with additional rights and remedies not typically found in commercial contracts. These rights and remedies allow government customers, among other things, to:
•terminate existing contracts for convenience;
•reduce orders under or otherwise modify contracts;
•for contracts subject to the Truth in Negotiations Act, reduce the contract price or cost where it was increased because a contractor or subcontractor furnished cost or pricing data during negotiations that was not complete, accurate, and current;
•for some contracts, (i) demand a refund, make a forward price adjustment, or terminate a contract for default if a contractor provided inaccurate or incomplete data during the contract negotiation process and (ii) reduce the contract price under triggering circumstances, including the revision of price lists or other documents upon which the contract award was predicated;
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•decline to exercise an option to renew a multi-year contract;
•claim rights in solutions, systems, or technology produced by us, appropriate such work-product for their continued use without continuing to contract for our services, and disclose such work-product to third parties, including other government agencies and our competitors, which could harm our competitive position;
•prohibit future procurement awards with a particular agency due to a finding of organizational conflicts of interest;
•suspend or debar us from doing business with the applicable government; and
•control or prohibit the export of our battery products and technology.
Government contracts are also generally subject to greater scrutiny, whereby the government can initiate reviews, audits and investigations regarding our compliance with government contract requirements. Current and new regulations or procurement requirements (including, for example regulations regarding counterfeit and corrupt parts, country of origin restrictions, supply chain diligence, mandatory socioeconomic compliance requirements and cybersecurity) or changes to current requirements could limit contracting opportunities and also increase our costs and risk of non-compliance. Failure to comply with government contracting laws, regulations and contract requirements, or adverse findings from a government audit or investigation can lead to criminal, civil or administrative proceedings (including pursuant to the False Claims Act), termination of contracts, forfeiture of profits, suspension of payments, adverse media coverage, fines and suspension or debarment from doing business with U.S. government agencies, all of which may have an adverse effect on our reputation, business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.
Our technology and our website, systems, and data we maintain may be subject to intentional disruption, security breaches and other security incidents, or alleged violations of laws, regulations, or other obligations relating to data handling that could result in liability and adversely impact our reputation and future sales. We may be required to expend significant resources to continue to modify or enhance our protective measures to detect, investigate and remediate vulnerabilities to security breaches and incidents. Any actual or alleged failure to comply with applicable cybersecurity or data privacy legislation or regulation could have a material adverse effect on our business, reputation, results of operations or financial condition.
We expect to face significant challenges with respect to information security and maintaining the security and integrity of our information systems and other systems used in our business, as well as with respect to the data stored on or processed by these systems. We also anticipate receiving and storing confidential business information of our partners and customers. Advances in technology, an increased level of sophistication and expertise of hackers, and new discoveries in the field of cryptography can result in a compromise or breach of the systems used in our business or of security measures used in our business to protect confidential information, personal information, and other data. We may be a target for attacks designed to disrupt our operations or to attempt to gain access to our systems or to data that we possess, including proprietary information that we obtain from our partners pursuant to our agreements with them. We also are at risk for interruptions, outages and breaches of our and our outsourced service providers’ operational systems and security systems, our integrated software and technology, and data that we or our third party service providers process or possess. These may be caused by, among other causes, physical theft, viruses or other malicious code, denial or degradation of service attacks, ransomware, social engineering schemes, and insider theft or misuse. We have suffered security incidents in the past. In December 2021, we experienced a ransomware incident and notified certain employees of such incident. The security risks we and our outsourced service providers face could also be elevated in connection with the Russian invasion of Ukraine or the conflict in the Middle East, as we and our outsourced service providers are vulnerable to a heightened risk of cyberattacks from or affiliated with nation-state actors, including retaliatory attacks from Russian actors against U.S.-based companies.
The availability and effectiveness of our silicon anode technology and our ability to conduct our business and operations depend on the continued operation of information technology and communications systems, some of which we have yet to develop or otherwise obtain the ability to use. Systems we currently use or may use in the future in conducting our business, including data centers and other information technology systems, will be vulnerable to damage or interruption. Such systems could also be subject to break-ins, sabotage and intentional acts of vandalism, as well as disruptions and security breaches and security incidents as a result of non-technical issues, including intentional or inadvertent acts or omissions by employees, service providers, or others. We currently use, and may use in the future, outsourced service providers to help provide certain services, and any such outsourced service providers face similar security and system disruption risks as us. Our ability to monitor our outsourced service providers’ security measures is limited, and, in any event, third parties may be able to circumvent those security measures, resulting in the unauthorized access to, misuse, acquisition, disclosure, loss, alteration, or destruction of personal, financial, confidential, or other data,
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including data relating to individuals. Some of the systems used in our business will not be fully redundant, and our disaster recovery planning cannot account for all eventualities. Any data security incidents or other disruptions to any data centers or other systems used in our business could result in lengthy interruptions in our service and may adversely affect our reputation, business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.
Significant capital and other resources may be required in efforts to protect against information security breaches, security incidents, and system disruptions, or to alleviate problems caused by actual or suspected information security breaches and other data security incidents and system disruptions. The resources required may increase over time as the methods used by hackers and others engaged in online criminal activities and otherwise seeking to obtain unauthorized access to systems or data, and to disrupt systems, are increasingly sophisticated and constantly evolving. In particular, ransomware attacks have become more prevalent in the industrial sector, which could materially and adversely affect our ability to operate and may result in significant expense or reputational harm.
In addition, we may face increased compliance burdens regarding such requirements with regulators and customers regarding our battery products and also incur additional costs for oversight and monitoring of our supply chain. These additional compliance and logistical burdens are attenuated through our international partnerships. We also cannot be certain that these systems, networks, and other infrastructure or technology upon which we rely, including those of our third party suppliers or service providers, will be effectively implemented, maintained or expanded as planned, or will be free from bugs, defects, errors, vulnerabilities, viruses, ransomware, or other malicious code. We may be required to expend significant resources to make corrections or to remediate issues that are identified or to find alternative sources.
Any failure or perceived failure by us or our service providers to prevent information security breaches or other security incidents or system disruptions, or any compromise of security that results in or is perceived or reported to result in unauthorized access to, or loss, theft, alteration, release or transfer of, our information, or any personal information, confidential information, or other data could result in loss or theft of proprietary or sensitive data and intellectual property, could harm our reputation and competitive position and could expose us to legal claims, regulatory investigations and proceedings, and fines, penalties, and other liability. Any such actual or perceived security breach, security incident or disruption could also divert the efforts of our technical and management personnel and could require us to incur significant costs and operational consequences in connection with investigating, remediating, eliminating and putting in place additional tools, devices, policies, and other measures designed to prevent actual or perceived security breaches and other incidents and system disruptions. Moreover, we could be required or otherwise find it appropriate to expend significant capital and other resources to respond to, notify third parties of, and otherwise address the incident or breach and its root cause, and most jurisdictions have enacted laws requiring companies to notify individuals, regulatory authorities and others of security breaches involving certain types of data.
Further, we cannot assure that any limitations of liability provisions in our current or future contracts that may be applicable would be enforceable or adequate or would otherwise protect us from any liabilities or damages with respect to any particular claim relating to a security breach or other security-related matter. We also cannot be sure that our existing insurance coverage will continue to be available on acceptable terms or will be available in sufficient amounts to cover claims related to a security breach or incident, or that the insurer will not deny coverage as to any future claim. The successful assertion of claims against us that exceed available insurance coverage, or the occurrence of changes in our insurance policies, including premium increases or the imposition of large deductible or co-insurance requirements, could have a material adverse effect on our business, including our reputation, financial condition and results of operations.
Additionally, laws, regulations, and other actual and potential obligations relating to privacy, data hosting and other processing of data, data protection, and data security are evolving rapidly, and we expect to potentially be subject to new laws and regulations, or new interpretations of laws and regulations, in the future in various jurisdictions. These laws, regulations, and other obligations, and changes in their interpretation, could require us to modify our operations and practices, restrict our activities, and increase our costs. Further, these laws, regulations, and other obligations are complex and evolving rapidly, and we cannot provide assurance that we will not be subject to claims, allegations, or other proceedings related to actual or alleged obligations relating to privacy, data protection, or data security. It is possible that these laws, regulations, and other obligations may be inconsistent with one another or be interpreted or asserted to be inconsistent with our business or practices. We anticipate needing to dedicate substantial resources to comply with laws, regulations, and other obligations relating to privacy and data security in order to comply. Any failure or alleged or perceived failure to comply with any applicable laws, regulations, or other obligations relating to privacy, data protection, or data security could also result in regulatory investigations and proceedings, and misuse of or failure to secure data relating to individuals could also result in claims and proceedings against us by governmental entities or others, penalties and other liability, and damage to our reputation and credibility, and could have a negative impact on our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.
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Risks Related to Intellectual Property
We rely heavily on our intellectual property portfolio. If we are unable to protect our intellectual property rights, our business and competitive position would be harmed.
We may not be able to prevent unauthorized use of our intellectual property, which could harm our business and competitive position. We rely upon a combination of various intellectual property protections afforded by patent, copyright, trademark and trade secret laws in the United States and other jurisdictions, as well as contractual protections afforded by license agreements and other agreements, to establish, maintain and enforce rights in our proprietary technologies. In addition, we seek to protect our intellectual property rights through nondisclosure and invention assignment agreements with our employees and consultants, and through non-disclosure agreements with business partners and other third parties. Despite our efforts to protect our proprietary rights, third parties may, without proper authorization, attempt to copy or otherwise obtain and use our intellectual property or be able to design around our intellectual property. Monitoring unauthorized use of our intellectual property is difficult and costly, and the steps we have taken or will take to prevent misappropriation may not be adequate, sufficient, or effective. Any enforcement efforts we undertake, including litigation, could be time-consuming and expensive and could divert management’s attention, which could harm our business, results of operations and financial condition. Moreover, certain proprietary technology that is stored on computer systems could be penetrated by intruders and potentially misappropriated. There is no guarantee that our efforts to protect our computer systems will be effective. In addition, existing intellectual property laws and contractual remedies may afford less protection than needed to safeguard our intellectual property portfolio.
Patent, copyright, trademark and trade secret laws vary significantly throughout the world. A number of foreign countries do not protect intellectual property rights to the same extent as do the laws of the United States. Therefore, our intellectual property rights may not be as strong or as easily enforced outside of the United States and efforts to protect against the unauthorized use of our intellectual property rights, technology and other proprietary rights may be more expensive and difficult outside of the United States. Further, we have not established our intellectual property rights in all countries in the world, and competitors may copy our designs and technology and operate in countries in which we have not enforced our intellectual property rights. Failure to adequately protect our intellectual property rights could result in our competitors using our intellectual property to offer products, and competitors’ ability to design around our intellectual property would enable competitors to offer similar or better batteries, in each case potentially resulting in the loss of some of our competitive advantage and a decrease in our revenue which, would adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.
We may need to defend ourselves against intellectual property infringement claims, which may be time-consuming and could cause us to incur substantial costs.
Companies, organizations or individuals, including our current and future competitors, may hold or obtain patents, trademarks or other proprietary rights that would prevent, limit or interfere with our ability to make, use, develop, distribute, or sell our battery products, which could make it more difficult for us to operate our business. From time to time, we may receive inquiries from holders of patents or trademarks inquiring whether we are infringing their proprietary rights and/or seek court declarations that they do not infringe upon our intellectual property rights. Companies holding patents or other intellectual property rights relating to batteries, electric motors or electronic power management systems may bring suits alleging infringement by our battery products of such rights or otherwise asserting their rights and seeking licenses. In addition, if we are determined to have infringed upon a third party’s intellectual property rights, we may be required to do one or more of the following:
•cease selling, incorporating or using products that incorporate the challenged intellectual property;
•pay substantial damages;
•obtain a license from the holder of the infringed intellectual property right, which license may not be available on reasonable terms or at all; or
•redesign our batteries.
We have in the past experienced infringement claims from non-practicing organizations (sometimes referred to as “patent trolls”) filing lawsuits for patent infringement. For example, in December 2020, we settled a patent infringement case against us and agreed to make licensing payments in connection with such settlement. We may be subject to additional infringement claims in the future, and even if we believe such claims are without merit, such claims are time-consuming, expensive to litigate or settle and can divert management’s resources and attention. An adverse determination could require that we pay damages, which could be substantial, or that we stop using technologies found to be in violation of a third
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party’s rights and could prevent us from selling our batteries. In order to avoid these restrictions, we may have to seek a license for the technology. Any such license may not be available on reasonable terms or at all, could require us to pay significant royalties and may significantly increase our operating expenses or otherwise seriously harm our business or results of operations.
In the event of a successful claim of infringement against us and our failure or inability to obtain a license to the infringed technology, our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects could be materially adversely affected. In addition, any litigation or claims, whether or not valid, could result in substantial costs and diversion of resources and management’s attention.
We also license patents and other intellectual property from third parties, and we may face claims that our use of this intellectual property infringes the rights of others. In such cases, we may seek indemnification from our licensors under our license contracts with them. However, our rights to indemnification may be unavailable or insufficient to cover our costs and losses, depending on our use of the technology, whether we choose to retain control over conduct of the litigation, and other factors.
Our patent applications may not result in issued patents or our patent rights may be contested, circumvented, invalidated or limited in scope, any of which could have a material adverse effect on our ability to prevent others from interfering with our commercialization of our batteries.
Our patent applications may not result in issued patents, which may have a material adverse effect on our ability to prevent others from commercially exploiting products similar to ours. The status of patents involves complex legal and factual questions and the breadth of claims allowed is uncertain. As a result, we cannot be certain that the patent applications that we file will result in patents being issued, or that our patents and any patents that may be issued to us will afford protection against competitors with similar technology. Numerous patents and pending patent applications owned by others exist in the fields in which we have developed and is and will be developing our technology. In addition to those who may claim priority, any of our existing or pending patents may also be challenged by others on the basis that they are otherwise invalid or unenforceable. Furthermore, patent applications filed in foreign countries are subject to laws, rules and procedures that differ from those of the United States, and thus we cannot be certain that foreign patent applications related to issued U.S. patents will be issued.
Even if our patent applications succeed and we are issued patents in accordance with them, it is still uncertain whether these patents will be contested, circumvented, invalidated or limited in scope in the future. The rights granted under any issued patents may not provide us with meaningful protection or competitive advantages, and some foreign countries provide significantly less effective patent enforcement than what the United States provides. In addition, the claims under any patents that issued to us may not be broad enough to prevent others from developing technologies that are similar or that achieve results similar to ours. The intellectual property rights of others could also bar or limit us from licensing, exploiting, or enforcing any patents issued to us. In addition, patents issued to us may be infringed upon or designed around by others and others may obtain patents that they need to license or design around, either of which would increase costs and may adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.
We may obtain licenses on technology that has not been commercialized or has been commercialized only to a limited extent, and the success of our business may be adversely affected if such technology does not perform as expected.
From time to time, we may license from third parties, technologies that have not been commercialized or which have been commercialized only to a limited extent. These technologies may not perform as expected within our silicon anode battery cells and related products. If the cost, performance characteristics, manufacturing process or other specifications of these licensed technologies fall short of our targets, our expected sales, costs, time to market, competitive advantage, future product pricing and potential operating margins may be adversely affected.
Risks Related to Litigation and Regulatory Compliance
Our operations expose us to litigation, environmental and other legal compliance risks. Compliance with laws and regulations can be expensive, and our failure to comply with these laws and regulations may result in monetary damages and fines, adverse publicity and a material adverse effect on our business.
We are subject to a variety of litigation, environmental, health and safety, investment screening and national security laws, and other legal compliance risks. These risks include, among other things, possible liability relating to product liability matters, personal injuries, intellectual property rights, contract-related claims, health and safety liabilities,
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employment-related liabilities, environmental matters, investment screening and national security laws, and compliance with U.S. and foreign laws, competition laws and laws governing improper business practices.
Our operations in the United States are subject to numerous environmental laws and regulations, including federal, state and local laws and regulations relating to, among other things: water; natural resources; discharges; emissions; chemicals; solid and hazardous waste storage, treatment and disposal; remediation of releases of hazardous materials; and contamination. Compliance with these laws can be difficult and costly. For example, battery life cycle management regulations and regulations governing the transport of batteries may impose substantial requirements on our operations in the United States. Our operations may be required to obtain and comply with environmental permits, many of which may be difficult and expensive to obtain and must be renewed on a periodic basis. A failure to comply with these laws, regulations or permits could result in substantial liabilities, including fines, penalties, the suspension or loss of permits, and possibly orders to cease the non-compliant operations. Our manufacturing process will have hazards such as, but not limited to, hazardous materials, machines with moving parts, and high voltage and/or high current electrical systems typical of large manufacturing equipment and related safety incidents. There may be safety incidents that damage machinery or manufacturing components, slow or stop production, or harm employees. Consequences may include litigation, regulation, fines, increased insurance premiums, mandates to temporarily halt production, workers’ compensation claims, or other actions that impact our brand, finances or ability to operate.
As a business with international reach, we are subject to complex laws and regulations, including investment screening laws, in jurisdictions in which we operate. Those laws and regulations may be interpreted in different ways. They may also change from time to time, as may related interpretations and other guidance. Changes in laws or regulations could result in higher expenses and payments, and uncertainty relating to laws or regulations may also affect how we conduct our operations and structure our investments and could limit our ability to enforce our rights.
Changes in environmental and climate laws or regulations, including laws relating to greenhouse gas emissions, could lead to new or additional investment in manufacturing designs, subject us to additional costs and restrictions, including increased energy and raw materials costs, and could increase environmental compliance expenditures. We are subject to various environmental laws and regulations on air emission, wastewater discharge, solid waste, noise and the disposal of hazardous materials. Cobalt and lithium are toxic materials that are important raw materials in our batteries. We also use, generate and discharge other toxic, volatile and hazardous chemicals and wastes in our research, development and manufacturing activities. Under U.S. environmental regulations, we are required to maintain the pollutant emission levels at the facility within the levels prescribed by the relevant governmental authorities and obtain a pollution discharge permit for water and air emissions. Future changes to environmental laws or permit requirements could require us to install new control equipment or otherwise change operations in order to comply with any such change in laws or permit requirements. In addition, certain laws and regulations require enterprises like us that generate hazardous wastes to engage companies which are licensed and qualified to process the hazardous wastes, and to collect, store, dispose of and transfer the hazardous waste.
If we fail to comply with national and local environmental protection laws and regulations, the relevant governmental authorities may impose fines or deadlines to cure instances of noncompliance, and may even order us to cease operations if we fail to comply with their requirements. In particular, any breach by us in connection with requirements relating to the handling of hazardous wastes may subject us to monetary damages and fines. In addition, if any third party suffers any loss as a result of our pollutant emission practices, our improper handling of hazardous wastes or our noncompliance with environmental regulations, such third parties may seek damages from us.
We cannot assure that we will be able to comply with all environmental laws and regulations at all times as the environmental legal regime is evolving and becoming more stringent. Therefore, if these or other governments where we do business impose more stringent regulations in the future, we will have to incur additional substantial costs and expenses in order to comply with new regulations, which may negatively affect our results of operations. If we fail to comply with any of the present or future environmental regulations in any material aspect or cause any loss to any third parties due to our pollutant emission practices, improper handling of hazardous wastes or other environmental noncompliance, we may suffer from negative publicity and may be required to pay substantial fines, pay damages to such third parties, or suspend or even cease operations, all of which may materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects. Environmental laws and regulations may become more stringent in the future, which could increase costs of compliance or require us to manufacture with alternative technologies and materials.
