UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM
| Quarterly REPORT pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 | |
| For
the quarterly period ended | |
| Or | |
| Transition report pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 | |
| For the transition period from _____________ to _____________ | |
Commission File No.
(Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in Its Charter)
| (State or other jurisdiction
of incorporation or organization) |
(I.R.S. Employer Identification No.) |
| Address of Principal Executive Offices | Zip Code |
(Registrant’s telephone number, including area code)
Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:
| Title of each class | Trading Symbol(s) | Name of each exchange on which registered | ||
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant:
(1) 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.
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).
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 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 ☐ | Accelerated Filer ☐ |
| Smaller Reporting Company
| |
| Emerging Growth Company |
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.
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as
defined in Rule 12(b)-2 of the Exchange Act). Yes ☐
As of November 12, 2021, shares of the registrant’s common stock, $0.001 par value per share, were outstanding.
AUDDIA INC.
2021 QUARTERLY REPORT ON FORM 10-Q
TABLE OF CONTENTS
| Page No. | ||||
| PART I – FINANCIAL INFORMATION | ||||
| Item 1. | Financial Statements (Unaudited) | 1 | ||
| Condensed Balance Sheets | 1 | |||
| Condensed Statements of Operations | 2 | |||
| Condensed Statements of Changes in Shareholders’ Equity (Deficit) | 3 | |||
| Condensed Statements of Cash Flows | 4 | |||
| Notes to Condensed Financial Statements | 5 | |||
| Item 2. | Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations | 15 | ||
| Item 3. | Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk | 24 | ||
| Item 4. | Controls and Procedures | 25 | ||
| PART II – OTHER INFORMATION | ||||
| Item 1. | Legal Proceedings | 27 | ||
| Item 1A. | Risk Factors | 27 | ||
| Item 2. | Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities and Use of Proceeds | 27 | ||
| Item 3. | Defaults Upon Senior Securities | 27 | ||
| Item 4. | Mine Safety Disclosures | 27 | ||
| Item 5. | Other Information | 27 | ||
| Item 6. | Exhibits | 28 | ||
| Signatures | 30 | |||
| i |
Unless we state otherwise or the context otherwise requires, the terms “Auddia,” “we,” “us,” “our” and the “Company” refer to Auddia Inc., a Delaware corporation.
SPECIAL NOTE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
This Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, or Quarterly Report, contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. We make such forward-looking statements pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and other federal securities laws. All statements other than statements of historical facts contained in this Quarterly Report are forward-looking statements. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by terminology such as “may”, “will”, “should”, “expects”, “intends”, “plans”, “anticipates”, “believes”, “estimates”, “predicts”, “potential”, “continue” or the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology.
Forward-looking statements are neither historical facts nor assurances of future performance, and are based only on our current beliefs, expectations and assumptions regarding the future of our business, future plans and strategies, projections, anticipated events and trends, the economy and other future conditions. Because forward-looking statements relate to the future, they are subject to inherent uncertainties, risks and changes in circumstances that are difficult to predict and many of which are outside of our control. Therefore, you should not rely on any of these forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause our actual results and financial condition to differ materially from those indicated in the forward-looking statements include, among others, the following:
| · | the impact of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic on our business, results of operations, cash flows, financial condition and liquidity; | |
| · | the sufficiency of our existing cash to meet our working capital and capital expenditure needs over the next 12 months and our need to raise additional capital; | |
| · | our ability to generate revenue from new software services; | |
| · | our limited operating history; | |
| · | our ability to maintain proper and effective internal financial controls; | |
| · | our ability to continue to operate as a going concern; | |
| · | changes in laws, government regulations and policies and interpretations thereof; | |
| · | our ability to obtain and maintain protection for our intellectual property; | |
| · | the risk of errors, failures or bugs in our platform or products; | |
| · | our ability to attract and retain qualified employees and key personnel; | |
| · | our ability to manage our rapid growth and organizational change effectively; | |
| · | the possibility of security vulnerabilities, cyberattacks and network disruptions, including breaches of data security and privacy leaks, data loss, and business interruptions; | |
| · | our compliance with data privacy laws and regulations; | |
| · | our ability to develop and maintain our brand cost-effectively; and | |
| · | the other factors set forth elsewhere in this Quarterly Report and in Part I, Item 1A, “Risk Factors” of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2020. |
These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this Form 10-Q and are subject to business and economic risks. We do not undertake any obligation to update or revise the forward-looking statements to reflect events that occur or circumstances that exist after the date on which such statements were made, except to the extent required by law.
| ii |
PART I – FINANCIAL INFORMATION
| Item 1. | Financial Statements |
Auddia Inc.
Condensed Balance Sheets
| As of | ||||||||
September 30, (Unaudited) | December 31, 2020 | |||||||
| ASSETS | ||||||||
| Current assets: | ||||||||
| Cash | $ | $ | ||||||
| Accounts receivable, net | ||||||||
| Total current assets | ||||||||
| Non-current assets: | ||||||||
| Property and equipment, net of accumulated depreciation of $ | ||||||||
| Software development costs, net of accumulated amortization of $ | ||||||||
| Deferred offering costs | ||||||||
| Prepaids and other non-current assets | ||||||||
| Total non-current assets | ||||||||
| Total assets | $ | $ | ||||||
| LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY (DEFICIT) | ||||||||
| Current liabilities: | ||||||||
| Accounts payable and accrued liabilities | $ | $ | ||||||
| Line of credit | ||||||||
| Convertible notes payable | ||||||||
| Notes payable to related parties and deferred salary | ||||||||
| Promissory notes payable | ||||||||
| PPP loan | ||||||||
| Accrued fees to a related party | ||||||||
| Total current liabilities | ||||||||
| Commitments and contingencies | ||||||||
| Stockholders' equity (deficit): | ||||||||
| Preferred stock - $ par value, authorized and shares issued and outstanding at September 30, 2021 and December 31, 2020 | ||||||||
| Common stock - $ par value, authorized and and shares issued and outstanding at September 30, 2021 and December 31, 2020 | ||||||||
| Additional paid-in capital | ||||||||
| Accumulated deficit | ( | ) | ( | ) | ||||
| Total stockholders’ equity (deficit) | ( | ) | ||||||
| Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity (deficit) | $ | $ | ||||||
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these unaudited condensed financial statements.
| 1 |
Auddia Inc.
