Our revenues from the continuing licensing business decreased in the third quarter of 2024 compared to the same quarter last year. However, non-recurring engineering revenues related to our new lines of business increased and were mainly attributable to the driver monitoring system (“DMS”) project with the original equipment manufacturer (“OEM”) of commercial vehicles customer that we announced at the end of last year. Licensing revenues from legacy customers within printer and passenger car touch applications decreased compared to the same quarter last year, mainly due to lower demand for their products. Cash used by operations decreased in the third quarter 2024 compared to the same quarter last year, as we discontinued component purchases after phasing out TSM manufacturing.
We remain positive toward the prospects of generating new projects and business with our driver and in-cabin monitoring solutions, which continue to generate positive attention from OEMs and suppliers to the automotive industry. Our flexible and scalable approach to driver and in-cabin monitoring presents manufacturers and their suppliers with a cost-effective and efficient platform for securing compliance and automotive innovation for years to come. We also see a growing market interest in licensing our cost-effective and proven touch interaction solutions.
I am very excited about joining Neonode’s Board of Directors. The company has a great history of innovation and developing pioneering technology and I look forward to supporting the team and contributing to the future development of the company.
We are pleased that Peter will join the Board of Directors and contribute both with his general management experience and also his deep knowledge of the automotive industry.
After extensive evaluation, we have found Neonode's SMT-based TSM to be a great fit for the Japanese amusement market, enhancing operational performance without compromising the beauty of the content displayed on the screen. We have worked closely and productively with Neonode for years and look forward to strengthening our partnership further with this license agreement.
We are excited to deepen our relationship with NEXTY Electronics, a trusted, value-added reseller of Neonode’s products, as we continue our transformation into a company that is fully focused on technology licensing. NEXTY Electronics is intimately familiar with our products from its time as a TSM reseller, and its decision to license and manufacture our TSM technology is a vote of confidence for our licensing-focused business strategy and innovative licensable technologies.
Our revenues increased in the second quarter of 2024 compared to the same quarter last year. Non-recurring engineering revenues increased and were mainly attributable to the ongoing Driver Monitoring System (“DMS”) project with the Original Equipment Manufacturer (“OEM”) of commercial vehicles customer that was announced at the end of last year. Product sales also increased in the second quarter compared to the same quarter last year, mainly as a result of last time buy orders from customers to secure supplies, following our decision to focus solely on licensing going forward and to phase out our products business. Licensing revenues decreased compared to the same quarter last year, mainly due to the demand for our legacy customers’ products being lower. Gross margin in the second quarter of 2024 compared to the same quarter last year declined and was the result of increased cost of revenue due to increased product sales and non-recurring revenues combined with decreased licensing revenues. Although our operating expenses decreased in the second quarter of 2024 compared to the same quarter last year, the decline in gross margin led to a higher net loss.
The award by a leading commercial vehicle Original Equipment Manufacturer to supply Driver Monitoring System software to their global range of commercial vehicles continues to generate increased interest in our driver and in-cabin monitoring solutions. This is encouraging, and we are confident that we have a competitive, scalable and flexible solution that is attractive to both commercial vehicle and passenger car manufacturers. We also see interesting licensing opportunities for our touch and touchless human-machine interaction offerings.
We are excited to see momentum for our TSM technology as we are transforming from a product business to a technology licensing business. Our license agreement with YesAR ensures that our TSM technology remains a cornerstone technology in the growing market of holographic interfaces and is a testament to our continuing commitment to technological leadership and innovation through licensing.
We have worked together with YesAR since 2020 and are encouraged by their steadfast belief in the market potential for Neonode TSM-based holographic solutions, now as a technology licensee. We look forward to further enhancing our close relationship with YesAR as they license our technology and look forward to seeing the innovative solutions that our technology platform will enable for YesAR and its customers.
Our revenues decreased in the first quarter of 2024 compared to the same quarter last year. Following the announcement of our change in strategy, with full focus on our licensing business and a phase-out of our products business, product sales have increased as a result of last time buy orders. Non-recurring engineering revenues also increased in the first quarter compared to the same quarter last year, mainly due to a new potential Touch Sensor Module license project. At the same time, licensing revenues decreased compared to the same quarter last year. This is mainly due to the demand for our legacy customers’ products being lower, resulting in high inventory levels at some customers and thus lower revenues for Neonode.
The Board would like to thank Dr. Forssell for his contribution to Neonode during the past four years. Urban has been instrumental in streamlining the business and building a solid platform for business expansion. As we enter a new phase in the business, with focus on growth through licensing and forming strategic partnerships, there is a need for new leadership to take us to the next level.