We may be subject to review and enforcement actions under domestic and foreign laws that screen investments and to other national-security-related laws and regulations. In certain jurisdictions, these legal and regulatory requirements may be more stringent than in the United States and may impact battery companies more specifically. As a result of these laws
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and regulations, investments by particular investors may need to be filed with local regulators, which in turn may impose added costs on our business, impact our operations, and/or limit our ability to engage in strategic transactions that might otherwise be beneficial to us and our investors.
We are subject to a variety of laws and regulations related to the safety and transportation of our batteries. Our failure to comply with these laws and regulations may have a material adverse effect on our business and results of operations.
Many federal, state and local authorities require certification by Underwriters Laboratory, Inc., an independent, not-for-profit corporation engaged in the testing of products for compliance with certain public safety standards, or other safety regulation certification prior to marketing battery cells. Foreign jurisdictions also have regulatory authorities overseeing the safety of consumer products. Our batteries may not meet the specifications required by these authorities. A determination that any of our battery products are not in compliance with these rules and regulations could result in the imposition of fines or an award of damages to private litigants.
In addition, lithium batteries have been identified as a Class 9 dangerous good during transport. To be safely transported (by air, sea, rail or roadways), they must meet various international, national, state and local regulations, including, for example, the provisions laid out in United Nations standard UN 38.3. This standard applies to batteries transported either on their own or installed in a device. UN 38.3 has been adopted by regulators and competent authorities around the world, thus making it a requirement for global market access. Our failure to manage the transportation of our batteries could subject us to increased costs or future liabilities.
Failure to comply with certain health and production safety laws and regulations governing hazardous materials could materially adversely affect our business and results of operations.
In the sourcing of our battery products throughout the world, we process, store, dispose of and otherwise use large amounts of hazardous materials. As a result, we are subject to extensive and evolving health and production safety laws and regulations governing, among other things: the health of our employees and safety production requirements regarding the generation, handling, storage, use and transportation of hazardous materials. Compliance with these laws and regulations results in ongoing costs. Failure to comply with these laws or regulations, or to obtain or comply with the relevant permits, could result in fines, criminal charges or other sanctions by regulators. Furthermore, we may be ordered to rectify a noncompliance within a stipulated deadline; and if we fail to do so, we may be ordered to cease operations. Our ongoing compliance with health and safety laws, regulations and permits could require us to incur significant expenses, limit our ability to modify or expand our facilities or continue manufacturing and make other capital improvements. In addition, private parties, including current or former employees, could bring personal injury or other claims against us due to the presence of, or exposure to, hazardous substances used, stored or disposed of by us or contained in our batteries.
We are or will be subject to anti-corruption and anti-bribery and anti-money laundering and similar laws, and non-compliance with such laws can subject us to administrative, civil and criminal fines and penalties, collateral consequences, remedial measures and legal expenses, all of which could adversely affect our business, results of operations, financial condition and reputation.
We are subject to the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (the “FCPA”), the U.S. domestic bribery statute contained in 18 U.S.C. § 201, the U.S. Travel Act, and possibly other anti-bribery and anti-corruption laws and anti-money laundering laws in various jurisdictions in which we conduct, or in the future may conduct, activities. Anti-corruption and anti-bribery laws have been enforced aggressively in recent years and are interpreted broadly to generally prohibit us and our officers, directors, employees, business partners, agents, representatives and third party intermediaries from corruptly offering, promising, authorizing or providing, directly or indirectly anything of value to recipients in the public or private sector.
We may leverage third parties to sell our battery products and conduct our business abroad. We, our officers, directors, employees, business partners, agents, representatives and third party intermediaries may have direct or indirect interactions with officials and employees of government agencies or state-owned or affiliated entities and we may be held liable for the corrupt or other illegal activities of these employees, agents, representatives, business partners or third party intermediaries even if we do not explicitly authorize such activities. We cannot assure you that all of our officers, directors, employees, business partners, agents, representatives and third party intermediaries will not take actions in violation of applicable law, for which we may be ultimately held responsible. As our international activities and sales expand, our risks under these laws may increase.
These laws also require companies to make and keep books, records and accounts that accurately reflect transactions and dispositions of assets and to maintain a system of adequate internal accounting controls and compliance procedures designed to prevent any such actions. While we have certain policies and procedures to address compliance with such laws,
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we cannot assure you that none of our officers, directors, employees, business partners, agents, representatives and third party intermediaries will take actions in violation of our policies and applicable law, for which we may be ultimately held responsible.
Any allegations or violation of the FCPA or other applicable anti-bribery and anti-corruption laws and anti-money laundering laws could subject us to whistleblower complaints, adverse media coverage, investigations, settlements, prosecutions, enforcement actions, fines, damages, loss of export privileges, and severe administrative, civil and criminal sanctions, suspension or debarment from government contracts, collateral consequences, remedial measures and legal expenses, all of which could materially and adversely affect our reputation, business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects. Responding to any investigation or action will likely result in a materially significant diversion of management’s attention and resources and significant defense costs and other professional fees.
We are subject to governmental export and import controls that could impair our ability to compete in international markets or subject us to liability if we violate these controls.
Our battery products may be subject to U.S. export control laws and regulations including the Export Administration Regulations, the International Traffic in Arms Regulations, and trade and economic sanctions maintained by the Office of Foreign Assets Control. As such, an export license is required to export, reexport, or transfer certain battery products to certain countries, end-users, and end-uses. If we were to fail to comply with such U.S. export controls laws and regulations, U.S. economic sanctions, or other similar laws, we could be subject to both civil and criminal penalties, including substantial fines, possible incarceration for employees and managers for willful violations, and the possible loss of our export or import privileges. Obtaining the necessary export license for a particular sale or offering may not be possible and may be time-consuming and may result in the delay or loss of sales opportunities. Furthermore, U.S. export control laws and economic sanctions prohibit the export of products to certain U.S. embargoed or sanctioned countries, governments, and persons, as well as for prohibited end-uses. Even though we take precautions to ensure that we and our partners comply with all relevant export control laws and regulations, any failure by us or our partners to comply with such laws and regulations could have negative consequences for us, including reputational harm, government investigations and penalties.
Changes in our battery products or changes in export and import regulations in such countries may create delays in the introduction of our products into international markets, prevent our end-customers with international operations from deploying our battery products globally or, in some cases, prevent or delay the export or import of our battery products to certain countries, governments or persons altogether. Any change in export or import laws or regulations, economic sanctions or related legislation, shift in the enforcement or scope of existing export, import or sanctions laws or regulations, or change in the countries, governments, persons, or technologies targeted by such export, import or sanctions laws or regulations, could result in decreased use of our battery products by, or in our decreased ability to export or sell our battery products to, existing or potential end-customers with international operations. Any decreased use of our battery products or limitation on our ability to export to or sell our battery products in international markets could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
We may be subject to U.S. foreign investment regulations which may impose conditions on or limit certain investors’ ability to purchase our stock, potentially making the stock less attractive to investors. Our future investments in U.S. companies may also be subject to U.S. foreign investment regulations.
Certain investments that involve the acquisition of, or investment in, a U.S. business by a non-U.S. investor may be subject to review and approval by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (“CFIUS”). Whether CFIUS has jurisdiction to review an acquisition or investment transaction depends on, among other factors, the nature and structure of the transaction, including the level of beneficial ownership interest and the nature of any information or governance rights involved. For example, investments that result in “control” of a U.S. business by a foreign person always are subject to CFIUS jurisdiction. Significant CFIUS reform legislation, which was fully implemented through regulations that became effective on February 13, 2020, expanded the scope of CFIUS’s jurisdiction to investments that do not result in control of a U.S. business by a foreign person but afford certain foreign investors certain information or governance rights in a U.S. business that has a nexus to “critical technologies,” “critical infrastructure” and/or “sensitive personal data.” Based on its export control classification, some of our battery technology is considered a “critical technology.”
CFIUS could choose to review past or proposed transactions involving us or new or existing foreign investors in us even if a filing with CFIUS is or was not required at the time of the transaction. Any review and approval of an investment or transaction by CFIUS may have outsized impacts on transaction certainty, timing, feasibility, and cost, among other things. CFIUS policies and practices are rapidly evolving, and in the event that CFIUS reviews one or more proposed or existing transactions involving us, there can be no assurances that the transaction parties will be able to maintain, or
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proceed with, such transactions on terms acceptable to them. For example, CFIUS could seek to impose limitations or restrictions on, or prohibit, investments by such investors (including, but not limited to, limits on purchasing our stock, limits on information sharing with such investors, requiring a voting trust, governance modifications, or forced divestiture, among other things).
Recent and potential tariffs imposed by the United States government or a global trade war could increase the cost of our products, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
The United States government has and continues to make significant changes in United States trade policy and has taken certain actions that could negatively impact trade, including imposing tariffs on certain goods imported into the United States. More specifically, the United States government has imposed or threatened to impose significant tariffs on certain product categories imported from China and other nations. These countries have taken or have threatened to take retaliatory actions, including imposing additional tariffs on their importation of a wide range of products from the United States, which could lead to adverse impacts to global trade. Such tariffs imposed by the United States, if expanded to other categories, could have a significant impact on our business, particularly the importation of parts of our batteries and certain production equipment that are manufactured in China. If we attempt to renegotiate prices with suppliers or diversify our supply chain in response to tariffs, such efforts may not yield immediate results or may be ineffective. We might also consider increasing prices to the end consumer; however, this could reduce the competitiveness of our products and adversely affect net sales. If we fail to manage these dynamics successfully, gross margins and profitability could be adversely affected. As of December 31, 2024, tariffs have not had a material impact on our business, but increased tariffs or trade restrictions implemented by the United States or other countries could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. We cannot predict what actions may ultimately be taken with respect to tariffs or trade relations between the United States, China, or other countries, what products may be subject to such actions, or what actions may be taken by the other countries in retaliation. Any further deterioration in the relations between the United States, China, or other countries could exacerbate these actions and other governmental intervention.
In June 2022, the import restrictions contained in the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (“UFLPA”) became effective. The UFLPA creates a rebuttable presumption that any goods mined, produced or manufactured, wholly or in part in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (“XUAR”) of China, or produced by a listed entity, were made with forced labor and are not entitled to entry into the United States. If a shipment is detained, importers are required to present clear and convincing evidence that such goods are not made with forced labor. While we do not source goods from the XUAR or from listed parties, because we import from China, there is risk that our ability to import components and products may be adversely affected by the UFLPA.
The U.S. or foreign governments may take additional administrative, legislative, or regulatory action that could materially interfere with our ability to source from or sell products in certain countries. Sustained uncertainty about, or worsening of, current global economic conditions and further escalation of trade tensions between the United States and its trading partners, especially China, could result in a global economic slowdown and long-term changes to global trade, including retaliatory trade restrictions that restrict our ability to operate in China. Any alterations to our business strategy or operations made in order to adapt to or comply with any such changes would be time-consuming and expensive, and certain of our competitors may be better suited to withstand or react to these changes.
Our reliance on suppliers in foreign countries, including China, subjects us to risks and uncertainties relating to foreign laws and regulations and changes in relations between the United States and such foreign countries.
Our battery materials are sourced primarily from China and we rely on contract manufacturing partners from China for our SiCore batteries. Under its current leadership, the government of China has been pursuing economic reform policies, including by encouraging foreign trade and investment. However, there is no assurance that the Chinese government will continue to pursue such policies, that such policies will be successfully implemented, that such policies will not be significantly altered, or that such policies will be beneficial to our partners in China.
China’s regulations affecting the exporting of battery materials and batteries can be unpredictable. China has implemented significant restrictions on the export of graphite, a key material for traditional lithium-ion batteries. We cannot predict if China will expand such exporting restrictions to other battery materials or to any finished products. Although our battery materials are generally available from multiple suppliers, China is the predominant producer of certain of these materials. If China were to restrict or stop exporting these materials, our ability to obtain such supply may be constrained and we may be unable to obtain sufficient quantities, or obtain supply in a timely manner, or at a commercially reasonable cost, or our contract manufacturers may be unable to export finished batteries that incorporate these materials to us. Constrained supply of battery materials may restrict our ability to manufacture certain of our products
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and make it difficult or impossible to compete with other battery companies who are able to obtain sufficient quantities of materials from China or other countries. Additionally, China may restrict or prohibit exports of batteries made in China or that utilize technology from China, including our SiCore batteries. If China were to restrict or stop exporting key materials and/or finished batteries, including our SiCore batteries, we may not be able to fulfill customers’ orders or we may incur losses when trying to meet our obligations, which may result in our customers seeking alternative batteries, and in turn, we could lose customers and face reputational harm or penalties.
Any regulatory changes and changes in United States and China relations, or changes in relations with the United States and any other country where we may source battery materials or batteries in the future, may have a material adverse effect on our partners in China and other such countries which could adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.
From time to time, we may be involved in legal proceedings and commercial or contractual disputes, which could have an adverse impact on our profitability and financial position.
We may be involved in legal proceedings and commercial or contractual disputes that, from time to time, are significant. These are typically claims that arise in the normal course of business including, without limitation, commercial or contractual disputes, including warranty claims and other disputes with potential customers and suppliers, intellectual property matters, personal injury claims, environmental issues, tax matters and employment matters.
Furthermore, our predecessor, Kensington, was a special purpose acquisition company (“SPAC”). SPACs have been subject to increased regulatory oversight and scrutiny, including from the SEC. Any governmental or regulatory investigation or inquiry related to our business combination with Kensington on September 14, 2022 or otherwise could have a material adverse effect on our business and negatively affect our reputation.
It is difficult to predict the outcome or ultimate financial exposure, if any, represented by these matters, and there can be no assurance that any such exposure will not be material. Such claims may also negatively affect our reputation.
Risks Related to Ownership of Our Common Stock
There can be no assurance that we will be able to comply with the continued listing standards of the NYSE.
On November 1, 2024, we were notified by the NYSE that we regained compliance with the Section 802.01C of the NYSE Listed Company Manual (the “Listing Rule”), following notification by the NYSE on September 19, 2024 that we were not in compliance with the Listing Rule, because the average closing stock price of a share of our common stock was less than $1.00 per share over a consecutive 30 trading-day period. Pursuant to the Listing Rule, we had six months following the NYSE notification to regain compliance with the Listing Rule, during which time our common stock will continue to be listed on the NYSE.
However, if we receive a subsequent notification from the NYSE regarding noncompliance with the Listing Rule and we do not regain compliance with the Listing Rule within six months of receipt of the NYSE notification, or we are otherwise unable to comply with the NYSE continued listing requirements, our securities may be delisted. If the NYSE delists our securities from trading on its exchange and we are not able to list our securities on another national securities exchange, we expect our securities could be quoted on an over-the-counter market. If this were to occur, we could face significant material adverse consequences, including:
•a limited availability of market quotations for our securities;
•reduced liquidity for our securities;
•determination that our common stock is a “penny stock,” which will require brokers trading in our common stock to adhere to more stringent rules and possibly result in a reduced level of trading activity in the secondary trading market for our securities;
•the incurrence of additional costs under state blue sky laws in connection with any sales of our securities;
•a limited amount of news and analyst coverage; and
•a decreased ability to issue additional securities or obtain additional financing in the future.
Anti-takeover provisions in our certificate of incorporation, bylaws and Delaware law could make an acquisition of us more difficult, limit attempts by stockholders to replace or remove our management and limit the market price of our common stock.
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Our certificate of incorporation (the “Certificate of Incorporation”), amended and restated bylaws (the “Bylaws”) and Delaware law contain provisions that could have the effect of rendering more difficult, delaying or preventing an acquisition deemed undesirable by our board of directors. These provisions include:
•authorizing “blank check” preferred stock, which could be issued by our board of directors without stockholder approval and may contain voting, liquidation, dividend and other rights superior to our common stock;
•limiting the liability of, and providing indemnification to, our directors and officers;
•prohibiting cumulative voting in the election of directors;
•providing that vacancies on our board of directors may be filled only by majority of directors then in office of the board of directors, even though less than a quorum;
•prohibiting the ability of our stockholders to call special meetings;
•establishing an advance notice procedure for stockholder proposals to be brought before an annual meeting, including proposed nominations of persons for election to the board of directors;
•dividing directorships of our board of directors into three classes, each to be elected for a term of three years, so that only one class of directorships is up for election at each annual meeting of the stockholders; and
•specifying that special meetings of our stockholders can be called only by a majority of the board of directors, the chair of the board of directors, or our CEO.
These provisions may frustrate or prevent any attempts by stockholders to replace or remove our current management by making it more difficult for stockholders to replace members of our board of directors, which is responsible for appointing the members of our management. In addition, because we are incorporated in Delaware, it is governed by the provisions of Section 203 of the Delaware General Corporation Law (“DGCL”), which generally prohibits a Delaware corporation from engaging in any of a broad range of business combinations with any “interested” stockholder for a period of three years following the date on which the stockholder became an “interested” stockholder.
Our Bylaws provide, subject to limited exceptions, that the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware and the federal district courts of the United States will be the sole and exclusive forum for certain stockholder litigation matters, which could limit our stockholders’ ability to obtain a chosen judicial forum for disputes with us or our directors, officers, employees or stockholders.
Our Bylaws provide that, unless otherwise consented to by us in writing, the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware (or, if the Court of Chancery does not have jurisdiction, another State court in Delaware or the federal district court for the District of Delaware) shall, to the fullest extent permitted by law, be the sole and exclusive forum for the following types of actions or proceedings: (i) any derivative action or proceeding brought on behalf of us; (ii) any action asserting a claim of breach of a fiduciary duty owed by, or otherwise wrongdoing by, any of our directors, officers, or other employees to us or our stockholders; (iii) any action arising pursuant to any provision of the DGCL or our Certificate of Incorporation or our Bylaws; (iv) any action to interpret, apply, enforce or determine the validity of our Certificate of Incorporation or our Bylaws; or (v) any other action asserting a claim that is governed by the internal affairs doctrine, in all cases subject to the court having jurisdiction over indispensable parties named as defendants. This provision would not apply to suits brought to enforce a duty or liability created by the Exchange Act or any other claim for which the U.S. federal courts have exclusive jurisdiction. The Bylaws further provide that, unless otherwise consented to by us in writing, the federal district courts of the United States will be the sole and exclusive forum for the resolution of any complaint asserting a cause of action arising under the Securities Act.
Any person or entity purchasing or otherwise acquiring any interest in our securities shall be deemed to have notice of and consented to this provision. This choice of forum provision may limit a stockholder’s ability to bring a claim in a judicial forum of its choosing for disputes with us or any of our directors, officers, other employees or stockholders, which may discourage lawsuits with respect to such claims. There is uncertainty as to whether a court would enforce such provisions, and the enforceability of similar choice of forum provisions in other companies’ charter documents has been challenged in legal proceedings. It is possible that a court could find these types of provisions to be inapplicable or unenforceable, and if a court were to find the choice of forum provision contained in the Bylaws to be inapplicable or unenforceable in an action, we may incur additional costs associated with resolving such action in other jurisdictions, which could harm our business, operating results and financial condition.
Concentration of ownership among our executive officers, directors and affiliates may prevent new investors from influencing significant corporate decisions.