Condensed Statements of Operations (Unaudited)
| Three Months Ended September 30, | Nine Months Ended September 30, | |||||||||||||||
| 2021 | 2020 | 2021 | 2020 | |||||||||||||
| Revenue | $ | $ | $ | $ | ||||||||||||
| Operating expenses: | ||||||||||||||||
| Direct cost of services | ||||||||||||||||
| Sales and marketing | ||||||||||||||||
| Research and development | ||||||||||||||||
| General and administrative | ||||||||||||||||
| Total operating expenses | ||||||||||||||||
| Loss from operations | ( | ) | ( | ) | ( | ) | ( | ) | ||||||||
| Other income (expense): | ||||||||||||||||
| Finance charge – convertible debt | ( | ) | ||||||||||||||
| PPP loan extinguishment | ||||||||||||||||
| Interest expense | ( | ) | ( | ) | ( | ) | ||||||||||
| Interest income | ||||||||||||||||
| Total other income (expense) | ( | ) | ( | ) | ( | ) | ||||||||||
| Net loss before income taxes | ( | ) | ( | ) | ( | ) | ( | ) | ||||||||
| Income taxes | ||||||||||||||||
| Net loss | $ | ( | ) | $ | ( | ) | $ | ( | ) | $ | ( | ) | ||||
Net loss per share attributable to common stockholders Basic and diluted | $ | ( | ) | $ | ( | ) | $ | ( | ) | $ | ( | ) | ||||
Weighted average common shares outstanding Basic and diluted | ||||||||||||||||
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these unaudited condensed financial statements.
| 2 |
Auddia Inc.
Condensed Statements of Changes in Stockholders’ Equity (Deficit) (Unaudited)
Nine Months Ended September 30, 2021
| Common Stock | Additional Paid-In | Accumulated | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Shares | Value | Capital | Deficit | Total | ||||||||||||||||||
| Balance, December 31, 2020 | $ | $ | $ | ( | ) | $ | ( | ) | ||||||||||||||
| Issuance of common shares | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Exercise of warrants | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Conversion of debt obligations | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Share-based compensation | – | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Net loss | – | ( | ) | ( | ) | |||||||||||||||||
| Balance, September 30, 2021 | $ | $ | $ | ( | ) | $ | ||||||||||||||||
Nine Months Ended September 30, 2020
| Common Stock | Additional Paid-In | Subscription | Accumulated | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Shares | Value | Capital | Receivable | Deficit | Total | |||||||||||||||||||
| Balance, December 31, 2019 | $ | $ | $ | ( | ) | $ | ( | ) | $ | ( | ) | |||||||||||||
| Issuance of common shares | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Collection of subscription receivable | – | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Share-based compensation | – | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Net loss | – | ( | ) | ( | ) | |||||||||||||||||||
| Balance, September 30, 2020 | $ | $ | $ | $ | ( | ) | $ | ( | ) | |||||||||||||||
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these unaudited condensed financial statements.
| 3 |
Auddia Inc.
Condensed Statements of Cash Flows (Unaudited)
| Nine Months Ended September 30, | ||||||||
| 2021 | 2020 | |||||||
| Cash flows from operating activities: | ||||||||
| Net loss | $ | ( | ) | $ | ( | ) | ||
| Adjustments to reconcile net loss to net cash used in operating activities: | ||||||||
| Finance charge associated with debt to equity conversion | ||||||||
| Depreciation and amortization | ||||||||
| Bad debt provision | ( | ) | ||||||
| Share-based compensation | ||||||||
| Gain on PPP loan extinguishment | ( | ) | ||||||
| Issuance of common stock for consulting services | ||||||||
| Change in assets and liabilities: | ||||||||
| Accounts receivable | ||||||||
| Prepaids and other non-current assets | ( | ) | ||||||
| Accounts payable and accrued liabilities | ( | ) | ||||||
| Net cash used in operating activities | ( | ) | ( | ) | ||||
| Cash flows from investing activities: | ||||||||
| Software capitalization | ( | ) | ( | ) | ||||
| Purchase of property and equipment | ( | ) | ( | ) | ||||
| Net cash used in investing activities | ( | ) | ( | ) | ||||
| Cash flows from financing activities: | ||||||||
| Proceeds from issuance of common shares | ||||||||
| Repayments of related party debt and deferred salary | ( | ) | ( | ) | ||||
| Repayments of line of credit | ( | ) | ||||||
| Proceeds from issuance of PPP loan | ||||||||
| Proceeds from issuance of promissory notes payable | ||||||||
| Deferred offering costs capitalized | ( | ) | ||||||
| Proceeds from issuance of convertible notes payable | ||||||||
| Proceeds from related party debt | ||||||||
| Subscription receivable | ||||||||
| Net cash provided by financing activities | ||||||||
| Net increase (decrease) in cash | ( | ) | ||||||
| Cash, beginning of period | ||||||||
| Cash, end of period | $ | $ | ||||||
| Supplemental disclosures of cash flow information: | ||||||||
| Cash paid for interest | $ | ( | ) | $ | ( | ) | ||
| Cash paid for income taxes | $ | $ | ||||||
| Supplemental disclosures of non-cash activity: | ||||||||
| Shares issued for conversion of indebtedness | $ | $ | ||||||
| PPP loan extinguishment | $ | ( | ) | $ | ||||
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these unaudited condensed financial statements.
| 4 |
Auddia Inc.
Notes to Condensed Financial Statements (Unaudited)
Note 1 - Description of Business, Basis of Presentation and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies
Description of Business
Auddia Inc., formerly Clip Interactive, LLC, (the “Company”, “Auddia”, “we”, “our”) is a technology company that is reinventing how consumers engage with audio through the development of a proprietary AI platform for audio and innovative technologies for podcasts. Clip Interactive, LLC was initially formed as a Colorado limited liability company on January 14, 2012 and on November 25, 2019 changed its trade name to Auddia.
On February 16, 2021, the Company completed an initial public offering (the “IPO”) of 3,991,818 units, at $4.125 per unit, consisting of one share of common stock and one warrant to purchase one share of common stock at an exercise price of $4.54 per share. In addition, the underwriters exercised their option to purchase 598,772 Series A warrants to cover over-allotments and were issued 319,346 in representative warrants at an exercise price of $5.15625 per share. After deducting underwriters commissions and expenses, the Company received net proceeds of approximately $15.1 million and its common stock commenced trading on Nasdaq under the ticker symbol “AUUD”. Concurrently with the IPO, holders of the Company’s promissory notes, convertible notes, and related party notes, along with accrued interest, were converted into 6,814,570 shares of the Company’s common stock.
Concurrently with the IPO the Company converted from a Colorado limited liability company to a Delaware corporation. This accounting change has been given retrospective treatment in the condensed financial statements.
Basis of Presentation
The accompanying financial statements have been prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States of America (“GAAP”).
Unaudited interim financial information
The condensed financial statements of the Company included herein have been prepared, without audit, pursuant to the rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”). Certain information and footnote disclosures normally included in financial statements prepared in accordance with GAAP have been condensed or omitted from this Quarterly Report, as is permitted by such rules and regulations. Accordingly, these condensed financial statements should be read in conjunction with the financial statements and notes thereto included in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K. The results for any interim period are not necessarily indicative of results for any future period.