The decrease in our sales revenues 2023 was a disappointment. In particular, the negative development of our Touch Sensor Module (“TSM”) product business was unsatisfactory and led us to the decision to sharpen our strategy and focus on licensing going forward, as announced on December 12, 2023. We are currently phasing out our TSM product business and will close our production unit in Kungsbacka, Sweden, later this year. Existing customers and value-added resellers are offered to place last-time-buy orders for TSMs for delivery during Q1 and Q2. In parallel, we are offering customers to license the TSM technology to set up their own TSM production, which several customers have responded positively to.
Our licensing revenues were also lower in 2023 than in the previous year. This is mainly due to our legacy customers’ product sales slowing down in Q3 and Q4, combined with high inventory levels at some customers. The breakthrough driver monitoring software win with a leading commercial vehicle manufacturer, which we announced on December 6, 2023, was the result of several years’ dedicated work by our commercial and technical teams and is a stepping stone for us in our quest to revitalize and grow our licensing business.
We are pleased to see that our recent driver monitoring software win has boosted the interest in our driver and in-cabin monitoring solution among other vehicle manufacturers and tier 1 system suppliers. We are currently working hard to capitalize on this momentum. We also see interesting opportunities with our head-up display obstruction solution and with our touch and touchless human-machine interaction offerings. In summary, we are optimistic about the future growth potential for our business. We are also confident that our new, sharpened strategy with a full focus on licensing will help us increase our efficiency and reach a positive cash flow in shorter time than with our previous strategy that combined licensing with product sales.
We will now put full focus on our licensing business and allow customers to license our unique and advanced TSM technology to create bespoke products and solutions that bring value to end customers. Our product business did not reach our business goals, but feedback on the products and prototypes that we and our partners have developed using our TSMs has been very positive and shows that our technology is relevant and has a large intrinsic value. We therefore see great potential in licensing this technology to existing and new customers in the years to come,
Through the realignment of our strategy that we are now announcing we will concentrate our resources on licensing. We believe this will unleash the full potential of Neonode and increase the impact of our innovative solutions in line with our vision to transform the way humas and machines interact,
We are honored and proud to have been selected as a partner to this commercial vehicle OEM and look forward to cooperating with them in developing and launching safety-enhancing and value-adding driver and in-cabin monitoring systems for many years to come. This is a breakthrough win for Neonode and our MultiSensing technology for commercial vehicle applications, where reliability and quality standards are of utmost importance. We will build on this to expand our driver and in-cabin monitoring business in both the commercial vehicle segment and in the light vehicle and passenger car segment in the coming years,"
Our licensing revenues in Q2 were at the same level as in Q1 and 15% higher than in the same period last year, showing good stability. Our product sales revenues in Q2 were low and much below expectations, which we are addressing with different kinds of activities and changes in our strategies and tactics to ensure that we come back to a growth path for this business in the coming quarters
The changes we have started to implement include an increased focus on markets and sectors where we have good traction, supported by intensified marketing – both online and through participation in tradeshows and other types of events – to create beachheads from which we may continue to grow our licensing and products businesses. To help us drive these changes and become more effective in our marketing and sales efforts we have recruited experienced core competence to strengthen our sales and engineering teams in Stockholm. We remain optimistic about our ability to grow our business and return to profitability
We are incredibly proud to introduce the third generation of driver and in-cabin monitoring: MultiSensing. Our engineers have pushed the boundaries of sensor fusion and machine learning algorithms, pioneering a unique approach to training neural networks using synthetic data to deliver a driver and in-cabin software platform with an unparalleled level of performance, robustness and efficiency. We firmly believe that this innovation will have a transformative impact on the driver and in-cabin monitoring market, significantly contributing to making roads safer for everyone.
Our licensing revenues during Q1 were stable indicating that the global supply chain challenges related to semiconductor supply shortages that have hampered our printer and automotive customers’ production and sales for the last two years are beginning to improve and that demand for our customers’ products is still strong.
Our product sales in Q1 were below expectations with many markets starting the year very slowly. On a positive note, we are seeing strong interest for our solutions in China where businesses and markets have begun to rebound following the lifting of COVID-related shutdowns. We are working together with different partners to try to capitalize on this and plan to increase our marketing efforts in China going forward, which we hope will start to bear fruit later this year and the next.