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As of December 31, 2024, our executive officers and directors as a group beneficially own approximately 12.9% of our outstanding common stock. These stockholders are able to exercise a significant level of control over all matters requiring stockholder approval, including the election of directors, any amendment of the Certificate of Incorporation and approval of significant corporate transactions. This control could have the effect of delaying or preventing a change of control or changes in our management and will make the approval of certain transactions difficult or impossible without the support of these stockholders and of their votes.
We incurred and may continue to incur significant expenses and administrative burdens as result of operating as a public company, which could have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
As a public company, we incurred and may continue to incur significant amounts of legal, accounting, insurance, other administrative expenses and other costs. The Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (the “Sarbanes-Oxley Act”), including the requirements of Section 404, as well as rules and regulations subsequently implemented by the SEC, the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010 and the rules and regulations promulgated and to be promulgated thereunder, the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board and the securities exchanges imposed and may impose additional reporting and other obligations on public companies. The development and implementation of any additional work to comply with those or other requirements imposed on public companies may result in an increase in our operating costs. For example, we may expand our employee base to support our operations as a public company, which may increase our operating costs in future periods. In addition, if we encounter any issues in complying with those requirements, such as if we identify a material weakness or significant deficiency on our internal controls over financial reporting, we may incur additional costs to remediate those issues. Moreover, the existence of those issues could adversely affect our reputation or our investors’ perceptions of us. The additional reporting and other obligations imposed by these rules and regulations have and will continue to increase legal and financial compliance costs of related legal, accounting and administrative expenses. These increased costs will require us to use our funds that could otherwise be used for our research and development programs and to achieve our strategic objectives. Advocacy efforts by stockholders and third parties may also prompt additional changes in governance and reporting requirements, which could further increase costs.
We do not expect to declare any dividends in the foreseeable future.
We do not anticipate declaring any cash dividends to holders of our common stock in the foreseeable future. Consequently, investors may need to rely on sales of their shares after price appreciation, which may never occur, as the only way to realize any future gains on their investment.
If securities or industry analysts do not publish or cease publishing research or reports about us, our business, or our market, or if they change their recommendations regarding our securities adversely, the price and trading volume of our securities could decline.
The trading market for our securities will be influenced by the research and reports that industry or securities analysts may publish about us, our business, market or competitors. If any of the analysts who may cover us change their recommendation regarding our common stock adversely, or provide more favorable relative recommendations about our competitors, the price of our common stock and warrants would likely decline. If any analyst who may cover us were to cease coverage of us or fail to regularly publish reports on us, we could lose visibility in the financial markets, which in turn could cause our stock price or trading volume to decline.
We qualify as an “emerging growth company” and a “smaller reporting company” within the meaning of the Securities Act, and if we take advantage of certain exemptions from disclosure requirements available to emerging growth companies or smaller reporting companies, this could make our securities less attractive to investors and may make it more difficult to compare our performance with other public companies.
We qualify as an “emerging growth company” as defined in Section 2(a)(19) of the Securities Act, as modified by the Jumpstart Our Business Startups (the “JOBS Act”). As such, we are eligible for and intend to take advantage of certain exemptions from various reporting requirements applicable to other public companies that are not emerging growth companies for as long as we continue to be an emerging growth company, including (i) the exemption from the auditor attestation requirements with respect to internal control over financial reporting under Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, (ii) the exemptions from say-on-pay, say-on-frequency and say-on-golden parachute voting requirements and (iii) reduced disclosure obligations regarding executive compensation in our periodic reports and proxy statements. As a result, our stockholders may not have access to certain information they may deem important. We will remain an emerging growth company until the earliest of (i) the last day of the fiscal year in which the market value of our common stock that are held by non-affiliates exceeds $700.0 million as of June 30 of that fiscal year, (ii) the last day of the fiscal year in which we have total annual gross revenue of $1.235 billion or more during such fiscal year (as indexed for inflation), (iii) the date
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on which we have issued more than $1.0 billion in non-convertible debt in the prior three-year period or (iv) December 31, 2027. In addition, Section 107 of the JOBS Act also provides that an emerging growth company can take advantage of the exemption from complying with new or revised accounting standards provided in Section 7(a)(2)(B) of the Securities Act as long as we are an emerging growth company. An emerging growth company can therefore delay the adoption of certain accounting standards until those standards would otherwise apply to private companies. We have elected not to opt out of such extended transition period and, therefore, we may not be subject to the same new or revised accounting standards as other public companies that are not emerging growth companies. Investors may find our common stock less attractive because we rely on these exemptions, which may result in a less active trading market for our common stock and its price may be more volatile.
Additionally, we qualify as a “smaller reporting company” as defined in Item 10(f)(1) of Regulation S-K. Smaller reporting companies may take advantage of certain reduced disclosure obligations, including, among other things, providing only two years of audited financial statements. We expect to remain a smaller reporting company until the last day of the fiscal year in which (i) the market value of our common stock held by non-affiliates exceeds $250.0 million as of the prior June 30, or (ii) our annual revenues exceeded $100.0 million during such completed fiscal year and the market value of our common stock held by non-affiliates exceeds $700.0 million as of the prior June 30. To the extent we take advantage of such reduced disclosure obligations, comparison of our financial statements with other public companies may be difficult or impossible.
Sales of substantial amounts of our common stock in the public markets, or the perception that such sales could occur, could cause the market price of our common stock to drop significantly, even if our business is doing well.
Sales of a substantial number of shares of our securities in the public market could occur at any time. For example, we filed a resale registration in September 2022 that covered at initial effectiveness the resale of up to 105,680,194 shares of our common stock (assuming the exercise in full of all of the warrants registered thereunder), as well as the shares underlying the remainder of our public warrants, and we have and we may from time to time take additional actions to register offerings of currently outstanding or newly issued shares of our common stock.
These sales and any future sales of a substantial number of shares of our securities in the public market or the perception in the market that the holders of a large number of shares intend to sell shares, could reduce the market price of our securities. Despite such a decline in the public trading price, certain securityholders may still experience a positive rate of return on the securities they purchased due to the lower price that they purchased their shares compared to other public investors and be incentivized to sell securities when others are not.
Additionally, we have filed registration statements to register the following:
i. Shares reserved for future issuance, including shares issuable upon vesting of the outstanding restricted stock units, under the Amprius Technologies, Inc. 2022 Equity Incentive Plan, which totaled 17,716,822 shares as of December 31, 2024;
ii. Shares reserved for future issuance under the Amprius Technologies, Inc. 2022 Employee Stock Purchase Plan, which totaled 2,724,333 shares as of December 31, 2024;
iii. Shares issuable upon exercise of the options outstanding under the Amprius Technologies, Inc. 2016 Equity Incentive Plan, which totaled 11,017,298 shares as of December 31, 2024; and
iv. Shares issuable upon exercise of the options outstanding under the Amprius Holdings 2008 Stock Plan and the Amprius Holdings Second Equity Incentive Plan, which totaled 7,003,043 shares as of December 31, 2024.
Subject to applicable securities laws and the satisfaction of any vesting restriction, the shares issued thereunder will be available for immediate resale in the public market.
Further, we have filed a prospectus supplement relating to our offering and sale of up to $100.0 million of shares of our common stock under the Sales Agreement. The purchase price for the shares that we may sell to the Sales Agents in the At Market Financing will fluctuate based on the price of our common stock. Depending on market liquidity at the time, sales of such shares may cause the trading price of our common stock to fall. If and when we do sell shares to the Sales Agents, they may resell the shares subject to the terms and conditions of the Sales Agreement. Therefore, sales to the Sales Agents made by us could result in substantial dilution to the interests of other holders of our common stock. Additionally, the sale of a substantial number of shares of our common stock to the Sales Agents, or the anticipation of such sales, could make it more difficult for us to sell equity or equity-related securities in the future at a time and at a price that we might otherwise wish to effect sales.
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We may issue additional shares of common stock under an employee incentive plan (including the 2022 Equity Incentive Plan and the Employee Stock Purchase Plan), or may issue preferred stock. Any such issuances would dilute the interest of our stockholders and likely present other risks.
We may issue a substantial number of additional shares of common stock under our employee incentive plan (including the 2022 Equity Incentive Plan and the Employee Stock Purchase Plan) or we may issue preferred stock. The issuance of additional securities:
•may significantly dilute the equity interests of our investors;
•may subordinate the rights of our stockholders if preferred stock is issued with rights senior to those afforded our common stock;
•could cause a change in control if a substantial number of securities are issued, which may affect, among other things, our ability to use our net operating loss carry forwards, if any, and could result in the resignation or removal of our present officers and directors; and
•may adversely affect prevailing market prices for our common stock and/or warrants.
Risks Related to Our Warrants
There is no guarantee that our warrants will be in the money, and they may expire worthless.
On May 13, 2024, we offered the holders of our public and private warrants the opportunity to exercise their warrants for cash at a temporarily reduced exercise price of $1.10 per share. This cash tender offer expired on June 11, 2024. Subsequent to the expiration of such cash tender offer, on June 24, 2024, we made a separate tender offer to the holders of the unexercised private warrants an opportunity to exchange their warrants for shares of our common stock based on an exchange ratio of 0.197 as approved by the board of directors. Such exchange offer expired on July 23, 2024. The exercise price of our outstanding private warrants and public warrants is $11.50 per share. The exercise price of our warrants issued as part of units in a private placement (the “PIPE warrants”) is $12.50 per share.
We do not currently have any plan of additional arrangements for our outstanding private warrants, public warrants and PIPE warrants. The likelihood that warrant holders will exercise the warrants and any cash proceeds that we would receive is dependent upon the market price of our common stock. If the market price for our common stock is less than $11.50 per share, in the case of our private warrants and public warrants, or $12.50 per share, in the case of our PIPE warrants, we believe warrant holders will be unlikely to exercise their warrants. There is no guarantee that the warrants will be in the money prior to their expiration, and as such, the warrants may expire worthless.
We may redeem unexpired public warrants prior to their exercise at a time that is disadvantageous to the warrant holders, thereby making the public warrants worthless.
We have the ability to redeem outstanding public warrants or PIPE warrants at any time prior to their expiration, at a price of $0.01 per warrant, provided that the last reported sales price of our common stock equals or exceeds $18.00 per share (as may be adjusted), in the case of the public warrants, or $20.00 per share (as may be adjusted), in the case of the PIPE warrants, for any 20 trading days within a 30-trading day period ending on the third trading day prior to the date on which we send the notice of redemption to public warrant or PIPE warrant holders and provided certain other conditions are met. If and when the public warrants or PIPE warrants become redeemable by us, we may exercise our redemption right even if we are unable to register or qualify the underlying securities for sale under all applicable state securities laws. As a result, we may redeem the public warrants or PIPE warrants as set forth above even if the holders are otherwise unable to exercise the public warrants or PIPE warrants. Redemption of the outstanding public warrants or PIPE warrants could force holders (i) to exercise public warrants or PIPE warrants and pay the exercise price therefor at a time when it may be disadvantageous, (ii) to sell public warrants or PIPE warrants at the then-current market price when holders might otherwise wish to hold public warrants or PIPE warrants or (iii) to accept the nominal redemption price that, at the time the outstanding public warrants or PIPE warrants are called for redemption, may be substantially less than the market value of the public warrants or PIPE warrants.
We may amend the terms of the warrants in a manner that may be adverse to holders of warrants with the approval by the holders of at least 50% of the then outstanding warrants. As a result, the exercise price of warrants could be increased, the exercise period could be shortened and the number of shares of common stock purchasable upon exercise of a warrant could be decreased, all without warrant holder approval.
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The public warrants and private warrants were issued in registered form under the respective warrant agreements. The Warrant Agreement, dated as of March 1, 2022 (as amended, the “Warrant Agreement”), by and among us and Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company, provides that the terms of the public warrants and private warrants may be amended without the consent of any holder to cure any ambiguity or correct any defective provision but requires the approval by the holders of at least 50% of the then outstanding public warrants to make any change that adversely affects the interests of the registered holders of public warrants and, solely with respect to any amendment to the terms of the private warrants or any provision of the Warrant Agreement with respect to the private warrants, 50% of the number of the then outstanding private warrants. The Warrant Agreement, dated as of September 14, 2022, by and among us and Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company, provides that the terms of the PIPE warrants may be amended without the consent of any holder to cure any ambiguity or correct any defective provision but requires the approval by the holders of at least 50% of the then outstanding PIPE warrants to make any change that adversely affects the interests of the registered holders of PIPE warrants. Accordingly, we may amend the terms of the warrants in a manner adverse to a holder if holders of at least 50% of such then-outstanding warrants approve of such amendment. Although our ability to amend the terms of the warrants with the consent of at least 50% of such then-outstanding warrants is unlimited, examples of such amendments could be amendments to, among other things, increase the exercise price of the warrants, convert the warrants into cash or shares, shorten the exercise period or decrease the number of shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of a warrant.
The warrants are exercisable for common stock, which would increase the number of shares eligible for future resale in the public market and result in dilution to our stockholders.
As of December 31, 2024, outstanding warrants to purchase an aggregate of 19,045,072 shares of common stock are exercisable in accordance with the terms of the warrant agreement governing those securities. The exercise price of the private warrants and public warrants is $11.50 per share, and the exercise price of the PIPE warrants is $12.50 per share, though we and, in certain cases, the warrant agent have the ability to amend the applicable warrant agreement to reduce the exercise price, including to a price that is below the current trading price for our common stock. To the extent the warrants are exercised, additional shares of common stock will be issued, which will result in dilution to the holders of common stock and increase the number of shares eligible for resale in the public market. Shares of common stock issuable pursuant to the warrants are not subject to lock-up restrictions. As such, once the warrants are exercised, the holder of such shares issuable upon the exercise of the warrants will be able to resell the shares to the market, subject to other applicable laws. Sales of substantial numbers of such shares in the public market or the fact that such warrants may be exercised could adversely affect the market price of our common stock. Further, there is no guarantee that the warrants will ever be in the money prior to their expiration, and as such, such warrants may expire worthless.
Item 1B. Unresolved Staff Comments
None.
Item 1C. Cybersecurity
We recognize the critical importance of maintaining the safety and security of our systems and data and we believe we have a holistic process for assessing, identifying and managing cybersecurity and related risks. In general, we seek to address cybersecurity risks through a comprehensive, cross-functional approach. Our board of directors is actively involved in oversight of our risk management program, and cybersecurity represents an important component of our overall approach to enterprise risk management. Senior management also devotes significant resources to cybersecurity and risk management processes as well as to adapting to the changing cybersecurity landscape and responding to emerging threats in a timely and effective manner.
Risk Management and Strategy
Following these risk assessments, we re-design, implement, and maintain reasonable safeguards to minimize identified risks; reasonably address any identified gaps in existing safeguards; and regularly monitor the effectiveness of our safeguards.
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As part of our overall risk management system, we monitor and test our safeguards and train our employees on these safeguards, in collaboration with human resources, IT, and management. Personnel at all levels and departments are made aware of our cybersecurity policies through trainings and related documentation.
For additional information regarding cybersecurity threats that are reasonably likely to materially affect our company, including our business strategy, results of operations, or financial condition, please refer to the section titled “Risk Factors” above.
Governance
Item 2. Properties
We lease our corporate headquarters and manufacturing facilities, which consisted of the following as of December 31, 2024:
•Approximately 51,000 square feet of leased space located in Fremont, California. This leased property, which we use for our corporate headquarters, research and development, and manufacturing of SiMaxx batteries, expires in June 2027 with an option to extend for an additional 5-year period up to June 2032.
•Approximately 774,000 square feet of leased space located in Brighton, Colorado, which expires in May 2039 with an option to extend for two additional 5-year periods up to May 2049. When we signed the lease agreement in April 2023, we announced a plan to build a GWh-scale manufacturing facility in those premises. As of December 31, 2024, we completed our pre-construction planning for this facility. However, the scope and schedule of the construction of this facility will be determined based on, among other factors, the availability and timing of funding. In addition, we are currently monitoring the larger industry dynamics. Changes in demand,
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supply, battery cost structure, government incentives, trade tariffs, and other considerations may also influence our decision, including whether to proceed with the construction at all.
We believe that our facilities are adequate to meet our needs for the immediate future, and that, should it be needed, suitable additional space will be available to accommodate any such expansion of our operations.
Item 3. Legal Proceedings
From time to time, we may become involved in litigation or other legal proceedings. We are not currently a party to any litigation or legal proceedings that are likely to have a material adverse effect on our business. Regardless of outcome, litigation can have an adverse impact on us because of defense and settlement costs, diversion of management resources and other factors.
Item 4. Mine Safety Disclosures
None
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Part II
Item 5. Market for Registrant’s Common Equity, Related Stockholder Matters and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities
Market Information
Our common stock and public warrants began trading on the NYSE under the symbol “AMPX” and “AMPX.W”, respectively, on September 15, 2022. Prior to that date, there was no public trading market for our common stock and public warrants.
Holders
As of March 13, 2025, there were 127 holders of record of our common stock and 17 holders of record of our public warrants. The actual number of stockholders of our common stock is greater than this number of record holders and includes stockholders who are beneficial owners but whose shares of common stock are held in street name by banks, brokers and other nominees.
Dividends
We have not declared or paid any dividends, or authorized or made any distribution upon or with respect to any class or series of our capital stock. We currently intend to retain all available funds and any future earnings for use in the operation of our business and do not anticipate paying any dividends on our capital stock in the foreseeable future. Any future determination to declare dividends will be made at the discretion of our board of directors, subject to applicable laws, and will depend on our financial condition, operating results, capital requirements, general business conditions and other factors that our board of directors may deem relevant.
Recent Sales of Unregistered Equity Securities
None.
Item 6. Reserved
Not applicable.
Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations
You should read the following discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations together with our audited financial statements and the related notes included elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K. Some of the information contained in this discussion and analysis or set forth elsewhere in this Form 10-K, including information with respect to our plans and strategy for our business and related financing, includes forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. As a result of many factors, including those factors set forth in the sections titled “Risk Factors” and “Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements” in this Form 10-K, our actual results could differ materially from the results described in or implied by the forward-looking statements contained in the following discussion and analysis.
Overview
We develop, manufacture and market lithium-ion batteries for mobility applications, including the aviation, electric vehicle (“EV”) and light electric vehicle (“LEV”) industries. We have been in commercial battery production since 2018 and our disruptive silicon anode technology is intended to enable batteries with higher energy density, higher power density and fast charging capabilities over a wide range of operating temperatures. This results in our batteries providing superior performance compared to conventional graphite lithium-ion batteries. Our silicon anodes are a direct drop-in replacement of the graphite anode in traditional lithium-ion batteries, and our manufacturing processes leverage the manufacturing processes for conventional lithium-ion batteries and the related supply chain.
Currently, our batteries are primarily used for existing and emerging aviation applications, including UAS, such as drones and HAPS. We believe our proprietary technology has the potential for broad application in electric transportation. Our batteries and their performance specifications have been tested and validated for application by various customers, including our longtime partners such as AALTO Airbus, AeroVironment, BAE Systems, Kraus Hamdani Aerospace, Teledyne FLIR and the U.S. Army. Our total customer engagements since inception grew to over 260 with shipments to 235 customers during the year ended December 31, 2024. In addition, from our inception through December 31, 2024, we
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have shipped over 800,000 units of batteries, which have enabled mission critical applications. Our proprietary silicon anode structures, battery cell designs and manufacturing processes are protected by our portfolio of patents, trade secrets and know-how developed over 15 years of research and development.