Use of Estimates
The preparation of condensed financial statements in conformity with 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. Actual results could differ from those estimates.
The condensed financial statements include some amounts that are based on management's best estimates and judgments. The most significant estimates relate to valuation of capital stock, warrants and options to purchase shares of the Company's common stock, and the estimated recoverability and amortization period for capitalized software development costs. These estimates may be adjusted as more current information becomes available, and any adjustment could be significant.
| 5 |
Reclassification of Presentation
Certain prior year amounts have been reclassified for consistency with the current year presentation. These reclassifications had no effect on the reported results of operations.
Risks and Uncertainties
The Company is subject to various risks and uncertainties frequently encountered by companies in the early stages of development. Such risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, its limited operating history, competition from other companies, limited access to additional funds, dependence on key personnel, and management of potential rapid growth. To address these risks, the Company must, among other things, develop its customer base; implement and successfully execute its business and marketing strategy; develop follow-on products; provide superior customer service; and attract, retain, and motivate qualified personnel. There can be no guarantee that the Company will be successful in addressing these or other such risks.
Cash and Restricted Cash
The Company considers
all highly liquid instruments purchased with an original maturity of three months or less to be cash equivalents. The Company had
The Company maintains cash deposits at several financial institutions, which are insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation up to $250,000. The Company’s cash balance may at times exceed these limits. At September 30, 2021 and December 31, 2020, the Company had approximately $7.8 million and $0, respectively, in excess of federally insured limits. The Company continually monitors its positions with, and the credit quality of, the financial institutions with which it invests.
Deferred Offering Costs
The Company previously capitalized certain legal, professional accounting and other third-party fees that were directly associated with in-process stock financings as deferred offering costs until such financings were consummated. After consummation of the Company’s IPO, these costs were recorded as a reduction to additional paid-in capital generated as a result of the offering.
Emerging Growth Company Status
The Company is an emerging growth company, as defined in the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act of 2012 (the “JOBS Act”). Under the JOBS Act, emerging growth companies can delay adopting new or revised accounting standards issued subsequent to the enactment of the JOBS Act until such time as those standards apply to private companies. The Company has elected to use this extended transition period for complying with certain new or revised accounting standards that have different effective dates for public and private companies.
| 6 |
Note 2 – Revenue Recognition
Legacy platform phase out
From 2014 through 2020, the Company was successful in deploying its platform across 580 major radio stations and 1.6 million monthly active users. The Company’s legacy product served the broadcast industry by providing a platform that allows for the delivery of actionable digital ads that are synchronized with broadcast and streaming audio ads. Broadcasters offer mobile and web digital interfaces to their listeners, typically for their individual stations. Our Interactive Radio Platform provided mobile and web products that provide end users (listeners) with a visual display of everything a radio station has played in recent history (referred to as a “station feed”).
In addition to displaying album art for songs played, and digital insertions for station promotions and programs (e.g., a radio station contest), the station feed also included a digital element for each audio ad that was played. These interactive, synchronized digital ads generate additional revenue for broadcasters and allowed for the collection of meaningful advertising analytics which we presented to broadcasters through an analytics dashboard.
The Company began phasing out its Interactive Radio Platform in early 2020 and ceased operations related to the legacy platform by August 1, 2020. Much of the core technology of this platform is being leveraged for re-use with our new products, Auddia and Vodacast, currently under development. Furthermore, our well established relationships with more than a dozen broadcasters through the sales, marketing and digital services operations are being maintained as we seek to deploy the Auddia App on a national scale.
The Company’s legacy contracts with customers generally fell within two formats: (1) those that encompass development services, access to the Company’s interactive technology platform through a hosted business model and the ability to execute placement of spot advertising through the Company’s interactive technology platform, or (2) contracts exclusively for digital advertising placement of spot ads through the Company’s mobile Apps and web players. The Company allocated the transaction price to each separate performance obligation as applicable within each contract based upon their relative selling prices.
Development service fee revenue
Revenue generated from development services were comprised of services for the development, design and customization of software applications for station branded mobile Apps and web/desktop players for radio stations. The mobile Apps enabled our customer’s users to interact with the live broadcast and streaming content while providing attribution to each station and enabling local and national digital monetization capabilities.
The web/desktop player provided a listening platform that enables full interactive radio capabilities for desktop users that prefer web based listening. The Company determined that the development, design, build and deployment, configuration, and customization are a bundle of professional services provided to the customer for the purpose of the Mobile and Web Desktop Apps and were considered a single performance obligation. Revenue was recognized over time as the services are satisfied and any advanced payments received were not recognized as revenue but instead was recorded in a deferred contract liability until the customer’s services were satisfied. The Company no longer provides these services.
Platform services fee revenue
Revenue generated from platform services were comprised of the customer’s use of the Company’s interactive technology platform that includes access rights to use the licensed software, software hosting, support and maintenance, data tracking analytics, advertising trafficking and monitoring of the mobile App and web/desktop player applications. The Company determined that the hosting of software, license access, support, training, maintenance and unspecified periodic upgrades or updates, monitoring hardware, interactive content management, access to content library, data and analytics dashboard, programming and Ad campaign training were a bundle of product and services that have the same period and pattern of transfer as the service to access the Company’s Platform and have been treated a single performance obligation. Revenue was recognized over time as the customer simultaneously receives and consumes the benefits provided by the Company’s platform services. The Company no longer provides these services.
| 7 |
Advertising revenue
The Company legacy contracts generated advertising revenue in two distinctive forms: one which was from third party advertisers that placed ads on the Company’s mobile Apps and web players which were separate customer contracts whereby such advertising access was the only service and performance obligation within those contracts, and second was ad placements on the same platform but managed by the Company for its customers in connection with its contracts to provide development services and Platform access services to its customers.
The external advertising revenues were comprised of local and national interactive spots that were sourced and managed by customers or by third party service providers (such as Google), whereby the Company received a portion of the dollars spent by the advertiser. In late 2018, the Company decided to move to only internally managed digital advertising for 2019 and discontinued revenue sharing agreements with clients for advertising sourced by the client. Revenue was recognized as performance obligations were satisfied on a net basis as the Company was acting as an agent, which generally occurred as ads were delivered through the platform. We generally recognized revenue based on delivery information from the external providers campaign trafficking systems.
The internal advertising revenues were comprised of advertising fees for local and national interactive spot and local or digital only advertising campaign fees that were managed by the Company. For these advertising spots, the Company retained all the money spent on the advertising campaigns run on the Company’s interactive platform. Revenue was recognized as performance obligations were satisfied, which generally occurred as ads were delivered through the platform.