While continuously monitoring our performance and adjusting our strategies and tactics, we continue to execute on our overall business strategy to establish beachheads in key segments from which we later can expand to further grow our business. As part of this strategy, we are using our strong cash position to intensify our marketing work – both online and through participation in tradeshows and other types of events – and are recruiting experienced core competence to strengthen our sales and engineering teams, which is key for accelerating growth.
During 2022 we continued to execute on our strategy, with a dual focus on technology licensing and product sales. In our licensing business we focused on expanding the business with automotive customers and on solutions for driver and in-cabin monitoring, head-up display (“HUD”) obstruction detection and interior controls, which generated project-related NRE revenues. We also continued to support our existing printer and automotive customers, who license our zForce technology for touch display applications. In our products business we focused on promoting and selling our Touch Sensor Module (“TSM”) products to customers in the elevator and interactive kiosk sectors.
During the first half of the year our sales and business development continued to be hampered by pandemic-driven lock-downs and uncertain market outlooks for several of our customers, causing them to push new product development and launches into the future. Global supply chain constraints also affected several of our customers due to the lack of semi-conductors and other key components. Both factors had an adverse effect on our growth and financial performance. During the third and fourth quarters we saw indications that the situation in several of our key markets, for instance China, Japan, and Korea, started to normalize, a trend which we expect to continue in 2023. We therefore remain optimistic about our ability to significantly grow our business in 2023 and the years to come.
We are confident that the key market segments and application areas we are active in: touchless interaction with elevator control panels and interactive kiosks and driver and in-cabin monitoring, and HUD obstruction detection in vehicles will increase in relevance and grow in the future, and that we are in a good position to capitalize on this growth with our TSM products and our MultiSensing and zForce technology platforms. We also believe we have good potential to grow in the medtech sector with our TSM products and zForce licensing offerings. Finally, we believe that our current sources of liquidity and capital will be sufficient to execute on our strategy and continue to grow the company and increase shareholder value.
The integration of Neonode’s contactless touch technology into the BOWL eco-system is a must-have for creating phygitalproducts. Our customers can now easily and quickly transform any physical object into a smart surface.
Out collaboration with EPICNPOC opens up new market opportunities for us and we see great potential in the combination of their offerings and our zForce and MultiSensing technologies.
Our net revenues were higher and our operating expenses were lower during the third quarter than in the corresponding period last year. We are pleased to see that our efforts to grow sales and control costs generated results. We continue our focused work to expand our business and remain optimistic about the potential of our products and technology platforms. This said, we are not satisfied with the results we have achieved so far. Our sales and growth continue to be affected by several factors, including long sales and product launch cycles in the segments where we are active. Our business is also affected by COVID-19 lockdowns and semi-conductor shortage issues that our customers must navigate. We continue to take measures to mitigate these issues
Our products business continues to develop and we are seeing a growing interest in our Touch Sensor Modules (“TSM”) from both elevator and interactive kiosk customers. One driver is the increased interest for holographic display applications we are seeing from different equipment manufacturers and end customers. We continue to work to expand the TSM business and increase our sales volumes in Japan, South Korea, and in other markets
In developing our licensing business we focus on automotive OEM and tier 1 customers mainly, and we are encouraged by the interest we are seeing for our object detection, gesture sensing, and driver and in-cabin monitoring solutions. Short- and medium-term the revenue potential in this segment is from sales of non-recurring engineering services in application development projects linked to new vehicle platforms. Long-term these projects may lead to increased license revenues, typically through royalty payments per vehicle produced
We selected Neonode technology because the Touch Sensor Modules could fit in the existing design of the equipment and meet the performance requirements. Alternative projected capacitive touch solutions would have meant a redesign and compliance recertification of the medical devices.
We are delighted and excited that our business with Elix in the medical segment continues and expands. We look forward to continuing our great ongoing cooperation with them.
I am looking forward to working with the teams in Stockholm and Kungsbacka to strengthen the operations for this innovative deep tech organization and contributing to the company’s future success
I am excited about contributing to Neonode’s business strategy with my people management expertise and look forward to continuing to build upon the great company culture and values
I am very glad to welcome Helena and Thierry to the company. Both bring expertise in their respective fields and have considerable experience from similar roles in several different companies, which will strengthen our team and help us achieve our ambitious growth and profitability targets
Our overall sales and results for the second quarter of 2022 were below expectations and were impacted by the fact that customers in several of our key markets, particularly Asia, are still being affected by lock-downs associated with the COVID-19 pandemic. Many of our customers are also having to navigate supply chain constraints due to a shortage of semiconductor components and other issues they are faced with in the current economic climate, slowing their product sales, and in some cases their development and launches of new products, which affects our business negatively
Our products business continues to develop and we are seeing a growing interest in our Touch Sensor Modules (“TSM”) from elevator customers and interactive kiosk manufacturers in the transportation, retail, hospitality, and medical segments. To date we have had the best traction in Japan and South Korea, but other markets such as China, Western Europe, and North America are also showing potential. Together with our distributors and value-added resellers we continue to work to expand the TSM business and increase our sales volumes.