We currently offer high performance silicon anode batteries under the following product platforms: (i) SiCore and (ii) SiMaxx.
Our SiCore batteries were developed in collaboration with Berzelius. We began limited shipment of SiCore batteries in 2023, which generated a strong demand from our customers. In order to support such demand, we entered into the Exclusive Supply Agreement with Berzelius in November 2023, which gives us exclusive rights to purchase its proprietary silicon anode materials in the United States, Canada and Mexico. In January 2024, we announced the full commercial launch of our SiCore batteries and accelerated engagement with our addressable markets. We entered into manufacturing supply agreements with three global contract manufacturing companies, which provided us an opportunity to rapidly scale production and ship a large volume of SiCore batteries to our customers. As of December 31, 2024, we had access, through our manufacturing supply agreements with our global contract manufacturers, to annual production of up to 800 MWh of SiCore batteries in pouch form and up to 1 GWh of SiCore batteries in cylindrical form.
Our SiMaxx batteries are currently manufactured at our facility in Fremont, California. We believe that the demand for our SiMaxx batteries exceeds our existing kWh-scale manufacturing capacity and, in order to support such demand, we are expanding this facility into a MWh-scale manufacturing facility. The completion of the expansion has been delayed through the first quarter of 2025 due to a delay in our customers’ order commitments. We believe that this facility will be able to manufacture batteries up to 2 MWh capacity annually when our expansion is completed, which is approximately 10 times our existing production capacity.
In April 2023, we entered into a lease agreement to lease approximately 774,000 square feet of premises in Brighton, Colorado and announced a plan to build a GWh-scale manufacturing facility in those premises. As of December 31, 2024, we completed our pre-construction planning for this facility. However, the scope and schedule of the construction of this facility will be determined based on, among other factors, the availability and timing of funding. In addition, we are currently monitoring the larger industry dynamics. Changes in demand, supply, battery cost structure, government incentives, trade tariffs, and other considerations may also influence our decision, including whether to proceed with the construction at all.
Sales Agreement
On October 2, 2023, we entered into the Sales Agreement with the Sales Agents, pursuant to which we may offer and sell, from time to time, through or to any Sales Agent, shares of our common stock with an aggregate offering price of not more than $100.0 million, as described in the prospectus supplement, dated October 10, 2023, filed with the SEC.
During the year ended December 31, 2024 and from the date of the Sales Agreement through December 31, 2024, we sold shares of our common stock under the Sales Agreement resulting in aggregate net proceeds of approximately $33.4 million and $33.8 million, respectively.
Known Trends, Demands, Commitments, Events, or Uncertainties Impacting Our Business
We believe that our performance and future success depends on several factors that present significant opportunities for us but also pose risks and challenges, including those discussed below and in the section titled “Risk Factors.”
Establishing Global Network of Contract Manufacturing Partnerships
As of December 31, 2024, we produce SiCore batteries by leveraging Berzelius’ existing production line and through our manufacturing supply agreements with three global contract manufacturers. In order to meet the increased demand for our SiCore batteries, we plan to expand our global network of contract manufacturing partnerships in the future. Some of the challenges that we may encounter when we enter into a manufacturing supply arrangement include, among others, risk of losing control over the manufacturing process of our SiCore batteries, which could lead to quality control issues, delay in production, increase in production costs, and non-compliance with our established standards. In addition, we may encounter a risk of losing control of some of our intellectual property. While we plan to set up business processes, including adding oversight and quality control procedures, in order to manage our contract manufacturing supply arrangements, there can be no assurance that such processes will be effective. In 2024, we entered into manufacturing supply agreements with three global contract manufacturing companies. As of December 31, 2024, we had access, through our manufacturing supply agreements with our global contract manufacturers, to annual production of up to 800 MWh of
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SiCore batteries in pouch form and up to 1 GWh of SiCore batteries in cylindrical form. In addition, if we partner with other contract manufacturers in the future, we plan to select large, experienced and reputable contract manufacturing companies.
Establishing Manufacturing Capacity
Although, as of December 31, 2024, we had access to annual production of up to 800 MWh of SiCore batteries in pouch form and up to 1 GWh of SiCore batteries in cylindrical form through our existing manufacturing supply agreements with our global contract manufacturers, we believe that expanding our existing manufacturing facility would help us meet the growing demand of our customers. In order to meet the increased demand for our batteries, we are expanding our existing manufacturing capacity in Fremont, California. The completion of the expansion has been delayed through the first quarter of 2025 due to a delay in our customers’ order commitments. We believe that this facility will be able to manufacture batteries up to 2 MWh capacity annually when our expansion is completed, which is approximately 10 times our existing production capacity. We have also announced a plan to build a GWh-scale manufacturing facility in our leased premises in Brighton, Colorado. As of December 31, 2024, we completed our pre-construction planning for this facility. However, the scope and schedule of the construction of this facility will be determined based on, among other factors, the availability and timing of funding. In addition, we are currently monitoring the larger industry dynamics. Changes in demand, supply, battery cost structure, government incentives, trade tariffs, and other considerations may also influence our decision, including whether to proceed with the construction at all.
Achieving capacity at commercial scale of our high energy density lithium-ion batteries may require us to make significant and increasing capital expenditures to scale our manufacturing capacity and improve our supply chain processes. Our ability in the future to generate revenue sufficient to achieve profitability will depend largely on our ability to scale production to meet the expected market demand for our products. Accordingly, the drivers of our future financial results, as well as the components of such results, may not be comparable to our historical results of operations.
Highly Competitive Market
Our competition includes both established manufacturers and new entrants that are developing new battery technologies and chemistries to address the growing market for electrified transportation solutions. We believe the manufacturers of these batteries will continue to invest funds, time and effort to improve the capabilities of their batteries with the recent developments of silicon anode batteries as a potential alternative to conventional graphite batteries. Currently, we believe that we are the only known manufacturer using a 100% silicon anode that is free of any inactive additives. In addition, we believe that we are the leading company in the market that has a high-performance battery that can meet the requirements of aviation and LEV applications. We are not currently producing batteries for EVs. The EV battery industry has a limited number of commercially available batteries that meet the minimum performance specifications. This creates a fast-growing and highly competitive industry for many battery manufacturers to claim market share for commercially acceptable batteries. We believe that there is significant room for improvement in the EV industry in driving range and fast charging capabilities that our silicon technology may address. To compete in the EV industry, we expect that we will need to significantly reduce our manufacturing costs, increase form factors and increase production quantity. One or more of our competitors and potential future entrants may be better capitalized to expand production capacities, have greater resources to commercialize and have greater access to customers in either or both the aviation and EV markets. As such, we may be at a competitive disadvantage and be unable to retain or grow our market share.
We expect to continue investing in the development of battery technology with the goal of enabling commercial production. We continue to develop customized battery solutions and deliver standardized samples (i.e., prototypes) of batteries to industry leading manufacturers as well as to certain federal government agencies. We plan to focus our research and development on the following key areas:
•Improving battery life. To continue to meet the specific needs of our customers and drive adoption of our batteries in new areas of electrified transportation, including the EV space. We are working with chemical compounds as potential additives to the silane gas we use to produce our silicon anodes, which have demonstrated the potential to improve cycle life without negatively impacting other performance characteristics such as energy density.
•Further improvements to energy density. We are engaged in ongoing development activities to explore different cathode materials, including a conversion cathode, to further improve the energy density of our batteries.
•Larger cell form factors. The batteries we have developed and are developing for our customers are typically approximately up to 15Ah for small-sized aircraft. As we expand our customer base, we expect to develop larger form factor batteries for broader electrified transportation applications.
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As a result of these efforts, our goal is to fully realize the benefits of our silicon anode technology and develop the highest performing products in the market.
Regulatory Landscape
We operate in an industry that is subject to many established environmental regulations, which have generally become more stringent over time. As we process, store, dispose of, transport, and use hazardous materials, we are subject to laws and regulations surrounding battery safety and transportation, as well as health and production safety laws and regulations governing hazardous materials. If we fail to comply with existing and future laws and regulations, our business and results of operations could be adversely affected, such as the imposition of fines, litigation, criminal charges, sanctions by regulators, or other liabilities. As future regulatory changes are uncertain, we are unable to measure the impact of such changes on our business and our results of operations.
Global Risks
Abrupt political change, terrorist activity, and armed conflict has had an adverse impact on the global economy and financial markets. Although our business has not been directly impacted by such events, as we have no assets or operations, and we have not purchased materials from Russia, Belarus, Ukraine or the Middle East, it is impossible to predict the extent to which our operations, or those of our customers, suppliers and manufacturers, will be impacted in the short and long term, or the ways in which the conflict may impact our business.
In addition, we face risks related to significant changes in the United States’ trade policy, such as the imposition or plan to impose significant tariffs on certain product categories imported from China and other countries. These countries have taken or plan to take retaliatory actions, including imposing additional tariffs on their importation of a wide range of products from the United States, which could potentially lead to adverse impacts on global trade.
The extent and future outcome of these global risks are highly unpredictable and uncertain and may adversely affect our future financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.
Components of Our Results of Operations
Revenue
We generate revenue from the (i) sale of finished battery products and (ii) arrangements for customization design services. The customization design services generally include designing and developing custom batteries by applying our existing technology into a customer’s required specifications and delivery of prototype batteries. We recognize revenue at the point in time when control is transferred to the customers, which is generally (i) upon shipment, in the case of sale of finished battery products, and (ii) upon completion and/or delivery of prototype batteries, in the case of customization design services. We also receive government grants from time to time, which we present as a component of revenue. We recognize and measure government grants at fair value when there is a reasonable assurance that we will comply with the conditions of the grants and we will receive the grants. We recognize government grants on a systematic basis over the periods in which we recognize as expenses the related costs for which the grants are intended to compensate.
Cost of Revenue
Cost of revenue, which includes the cost of finished goods sold and the cost of customization design services, are comprised primarily of purchase costs of SiCore batteries from Berzelius and our global contract manufacturing partners, costs of raw materials, labor costs, and allocation of overhead costs incurred in producing SiMaxx batteries or in performing the customization design services. Labor costs consist of personnel-related expenses such as salaries, employee benefits and stock-based compensation expense. Overhead and other costs consist primarily of outside services, utilities, rent, depreciation expense and other facilities-related costs. Costs related to batteries and design services are recognized in the same period as the associated revenue is recognized. In addition, we include under cost of revenue certain non-capitalizable expenses incurred during the preliminary stage of our plan to construct a GWh-scale manufacturing facility in Brighton, Colorado, such as re-zoning costs and engineering studies. We expect that our cost of revenue will increase for the foreseeable future as we increase the volume of orders for SiCore batteries and scale our business.
Research and Development (“R&D”) Expenses
R&D expenses consist mainly of personnel-related expenses such as salaries, employee benefits and stock-based compensation expense of our R&D personnel, outside contractors, materials, R&D equipment for which there is no
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alternative future use, and allocation of overhead costs, which include utilities, rent, depreciation expense and other facilities-related costs. Our R&D activities include the conceptual formulation and design of preproduction experimental prototypes and models. R&D expenses are expensed as incurred. We expect that our R&D expenses will increase for the foreseeable future as we continue to invest in activities to develop and enhance product capabilities, as well as build and test battery prototypes to meet the expected market demand.
Selling, General and Administrative (“SG&A”) Expenses
SG&A expenses consist mainly of personnel-related expenses such as salaries, employee benefits and stock-based compensation expense of our executive and administrative employees, as well as fees for professional and advisory services such as legal, accounting and audit. Selling, general and administrative expenses also include corporate insurance expense, including directors’ and officers’ insurance costs, and allocation of overhead costs, which include utilities, rent, depreciation expense and other facilities-related costs. We expect that our selling, general and administrative expenses will increase for the foreseeable future primarily due to costs for compliance-related requirements resulting from being a public company and investment in additional SG&A personnel to support the growth of our business.
Loss on Retirement of Property, Plant and Equipment
Loss on retirement of property, plant during the year ended December 31, 2024 pertained to the retirement of certain equipment that management decided not to use for our operations. In addition, such equipment had no alternative use.
Other Income, Net
Other income, net consists mainly of interest income. Other expense during the year ended December 31, 2023 pertained mainly to a non-recurring loss on write-off of deferred stock issuance costs.
Provision for Income Taxes
Our provision for income tax consists of an estimate for U.S. federal and state income taxes based on enacted rates, as adjusted for allowable credits, deductions, uncertain tax positions, changes in deferred tax assets and liabilities, and changes in tax law. We maintain a valuation allowance against the full value of our U.S. federal and state net deferred tax assets because it is not more likely that our deferred tax assets will be recoverable.
Results of Operations
Comparison of the Year Ended December 31, 2024 to the Year Ended December 31, 2023
The following table summarizes our results of operations during the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023 (amounts in thousands):
| Year ended December 31, | Change | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2024 | 2023 | $ | % | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Revenue | $ | 24,167 | $ | 9,053 | $ | 15,114 | 167 | % | |||||||||||||||
| Cost of revenue | 42,497 | 23,729 | 18,768 | 79 | % | ||||||||||||||||||
| Gross loss | (18,330) | (14,676) | (3,654) | 25 | % | ||||||||||||||||||
| Gross margin | (76) | % | (162) | % | |||||||||||||||||||
| Operating expenses: | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Research and development | 7,344 | 3,677 | 3,667 | 100 | % | ||||||||||||||||||
| Selling, general and administrative | 18,726 | 20,356 | (1,630) | (8) | % | ||||||||||||||||||
| Loss on retirement of property, plant and equipment | 1,862 | — | 1,862 | — | % | ||||||||||||||||||
| Total operating expenses | 27,932 | 24,033 | 3,899 | 16 | % | ||||||||||||||||||
| Loss from operations | (46,262) | (38,709) | (7,553) | 20 | % | ||||||||||||||||||
| Other income, net: | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Interest income and other | 1,591 | 2,514 | (923) | (37) | % | ||||||||||||||||||
| Loss on write-off of deferred stock issuance costs | — | (581) | 581 | (100) | % | ||||||||||||||||||
| Total other income, net | 1,591 | 1,933 | (342) | (18) | % | ||||||||||||||||||
| Net loss | $ | (44,671) | $ | (36,776) | $ | (7,895) | 21 | % | |||||||||||||||
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Cost of revenue and operating expenses reported above include stock-based compensation as follows (amounts in thousands):
| Year ended December 31, | Change | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2024 | 2023 | $ | % | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Cost of revenue | $ | 871 | $ | 865 | $ | 6 | 1 | % | |||||||||||||||
| Research and development expense | 936 | 186 | 750 | 403 | % | ||||||||||||||||||
| Selling, general and administrative expense | 5,536 | 2,829 | 2,707 | 96 | % | ||||||||||||||||||
| Total stock-based compensation | $ | 7,343 | $ | 3,880 | $ | 3,463 | 89 | % | |||||||||||||||
Revenue
Revenue increased by $15.1 million, or 167%, to $24.2 million during the year ended December 31, 2024 from $9.1 million in the prior year. The increase was primarily due to a $17.2 million increase in sales of batteries, including a $14.9 million increase in sales of our SiCore batteries, resulting from an increase in new customers and the overall increase in volume of orders from new and existing customers; and a $0.3 million increase in government grants. The increase in revenue was offset by a $2.4 million decrease in customization design service revenue, which is non-recurring revenue.
Cost of Revenue
Cost of revenue increased by $18.8 million, or 79%, to $42.5 million during the year ended December 31, 2024 from $23.7 million in the prior year. The increase was primarily due to the increase in the volume of purchases for resale of finished SiCore batteries, as well as the increase in costs to produce SiMaxx batteries including increases in personnel-related costs, the cost of materials, and overhead-related costs, primarily shared-facility costs, equipment and utilities.
Research and Development (“R&D”) Expense
R&D expense increased by $3.6 million, or 100%, to $7.3 million during the year ended December 31, 2024 from $3.7 million in the prior year. The increase was primarily due to the increase in R&D headcount, which resulted in the increase in personnel-related costs, including stock-based compensation expense, and increase in overhead-related costs, primarily shared-facility costs, equipment and utility costs.
Selling, General and Administrative (“SG&A”) Expense
SG&A expense decreased by $1.7 million, or 8%, to $18.7 million during the year ended December 31, 2024 from $20.4 million in the prior year. The decrease was primarily due to a $5.3 million decrease in non-recurring professional fees and corporate insurance costs, including a decrease in directors’ and officers’ insurance costs, offset by a $3.6 million increase in personnel-related and other administrative costs, including an increase in stock-based compensation expense, due to the hiring of additional SG&A personnel.
Loss on Retirement of Property, Plant and Equipment
The $1.9 million loss on retirement of property, plant and equipment during the year ended December 31, 2024 pertained to the retirement of certain equipment that management decided not to use for our operations. In addition, such equipment had no alternative use.
Other Income, Net
Other income, net decreased by $0.3 million, or 18%, to $1.6 million during the year ended December 31, 2024 from $1.9 million in the prior year. The net decrease was primarily due to a decrease in interest income, offset by a $0.6 million non-recurring loss on write-off of deferred stock issuance costs in the prior year.
Liquidity and Capital Resources
Sources and Uses of Liquidity
Liquidity describes the ability of a company to generate sufficient cash flows to meet the cash requirements of its business operations, including working capital needs, debt service, acquisitions, contractual obligations and other commitments. We assess liquidity in terms of our cash flows from operations and their sufficiency to fund our operating and investing activities. To meet our obligations, we must continually have sufficient liquid assets.
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During the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, we have financed our operations primarily though revenue generated from operations and proceeds from the issuance of shares of our common stock. We expect to rely on our cash and cash equivalents, which was $55.2 million as of December 31, 2024, and revenue that we expect to generate from operations to meet our working capital and capital expenditure requirements for a period of at least twelve months from the date our financial statements included in this Annual Report on Form 10-K are issued.
As described below, we may receive additional cash if we sell shares of our common stock under the At Market Financing and if our stock warrants are exercised for cash.
Under the At Market Financing, we may receive additional cash from the offering and sale of our shares of our common stock with an aggregate offering price of not more than $100.0 million. From the date of the Sales Agreement through December 31, 2024, the cumulative proceeds from the sales of shares of our common stock under the Sales Agreement totaled $33.8 million. As of December 31, 2024, the remaining cash that we could potentially raise under the At Market Financing was approximately $66.2 million. However, future sales, if any, of shares of common stock under the At Market Financing will depend on a variety of factors to be determined by us from time to time, including, among other things, market conditions, the trading price of our common stock and determinations by us as to appropriate sources of funding for our business and operations. We cannot guarantee the extent to which we may be able to raise funds through the At Market Financing.
We may also receive additional cash from our outstanding stock warrants if those stock warrants are exercised for cash. During the year ended December 31, 2024, we offered the holders of the public and private warrants the opportunity to exercise, for cash, their warrants at a temporarily reduced exercise price of $1.10 per warrant, and we also made a separate tender offer to the holders of private warrants to exchange their warrants, on a cashless basis, for shares of our common stock. The net proceeds from our cash tender offer, which expired on June 11, 2024, totaled $13.6 million. As of December 31, 2024, we had a total of 16,692,572 public warrants, 300,000 private warrants and 2,052,500 PIPE warrants outstanding. The exercise price of our public warrants and private warrants is $11.50 per warrant, and the exercise price of the PIPE warrants is $12.50 per warrant, although we have, and, in certain cases, together with the warrant agent have, the ability to amend the applicable warrant agreement to reduce the exercise price, including to a price that is below the trading price of our common stock at that time. We believe that the likelihood that warrant holders will exercise the warrants and any cash proceeds that we would receive is dependent upon market conditions.