For Interactive and Digital Campaign and Spot Ad Fees which could include customer digital and interactive spot ad campaigns, interactive spot campaigns, the revenue was recognized at a point in time under the “as-invoiced” practical expedient, since customer usage driven variability was not required to be estimated but rather is allocated to the distinct time period in which the variable activity occurred.
Certain customers received platform fee credits or advertising discounts, which were considered as variable consideration in the determination of the transaction price. These performance obligations related to the fixed price arrangements were discounted ratably based on their relative standalone selling prices.
The Company no longer provides these services.
Practical expedients and exemptions
We expensed sales commissions when incurred because the duration of the contracts for which we paid commissions were less than one year. These costs were included in the sales and marketing line item of our Statements of Operations. Currently the Company does not have any significant acquisition costs which have been incurred associated with the acquisition of its customer contracts and therefore, no deferred customer acquisition costs have been recorded.
We did not disclose the value of unsatisfied performance obligations for (i) contracts with an original expected length of one year or less and (ii) contracts for which we recognize revenue at the amount to which we had the right to invoice for services performed.
| 8 |
The following table presents revenues disaggregated by revenue source:
| Three Months Ended September 30, | Nine Months Ended September 30, | |||||||||||||||
| 2021 | 2020 | 2021 | 2020 | |||||||||||||
| Revenues: | ||||||||||||||||
| Platform Service Fees (hosting services, support, data analytics) | $ | – | $ | – | $ | – | $ | 85,800 | ||||||||
| Digital advertising served by 3rd parties | – | 1,040 | – | 25,119 | ||||||||||||
| $ | – | $ | 1,040 | $ | – | $ | 110,919 | |||||||||
Note 3 – Balance Sheet Disclosures
Accounts payable and accrued liabilities consist of the following:
| September 30, 2021 | December 31, 2020 | |||||||
| Accounts payable and accrued expenses | $ | 349,662 | $ | 1,111,621 | ||||
| Credit cards payable | 8,053 | 22,885 | ||||||
| Accrued interest | – | 364,856 | ||||||
| Wages payable | – | 53,922 | ||||||
| Accounts payable and accrued liabilities | $ | 357,715 | $ | 1,553,284 | ||||
Note 4 – Line of Credit
On April 10, 2018 the Company refinanced its previous line-of-credit with a different bank and this agreement was amended in July 2019 and March 2021. The principal balance was paid off in full as of July 8, 2021. Interest accrued at a variable rate based on the bank’s prime rate plus 1% (4.25% at December 31, 2020) but at no time less than 4.0%. Monthly interest payments were required, with any outstanding principal due on July 10, 2021. Interest expense for the three months ended September 30, 2021 and 2020 was ($2,720) and $65,855, respectively. Interest expense for the nine months ended September 30, 2021 and 2020 was $66,412 and $212,522, respectively.
The line of credit was collateralized by all assets of the Company, including $2 million of cash held in a control account at the lender. The Company also maintained a minimum balance at the lender to cover two months of interest payments. Prior to our IPO, the line of credit was collateralized by $6,000,000 of cash assets of two shareholders held in control accounts at the lender.
Following the Company’s IPO in February 2021 the line of credit was amended and the Company paid down the outstanding principal balance on its bank line of credit from $6 million to $2 million and the available principal balance for the line of credit was reduced from $6 million to $2 million. Further, the $6 million of cash collateral previously provided by the two shareholders was released. The remaining principal balance of $2 million was paid off in full and the line of credit was terminated as of July 8, 2021.
The outstanding balance on the line of credit at September 30, 2021 and December 31, 2020 was $0 and $6,000,000, respectively. The shareholder who previously provided the $2,000,000 control account had a collateral agreement with the Company which is described in Note 5. This agreement was terminated in March 2021.
| 9 |
Note 5 – Convertible Notes Payable, Notes Payable to Related Parties and Promissory Notes
Convertible notes payable
During the year ended December 31, 2020 investors purchased an additional $404,601 of our convertible notes, such that at December 31, 2020 the balance of the convertible notes, including accrued interest, was $2,295,305. These convertible notes accrued interest at 6.0% per year and were scheduled to mature on December 31, 2021. In conjunction with the February 2021 IPO, the Notes automatically converted into 2,066,176 shares of common stock at discounts ranging from 50% to 75% of the IPO price. Interest expense for the three months ended September 30, 2021 and 2020 was $0 and $32,466, respectively. Interest expense for the nine months ended September 30, 2021 and 2020 was $16,586 and $96,207, respectively.
Accrued fees to a related party
The Company had an agreement with a shareholder to provide collateral for a bank line of credit described in Note 4 – Line of Credit. The amount of the cash collateral provided by the shareholder to the bank was $2.0 million. The collateral agreement required a commitment to pay collateral fees of $710,000 (comprised of annual interest of $660,000 plus the $50,000 renewal fee) to the shareholder and issue 3,454 common stock warrants. In January 2019, in connection with the collateral agreement, the Company converted accrued fees of $725,000 into an unsecured note payable, which bore interest at 33% annually and had a maturity date of December 31, 2021. The fees that accrued on the collateral arrangement were 33% percent of the collateral amount annually plus an annual renewal fee of $50,000. Interest expense for the three months ended September 30, 2021 and 2020 was $0 and $326,359, respectively. Interest expense for the nine months ended September 30, 2021 and 2020 was $208,727 and $981,534, respectively. The balance outstanding on the accrued collateral fees was $1,960,336 at December 31, 2020, excluding the $725,000 unsecured note payable. This collateral agreement terminated in March 2021.
In conjunction with the February 2021 IPO, the notes payable and accrued interest due to this shareholder were converted to 1,667,859 shares of common stock.
Promissory notes payable
During the twelve months ended December 31, 2020, the Company issued, to a number of existing shareholders, in four separate tranches, $1,857,764 of Promissory Notes that accrue interest at a rate of 6% per year and were scheduled to mature on December 31, 2021. When issued, the notes incorporated the following attributes: interest on the Notes accrue at 6% and upon the successful completion of a qualified IPO by December 31, 2021, the notes and accrued interest would convert into equity at a per share valuation equal to $40.0 million. In addition, each investor in the Promissory Notes would receive shares and warrants based on a formula that takes into account the number of shares and warrants the investor owned before the investment in these Promissory Notes, as well as a portion of the bonus allocation of 1,038,342 shares made available to the investors. Interest expense for the three months ended September 30, 2021 and 2020 was $0 and $15,965, respectively. Interest expense for the nine months ended September 30, 2021 and 2020 was $14,454 and $23,091, respectively.
In conjunction with the February 2021 IPO, all of the Promissory Notes converted into 3,080,535 shares of common stock.
