Review of Operations

The Group's total revenue for the financial year (excluding foreign exchange gains and finance income) increased by 17% and total adjusted EBITDA decreased by 19% on prior year results.

*Adjusted EBITDA is a non-IFRS measure but included as an important metric for shareholders understanding of the business. Please refer to Note 4(b) for a reconciliation of adjusted EBITDA with loss before income tax.

OEM division

At the end of FY2024, Seeing Machines had 7 automotive programs in production, and over 2.2 million cars on the road featuring its DMS technology, an increase of 104% from 12 months ago. Seeing Machines is now engaged with 11 OEMs on 18 expanding programs with a cumulative total initial lifetime revenue of $392 million, most of which is expected to be recognised over the period to 2028.

During the financial year the OEM business was strengthened through both a deepening of its collaborations with Magna and Valeo and also as a result of securing two new Automotive programs with both a new and an existing OEM.

At the end of the prior financial year, the Group diversified its exposure to other industries beyond Automotive by entering into an exclusive license and development agreement with Collins Aerospace in the Aviation sector. This has generated both licensing and non-recurring engineering revenue being recognised during this financial year.

·   Royalty revenues, derived from installation of Seeing Machines' Driver Monitoring System (DMS) technology, and represent very high margin revenue. Despite the backdrop of slower OEM production across the globe, the Group achieved a 100%+ increase in cars on road fitted with our technology compared with the prior year, resulting in royalty volumes increasing by 76% and revenues increasing by 40%. This ramp up is expected to continue as Automotive programs become the dominant source of revenue for the business unit.

·     Non-Recurring Engineering (NRE) revenue is software development activities undertaken to embed DMS technologies into the specific OEM configuration, and the increase represents additional programs and development work undertaken in the current financial year. NRE revenue, although at a lower margin itself, is a leading indicator of future high-margin royalty revenue.

·     Revenue from license fees was earned from exclusive collaboration agreements with Magna Electronics and Collins Aerospace and reflects the volume of work undertaken during the year to fulfil those agreements. The nature of this type of revenue generally means that each agreement is unique and one-off. This revenue attracts a high margin.

·     Adjusted EBITDA represents the EBITDA earned by the division after adjusting for capitalised research and development expenditure and allocating corporate costs and overheads. The measure is a proxy for the cash earned or used by the division during the year.  A lower mix of high margin revenue, contributed to a 30% decline in adjusted EBITDA for the year, which was also impacted by an increase of investment in research and development costs, particularly during the first half of the year.

Aftermarket division

Seeing Machines' Guardian technology is now connected to over 62,000 individual vehicles, representing 19% year on year growth, with those vehicles having travelled over 17 billion kilometres.

During FY2024, the company launched Guardian Generation 3 to commercial vehicle manufacturers in Europe in support of the General Safety Regulation (GSR) requirements to detect driver drowsiness, required in all new vehicles on the road in Europe from July 2024.  These requirements will escalate to include distraction for all new vehicles from July 2026.  

The advent of these regulations opens up a new market segment for Seeing Machines known as After Manufacture (factory-fit). Since the end of FY2024, two OEMs have successfully achieved vehicle homologation, including the installation of Guardian Generation 3, allowing them to incorporate the technology into their vehicles after manufacture but prior to the vehicles being sold as compliant with the GSR.

Guardian Generation 3 will also underpin expansion in the US market for traditional aftermarket (retrofit) opportunities.

The Company also signed a new 5-Year Master License and Marketing Agreement with mining company Caterpillar Inc, which created new opportunities for the Company to sell its Guardian product to mining related on-highway vehicles, previously exclusive to Caterpillar, while supplying smarter and more competitive products to the heavy equipment sector.

·   Driver monitoring revenue represents the high margin recurring revenue generated from Guardian connections with revenue increasing by 12% and connected units increasing by 19% to 62,010 units in June 2024 (FY2023: 51,975).

·     Hardware and installation revenue from the sale and installation of Guardian units saw growth of 30% as the majority of the remaining inventory of Generation 2 units were sold, making way for the new higher margin Generation 3 units which began production during the period.

·     Royalties continued to be generated from the agreement with Caterpillar, Inc, and saw growth as Caterpillar refocused on this segment of their business.  As the previous arrangement with Caterpillar came to an end in June 2024, the Group entered into a new five-year license Agreement which included an upfront license payment of $16,500,000 related to Guardian technology.  As a result, $5,000,000 licensing revenue (FY2023: nil) was recognised during the year from Caterpillar.

·    Non-recurring engineering revenue relates to technology development and consulting projects with Caterpillar. The decrease in revenue represents a reduction in project activity as existing projects were completed and entered extended final phases of completion.

·      Adjusted EBITDA declined by 10% for the period reflecting investment for the final stages of the Generation 3 product which was launched during the year. Additional costs were also incurred to expand the global sales team and make investments in infrastructure and people to scale the division in readiness for further growth now that the Generation 3 product is launched.  Margins on the outgoing Generation 2 product also saw a decline as a result of continued unfavourable foreign exchange conditions.

Gross Profit

Gross profit increased across the entire business from $28,898,000 in FY2023 to $31,525,000 in FY2024 although the gross profit margin declined by 3% year on year from 50% in FY2023 to 47% in FY2024. The reduction in gross profit margin was largely due to sales mix changes compared to the prior year with a lower proportion of revenue from license fees and a higher proportion of lower margin hardware revenue. 