Our ability to become profitable is dependent upon future events, including obtaining adequate financing to fund our business plan, optimizing our manufacturing capacity, obtaining adequate supplier relationships, building our customer base, successfully executing our business and marketing strategy and hiring appropriate personnel.
We have incurred net losses to date. We expect our working capital requirements may increase materially in the near future as we scale our business, which could result in additional net losses. During the year ended December 31, 2024, our net loss was $44.7 million. We expect that the additional net losses in the future could be attributed to an increase in our operating expenses as we increase our headcount and incur costs to continue developing new products and other R&D initiatives.
We also expect that our capital expenditure requirements may increase materially as we continue to expand our kWh-scale manufacturing facility in Fremont, California into a MWh-scale manufacturing facility and as we plan to build a GWh-scale manufacturing facility in Brighton, Colorado. The completion of the expansion of our Fremont, California facility had been delayed through the first quarter of 2025 due to the delay in our customers’ order commitments. As of December 31, 2024, we completed our pre-construction planning to build a GWh-scale manufacturing facility on our leased premises in Brighton, Colorado. However, the scope and schedule of the construction of this facility will be determined based on, among other factors, the availability and timing of funding. In addition, we are currently monitoring the larger industry dynamics. Changes in demand, supply, battery cost structure, government incentives, trade tariffs, and other considerations may also influence our decision, including whether to proceed with the construction at all.
As of December 31, 2024, our contractual obligations consisted primarily of our noncancellable operating lease agreements for our corporate headquarters and manufacturing facilities in Fremont, California and in Brighton, Colorado. As of December 31, 2024, the total future minimum lease payable, net of tenant improvement allowance, over the remaining weighted-average lease term of 13.5 years was approximately $70.0 million. Approximately $3.5 million of which is payable over the next twelve months. Please refer to Note 9 to our consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K for additional information about our leases.
To the extent that our resources are insufficient to satisfy our cash requirements, we may need to seek additional equity or debt financing. If financing is not available, or if the terms of financing are less desirable than we expect, we may
53
be forced to take actions to reduce our capital or operating expenditures, including by reducing or delaying our production capacity expansion, which may adversely affect our business, operating results, financial condition and prospects.
Cash Flows
The following table summarizes our cash flows from operating, investing and financing activities for the periods presented (in thousands):
| Year ended December 31, | Change | ||||||||||||||||
| 2024 | 2023 | $ | |||||||||||||||
| Net cash used in operating activities | $ | (33,352) | $ | (25,553) | $ | (7,799) | |||||||||||
| Net cash used in investing activities | $ | (3,207) | $ | (17,550) | $ | 14,343 | |||||||||||
| Net cash provided by financing activities | $ | 47,153 | $ | 19,168 | $ | 27,985 | |||||||||||
Net Cash Used in Operating Activities
Our primary source of cash provided by operations is revenue from the sale of batteries and from non-recurring customization design services. Our uses of cash in our operating activities primarily include payments for personnel-related costs, procurement of SiCore batteries, procurement of materials used to produce SiMaxx batteries and to conduct research, as well as professional fees, and other general corporate expenses.
Net cash used in operating activities increased to $33.4 million during the year ended December 31, 2024 from $25.6 million during the year ended December 31, 2023 primarily due to the increase in the volume of purchases for resale of finished SiCore batteries and personnel-related costs as we hired additional employees.
Net Cash Used in Investing Activities
Our primary use of cash in investing activities is for purchases of property, plant and equipment.
Net cash used in investing activities decreased to $3.2 million during the year ended December 31, 2024 from $17.6 million during the year ended December 31, 2023 primarily due the timing of the construction of leasehold improvements in our manufacturing facilities and the timing of purchases of other production equipment in connection with our planned expansion as well as a $4.2 million refund that we received during the fourth fiscal quarter of 2024 pertaining to a cash deposit that we made to a vendor in 2023 related to plans to expand our manufacturing capacity.
Net Cash Provided by Financing Activities
Our primary source of cash provided by financing activities consists of proceeds from issuance of common stock. Our primary cash usage for financing activities consists of payments related to the issuance of common stock.
Net cash provided by financing activities increased to $47.2 million during the year ended December 31, 2024 from $19.2 million during the year ended December 31, 2023. Our primary source of cash from financing activities during the year ended December 31, 2024 consisted primarily of the net proceeds from the issuance of common stock under the Sales Agreement and exercise of our public and private warrants. Our primary source of cash from financing activities in the prior year consisted primarily of the net proceeds from the issuance of common stock in connection with the Common Stock Purchase Agreement with B. Riley Principal Capital II, LLC, which was terminated in October 2023.
Related Party and Other Transactions
Related Party Transactions
On October 23, 2024, our former parent company, Amprius Holdings, voluntarily liquidated and dissolved. As a result of such liquidation and dissolution, Amprius Holdings distributed, on a pro rata basis, an aggregate of approximately 57.2 million shares of our common stock to its stockholders, which include some of our executive officers and directors. In addition, we assumed all of Amprius Holdings’ outstanding options to purchase shares of Amprius Holdings’ Class A common stock, which include outstanding options held by some of our executive officers and directors, in exchange for, among other things, Amprius Holdings contributing to us a total of 5.5 million shares of our common stock that it owned. Those shares that were contributed to us were immediately cancelled and returned to our authorized but unissued share capital. Please refer to Notes 1 and 7 to our consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in this Annual Report on
54
Form 10-K for additional information about the liquidation and dissolution of Amprius Holdings and the assumption of its outstanding options.
Other Transactions
Our CEO serves as a member of the board of directors of Berzelius and its holding company. As of December 31, 2024 and 2023, our CEO and our company had no direct or indirect controlling interest in Berzelius and its affiliates and, similarly, Berzelius and its affiliates had no direct or indirect controlling interest in our company. We developed our SiCore batteries through our collaboration with Berzelius. In November 2023, we entered into the Exclusive Supply Agreement with Berzelius, which gives us exclusive rights to purchase its proprietary silicon anode materials in the United States, Canada and Mexico. We purchased, and may continue to purchase, SiCore batteries and raw materials for our SiMaxx battery production and R&D activities from Berzelius. As of December 31, 2024, we had no purchase commitments with Berzelius.
Our CEO also served as a member of the board of directors of Amprius Wuxi Co., Ltd (“Wuxi”), a former subsidiary of Amprius Holdings, until November 2023. We also purchased, and may continue to purchase, raw materials for our SiMaxx battery production and R&D activities from Wuxi.
Emerging Growth Company and Smaller Reporting Company Status
We are an emerging growth company as defined in the JOBS Act and may take advantage of reduced reporting requirements that are otherwise applicable to public companies. Section 107 of the JOBS Act exempts an emerging growth company from being required to comply with new or revised financial accounting standards until private companies are required to comply with those standards. This means that when a standard is issued or revised and it has different application dates for public and nonpublic companies, we have the option to adopt the new or revised standard at the time nonpublic companies adopt the new or revised standard and can do so until such time that we either (i) irrevocably elect to “opt out” of such extended transition period or (ii) no longer qualify as an emerging growth company. We have elected to use the extended transition period for complying with new or revised accounting standards unless we otherwise early adopt select standards.
We are also a “smaller reporting company” as defined in Item 10(f)(1) of Regulation S-K. Smaller reporting companies may take advantage of certain reduced disclosure obligations, including, among other things, providing only two years of audited financial statements. We will remain a smaller reporting company until the last day of the fiscal year in which (i) the market value of our common stock held by non-affiliates exceeds $250.0 million as of the prior June 30 or (ii) our annual revenue exceeds $100.0 million during such completed fiscal year and the market value of our common stock held by non-affiliates exceeds $700.0 million as of the prior June 30.
Critical Accounting Estimates
Our management’s discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations is based on our audited consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K, which have been prepared in accordance with U.S. GAAP. The preparation of these consolidated financial statements requires us to make estimates and assumptions. Our critical accounting estimates include estimates that require significant assumptions or that involve a significant level of uncertainty at the time the estimate was made, and changes in them may likely have a material effect on our financial condition or results of operations. Our estimates are based on our historical experience and on various other factors that we believe are reasonable under the circumstances. Actual results may differ from these estimates under different assumptions or conditions and any such differences may be material.
Our summary of significant accounting policies are more fully described in Note 2 to our consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K.
Leases
Our lease liabilities and right-of-use (“ROU”) assets are recognized based upon estimates. Our lease liabilities are initially recognized based upon the present value of the fixed lease payments while our ROU assets are initially recognized based upon the amount of the initial lease liabilities and adjustments for certain lease-related transactions. When we estimate the present value of our fixed lease payments, we generally use an incremental borrowing rate (“IBR”) since the implicit rates of our leases are not determinable. The IBR is determined based on an estimation process that includes subjective inputs, such as using a hypothetical credit analysis about the company, leveraging the corporate default and recovery rates published by a credit rating agency, and using risk-free and undiscounted rates of comparable companies. A
55
change in the IBR, or the assumptions used to estimate the IBR, could have a significant effect on the amounts of the lease liabilities and ROU assets that we initially recorded and the amounts that are currently shown on our consolidated balances sheets included elsewhere in this Annual Form 10-K.
Stock-Based Compensation
Stock option grants are measured at fair value on the date of grant and recognized as stock-based compensation expense over the vesting period. The grant date fair value of our stock option grants is estimated using the Black-Scholes option-pricing model, which requires inputs that are based on subjective assumptions, such as the following:
•Expected term. Since we do not have a sufficient historical experience for determining the expected term, we derive the expected term based on the simplified method for awards that qualify as plain-vanilla options.
•Expected volatility. Since there is no sufficient trading history on the underlying common stock, we estimate volatility by evaluating the average historical volatility of a peer group of companies for the period immediately preceding the option grant for a term that is approximately equal to the option’s expected term.
•Risk-free interest rate. This is estimated based on a term equivalent to the estimated expected term of the option.
•Expected dividend. We use an expected dividend yield of zero because there had been no dividend payments in the past and there is no plan to pay dividends in the future associated with the underlying common stock.
•Fair value of the underlying common stock. For stock option grants made by Amprius Holdings to our employees or board members, the fair value of its common stock, which had no public market, is determined by its board of directors by considering a number of factors, including a valuation performed by an independent third party, which requires various assumptions.
Since the inputs used in the Black-Scholes option-pricing model described above are based on estimates, a change in any of those inputs could have a significant effect on the amount of stock-based compensation expense that we have already recognized and the remaining amount that we still have to recognize.
Recent Accounting Pronouncements
See Note 2 “Summary of Significant Accounting Policies” to our consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K for further information about recent accounting pronouncements, the timing of their adoption, and our assessment, to the extent we have made one, of their potential impact on our financial condition and results of operations.
Item 7A. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk
As a “smaller reporting company,” as defined by Item 10 of Regulation S-K, we are not required to provide information under Item 7A.
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Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data
Index to Consolidated Financial Statements
| Page Number | |||||
57
Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm
Shareholders and Board of Directors
Amprius Technologies, Inc.
Fremont, California
Opinion on the Consolidated Financial Statements
We have audited the accompanying consolidated balance sheets of Amprius Technologies, Inc. (the “Company”) as of December 31, 2024 and 2023, the related consolidated statements of operations, stockholders’ equity, and cash flows for each of the years then ended, and the related notes (collectively referred to as the “consolidated financial statements”). In our opinion, the consolidated financial statements present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of the Company at December 31, 2024 and 2023, and the results of its operations and its cash flows for the years then ended, in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America.
Basis for Opinion
These consolidated financial statements are the responsibility of the Company’s management. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on the Company’s consolidated financial statements based on our audits. We are a public accounting firm registered with the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) (“PCAOB”) and are required to be independent with respect to the Company in accordance with the U.S. federal securities laws and the applicable rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the PCAOB.
We conducted our audits in accordance with the standards of the PCAOB. Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the consolidated financial statements are free of material misstatement, whether due to error or fraud. The Company is not required to have, nor were we engaged to perform, an audit of its internal control over financial reporting. As part of our audits we are required to obtain an understanding of internal control over financial reporting but not for the purpose of expressing an opinion on the effectiveness of the Company’s internal control over financial reporting. Accordingly, we express no such opinion.
Our audits included performing procedures to assess the risks of material misstatement of the consolidated financial statements, whether due to error or fraud, and performing procedures that respond to those risks. Such procedures included examining, on a test basis, evidence regarding the amounts and disclosures in the consolidated financial statements. Our audits also included evaluating the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall presentation of the consolidated financial statements. We believe that our audits provide a reasonable basis for our opinion.
/s/ BDO USA, P.C.
We have served as the Company’s auditor since 2022.
March 20, 2025
58
AMPRIUS TECHNOLOGIES, INC.
CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
| December 31, | |||||||||||
(In thousands, except share and par value data) |
2024 | 2023 | |||||||||
| ASSETS | |||||||||||
| Current assets: | |||||||||||
| Cash and cash equivalents | $ | $ | |||||||||
| Accounts receivable, net | |||||||||||
| Inventories | |||||||||||
| Deferred costs | |||||||||||
| Prepaid expenses and other current assets | |||||||||||
| Total current assets | |||||||||||
| Non-current assets: | |||||||||||
| Property, plant and equipment, net | |||||||||||
| Operating lease right-of-use assets, net | |||||||||||
| Other assets | |||||||||||
| Total assets | $ | $ | |||||||||
| LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY | |||||||||||
| Current liabilities: | |||||||||||
| Accounts payable | $ | $ | |||||||||
| Accrued and other current liabilities | |||||||||||
| Deferred revenue | |||||||||||
| Operating lease liabilities | |||||||||||
| Total current liabilities | |||||||||||
| Non-current liabilities: | |||||||||||
| Operating lease liabilities | |||||||||||
| Total liabilities | |||||||||||
| Commitments and contingencies (Note 10) | |||||||||||
| Stockholders’ equity: | |||||||||||
|
Preferred stock; $
|
|||||||||||
|
Common stock; $
December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively
|
|||||||||||
| Additional paid-in capital | |||||||||||
| Accumulated deficit | ( |
( |
|||||||||
| Total stockholders’ equity | |||||||||||
| Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity | $ | $ | |||||||||
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.
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AMPRIUS TECHNOLOGIES, INC.
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS
| Year ended December 31, | |||||||||||
| (In thousands, except share and per share data) | 2024 | 2023 | |||||||||
| Revenue | $ | $ | |||||||||
| Cost of revenue | |||||||||||
| Gross loss | ( |
( |
|||||||||
| Operating expenses: | |||||||||||
| Research and development | |||||||||||
| Selling, general and administrative | |||||||||||
| Loss on retirement of property, plant and equipment | |||||||||||
| Total operating expenses | |||||||||||
| Loss from operations | ( |
( |
|||||||||
| Other income, net: | |||||||||||
| Interest income and other | |||||||||||
| Loss on write-off of deferred stock issuance costs | ( |
||||||||||
| Total other income, net | |||||||||||
| Net loss | $ | ( |
$ | ( |
|||||||
| Weighted-average common shares outstanding: | |||||||||||
| Basic and diluted | |||||||||||
| Net loss per share of common stock: | |||||||||||
| Basic and diluted | $ | ( |
$ | ( |
|||||||
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.
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AMPRIUS TECHNOLOGIES, INC.
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY
FOR THE YEARS ENDED DECEMBER 31, 2024 AND 2023
| Common Stock | Additional Paid-in Capital |
Accumulated Deficit |
Total Stockholders’ Equity |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| (In thousands, except share data) | Shares | Amount | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Balance as of January 1, 2023 | $ | $ | $ | ( |
$ | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Issuance of common stock in connection with the Stock Purchase Agreement, net of issuance cost |
— | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Issuance of common stock in connection with the At Market Issuance Sales Agreement, net of issuance cost |
— | — | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Issuance of common stock upon exercise of stock options and vesting of restricted stock units |
— | — | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Exercise of stock warrants | — | — | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Stock-based compensation | — | — | — | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Net loss | — | — | — | ( |
( |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Balance, December 31, 2023 | ( |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Issuance of common stock in connection with the At Market Issuance Sales Agreement, net of issuance cost |
— | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Issuance of common stock upon exercise of stock warrants, net of issuance cost |
— | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Issuance of common stock upon exchange of stock warrants for shares of common stock |
— | — | — | — | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Issuance of common stock upon exercise of stock options and vesting of restricted stock units |
— | — | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Cancellation and retirement of common stock | ( |
( |
— | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Stock-based compensation | — | — | — | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Net loss | — | — | — | ( |
( |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Balance as of December 31, 2024 | $ | $ | $ | ( |
$ | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.
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AMPRIUS TECHNOLOGIES, INC.
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS
| Year ended December 31, | ||||||||||||||
| (In thousands) | 2024 | 2023 | ||||||||||||
| Cash flows from operating activities: | ||||||||||||||
| Net loss | $ | ( |
$ | ( |
||||||||||
| Adjustments to reconcile net loss to net cash used in operating activities: | ||||||||||||||
| Stock-based compensation | ||||||||||||||
| Depreciation and amortization | ||||||||||||||
| Amortization of deferred costs | ||||||||||||||
| Non-cash operating lease expense | ||||||||||||||
| Loss on retirement of property, plant and equipment | ||||||||||||||
| Loss on write-off of deferred stock issuance costs | ||||||||||||||
| Changes in operating assets and liabilities: | ||||||||||||||
| Accounts receivable | ( |
( |
||||||||||||
| Inventories | ( |
( |
||||||||||||
| Deferred costs | ( |
( |
||||||||||||
| Prepaid expenses and other current assets | ||||||||||||||
| Other assets | ( |
( |
||||||||||||
| Accounts payable | ||||||||||||||
| Accrued and other current liabilities | ( |
|||||||||||||
| Deferred revenue | ( |
|||||||||||||
| Operating lease liabilities | ( |
( |
||||||||||||
| Net cash used in operating activities | ( |
( |
||||||||||||
| Cash flows from investing activities: | ||||||||||||||
| Purchase of property, plant and equipment | ( |
( |
||||||||||||
| Net cash used in investing activities | ( |
( |
||||||||||||
| Cash flows from financing activities: | ||||||||||||||
| Proceeds from issuance of common stock in connection with the At Market Issuance Sales Agreement |
||||||||||||||
| Proceeds from issuance of common stock upon exercise of stock warrants | ||||||||||||||
| Proceeds from issuance of common stock in connection with the Stock Purchase Agreement |
||||||||||||||
| Payment of equity financing costs | ( |
( |
||||||||||||
| Proceeds from exercise of stock options | ||||||||||||||
| Net cash provided by financing activities | ||||||||||||||
| Net increase (decrease) in cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash equivalents | ( |
|||||||||||||
| Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash equivalents, beginning of year | ||||||||||||||
| Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash equivalents, end of year | $ | $ | ||||||||||||
| Reconciliation of cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash equivalents shown on the consolidated balance sheets: |
||||||||||||||
| Cash and cash equivalents | $ | $ | ||||||||||||
| Restricted cash equivalents included in other assets | ||||||||||||||
| Total cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash equivalents | $ | $ | ||||||||||||
| Supplemental non-cash investing and financing activities: | ||||||||||||||
| Unpaid purchases of property, plant and equipment | $ | $ | ||||||||||||
| Increase in fair value of modified stock warrants | $ | $ | ||||||||||||
| Cancellation and retirement of common stock | $ | $ | ||||||||||||
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.