The Company recognized a finance charge to interest expense of $8,141,424 related to the conversion of the convertible notes, notes payable to related parties and promissory notes during the nine months ended September 30, 2021.
| 10 |
Note 6 – Notes Payable
Notes payable to related parties and deferred salary
An executive officer of the Company agreed to defer receipt of compensation to preserve liquidity in the Company. The accumulated amount of compensation owed to this executive officer was approximately $631,000 at December 31, 2020. The Company paid this deferred compensation in the first quarter of 2021.
During 2019, the Company issued notes payable (the "Notes") to three related parties for $80,000, $200,000 and $50,000, respectively. The Notes did not accrue interest or have a stated maturity date. The outstanding note payable for $80,000 was repaid in January 2020. In December 2019, the two other note holders elected to convert their notes into convertible Notes due December 31, 2021. Two other existing investors, who were owed a total of $17,197 for services by the Company, also agreed to convert their payables into convertible Notes. During 2019 the Company issued a note payable to a related party for consulting services incurred by the Company in the amount of $486,198. As of December 31, 2020, the outstanding balance for consulting services was $440,904.
In October 2019, a shareholder obtained $400,000 of short term financing from an unrelated lender. The shareholder then agreed to make the proceeds of that short term financing available to the Company. In exchange, the Company assumed responsibility for all payments and charges (including principal, interest and fees) required under such short term financing agreement. Under the agreement the Company was advanced $188,000, net of $12,000 in closing fees, and the remaining $200,000 was put into an escrow account owned and controlled by the shareholder. A loan financing fee in the amount of $100,000 was due upon maturity, of which the amount relating to 2019 of $75,000 was included in accrued expenses at December 31, 2019. In December 2019, the Company made a principal payment in the amount of $57,203, and accordingly, the outstanding principal balance was $142,797 at December 31, 2019, and was included in Notes payable to related parties on the balance sheet. The remaining balance of $242,797 which included principal and loan financing fees, was repaid in January 2020.
In February 2020, the Company obtained a new $500,000 short term loan from the same related party. The Company was advanced $485,000, net of $15,000 in closing fees, and immediately placed $140,741 into an escrow account, owned and controlled by the shareholder to provide funds for the scheduled repayments. Repayment of the principal and loan financing fee occurs through weekly payments of $17,593 until the loan and financing fee is paid in full. The loan financing fee increases with the length of the payback period and was maximized at $165,000 after month five. The outstanding balance was repaid in February 2021.
Cares Act Paycheck Protection Program loan
In April 2020, the Company entered into a promissory note evidencing an unsecured loan (the “First Loan”) in the amount of $268,662 made to the Company under the Paycheck Protection Program (the “PPP”). In January 2021, the Company entered into a second promissory note (the “Second Loan” or combined with the first loan, the “PPP Loans”) of $267,482 under the PPP. The PPP was established under the CARES Act and is administered by the U.S. Small Business Administration.
The First Loan was set to mature in April 2022 and the Second Loan matures in January 2023. The PPP Loans bear interest at a rate of 1% per annum. Beginning November 2020, the Company was required to make 18 monthly payments of principal and interest in the amount of $14,370 related to the First Loan. The PPP Loans may be prepaid by the Company at any time prior to maturity with no prepayment penalties. The proceeds from the Loans may only be used for payroll costs (including benefits), interest on mortgage obligations, rent, utilities and interest on certain other debt obligations.
The PPP Loans contain customary events of default relating to, among other things, payment defaults, making materially false and misleading representations to the lender or breaching the terms of the Loan documents. The occurrence of an event of default will result in an increase in the interest rate to 18% per annum and provides the lender with customary remedies, including the right to require immediate payment of all amounts owed under the PPP Loans.
| 11 |
Pursuant to the terms of the CARES Act and the PPP, the Company applied for forgiveness for the First Loan. On June 15, 2021, the Company received confirmation that the First Loan was approved for forgiveness and the Company recorded $268,662 in PPP loan extinguishment to other income during the nine months ended September 30, 2021. The Company has applied to the lender for forgiveness for the amount due on the Second Loan and as noted in Note 10, the Company received confirmation of full forgiveness in November 2021. The amount eligible for forgiveness is based on the amount of Loan proceeds used by the Company (during the eight-week period after the lender makes the first disbursement of Loan proceeds) for the payment of certain covered costs, including payroll costs (including benefits), interest on mortgage obligations, rent and utilities, subject to certain limitations and reductions in accordance with the CARES Act and the PPP. While the Company expects 100% of the Second Loan to be forgiven, no assurance can be given that the Company will obtain forgiveness of the Second Loan in whole or in part.
Note 7 – Commitments and Contingencies
Operating Lease
In April 2021, the Company entered into a lease agreement for a new primary office space in Boulder, Colorado comprising of 8,639 square feet. The lease commenced on May 15, 2021 and terminates after 12 months. The lease has an initial base rent of $7,150 per month, with the first 15 days rent free and includes three separate six month renewal options, subject to fixed rate escalation increases. The Company previously leased approximately 3,000 square feet of office space that expired on April 30, 2021. Rent expense was as follows:
| Three Months Ended September 30 | Nine Months Ended September 30 | |||||||||||||||
| 2021 | 2020 | 2021 | 2020 | |||||||||||||
| Rent expense | $ | 22,397 | $ | 18,231 | $ | 53,887 | $ | 54,465 | ||||||||
Litigation
In the normal course of business, the Company is party to litigation from time to time. The Company maintains insurance to cover certain actions and believes that resolution of such litigation will not have a material adverse effect on the Company.
Stock Options
The following table presents the activity for stock options outstanding:
| Weighted | ||||||||
| Average | ||||||||
| Options | Exercise Price | |||||||
| Outstanding - December 31, 2020 | 300,353 | $ | 3.65 | |||||
| Granted | 1,235,500 | 2.79 | ||||||
| Forfeited/canceled | (21,365 | ) | $ | 2.96 | ||||
| Exercised | – | – | ||||||
| Outstanding – September 30, 2021 | 1,514,488 | $ | 2.96 | |||||
| 12 |
The following table presents the composition of options outstanding and exercisable:
| Options Outstanding | Options Exercisable | |||||||||||||||||||
| Exercise Prices | Number | Price* | Life* | Number | Price* | |||||||||||||||
| $2.70 | 68,518 | $2.70 | 2.07 | 68,518 | $2.70 | |||||||||||||||
| $2.90 | 54,941 | $2.89 | 6.29 | 54,941 | $2.89 | |||||||||||||||
| $4.26 | 173,243 | $4.25 | 7.88 | 141,011 | $4.25 | |||||||||||||||
| $2.79 | 1,217,786 | $2.79 | 9.87 | 252,621 | $2.79 | |||||||||||||||
| Total - September 30, 2021 | 1,514,488 | $2.96 | 9.16 | 517,091 | $3.19 | |||||||||||||||
________________________
* Price and Life reflect the weighted average exercise price and weighted average remaining contractual life, respectively.