In our efforts to re-vitalize our licensing business we focus on automotive OEM and tier 1 customers, and we are encouraged by the interest we are seeing for our object detection, gesture sensing and driver and in-cabin monitoring solutions. Short- and medium-term the revenue potential is sales of non-recurring engineering services in application development projects linked to new vehicle platforms. These projects pave the way for increased license revenues in the medium- and long-term when vehicles based on the new platforms start being produced. We continue to execute on our strategy and remain optimistic about the potential to grow this business in the coming years.
Neonode’s go-to-market strategy relies on direct sales combined with indirect sales via a network of partners with a wide technical skillset. We are pleased to have found in MZ Technologie, a partner, who has demonstrated high competency to design compelling touchless solutions using our Touch Sensor Modules. We look forward to continuing to work with their team to replicate their successes in France in the Middle East
We produce high-end touchless experiences by focusing on the user experience. Our talented team of engineers builds with Neonode technology, world-class solutions that we look forward to exporting globally
I am very pleased to be joining the Board at Neonode. Demand for contactless interfaces is increasing and I believe the company has an extremely interesting and commercially proven technology to address this market. I look forward to contributing to the future success of the business.
We are so pleased that Cecilia will join our Board of Directors and contribute her experience to the collective knowledge of Neonode. We also want to thank Mattias for his dedicated and professional work as director from 2019 to 2022.
2021 was another challenging year where pandemic-driven lock-downs negatively impacted our financial performance. The impact of these lock-downs was exacerbated by global supply chain constraints affecting several of our customers due to lack of semiconductor and other key components. These unprecedented events resulted in a temporary slowdown in the progress we experienced in the first half of the year where we saw increasing traction with elevator and kiosk customers using our Touch Sensor Modules (“TSMs”) and stable license revenues. During this time of uncertainty, we refined and improved our product lines, increased marketing and business development activities, solidified our cash position and as a result added many new partners and customers. Customers have accelerated the adoption TSM-powered retrofit solutions for contactless touch in self-service kiosks in some large fast-food restaurants, airports and convenience stores, and in elevators, in Asia and Europe. We have also seen increased interest from kiosk and elevator OEMs to develop and start to sell their own contactless touch solutions, for retrofit and new equipment. We expect these activities to continue to increase over the next few years, with Asian customers leading the way
We are more confident than ever that we are in the right place at the right time with our contactless touch technology and our TSM products. We and our partners are all experiencing growing demand for intuitive, easy to use and safe contactless touch solutions. We also see a growing wave of interest in our solutions for driver and in-cabin monitoring, gesture sensing and object detection from automotive customers and continue to see opportunities to license our well-proven, high-performance touch technology to customers in the automotive, military and avionics, medical and industrial automation segments. We believe that we are well capitalized to navigate the current headwinds and continue to grow the company and increase shareholder value
We are pleased and excited to see this initiative, where our technology is simplifying and enhancing the customer experience and making the interaction with the underlying device or system safer, more hygienic, and more convenient to use, which further emphasizes the importance of Neonode’s contactless touch technology in the retail segment. Thanks to a well-functioning partnership with our distributor NEXTY Electronics and Kanda Kogyo we have paved the way for a successful deployment
We value the compact design and easy calibration system of the Neonode Touch Sensor Modules, and quickly concluded it was a perfect fit for this new product
During the third quarter our revenue was negatively impacted by COVID-19 driven lock-downs in our key Asian markets. The impact of these lock-downs was exacerbated by global supply chain constraints due to semiconductor component shortages, which resulted in a reduction in license fees earned from our printer and automotive customers. These developments resulted in a temporary slowdown in the progress we experienced in the first half of the year where we saw increasing traction with elevator and kiosk customers using our Touch Sensor Modules (”TSMs”) and stable license revenues. During this renewed lock-down phase, sales of our TSMs have been negatively impacted because our partners who are providing retrofit solutions have been unable to freely access their customer locations to install their contactless touch kits. Some elevator and kiosk projects have also been delayed due to of supply-chain issues related to semiconductor component shortages