Expenditure

The Group continued to invest in its core technology development to further strengthen its competitive moat, rapidly expand features and leverage its systems approach across global OEM and Aftermarket industries. Including the generation 3 investment, the Company incurred total research and development expenses of $41,403,000 (FY2023: $34,949,000) during the year ended 30 June 2024 of which $22,868,000 (FY2023: $23,685,000) was capitalised.

Operating expenses increased compared to last year which was due to additional (non-cash) amortisation for development costs, development resources for OEM customer projects, investment in the Aftermarket operations as discussed above, and an expanded global Aftermarket sales team.

During the year, several customer projects were completed resulting in a reduction in outsourced development resource capacity. This contributed to operating expenses excluding depreciation and amortization reducing by 6% in the second half of the financial year compared to the first half. Operating expenses included $1,114,000 (FY2023: nil) related to one-off restructuring expenses ($738,000) and acquisition costs related to Asaphus Vision GmbH ($376,000). Excluding these one-off restructuring and acquisition costs, the second half operating expenses excluding depreciation and amortization reduced by 9% compared to the first half of the financial year.

As a result of these factors, the loss for the year ended 30 June 2024 increased by $15,728,000 to $31,276,000 (FY2023 loss: $15,548,000).

Working capital management

After adjusting for the receipts from one-off licensing arrangements, cashflows from operating and investing activities have improved significantly year on year, mainly as a result of a strong focus on working capital management. 

Inventories reduced during the year by $7,566,000 with all deliveries of Generation 2 Guardian units received and the majority of units sold by year end. The supply chain model for Generation 3 units will result in lower inventories being held in future periods.  Trade and other receivables reduced compared to June 2023, with a significant overdue balance being paid after 30 June 2024.

At year end, trade and other payables balance increased primarily as a result of extended credit terms being negotiated for final deliveries of Guardian Generation 2 units, which were largely sold prior to year-end with the proceeds included within the trade and other receivables balance.

Going concern

The attached annual financial report for the year ended 30 June 2024 contains an independent auditor's report which highlights the existence of a material uncertainty that may cast significant doubt about the Group's ability to continue as a going concern. For further information, refer to Note 34(b) to the financial statements, together with the auditor's report.

Industry update

As transport regulators around the world continue to try keep up with technological advancements and strive to enhance safety on roads, Seeing Machines is well positioned to benefit from supportive regulatory tailwinds as its core technology, underpinned by its purpose of getting home safely, has become a key regulatory focus.

Touted as the next 'seat belt', driver and occupant monitoring system (DMS/OMS) technology is set to become commonplace in cars and all road-going vehicles globally, to help reduce accidents by mitigating risks associated with drowsy and distracted driving.

In China, requirements for safety technologies, including DMS, are already in place. In Europe, the General Safety Regulation (GSR) requiring driver monitoring came into effect in July 2024. Further, the protocols set by Europe's New Car Assessment Program (NCAP) also play a crucial role in driving global safety technology advancements as they continue to develop their roadmap, increasing standards over time to improve safety.

In the United States, the regulatory landscape is evolving to increase emphasis on integrating advanced driver safety technologies into vehicles. These developments are part of a broader effort by lawmakers and safety agencies to address the growing concerns around road safety and the impact of modern vehicle features on driver behaviour.

These regulatory tailwinds are now influencing and supporting robust growth in vehicles in production with the Company's technology installed. The influence of Level 2+ automation, where two or more aspects of driving are controlled by technology, is also notable particularly in the North American market where regulators are responding to accidents caused by advanced features that may endanger driver safety.

This momentum is set to continue, and the Company expects to see significant growth in high-margin royalty revenue into FY2025 and beyond as ongoing automotive programs start production, and OEMs meet these requirements across more of their car lines in Europe and around the world.

In the aviation sector, the company works exclusively with Collins Aerospace, a Raytheon company and the world's largest Tier 1 Avionics company. This partnership continues to mature as the development of the launch product moves forward. Pilot and crew support in simulators and cockpits is the key focus for enhanced safety and efficiency and Seeing Machines, a pioneer in this space, is set to secure a leadership path across this rapidly expanding industry, in partnership with Collins.

Other highlights

Post period end, Seeing Machines acquired Berlin-based Asaphus Vision GmbH, providing a European team located close to its European customer base, and enhancing its interior sensing capabilities with AI expertise and specialised data, critical to the continued development of the Company's feature technology roadmap. 

The Seeing Machines board was further strengthened with the appointment of Stephane Vedie, a North American based Automotive industry veteran.

Finally, Seeing Machines was honoured to receive the prestigious Prince Michael of Kent Safety Award 2023, one of the highest accolades in the field, testament to the commitment of the Company to its purpose of getting people home safely.

Significant changes in the state of affairs

During the financial year there was no significant change in the state of affairs of the Company other than those referred to elsewhere in this report and in the financial statements or notes thereto.

Subsequent events after the balance date

Since 30 June 2024 Seeing Machines Limited has acquired 100% of the issued shares in Asaphus Vision GmbH, a highly specialised development group with leading Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence capability, for $6,000,000 (cash consideration of $1,000,000 on acquisition and deferred consideration of $5,000,000).

No other matter or circumstance has arisen since 30 June 2024 that has significantly affected the group's operations, results or state of affairs, or may do so in future years.

Likely developments and expected results of operations

More information on the likely developments and expected results of the operations are included in the review of operations, trading update and other highlights on pages 2 to 6.

Environmental regulation

The Company holds no licences issued by relevant Environmental Protection Authorities and there have been no known breaches of any environmental regulations.