During the three and nine months ended September 30, 2021, the Company granted 1,235,500 stock options to certain executives and key employees. Under the terms of the option agreements, the options are subject to certain vesting requirements.
Restricted Stock Units
The following table presents the activity for restricted stock units outstanding:
| Weighted | ||||||||
| Restricted | Average | |||||||
| Stock Units | Exercise Price | |||||||
| Outstanding - December 31, 2020 | $ | |||||||
| Granted | ||||||||
| Forfeited/canceled | $ | |||||||
| Exercised | ||||||||
| Outstanding – September 30, 2021 | $ | |||||||
During the three and nine months ended September 30, 2021, the Company granted 424,500 restricted stock units. Under terms of the restricted stock agreements, the restricted stock units are subject to a certain vesting schedule.
The Company recognized share-based compensation expense related to stock options and restricted stock units of $735,592 and $767,543 for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2021, respectively. The remaining unvested share-based compensation expense of $2,844,328 is expected to be recognized over the next 46 months.
| 13 |
Warrants
The following table presents the activity for warrants outstanding:
| Weighted | ||||||||
| Warrants | Average | |||||||
| Outstanding | Exercise Price | |||||||
| Outstanding - December 31, 2020 | $ | |||||||
| Granted | $ | 4.58 | ||||||
| Forfeited/cancelled/restored | – | – | ||||||
| Exercised | (1,093,180 | ) | 4.53 | |||||
| Outstanding – September 30, 2021 | 4,175,090 | $ | 4.80 | |||||
In connection with the February 2021 IPO, the Company issued warrants to purchase shares of common stock and issued to warrants to its underwriters to cover over-allotments. The Company also issued of representative warrants to its underwriters to purchase shares of common stock and these representative warrants contain a cashless exercise feature.
During the three months ended September 30, 2021
certain holders of our publicly traded Series A Warrants exercised
All of the outstanding warrants are exercisable and have a weighted average remaining contractual life of approximately years as of September 30, 2021.
Basic net loss per share is computed by dividing net loss, which is allocated based upon the proportionate amount of weighted average shares outstanding, to each class of stockholder’s stock outstanding during the period. For the calculation of diluted net loss per share, net loss per share attributable to common stockholders for basic net loss per share is adjusted by the effect of dilutive securities, including awards under our equity compensation plans.
As of September 30, 2021 and 2020, shares and shares, respectively of potentially dilutive weighted average shares were excluded from the calculation of diluted net loss per share because their effect would have been anti-dilutive for the periods presented.
Note 10 – Subsequent Events
In November 2021, the Company received confirmation from the SBA that the Second Loan was approved for forgiveness and recorded $267,482 in PPP loan extinguishment to other income.
| 14 |
| Item 2. | Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations |
The following discussion and analysis should be read in conjunction with the unaudited condensed financial statements and related notes included elsewhere in this Quarterly Report and our audited financial statements and related notes thereto included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2020, which was filed with the SEC on March 31, 2021. This discussion and analysis and other parts of this Quarterly Report contain forward-looking statements based upon current beliefs, plans and expectations that involve risks, uncertainties and assumptions, such as statements regarding our plans, objectives, expectations, intentions and projections. Our actual results and the timing of selected events could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements as a result of several factors, including those set forth under Part II, Item 1A, “Risk Factors” and elsewhere in this Quarterly Report. You should carefully read the “Risk Factors” section of this Quarterly Report and of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2020 to gain an understanding of the important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from our forward-looking statements. Please also see the section entitled “Special Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements.”
Overview
We are a technology company that is reinventing how consumers engage with audio through the development of a proprietary AI platform for audio and innovative technologies for podcasts. We are leveraging these technologies to bring to market two industry first Apps, Auddia and Vodacast.
The Auddia app gives consumers the opportunity to listen to any AM/FM radio station with no commercials while personalizing the listening experience through skips, the insertion of on-demand content and the programming of audio routines to customize listening sessions such as a daily commute. The Auddia App represents the first-time consumers can access the local content uniquely provided by radio in the commercial free and personalized manner many consumers have come to demand for media consumption.
We are leveraging our legacy business to bring to market a premium AM/FM radio listening experience through the Auddia App. The Auddia App is intended to be downloaded by consumers who will pay a subscription fee in order to listen to any streaming AM/FM radio station without commercials. Advanced features will allow consumers to skip any content heard on the station, request audio content on-demand, and program an audio routine. We believe the Auddia App represents a significant differentiated audio streaming product that will be the first to come to market since the emergence of popular streaming music apps such as Pandora, Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, etc. We believe that the most significant point of differentiation is that in addition to music, the Auddia App is intended to deliver non-music content that includes local sports, news, weather, traffic and the discovery of new music. Radio is the dominant audio platform for local content and new music discovery.
We launched the Auddia App and initiated our first consumer trial in July 2021 in a single market in southern Virginia and northern North Carolina. We will continue with additional consumer trials in Santa Rosa, CA and Montgomery and Sylacauga, Alabama during the fourth quarter of 2021 to measure consumer interest and engagement with the Auddia App. We are continuing to advance the training of our proprietary AI technology and once complete we are anticipating nationally launching all stations.
The Auddia mobile App is available today through the iOS and Android App stores.
We also have developed a podcasting platform called Vodacast. Vodacast provides a unique suite of tools that helps Podcasters create additional digital content for their podcast episodes as well as plan their episodes, build their brand around their Podcast and monetize their content with new monetization channels. One innovative and proprietary part of the Vodacast platform is the availability of tools to create and distribute an interactive digital feed which supplements podcast episode audio with additional digital. These content feeds allow podcasters to tell deeper stories to their listeners while giving podcasters access to digital revenue for the first time. Podcasters will be able to build these interactive feeds using The Vodacast Hub, a content management system that also serves as a tool to plan and manage podcast episodes. The digital feed activates a new digital ad channel that turns every audio ad into a direct-response digital ad, increasing the effectiveness and value of their established audio ad model. The feed also presents a richer listening experience, as any element of a podcast episode can be supplemented with images, videos, text and web links. This feed appears fully synchronized in the Vodacast mobile App, and it also can be hosted and accessed independently (e.g., through any browser), making the content feed universally distributable.
| 15 |
Vodacast will also introduce a unique and industry first multi-channel, highly flexible set of revenue channels that podcasters can activate in combination to allow listeners to choose how they want to consume and pay for content. “Flex Revenue” allows podcasters to continue to run their standard audio ad model and complement those ads with direct response enabled digital ads in each episode content feed, increasing the value of advertising on any podcast. “Flex Revenue” will also activate subscriptions, on-demand fees for content (e.g., listen without audio ads for a micro payment fee) and direct donations from listeners. Using these channels in combination, podcasters can maximize revenue generation and exercise higher margin monetization models, beyond basic audio advertising. These revenue channels are expected to be available to Podcasters starting late 2021 and into 2022.