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AMPRIUS TECHNOLOGIES, INC.
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
Note 1. Overview
Company Background and Nature of Operations
Amprius Technologies, Inc. (hereafter referred to as the “Company,” “we,” “us,” or “our”) develops, manufactures and markets lithium-ion batteries for mobility applications, including the aviation, electric vehicle (“EV”) and light electric vehicle (“LEV”) industries. We have been in commercial battery production since 2018 and our disruptive silicon anode technology is intended to enable batteries with higher energy density, higher power density and fast charging capabilities over a wide range of operating temperatures. We are incorporated in the State of Delaware. Our corporate headquarters is located in Fremont, California.
On October 23, 2024, our former majority stockholder and parent company, Amprius Inc. (“Amprius Holdings”), which owned an aggregate of 65.2 million shares, or 58.6 %, of our common stock at that time, voluntarily liquidated and dissolved. As a result of such liquidation and dissolution, Amprius Holdings distributed, on a pro rata basis, an aggregate of approximately 57.2 million shares of our common stock to its stockholders, which include some of our executive officers and directors, and we assumed all of Amprius Holdings’ outstanding options to purchase shares of Amprius Holdings’ Class A common stock in exchange for, among other things, Amprius Holdings contributing to us a total of 5.5 million shares of our common stock that it owned, which were immediately cancelled and returned to our authorized but unissued share capital.
Liquidity and Capital Resources
As of December 31, 2024, we had cash and cash equivalents of $55.2 million. We believe that our cash and cash equivalents will be sufficient to fund our obligations over twelve months from the date these consolidated financial statements are issued. In addition, we may receive additional funds from the issuance and sale of our shares of our common stock under the At Market Issuance Sales Agreement (the “Sales Agreement”), which we entered into with B. Riley Securities, Inc., Cantor Fitzgerald & Co. and H.C. Wainwright & Co., LLC, as sales agents (the “Sales Agents”) on October 2, 2023. Under the Sales Agreement, we may offer and sell, from time to time, shares of our common stock for an aggregate offering price of not more than $100.0 million. During the year ended December 31, 2024 and from the date of the Sales Agreement through December 31, 2024, we sold shares of our common stock under the Sales Agreement resulting in aggregate net proceeds of approximately $33.4 million and $33.8 million, respectively. We may also receive additional funds if our stock warrants are exercised for cash. During the year ended December 31, 2024, we received a total of $13.6 million, after deducting stock issuance costs, from the cash exercise of our stock warrants at a temporarily reduced exercise price of $1.10 per warrant.
Since our inception, we have incurred recurring losses and negative cash flows from operations. During the year ended December 31, 2024, we incurred a net loss of $44.7 million and at December 31, 2024, our accumulated deficit was $174.3 million. We expect to incur additional losses in the future as we scale our business and increase our operating expenditures, such as increasing our headcount. We may need to raise additional funds in order to meet our future operating and capital expenditure requirements, and we may be unable to raise additional funds or enter into such other agreements when needed on favorable terms or at all. If sufficient funding is not raised, we may need to reduce our spending activities, which may negatively affect our ability to achieve our operating goals. To the extent that we raise additional funds by issuing equity securities, our stockholders may experience additional dilution.
Other Risk and Uncertainties
We face risks related to political change, terrorist activity, and armed conflict such as the military conflicts between Russia and Ukraine and in the Middle East. These military conflicts have led to volatility in the global economy, and may contribute to inflation, volatility in the credit and capital markets, and interruption in the global supply chain. In addition, we face risks related to significant changes in the United States’ trade policy, such as the imposition or plan to impose significant tariffs on certain product categories imported from China and other countries. These countries have taken or may plan to take retaliatory actions, including imposing additional tariffs on their importation of a wide range of products from the United States, which could potentially lead to adverse impacts on global trade.
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Note 2. Summary of Significant Accounting Policies
Basis of Presentation and Principles of Consolidation
The accompanying consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“U.S. GAAP”). All intercompany accounts and transactions have been eliminated.
The significant accounting policies described below, together with Note 1 and other notes that follow, are an integral part of the consolidated financial statements.
Emerging Growth Company
We are an emerging growth company as defined in the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act of 2012 (the “JOBS Act”), and we may take advantage of certain exemptions from various reporting requirements that are applicable to other public companies that are not emerging growth companies. Furthermore, the JOBS Act exempts an emerging growth company from being required to comply with new or revised accounting standards until private companies are required to comply with such standards. The JOBS Act provides that an emerging growth 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. We have elected to not opt out of such extended transition period. This means that when a standard is issued or revised and it has different application dates for public or private companies, we, as an emerging growth company, can adopt the new or revised standard at the time private companies adopt such new or revised standard unless we are no longer deemed an emerging growth company. As a result, the accompanying consolidated financial statements may not be comparable to companies that comply with the new or revised accounting pronouncements as of the public company effective dates.
Use of Estimates
The preparation of financial statements in conformity with U.S. GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosures of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period. These estimates are based on current facts, historical experience and various other factors believed to be reasonable under the circumstances; the results of which form the basis for making judgements that are not readily apparent from other sources. Actual results could materially differ from management estimates using different assumptions or under different conditions.
Revenue Recognition
We generate revenue from the (i) sale of finished battery products and (ii) arrangements for customization design services. The customization design services generally include designing and developing custom batteries by applying our existing technology into a customer’s required specifications and delivery of the customized batteries. Since the technology that we apply to the customized batteries is the same as the technology that we apply to our other product offerings, such customized batteries could be repurposed as part of our product offerings.
We recognize revenue when all of the core principles of revenue recognition are met pursuant to Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) Topic 606, Revenue from Contracts with Customers. Generally, we enter into a contract with our customers whereby we identify our performance obligations, determine the considerations that we expect to receive from our customers, and allocate such considerations to the identified performance obligations. We recognize revenue at a point in time when we transfer control of the finished battery products and the deliverables from the customization design services to our customers, which is generally upon shipment and completion of the services, respectively.
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Grant Revenue
Contracts with government agencies are treated as government grants if they do not meet the criteria for recognizing them as research and development contracts with a federal government pursuant to Topic 912-730, Contractors–Federal Government–Research and Development or as contracts with customers pursuant to Topic 606, Revenue from Contracts with Customers.
In the absence of explicit US GAAP, we recognize and measure government grants by following, as an analogy, the recognition and measurement guidance of International Accounting Standard 20, Accounting for Government Grants and Disclosure of Government Assistance (“IAS 20”). Under IAS 20, we recognize and measure government grants at fair value when there is a reasonable assurance that we will comply with the conditions of the grants and we will receive the grants. We recognize government grants on a systematic basis over the periods in which we recognize as expenses the related costs for which the grants are intended to compensate and show them as a component of revenue in the accompanying consolidated statements of operations.
Cost of Revenue
Research and Development (“R&D”) Costs
Stock-Based Compensation
We measure stock-based compensation for stock options and restricted stock units (“RSUs”) at fair value on the date of grant. The fair value of stock option grants is measured using the Black-Scholes option-pricing model while the fair value of RSU grants is measured based on the market closing price of our common stock. We recognize stock-based compensation expense on a straight-line basis over the vesting period of the grants. Most of our stock-based compensation grants generally vest over a period of four years , subject to the continued employment or services of the grantee. We have elected to account for forfeitures as they occur.
The Black-Scholes option-pricing model requires the following inputs that are based on subjective assumptions:
•Expected term – This is the period that the stock options are expected to be outstanding. We estimate the expected term using the simplified method for stock option grants that qualify as plain-vanilla options because we have no sufficient historical experience for determining the expected term.
•Expected volatility – Since there is no sufficient trading history on the underlying common stock, we estimate volatility by evaluating the average historical volatility of a peer group of companies for the period immediately preceding the option grant for a term that is approximately equal to the option’s expected term.
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•Risk-free interest rate – We determine the risk-free interest rate based on the implied yield available on the U.S. Treasury zero coupon issues with a remaining term equivalent to the expected term of the stock options.
•Expected dividend – We use an expected dividend yield of zero because there had been no dividend payments in the past and there is no plan to pay dividends in the future associated with the underlying common stock.
Advertising Costs
Advertising costs, which were de minimis during the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, are expensed as incurred.
Foreign Currency
Foreign currency gains or losses were de minimis during the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023 and resulted from the effect of exchange rate changes on transactions and remeasurement of monetary assets and liabilities denominated in foreign currencies. Such gains or losses are recognized as other income (expense), net within the accompanying consolidated statements of operations.
Income Taxes
We account for income taxes in accordance with ASC 740, Income Taxes. Deferred tax balances are recognized for the estimated future tax consequences attributable to temporary differences between the financial statements carrying amounts of existing assets and liabilities and their respective tax basis. Deferred tax assets are also recognized for temporary differences that arise from net operating losses and credit carryforwards. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are measured using enacted tax rates expected to apply to taxable income in the years in which those temporary differences are expected to be recovered or settled. The effect on deferred tax balances of a change in tax rates is recognized in income in the period that includes the enactment date. Valuation allowances are established, when necessary, to reduce deferred tax assets to the amount expected to be realized.
ASC 740 prescribes a recognition threshold and a measurement attribute for the financial statement recognition and measurement of tax positions taken or expected to be taken in a tax return. For those benefits to be recognized, a tax position must be more-likely-than-not to be sustained upon examination by taxing authorities. We recognize accrued interest and penalties related to unrecognized tax benefits, if any, as income tax expense.
Net Loss Per Share
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Fair Value Measurement
Assets and liabilities recorded at fair value in the financial statements are categorized based upon the level of judgment associated with the inputs used to measure their fair value. Hierarchical levels, which are directly related to the amount of subjectivity, associated with the inputs to the valuation of these assets or liabilities are as follows:
Level 1 – Inputs that are unadjusted, quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities at the measurement date.
Level 2 – Inputs (other than quoted prices included in Level 1) that are either directly or indirectly observable for the asset or liability through correlation with market data at the measurement date and for the duration of the instrument’s anticipated life.
Level 3 – Unobservable inputs that are supported by little or no market activity and that are significant to the fair value of the assets or liabilities, and which reflect management’s best estimate of what market participants would use in pricing the asset or liability at the measurement date. Consideration is given to the risk inherent in the valuation technique and the risk inherent in the inputs to the model.
In determining fair value, we utilize valuation techniques that maximize the use of observable inputs and minimize the use of unobservable inputs to the extent possible as well as considering counterparty credit risk in our assessment of fair value.
We had money market funds totaling $23.5 million and $36.7 million as of December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively, which were measured at Level 1 fair value based on the active market price of the instruments and included in cash and cash equivalents and in other assets in the accompanying consolidated balance sheets.
We did not have assets or liabilities measured at fair value on a recurring basis using Level 2 or Level 3 inputs as of December 31, 2024 and 2023.
We also had no transfers of financial instruments between Level 1, Level 2 and Level 3 during the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023.
Concentration of Risk
Credit Risk
Financial instruments that potentially subject us to concentration of credit risk consist of cash, cash equivalents, restricted cash equivalents and accounts receivable.
Many of our customers are in the aviation industry though our batteries have applications across all segments of electric mobility. As of December 31, 2024 and 2023, we had two and three major customers that in the aggregate represented 50 % and 80 %, respectively, of our total accounts receivable. An adverse impact on the aviation industry may affect our relationship with our customers, which could affect our future financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.
Supply Risk
We are dependent on Berzelius and our third party contract manufacturing partners to manufacture one of our primary battery platforms. The inability of these suppliers to provide manufacturing services or deliver batteries on time may cause a delay in fulfilling our customers’ orders, which could adversely impact our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Cash, Cash Equivalents and Restricted Cash Equivalents
Cash consists of bank and demand deposits. Cash equivalents and restricted cash equivalents consist of money market funds with original maturity of less than 90 days from the date of purchase. Restricted cash equivalents pertain to the amount of cash deposits required by our lessors to satisfy letter of credit requirements under our lease agreements.
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Accounts Receivable
Inventories
Property, Plant and Equipment, Net
Property, plant and equipment are stated at cost, less accumulated depreciation and amortization. Depreciation and amortization are computed using the straight-line method over the estimated useful lives of the respective assets as shown below.
| Production equipment | |||||
| Lab equipment | |||||
| Furniture, fixtures and other equipment | |||||
| Leasehold improvements | Lesser of their useful lives or the term of the lease | ||||
Assets that are being built or constructed are recorded as construction in progress. Depreciation for those assets begins when the assets are ready for their intended use.
Expenditures for repairs and maintenance are expensed as incurred. Upon disposition or retirement, the cost and related accumulated depreciation and amortization are removed from the accounts and any resulting gain (loss) is included within operating expenses in the accompanying consolidated statements of operations.
Impairment of Long-Lived Assets
Deferred Costs
Certain costs, which consist primarily of payroll-related costs, are initially deferred when (i) the costs relate directly to a customer contract, (ii) the costs generate or enhance our resources that will be used in satisfying future performance obligations, and (iii) the costs are expected to be recovered. If these criteria are not met, the costs are expensed as incurred. Deferred costs are recognized as cost of revenues in the period when the related revenue is recognized, except when the costs incurred exceed the amount expected to be recovered, in which case they are expensed as incurred. The recoverable
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amount is estimated to equal the amount of consideration that we have received but not yet recognized as revenue, plus the amount that we expect to receive in the future.
Leases
We determine if an arrangement is a lease, or contains a lease, by evaluating whether there is an identified asset and whether we control the use of the identified asset throughout the period of use. We determine the classification of the lease, whether operating or finance lease, at the lease commencement date, which is the date we obtain control of the leased asset.
We recognize the right-of-use (“ROU”) assets and lease liabilities on the lease commencement date based upon the present value of the fixed lease payments over the non-cancelable lease term, unless it is reasonably certain that any renewal or termination option will be exercised. Variable costs, such as common area maintenance fees, property insurance and property taxes, are not included in the measurement of the ROU assets and lease liabilities, but are expensed as incurred. As the implicit rate of the leases is not determinable, we use an incremental borrowing rate in determining the present value of the lease payments. We do not recognize ROU assets on lease arrangements with a term of 12 months or less. Lease expense for such arrangements is recognized on a straight-line basis over the term of the lease. We account for the lease components and non-lease components as a single lease component. Modifications are assessed to determine whether incremental differences result in new contract terms and should be accounted for as a new lease or whether the additional right of use should be included in the original lease and continue to be accounted for with the remaining ROU asset.
Product Warranty Liability
Loss Contingencies
In the normal course of business, we may be involved in claims and legal proceedings. We record a liability for such matters when it is probable that a loss has been incurred and the amounts can be reasonably estimated. When only a range of possible loss can be established, the most probable amount in the range is accrued. If no amount within this range is a better estimate than any other amount within the range, the minimum amount in the range is accrued. Legal costs associated with these loss contingencies are expensed as incurred.
Common Stock Warrants
We have classified our freestanding common stock warrants as equity in accordance with the applicable guidance in ASC 815-40, Derivatives and Hedging - Contracts in Entity’s Own Equity. Accordingly, a freestanding instrument, such as a stock warrant, is classified as equity when (i) the instrument is considered indexed to an entity’s own stock and (ii) when certain criteria for equity classification are met.
When assessing whether our stock warrants are indexed to our own stock, we evaluated the stock warrants’ exercise contingencies and adjustment features. The stock warrants’ exercise contingencies, which are not based on observable market or index, include a restriction to exercise a portion of the stock warrants if the holder exceeds specified beneficial ownership limitations and the holder being required to exercise the stock warrants in the event of a reorganization or a warrant redemption. Since the exercise contingencies are not based on observable market or index, the stock warrants were not precluded from being considered indexed to our own stock. In addition, the stock warrants’ adjustment features, such as a change in exercise price in the event of a stock split or stock dividend and a downward adjustment on the exercise price at our discretion, did not preclude the stock warrants from being considered indexed to our own stock.
We also evaluated other provisions in the warrant agreement, such as the share-settlement provision and the replacement of the instrument in the event of a reorganization, and determined that those provisions do not preclude the stock warrants from being classified as equity.
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Segment Reporting and Geographic Data
We have a single operating and reportable segment; that is, the battery segment. Our battery segment derives revenue from the sale of finished battery products and customization services of our batteries. Our Chief Executive Officer is our Chief Operating Decision Maker (“CODM”).
Our CODM assesses performance of our battery segment and decides how to allocate resources based on the battery segment’s profit, if any, or loss. Our measure of segment profit or loss is the consolidated net income or net loss, which is also reported as such in the accompanying consolidated statements of operations. Our CODM measures segment profit or loss by comparing the actual consolidated net income or net loss to expectations. Since we only have a single operating and reportable segment, our CODM is provided segment expense information that is based on the expense categories shown in the accompanying consolidated statements of operations. Depreciation and amortization expenses, which are disclosed in Note 4 below, are included within cost of revenue, research and development expenses, and selling, general and administrative expenses in the accompanying consolidated statements of operations. Other segment items within the segment profit or loss include primarily of interest income as shown within other income, net in the accompanying consolidated statements of operations.
Our CODM does not measure segment assets for the purposes of allocating resources to, and assessing the performance of, our battery segment.
The following table shows our revenue by geographic area based on the delivery location of our battery products and services (in thousands):
| Year ended December 31, | ||||||||
| 2024 | 2023 | |||||||
| United States | $ | $ | ||||||
| Rest of the world | ||||||||
| Total revenue | $ | $ | ||||||
All of our property, plant and equipment are geographically located in the United States.
During each of the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, we generated revenue from three major customers who individually represented more than 10% of our revenue. Revenue from each of the three major customers during the year ended December 31, 2024 was (i) $5.4 million, (ii) $2.8 million, and (iii) $2.8 million, respectively. Revenue from each of the three major customers during the year ended December 31, 2023 was (i) $3.3 million, (ii) $1.5 million, and (iii) $1.1 million, respectively.
Recent Accounting Pronouncements
In November 2024, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued Accounting Standards Update (“ASU”) 2024-03, Income Statement–Reporting Comprehensive Income–Expense Disaggregation Disclosures (Subtopic 220-40). This ASU requires entities to disclose, in the notes to the financial statements: (i) amounts of (a) purchases of inventory, (b) employee compensation and (c) depreciation; (ii) include certain amounts that are already required to be disclosed under current U.S. GAAP in the same disclosure as the other disaggregation requirements; (iii) a qualitative description of the amounts remaining in relevant expense captions that are not separately disaggregated quantitatively; and (iv) the total amount of selling expenses and, in annual reporting periods, a definition of selling expenses. This ASU, which is effective starting with our annual reporting for the year ending December 31, 2027 and interim reporting periods beginning January 1, 2028, is required to be adopted either: (i) prospectively to financial statements issued for reporting periods after the effective date of this ASU or (ii) retrospectively to any or all prior periods presented in the financial statements. Early adoption is permitted. We are currently evaluating this ASU. We believe that the impact of the additional required disclosures will enhance our current financial statement disclosure.