The Vodacast mobile App is available today through the iOS and Android App stores.
We have initiated efforts to recruit podcast hosts to Vodacast to onboard their podcast, create digital feeds, and encourage their listening audience to download and listen through the Vodacast App. We expect to continue to attract podcasts and their listening audience to Vodacast through paid promotion through the fourth quarter 2021 and into 2022.
We have funded our operations with proceeds from the February 2021 IPO and Series A warrants exercise in July 2021. Since inception we have incurred significant operating losses. As of September 30, 2021, we had an accumulated deficit of $63.5 million. Our ability to generate product revenue sufficient to achieve profitability will depend heavily on the successful development and commercialization of one or more of our Apps. We expect that our expenses and capital requirements will increase substantially in connection with our ongoing activities, particularly if and as we:
| · | continue consumer trials of our Auddia App and as we continue training our proprietary AI technology; |
| · | continue to develop and expand our technology and functionality to advance the Auddia and Vodacast Apps; |
| · | rollout our product on a national basis, which will include increasing our sales and marketing costs related to the promotion of our products. Auddia promotion will include a combination of a) purchasing ads directly from broadcasters or b) participating broadcasters to promote without purchasing ads, but sharing a portion of subscription proceeds based on listening activity on those stations; |
| · | hire additional business development, product management, operational and marketing personnel; |
| · | continue market studies of our products; |
| · | add operational and general administrative personnel which will support our product development programs, commercialization efforts and our transition to operating as a public company. |
As a result, we may need substantial additional funding to support our continuing operations and pursue our growth strategy. Until such time as we can generate significant revenue from product sales, if ever, we expect to finance our operations through the sale of equity, debt financings or other capital sources, which may include collaborations with other companies or other strategic transactions. We may be unable to raise additional funds or enter into such other agreements or arrangements when needed on favorable terms, or at all. If we fail to raise capital or enter into such agreements as and when needed, we may have to significantly delay, scale back or discontinue the development and commercialization of one or more of our product candidates.
Because of the numerous risks and uncertainties associated with product development, we are unable to predict the timing or amount of increased expenses or when or if we will be able to achieve or maintain profitability. Even if we are able to generate product sales, we may not become profitable. If we fail to become profitable or are unable to sustain profitability on a continuing basis, then we may be unable to continue our operations at planned levels and be forced to reduce or terminate our operations.
| 16 |
As of September 30, 2021, we had cash, cash equivalents and investments of $8.1 million, which we believe will fund our operating expenses and capital expenditure requirements for at least the next 12 months. We have based this estimate on assumptions that may prove to be wrong, and we could exhaust our available capital resources sooner than we expect. See “—Liquidity and capital resources.” To finance our operations beyond that point, we will need to raise additional capital, which cannot be assured. If we are unable to raise additional capital in sufficient amounts or on terms acceptable to us, we may have to significantly delay, scale back or discontinue the development or commercialization of our Apps or other research and development initiatives.
Components of our results of operations
Operating expenses
Direct costs of services
Direct cost of services consists primarily of costs incurred related to our technology and development of our Apps, including hosting and other technology related expenses. Historically, we had higher direct costs of services related to our legacy platform, however, since the termination of our legacy services and platform in August 2020, these costs have been reduced. We expect our direct costs of services to increase in the future as we continue to develop and enhance our technology related to the Auddia and Vodacast Apps.
Research and development
Since our inception, we have focused significant resources on our research and development activities related to the software development of our technology. We account for costs incurred in the development of computer software as software research and development costs until the preliminary project stage is completed, management has committed to funding the project, and completion and use of the software for its intended purpose is probable. We cease capitalization of development costs once the software has been substantially completed and is available for its intended use. Software development costs are amortized over a useful life estimated by the Company’s management of three years. Costs associated with significant upgrades and enhancements that result in additional functionality are capitalized. Capitalized costs are subject to an ongoing assessment of recoverability based on anticipated future revenues and changes in software technologies. Unamortized capitalized software development costs determined to be in excess of anticipated future net revenues are impaired and expensed during the period of such determination.
We expect to continue to incur substantial research and development expenses and capitalization in the future as we continue to develop our Auddia and Vodacast Apps.
Sales and marketing
Our sales and marketing expenses consist primarily of salaries and consulting services, related to the sales, promotion and commercial trials related to our products. We expect our sales and marketing expenses to continue to increase as we look to commercialize and generate revenue for our products to attract and retain users.
General and administrative
Our general and administrative expenses consist primarily of salaries and related costs, including payroll taxes, benefits, stock-based compensation, and professional fees related to auditing, tax, general legal services, and consulting services. We expect our general and administrative expenses to continue to increase in the future as we expand our operating activities and prepare for potential commercialization of our products and support our operations as a public company, including increased expenses related to legal, accounting, insurance, regulatory and tax-related services associated with maintaining compliance with exchange listing and Securities and Exchange Commission requirements, directors and officers liability insurance premiums and investor relations activities.
| 17 |
Other income and expense
Our other income and expense consist of interest income related to our cash at financial institutions, debt extinguishment related to our PPP loan, interest expense from our line of credit, and a finance charge related to conversion of outstanding debt into shares of common stock related to the February 2021 IPO. We expect our other expense to decrease as we paid off our outstanding balance on our line of credit.
Results of operations
Comparison of the three months ended September 30, 2021 and 2020
The following table summarizes our results of operations:
| Three Months Ended September 30, | Increase/ | |||||||||||
| 2021 | 2020 | (Decrease) | ||||||||||
| Revenue | $ | – | $ | 1,040 | $ | (1,040 | ) | |||||
| Operating expenses: | ||||||||||||
| Direct costs of service | 36,501 | 42,379 | (5,878 | ) | ||||||||
| Sales and marketing | 209,207 | 76,459 | 132,748 | |||||||||
| Research and development | 119,321 | 90,965 | 28,356 | |||||||||
| General and administrative | 1,687,099 | 277,105 | 1,409,994 | |||||||||
| Total operating expense | 2,052,128 | 486,908 | 1,565,220 | |||||||||
| Loss from operations | (2,052,128 | ) | (485,868 | ) | (1,566,260 | ) | ||||||
| Other income (expense), net: | 2,725 | (441,319 | ) | 444,044 | ||||||||
| Net loss | $ | (2,049,403 | ) | $ | (927,187 | ) | $ | (1,122,216 | ) | |||
Revenue
Total revenues were $0 for the three months ended September 30, 2021, compared to $1,040 for the three months ended September 30, 2020. The decrease in revenue can be attributed to the August 2020 termination of our legacy platform which eliminated all platform fee and advertising revenue while we continue to develop the new Auddia and Vodacast products to establish new revenue streams.
| 18 |
Direct cost of services
Direct cost of services decreased by $5,878 or 14%, from $42,379 for the three months ended September 30, 2020 compared to $36,501 for the three months ended September 30, 2021. This decrease primarily resulted from the termination of our legacy services and the decreased need for hosting, staff reductions to the team working on the current platform, and other related direct expenses. We continue to incur direct cost of services expense related to hosting and other music services related to our Auddia App and expect these costs to increase in the future.