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Note 3. Revenue
Disaggregation of Revenue
We disaggregate our revenue from customers by the type of arrangement, primarily from the sale of battery products and from providing customization design services, as this depicts how the nature, amount, timing, and uncertainty of our revenue and cash flows are affected by economic factors. The table below shows the composition of revenue from customers, as disaggregated by type of arrangement in accordance with Topic 606, and other revenue from government grants, which were accounted for following IAS 20 (in thousands).
| Year ended December 31, | ||||||||
| 2024 | 2023 | |||||||
| Revenue from customers: | ||||||||
| Sale of battery products | $ | $ | ||||||
| Customization design services | ||||||||
| Total revenue from customers | ||||||||
| Other revenue – government grants | ||||||||
| Total revenue | $ | $ | ||||||
Revenue from sale of battery products includes bill-and-hold arrangements with certain customers, which totaled $4.9 million and $1.1 million during the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively.
Contract Balances
The timing of revenue recognition, billings and cash collections can result in accounts receivable, contract assets recorded as unbilled receivables, and contract liabilities recorded as deferred revenue.
Accounts receivable represents our right to consideration that is unconditional. A right to consideration is unconditional if only the passage of time is required before payment of that consideration is due. Accounts receivable was $5.6 million, $1.3 million and $0.7 million as of December 31, 2024, December 31, 2023 and January 1, 2023, respectively.
Contract assets primarily relate to the rights to consideration for progress on contractual requirements performed but not billed at the reporting date. The contract assets are transferred to accounts receivable when the rights become unconditional. We had no
Contract liabilities consist primarily of deferred revenue, which is the amount of progress payments received or billed in advance of recognizing those payments as revenue. Deferred revenue is subsequently recognized as revenue when the performance obligation is satisfied. Deferred revenue was $1.6 million, $3.4 million and $3.4 million as of December 31, 2024, December 31, 2023, and January 1, 2023, respectively. Deferred revenue as of December 31, 2024 decreased compared to prior years primarily due to the recognition of a non-recurring customization design service that was completed in the current fiscal year. During the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, revenue recognized from the prior year deferred revenue balance was $2.2 million and $2.7 million, respectively.
Remaining Performance Obligations
We have performance obligations associated with commitments in customer contracts for future delivery of battery products that have not yet been recognized as revenue. As of December 31, 2024, the aggregate amount of the transaction price allocated to the remaining performance obligations related to customer contracts that were unsatisfied or partially unsatisfied, including deferred revenue, was approximately $15.9 million. Given the applicable contract terms, we expect all of our remaining performance obligations to be recognized as revenue within one year . This amount does not include contracts to which the customer is not committed. The estimated timing of the recognition of remaining unsatisfied performance obligations is subject to change and is affected by changes to scope, changes in timing of delivery of products and services, or contract modifications.
Deferred Costs
Deferred costs, which consisted primarily of capitalized payroll-related costs to fulfill obligations under our customer contracts, were fully amortized as of December 31, 2024. The total deferred costs as of December 31, 2023 were $0.8
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million. The amortization of deferred costs, which is included in cost of revenue in the accompanying consolidated statements of operations, was $1.2 million and $3.1 million during the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively.
The Company evaluates deferred costs for impairment and recognizes any impairment loss in cost of revenues in the current period. During the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, cost of revenues includes costs incurred on certain customization design service contracts that were in excess of the recoverable amount.
Other Revenue – Government
Grant revenue during the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023 pertained to the funds received from government agencies to support some of our R&D efforts.
Note 4. Inventories
Inventories consisted of the following (in thousands):
| December 31, | |||||||||||
| 2024 | 2023 | ||||||||||
| Raw materials | $ | $ | |||||||||
| Work in process | |||||||||||
| Finished goods | |||||||||||
| Inventories | $ | $ | |||||||||
Note 5. Property, Plant and Equipment, Net
Property, plant and equipment, net consisted of the following (in thousands):
| December 31, | |||||||||||
| 2024 | 2023 | ||||||||||
| Production equipment | $ | $ | |||||||||
| Lab equipment | |||||||||||
| Leasehold improvements | |||||||||||
| Furniture, fixtures and other equipment | |||||||||||
| Construction in progress | |||||||||||
| Property, plant and equipment, at cost | |||||||||||
| Less: accumulated depreciation and amortization | ( |
( |
|||||||||
| Property, plant and equipment, net | $ | $ | |||||||||
Construction in progress consisted primarily of production and other equipment that have not been placed in service as of December 31, 2024 and 2023.
Depreciation and amortization expense was $3.8 million and $1.8 million during the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively.
Due to a change in our plan regarding certain production equipment for our manufacturing facility in Fremont, California, we retired such equipment because it had no alternative use, and we recognized a loss of $1.9 million during the year ended December 31, 2024. There were no retirements of assets during the year ended December 31, 2023.
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Note 6. Accrued and Other Current Liabilities
Accrued and other current liabilities consisted of the following (in thousands):
| December 31, | |||||||||||
| 2024 | 2023 | ||||||||||
| Accrued compensation and benefits | $ | $ | |||||||||
| Accrued professional fees | |||||||||||
| Accrued purchases of finished goods for resale | |||||||||||
| Other | |||||||||||
| Total accrued and other current liabilities | $ | $ | |||||||||
Note 7. Stockholders’ Equity
Common Stock and Preferred Stock
As of December 31, 2024, we had a total of 1,000,000,000 shares of stock authorized to be issued, of which 950,000,000 shares are designated as common stock, $0.0001 par value per share, and 50,000,000 shares are designated as preferred stock, $0.0001 par value per share. Holders of common stock are entitled to one vote for each share held and entitled to receive dividends when and if declared by the board of directors. We have not declared any dividends as of and through December 31, 2024.
Equity Incentive Plans
As of December 31, 2024, our Equity Incentive Plans consisted of the following: (i) the 2022 Equity Incentive Plan (the “2022 Plan”), (ii) the 2016 Equity Incentive Plan (the “2016 Plan”) and (iii) Amprius Holdings’ the 2008 Stock Plan and the Second Equity Incentive Plan (the “Amprius Holdings Plans”), which we assumed from Amprius Holdings on October 23, 2024, collectively referred herein as “Equity Incentive Plans.”
2022 Plan. The 2022 Plan was adopted effective September 14, 2022. The 2022 Plan authorizes awards in the form of stock options, stock appreciation rights, restricted stock, RSUs, or performance awards and may be granted to directors, employees or consultants. As of December 31, 2024, the total number of shares reserved for issuance, including shares issuable upon vesting of outstanding RSUs, under the 2022 Plan was 17,716,822 . Such number of shares also include the annual increase in shares reserved pursuant to the evergreen provisions contained in the 2022 Plan and the number of shares from equity awards under the 2016 Plan that were cancelled, expired or otherwise terminated without having been exercised in full, were tendered to or withheld for payment of an exercise price or for tax withholding obligations, or were forfeited to or repurchased due to failure to vest. The number of shares available for issuance under the 2022 Plan may be increased annually at the beginning of the fiscal year, subject to certain limitations.
2016 Plan. The 2016 Plan was terminated concurrently with the adoption of the 2022 Plan. However, the 2016 Plan continues to govern the terms and conditions of the outstanding awards previously granted under the 2016 Plan.
Amprius Holdings Plans. Upon approval by our board of directors, we assumed the Amprius Holdings Plans on October 23, 2024 when Amprius Holdings voluntarily liquidated and dissolved. Upon assumption of Amprius Holdings’ outstanding stock options, those options became exercisable with shares of our common stock. The Amprius Holdings 2008 Stock Plan was already expired when we assumed it while the Amprius Holdings Second Equity Incentive Plan was immediately terminated when we assumed it. The Amprius Holdings Plans continue to govern the terms and conditions of the outstanding awards previously granted under the Amprius Holdings Plans. Prior to the assumption of stock options under the Amprius Holdings Plans, Amprius Holdings had stock option awards granted to some of our employees or consultants. We recorded the stock-based compensation costs associated with those stock option awards.
As of December 31, 2024, all grants made under our Equity Incentive Plans had been stock options or RSUs.
Stock Options
Stock options granted under our Equity Incentive Plans provided an exercise price of not less than 100 % of the fair value at the grant date, unless the optionee is a 10 % stockholder, in which case the option price would not be less than 110 % of such fair market value. Options granted generally have a maximum term of ten years from the grant date or 90 days from the termination of the optionee and are exercisable upon vesting unless otherwise designated for early exercise
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by the board of directors at the time of grant. Most of our stock option grants generally vest over a period of four years , subject to the continued employment or services of the optionee.
A summary of option activity under our Equity Incentive Plans as of December 31, 2024, and changes during the year ended December 31, 2024, is as follows:
| Number of shares |
Weighted- average exercise price per share |
Weighted- average remaining contractual term (in years) |
Aggregate intrinsic value (in thousands) |
||||||||||||||||||||
| Outstanding at January 1, 2024 | $ | $ | |||||||||||||||||||||
Assumed stock option grants (1)
|
$ | — | — | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Granted | $ | — | — | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Exercised | ( |
$ | — | — | |||||||||||||||||||
| Expired / forfeited | ( |
$ | — | — | |||||||||||||||||||
| Outstanding at December 31, 2024 | $ | $ | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Vested and exercisable at December 31, 2024 | $ | $ | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Vested and expected to vest at December 31, 2024 | $ | $ | |||||||||||||||||||||
There were no 0.34 per share and was estimated at the date of grant using the Black-Scholes option-pricing model with the following assumptions: (i) expected term of 5 years, (ii) expected volatility of 75.0 %, (iii) risk-free interest rate of 3.6 %, and (iv) expected dividend yield of 0 %. Amprius Holdings did not grant stock options to our employees during the year ended December 31, 2023.
The total intrinsic value of options exercised during the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023 was $4.2 million and $5.1 million, respectively. The intrinsic value was calculated as the difference between the market price of our common stock and the exercise price of the in-the-money stock options at exercise.
The fair value of stock options that vested during the year ended December 31, 2024, including those fully vested stock option grants made by Amprius Holdings to some of our employees and a board member, was $3.3 million. The fair value of stock options that vested during the year ended December 31, 2023 was $2.7 million.
As of December 31, 2024, the total unamortized stock-based compensation expense related to the unvested stock options was approximately $2.9 million, which we expect to amortize over a weighted-average period of 1.4 years.
RSUs
Most of our RSU grants generally vest over a period of four years , subject to the continued employment or services of the grantee.
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A summary of RSU activity under our Equity Incentive Plans as of December 31, 2024, and changes during the year ended December 31, 2024, is as follows:
| Number of shares |
Weighted-average grant date fair value |
||||||||||
| Outstanding at January 1, 2024 | $ | ||||||||||
| Granted | $ | ||||||||||
| Vested | ( |
$ | |||||||||
| Forfeited | ( |
$ | |||||||||
| Outstanding at December 31, 2024 | $ | ||||||||||
The fair value of RSUs is determined based upon the market closing price of our common stock on the date of grant. The weighted-average grant date fair value of RSUs granted during the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023 was $2.39 per share and $7.06 per share, respectively. The fair value of RSUs that vested during the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023 was $3.9 million and $0.5 million, respectively. As of December 31, 2024, the total unamortized stock-based compensation expense related to the unvested RSUs was approximately $10.9 million, which we expect to amortize over a weighted-average period of 2.9 years.
Employee Stock Purchase Plan (“ESPP”)
We adopted the ESPP effective September 14, 2022. As of December 31, 2024, the total number of shares reserved for issuance was 2,724,333 , which number may be increased annually at the beginning of the fiscal year, subject to certain limitations. The ESPP is intended to qualify under Section 423 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (as amended) and will provide eligible employees an opportunity to purchase our common stock at a discount through payroll deductions. Under the ESPP, we may specify offering periods, provided that no offering period will have a duration exceeding 27 months. The purchase price per share is equal to 85 % of the fair market value of our common stock on the (i) offering date or (ii) purchase date, whichever is lower. As of December 31, 2024, there were no offerings established under the ESPP.
Executive Incentive Compensation Plan
On September 14, 2022, our board of directors approved our Executive Incentive Compensation Plan, which will allow us to grant incentive awards to certain executive employees, generally payable in cash, based upon achieving specified goals. We have the right to settle the award by granting an equity award, which may be subject to vesting conditions. All awards under the Executive Incentive Compensation Plan will be subject to reduction, cancellation, forfeiture, or recoupment in accordance with any clawback policy that we are required to adopt pursuant to applicable laws. As of December 31, 2024, there were no grants under the Executive Incentive Compensation Plan.
Common Stock Warrants
Shown below is a summary of the activity of the stock warrants as of and during the year ended December 31, 2024:
| Public warrants |
Private warrants |
PIPE warrants |
Total | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Outstanding, January 1, 2024 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Exercise for cash | ( |
( |
( |
|||||||||||||||||||||||
| Noncash exercise in exchange for shares of common stock |
( |
( |
||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Outstanding, December 31, 2024 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
On May 13, 2024, we offered the holders of the public and private warrants the opportunity to exercise their warrants for cash at a temporarily reduced exercise price of $1.10 per warrant. This cash tender offer expired on June 11, 2024. A total of 12,575,664 public warrants and 500,000 private warrants were exercised in connection with this cash tender offer. Gross proceeds from the exercise of the public and private warrants totaled $14.4 million. Incremental costs incurred, which were charged against the proceeds from the issuance of our shares of common stock, totaled $0.8 million. This cash tender offer was treated as a modification of the public and private warrants. However, we have not recognized the effect of such modification because the incremental fair value was de minimis.
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On June 24, 2024, we made a separate tender offer to the holders of the unexercised private warrants pursuant to which such holders were given the opportunity to exchange their warrants, on a cashless basis, for shares of our common stock based on an exchange ratio of 0.197 for each warrant validly tendered. This cashless tender offer expired on July 23, 2024. A total of 15,600,000 private warrants were exchanged for a total of 3,073,200 shares of our common stock in connection with this cashless tender offer. This cashless tender offer was treated as a modification of the private warrants, which resulted in an increase in the private warrants’ fair value by approximately $0.7 million. The incremental fair value of the modified private warrants, which are classified as equity, was presented as an increase in additional paid-in capital in the accompanying consolidated statements of stockholders’ equity. In addition, the incremental fair value was treated as a noncash deemed dividend and was presented as a reduction of additional paid-in capital, instead of a reduction of retained earnings due to our accumulated deficit position, which resulted in a net zero effect on the accompanying consolidated statements of stockholders’ equity.
The outstanding public warrants and private warrants, which expire on September 14, 2027, are exercisable for one share of our common stock at a price of $11.50 per warrant subject to adjustment pursuant to the Warrant Agreement, dated as of March 1, 2022, as amended. Holders of private warrants may be able to exercise their warrants on a cashless basis pursuant to the Warrant Agreement, but holders of public warrants cannot exercise on a cashless basis. The public warrants are listed on the New York Stock Exchange and are redeemable by us when the price per share of our common stock equals or exceeds $18.00 per share for at least 20 trading days during a period of 30 consecutive trading days prior to the redemption date. The private warrants are not listed on any securities exchange and are not redeemable.
The outstanding PIPE warrants, which expire on September 14, 2027, are substantially identical to the public warrants, except that the exercise price of each PIPE warrant is $12.50 per warrant and they are not listed on any securities exchange. In addition, the PIPE warrants are redeemable by us if the price per share of our common stock equals or exceeds $20.00 per share for at least 20 trading days during a period of 30 consecutive trading days prior to the redemption date.
The warrants described above are classified as equity in accordance with the guidance under ASC 815-40, Derivatives and Hedging–Contracts in Entity’s Own Equity. Equity-classified contracts, such as stock warrants, are initially measured at fair value or allocated value. Any subsequent changes in fair value are not recognized as long as the contracts continue to be classified in equity.
Sales Agreement
On October 2, 2023, we entered into the Sales Agreement with the Sales Agents, pursuant to which we may offer and sell, from time to time, through or to any Sales Agent, shares of our common stock with an aggregate offering price of not more than $100.0 million, as described in our prospectus supplement dated October 10, 2023 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”).
During the year ended December 31, 2024 and from the date of the Sales Agreement through December 31, 2024, we sold shares of our common stock under the Sales Agreement resulting in aggregate net proceeds of approximately $33.4 million and $33.8 million, respectively.
The unamortized deferred stock issuance cost related to the Sales Agreement, which is included in other assets in the accompanying consolidated balance sheets and will be charged proportionally against the proceeds from issuance of shares, was $0.1 million as of December 31, 2024.
Common Stock Purchase Agreement (“Purchase Agreement”)
On September 27, 2022, we entered into a Purchase Agreement with B. Riley Principal Capital II, LLC (“BRPC II”), pursuant to which BRPC II committed to purchase up to $200.0 million of our common stock until January 1, 2025. On October 2, 2023, we and BRPC II mutually agreed to terminate the Purchase Agreement concurrent with our execution of the Sales Agreement. The termination of the Purchase Agreement became effective on October 10, 2023 upon the effectiveness of our registration statement on Form S-3 filed with the SEC.
The cumulative proceeds from the sale of shares of common stock under the Purchase Agreement, which totaled 2,952,763 shares, was $19.1 million. The purchase price under the Purchase Agreement was determined by reference to the volume weighted average price of our common stock, less a discount of 3.0 %. The unamortized balance of the deferred stock issuance costs related to the Purchase Agreement, which amounted to $0.6 million, was expensed upon the termination of the Purchase Agreement on October 10, 2023.
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Stock-Based Compensation
Stock-based compensation from stock options and RSUs under our Equity Incentive Plans were included in the following lines in the accompanying consolidated statements of operations during the periods presented (in thousands):
| Year ended December 31, | |||||||||||
| 2024 | 2023 | ||||||||||
| Cost of revenue | $ | $ | |||||||||
| Research and development | |||||||||||
| Selling, general and administrative | |||||||||||
| Total stock-based compensation expense | $ | $ | |||||||||
Note 8. Income Taxes
The components of loss before provision for income taxes were as follows (in thousands):
| Year ended December 31, | |||||||||||
| 2024 | 2023 | ||||||||||
| Domestic | $ | ( |
$ | ( |
|||||||
| Foreign | |||||||||||
| Total | $ | ( |
$ | ( |
|||||||
There were no
The provision for income taxes differed from the amount computed by applying the federal statutory rate, which was 21.0 % during the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, to the loss before provision for income taxes as follows (in thousands):
| Year ended December 31, | |||||||||||
| 2024 | 2023 | ||||||||||
| U.S. federal statutory tax rate | % | % | |||||||||
| Expected benefit at U.S. federal statutory tax rate | ( |
( |
|||||||||
| State tax | ( |
( |
|||||||||
| Change in valuation allowance | |||||||||||
| Stock-based compensation | |||||||||||
| Transaction costs | |||||||||||
| Other | ( |
||||||||||
| Provision for income taxes | $ | $ | |||||||||
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The components of deferred tax assets and deferred tax liabilities were as follows (in thousands):
| December 31, | |||||||||||
| 2024 | 2023 | ||||||||||
| Deferred tax assets: | |||||||||||
| Net operating loss (“NOL”) carryforwards | $ | $ | |||||||||
| Operating lease liabilities | |||||||||||
| Tax credits | |||||||||||
| Capitalized research and development | |||||||||||
| Accruals and other | |||||||||||
| Stock-based compensation | |||||||||||
| Total deferred tax assets | |||||||||||
| Valuation allowance | ( |
( |
|||||||||
| Deferred tax assets | |||||||||||
| Deferred tax liabilities: | |||||||||||
| Operating lease right-of-use assets | ( |
( |
|||||||||
| Net deferred taxes | $ | $ | |||||||||
In assessing the realizability of deferred tax assets, management considers whether it is more-likely-than-not that some portion or all the deferred tax assets will be realized. The ultimate realization of deferred tax assets is dependent upon the generation of future taxable income during the periods in which those temporary differences will become deductible. We assess available positive and negative evidences to estimate whether sufficient future taxable income will be generated to permit the use of existing deferred tax assets. A significant piece of objective negative evidence is the cumulative losses incurred since inception, supported by negative subjective evidence of no expectations of future taxable income. Based on this evaluation, management believes that recognition of the deferred tax assets arising from the above-mentioned future tax benefits is currently not likely to be realized and, accordingly, has provided a valuation allowance. The valuation allowance increased by $9.3 million and $8.2 million during the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively.
NOL and tax credit carryforwards were as follows as of December 31, 2024 (in thousands):
| Amount | Expiration years |
||||||||||
| NOL, federal (after December 31, 2017) | $ | Do not expire | |||||||||
| NOL, federal (before January 1, 2018) | $ | 2037 | |||||||||
| NOL, state | $ | 2037 to 2044 | |||||||||
| Tax credits, federal | $ | 2037 to 2044 | |||||||||
| Tax credits, state | $ | Do not expire | |||||||||
The utilization of NOL and tax credit carryforwards are subject to certain limitations under Section 382 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, in the event of a change in our ownership, as defined in the current income tax regulations. Ownership changes prior to the business combination that we consummated with Kensington Capital Acquisition Corp. IV on September 14, 2022 did not result in a limitation that will materially reduce the total amount of NOL carryforwards and credits that can be utilized. However, utilization of the Company’s net operating loss carryforwards and other tax attributes to offset federal taxable income may be subject to annual limitations due to subsequent changes in ownership..
Below is a reconciliation of the unrecognized tax benefits (in thousands):
| Year ended December 31, | |||||||||||
| 2024 | 2023 | ||||||||||
| Balance at beginning of year | $ | $ | |||||||||
| Addition based on tax positions during the current year | |||||||||||
| Reduction of tax positions from prior years | |||||||||||
| Balance at end of year | $ | $ | |||||||||
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The entire amount of the unrecognized tax benefits would not impact our effective tax rate if recognized and there would be no cash tax impact. We have elected to include interest and penalties as a component of income tax expense. During the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, we did no
Our federal and state income tax returns from inception to December 31, 2024 remain subject to examination.
Note 9. Leases
As of December 31, 2024, we had non-cancelable operating leases for our corporate headquarters and manufacturing facilities located in Fremont, California and in Brighton, Colorado. Our Fremont, California lease, which expires in June 2027, provides us an option to extend the term for one additional five-year period and we determined with reasonable certainty that we will exercise such option. Our Brighton, Colorado lease, which expires in May 2039, provides us an option to extend the term for two additional five-year periods, but we have not determined with reasonable certainty that we will exercise such option. Our operating leases do not contain any material residual value guarantees. We had no
The components of lease expense during the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023 are shown in the table below (in thousands).
| Year ended December 31, | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2024 | 2023 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Operating lease expense | $ | $ | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Variable lease expense | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Short-term lease expense | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Total lease expense | $ | $ | |||||||||||||||||||||
Other information about our operating leases during the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023 are shown in the table below (amounts in thousands).
| Year ended December 31, | ||||||||||||||
| 2024 | 2023 | |||||||||||||
| Cash paid for amounts included in the measurement of operating lease liabilities |
$ | $ | ||||||||||||
| Right-of-use assets obtained in exchange for new operating lease liabilities | $ | $ | ||||||||||||
| Weighted-average remaining lease term | ||||||||||||||
| Weighted-average discount rate | % | % | ||||||||||||
Future operating lease payments as of December 31, 2024 are as follows (in thousands):
| Year ending December 31: | Amount | ||||
| 2025 | $ | ||||
| 2026 | |||||
| 2027 | |||||
| 2028 | |||||
| 2029 | |||||
| Thereafter | |||||
| Gross lease payments | |||||
| Less - present value adjustments | ( |
||||
| Total operating lease liabilities | $ | ||||
Note 10. Commitments and Contingencies
From time to time, we may be involved in lawsuits, claims or legal proceedings that arise in the ordinary course of business. We accrue a contingent liability when it is probable that a liability has been incurred and the amount of loss can
79
be reasonably estimated. Management believes that there are no claims against us for which the outcome is expected to have a material effect on our financial position, results of operations or cash flows.
Note 11. Net Loss Per Share
The following table presents the calculation of basic and diluted net loss per share attributable to common stockholders (in thousands, except share and per share amounts):
| Year ended December 31, | |||||||||||
| 2024 | 2023 | ||||||||||
| Numerator: | |||||||||||
| Net loss | $ | ( |
$ | ( |
|||||||
| Add - increase in net loss due to the increase in fair value of the modified stock warrants |
( |
||||||||||
| Net loss attributable to common stockholders | $ | ( |
$ | ( |
|||||||
| Denominator: | |||||||||||
| Weighted-average number of common shares outstanding | |||||||||||
| Basic and diluted net loss per common share | $ | ( |
$ | ( |
|||||||
The following table summarizes the outstanding shares of potentially dilutive securities that were excluded from the calculation of diluted net loss per share because their inclusion would have been anti-dilutive:
| December 31, | |||||||||||
| 2024 | 2023 | ||||||||||
| Stock warrants | |||||||||||
| Stock options | |||||||||||
| RSUs | |||||||||||
| Total | |||||||||||
80
Item 9. Changes in and Disagreements With Accountants on Accounting and Financial Disclosures
None.
Item 9A. Controls and Procedures
Evaluation of Disclosure Controls and Procedures
Our management, with the participation and supervision of our Chief Executive Officer (“CEO”) and our Chief Financial Officer (“CFO”), have evaluated the effectiveness of our disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”)) as of the end of the period covered by this Annual Report on Form 10-K. Our disclosure controls and procedures are designed to ensure that information we are required to disclose in reports that we file or submit under 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, including our CEO and our CFO, as appropriate, to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure. Based on such evaluation, our CEO and our CFO have concluded that our disclosure controls and procedures were effective as of December 31, 2024.
Management’s Annual Report on Internal Control Over Financial Reporting
Our management is responsible for establishing and maintaining adequate internal control over financial reporting, as defined in Rule 13a-13(f) and 15d-15(f) under the Exchange Act. Our management, with the participation of our CEO and CFO, assessed the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2024 based on the 2013 framework established in the “Internal Control-Integrated Framework,” issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission. Based on such assessment, management has concluded that our internal control over financial reporting was effective as of December 31, 2024.
This Annual Report on Form 10-K does not include an auditor attestation of our internal control over financial reporting pursuant to Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act because of our status as an “emerging growth company.”
Remediation of Previously Identified Material Weaknesses
As of December 31, 2023, we had material weaknesses in our internal controls over financial reporting due to the inadequate controls in our implementation, use and monitoring of certain application systems that we implemented in 2023, which resulted in inadequate review of certain transactions. During the year ended December 31, 2024, our management implemented the following controls to remediate those material weaknesses:
•Enhanced our controls over the use of application systems that we implemented in 2023 by removing inappropriate level of access of our employees, periodically reviewing their access, documenting our review of their access, and ensuring that no one from the accounting and finance department could add or modify users in those application systems;
•Enhanced our controls over the recording of transactions entered into our accounting system by ensuring that they were properly reviewed and approved by the appropriate level of personnel; and
•Engaged external specialists who assisted us in enhancing, designing, reviewing, testing and monitoring our internal controls on a periodic basis.
As a result of the implementation and enhancement of the internal controls described above, management determined that our material weaknesses had been remediated and our internal control over financial reporting was effective as of December 31, 2024.
Changes in Internal Control Over Financial Reporting
Except for the enhancement of our internal controls described above to remediate the previously identified material weaknesses, we have not identified changes in our internal control over financial reporting in connection with the evaluation required by Rules 13a-15(d) and 15d-15(d) of the Exchange Act that occurred during the quarter ended December 31, 2024 that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal control over financial reporting.
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Inherent Limitation on the Effectiveness of Internal Control
Our management, including our CEO and our CFO, do not expect that our disclosure controls and procedures or our internal control over financial reporting will prevent all errors and all fraud. A control system, no matter how well designed and operated, can provide only reasonable, not absolute, assurance that the objectives of the control system are met. Further, the design of a control system must reflect the fact that there are resource constraints, and the benefits of controls must be considered relative to their costs. Because of the inherent limitations in all control systems, no evaluation of controls can provide absolute assurance that all control issues and instances of fraud, if any, have been detected. These inherent limitations include the realities that judgments in decision-making can be faulty, and that breakdowns can occur because of a simple error or mistake. Additionally, controls can be circumvented by the individual acts of some persons, by collusion of two or more people or by management override of the controls. The design of any system of controls is also based in part upon certain assumptions about the likelihood of future events, and there can be no assurance that any design will succeed in achieving its stated goals under all potential future conditions; over time, controls may become inadequate because of changes in conditions, or the degree of compliance with policies or procedures may deteriorate. Due to inherent limitations in a cost-effective control system, misstatements due to error or fraud may occur and not be detected.
Item 9B. Other Information
Rule 10b5-1 Trading Plans
During our last fiscal quarter, no other director or officer, as defined in Rule 16a-1(f), adopted terminated
Departure of Directors or Certain Officers.
On March 17, 2025, Jonathan Bornstein, President of Amprius Lab, informed us of his plans to retire, following 12 years of dedicated service at the Company. His last day with the Company will be April 4, 2025. Aaron Bakke, who currently serves as Vice President of Operations, has been promoted as General Manager of US Operations effective April 4, 2025. Mr. Bakke, age 47, joined the Company in September 2019.
Item 9C. Disclosure Regarding Foreign Jurisdictions that Prevent Inspections
None.
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Part III
Item 10. Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance
The information required by this item is incorporated by reference to the definitive Proxy Statement for our 2025 Annual Meeting of Stockholders, which will be filed with the SEC no later than 120 days after December 31, 2024.
We have adopted an insider trading policy which governs transactions involving our securities by our directors, officers, employees, consultants, contractors, and advisors. It is our policy to comply with applicable securities laws and regulations when engaging in transactions in our own securities. We believe that our insider trading policies and procedures are reasonably designed to promote compliance with insider trading laws, rules and regulations, and listing standards applicable to us. A copy of our insider trading policy is filed with this Annual Report on Form 10-K as Exhibit 19.1.
Item 11. Executive Compensation
The information required by this item is incorporated by reference to the definitive Proxy Statement for our 2025 Annual Meeting of Stockholders, which will be filed with the SEC no later than 120 days after December 31, 2024.
Item 12. Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owner and Management and Related Stockholder Matters
The information required by this item is incorporated by reference to the definitive Proxy Statement for our 2025 Annual Meeting of Stockholders, which will be filed with the SEC no later than 120 days after December 31, 2024.
Item 13. Certain Relationships and Related Transactions, and Director Independence
The information required by this item is incorporated by reference to the definitive Proxy Statement for our 2025 Annual Meeting of Stockholders, which will be filed with the SEC no later than 120 days after December 31, 2024.
Item 14. Principal Accountant Fees and Services
The information required by this item is incorporated by reference to the definitive Proxy Statement for our 2025 Annual Meeting of Stockholders, which will be filed with the SEC no later than 120 days after December 31, 2024.
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Part IV
Item 15. Exhibit and Financial Statement Schedules
(a) We have filed the following documents as part of this Annual Report on Form 10-K:
1. Financial Statements
See Index to Consolidated Financial Statements under Part II, Item 8 of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.
2. Financial Statement Schedules
All financial statement schedules have been omitted as the information is not required under the related instructions or is not applicable or because the information required is already included in the financial statements or the notes to those financial statements.
3. Exhibits
The exhibits listed below are filed as part of this Annual Report on Form 10-K or are incorporated herein by reference, in each case as indicated below:
| Incorporated by Reference | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Exhibit Number | Description | Form | File No. | Exhibit Number | Filing Date |
Filed Herewith | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2.1† | Form 8-K | File No. 001-41314 | 2.1 | May 12, 2022 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 3.1 | Form 8-K | File No. 001-41314 | 3.1 | September 16, 2022 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 3.2 | Form 8-K | File No. 001-41314 | 3.1 | March 23, 2023 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 4.1 | Form 8-K | File No. 001-41314 | 4.1 | September 16, 2022 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 4.2 | Form 8-K | File No. 001-41314 | 4.2 | September 16, 2022 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 4.3 | Form 8-K | File No. 001-41314 | 4.2 | September 16, 2022 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 4.4 | Form 8-K | File No. 001-41314 | 4.1 | March 4, 2022 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 4.5 | Form 8-K | File No. 001-41314 | 4.1 | March 4, 2022 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 4.6 | Form 10-K | File No. 001-41314 | 4.6 | March 28, 2024 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 4.7 | Schedule TO | File No. 005-93595 | (d)(2) | May 13, 2024 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 10.1 | Form 8-K | File No. 001-41314 | 10.1 | September 16, 2022 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 10.2 | Form S-4/A | File No. 333-265740 | 10.12 | August 9, 2022 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 10.3# | Form 8-K | File No. 001-41314 | 10.3 | September 16, 2022 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 10.4# | Form 8-K | File No. 001-41314 | 10.4 | September 16, 2022 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 10.5# | Form S-1 | File No. 333-267683 |
10.10 | September 30, 2022 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
84
| Incorporated by Reference | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Exhibit Number | Description | Form | File No. | Exhibit Number | Filing Date |
Filed Herewith | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 10.6# | Form S-1 | File No. 333-267683 |
10.11 | September 30, 2022 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 10.7# | Form 8-K | File No. 001-41314 | 10.7 | September 16, 2022 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 10.8# | 424B3 | File No. 333-265740 | Annex E | September 1, 2022 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 10.9# | Form 8-K | File No. 001-41314 | 10.9 | September 16, 2022 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 10.10# | Form 8-K | File No. 001-41314 | 10.10 | September 16, 2022 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 10.11# | Form 8-K | File No. 001-41314 | 10.11 | September 16, 2022 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 10.12 | Form S-3 | File No. 333-278434 | 1.2 | October 2, 2023 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 10.13† | Form 8-K | File No. 001-41314 | 10.1 | January 16, 2024 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 10.14† | Form 8-K | File No. 001-41314 | 10.12 | September 16, 2022 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 10.15 | Form 8-K | File No. 001-41314 | 10.13 | September 16, 2022 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 10.16 | Form10-K | File No. 001-41314 | 10.16 | March 30, 2023 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 10.17 | Form 8-K | File No. 001-41314 | 10.1 | April 19, 2023 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 10.18 | Form 8-K | File No. 001-41314 | 10.1 | September 7, 2022 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 10.19 | Form S-4 | File No. 333-280445 | 10.19 | July 3, 2024 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
10.20 |
Form S-4 | File No. 333-272466 | 10.21 | June 7, 2023 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
10.21 |
Form 8-K | File No. 001-41314 | 10.2 | October 23, 2024 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
10.22 |
Form 8-K | File No. 001-41314 | 10.3 | October 23, 2024 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 16.1 | Form 8-K | File No. 001-41314 | 16.1 | September 16, 2022 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 16.2 | Form 8-K | File No. 001-41314 | 16.2 | September 16, 2022 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 19.1 | X |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 21.1 | X | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 23.1 | X | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 24.1 | X | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 31.1 | X | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Incorporated by Reference | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Exhibit Number | Description | Form | File No. | Exhibit Number | Filing Date |
Filed Herewith | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 31.2 | X | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 32.1* | X | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 32.2* | X | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 97.1 | Form 10-K | File No. 001-41314 | 97.1 | March 28, 2024 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 101.INS | Inline XBRL Instance Document - the instance document does not appear in the Interactive Data File because XBRL tags are embedded within the Inline XBRL document. | X | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 101.SCH | Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Schema Document | X | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 101.CAL | Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Calculation Linkbase Document | X | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 101.DEF | Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Definition Linkbase Document | X | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 101.LAB | Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Label Linkbase Document | X | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 101.PRE | Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Presentation Linkbase Document | X | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 104 | Cover Page Interactive Data File (embedded within the Inline XBRL document) | X | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
* These certifications furnished in Exhibits 32.1 and 32.2 hereto are deemed to accompany this Annual Report on Form 10-K and are not deemed “filed” for purposes of Section 18 of the Exchange Act, or otherwise subject to the liability of that section, nor shall they be deemed incorporated by reference into any filing under the Securities Act of the Exchange Act.
† Certain schedules and exhibits have been omitted in accordance with Regulation S-K Item 601(a)(5). A copy of any omitted schedule or exhibit will be finished to the SEC upon request.
# Indicates management contract or compensatory plan.
Item 16. Form 10-K Summary
None.
86
SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this Annual Report on Form 10-K to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.
| AMPRIUS TECHNOLOGIES, INC. | ||||||||
Date: March 20, 2025 |
By: | /s/ Dr. Kang Sun | ||||||
| Name: | Dr. Kang Sun | |||||||
| Title: | Chief Executive Officer | |||||||
POWER OF ATTORNEY
KNOW ALL PERSONS BY THESE PRESENTS, that each person whose signature appears below hereby constitutes and appoints Dr. Kang Sun and Sandra Wallach, and each of them, as his or her true and lawful attorney-in-fact and agent with full power of substitution, for him or her in any and all capacities, to sign any and all amendments to this Annual Report on Form 10-K, and to file the same, with all exhibits thereto and other documents in connection therewith, with the Securities and Exchange Commission, granting unto said attorney-in-fact, proxy and agent full power and authority to do and perform each and every act and thing requisite and necessary to be done in connection therewith, as fully for all intents and purposes as he or she might or could do in person, hereby ratifying and confirming all that said attorney-in-fact, proxy and agent, or his or her substitute, may lawfully do or cause to be done by virtue hereof.
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, this Annual Report on Form 10-K has been signed below by the following persons on behalf of the registrant and in the capacities and on the dates indicated:
| Signature | Title | Date | ||||||||||||
| /s/ Dr. Kang Sun | Chief Executive Officer and Director | March 20, 2025 | ||||||||||||
Dr. Kang Sun |
(Principal Executive Officer) | |||||||||||||
| /s/ Sandra Wallach | Chief Financial Officer | March 20, 2025 | ||||||||||||
Sandra Wallach |
(Principal Financial and Accounting Officer) | |||||||||||||
| /s/ Donald R. Dixon | Director | March 20, 2025 | ||||||||||||
Donald R. Dixon |
||||||||||||||
| /s/ Kathleen Ann Bayless | Director | March 20, 2025 | ||||||||||||
Kathleen Ann Bayless |
||||||||||||||
| /s/ Dr. Steven Chu | Director | March 20, 2025 | ||||||||||||
Dr. Steven Chu |
||||||||||||||
| /s/ Dr. Wen Hsieh | Director | March 20, 2025 | ||||||||||||
Dr. Wen Hsieh |
||||||||||||||
| /s/ Livingston Satterthwaite | Director | March 20, 2025 | ||||||||||||
Livingston Satterthwaite |
||||||||||||||
87