Sales and marketing
Sales and marketing expenses increased by $132,748 or 174%, from $76,459 for the three months ended September 30, 2020 compared to $209,207 for the three months ended September 30, 2021 as we increased marketing expenses primarily related to the promotion of the Auddia and Vodacast Apps.
Research and development
Research and development expenses increased by $28,356 or 31%, from $90,965 for the three months ended September 30, 2020 to $119,321 for the three months ended September 30, 2021 primarily related to additional staffing on our development team as we continue to advance the Auddia and Vodacast Apps. Our research and development staffing costs were $462,987 and capitalized software expenses of $353,418 for the three months ended September 30, 2021 as compared to staffing costs of $259,626 and capitalized software expenses of $170,396 for the three months ended September 30, 2020. Majority of development time was spent on our Auddia and Vodacast Apps. We have achieved MVP of our Vodacast App and have started amortizing development expenses, however, we continue to make significant and enhancements to the Vodacast App and will continue to incur capitalized costs on our Vodacast App. We have not yet achieved MVP of our Auddia App and will continue to incur additional capitalized costs.
General and administrative
General and administrative expenses increased by $1,409,994 or 509%, from $277,105 for the three months ended September 30, 2020 compared to $1,687,099 for the three months ended September 30, 2021. The increase resulted primarily from increased stock compensation expense related to employee stock options granted during the third quarter. Stock compensation expense was $735,592 and $17,262 for the three months ended September 30, 2021 and 2020, respectively. The increase in general and administrative expenses also related to being a public company and having higher legal and other professional fees due to preparing to operate as a public company.
Interest expense/Other expense, net
We had total other income of $2,725 for the three months ended September 30, 2021 as compared to other expense of ($441,319) for the three months ended September 30, 2020, which was a $444,044 or 101% change in other income / expense. This was primarily related to a significant reduction in interest expense in the current year as a result of us paying off our line of credit balance.
| 19 |
Comparison of the nine months ended September 30, 2021 and 2020
The following table summarizes our results of operations:
| Nine Months Ended September 30, | Increase/ | |||||||||||
| 2021 | 2020 | (Decrease) | ||||||||||
| Revenue | $ | – | $ | 110,919 | $ | (110,919 | ) | |||||
| Operating expenses: | ||||||||||||
| Direct costs of service | 152,532 | 361,181 | (208,649 | ) | ||||||||
| Sales and marketing | 472,322 | 260,658 | 211,664 | |||||||||
| Research and development | 261,977 | 233,403 | 28,574 | |||||||||
| General and administrative | 3,036,474 | 1,355,531 | 1,680,943 | |||||||||
| Total operating expense | 3,923,305 | 2,210,773 | 1,712,532 | |||||||||
| Loss from operations | (3,923,305 | ) | (2,099,854 | ) | (1,823,451 | ) | ||||||
| Other income (expense), net: | (8,176,116 | ) | (1,379,694 | ) | (6,796,422 | ) | ||||||
| Net loss | $ | (12,099,421 | ) | $ | (3,479,548 | ) | $ | (8,619,873 | ) | |||
Revenue
Total revenues were $0 for the nine months ended September 30, 2021, compared to $110,919 for the nine months ended September 30, 2020. The decrease in revenue can be attributed to the August 2020 termination of our legacy platform which eliminated all platform fee and advertising revenue while we continue to develop the new Auddia and Vodacast products to establish new revenue streams.
Direct cost of services
Direct cost of services decreased by $208,649 or 58%, from $361,181 for the nine months ended September 30, 2020 compared to $152,532 for the nine months ended September 30, 2021. This decrease primarily resulted from the termination of our legacy services and the decreased need for hosting, staff reductions to the team working on the current platform, and other related direct expenses. We continue to incur direct cost of services expense related to hosting and other music services related to our Auddia App and expect these costs to increase in the future.
| 20 |
Sales and marketing
Sales and marketing expenses increased by $211,664 or 81%, from $260,658 for the nine months ended September 30, 2020 compared to $472,322 for the nine months ended September 30, 2021 as we increased marketing expenses primarily related to the promotion and development of the Auddia and Vodacast Apps.
Research and development
Research and development expenses increased by $28,574 or 12%, from $233,403 for the nine months ended September 30, 2020 to $261,977 for the three months ended September 30, 2021 primarily related to additional staffing on our development team as we continue to advance the Auddia and Vodacast Apps. Our research and development staffing costs were $1,161,880 and capitalized software expenses of $904,956 for the nine months ended September 30, 2021 as compared to staffing costs of $773,128 and capitalized software expenses of $543,835 for the nine months ended September 30, 2020. Majority of development time was spent on our Auddia and Vodacast Apps. We have achieved MVP of our Vodacast App during the third quarter and have started amortizing development expenses, however, we continue to make significant and enhancements to the Vodacast App and will continue to incur capitalized costs on our Vodacast App. We have not yet achieved MVP of our Auddia App and will continue to incur additional capitalized costs.
General and administrative
General and administrative expenses increased by $1,680,943 or 124%, from $1,355,531 for the nine months ended September 30, 2020 compared to $3,036,474 for the nine months ended September 30, 2021. The increase resulted primarily from increased stock compensation expense related to employee stock options granted during the third quarter. Stock compensation expense was $767,543 and $52,579 for the nine months ended September 30, 2021 and 2020, respectively. The increase in general and administrative expenses also related to being a public company and having higher legal and other professional fees due to preparing to operate as a public company.
Interest expense/Other expense, net
Total interest expense/other expense increased by $6,796,422, from $1,379,694 for the nine months ended September 30, 2020 compared to $8,176,116 for the nine months ended September 30, 2021. The increase was due almost entirely to a finance charge of $8,141,424 to interest expense related to the conversion of outstanding debt into 6.8 million shares of common stock related to the February 2021 IPO. This was offset by our extinguishment of debt related to our first PPP loan in the amount of $268,662, which was approved in full under the loan forgiveness program and reduced interest expense related to lower outstanding line of credit and related party notes payable balances.
Liquidity and capital resources
Sources of liquidity
We have incurred operating losses since our inception and have an accumulated deficit as a result of ongoing efforts to develop and commercialize our Auddia and Vodacast Apps. As of September 30, 2021 and December 31, 2020 we had cash of $8.1M and $0.1M, respectively. We anticipate that operating losses and net cash used in operating activities will increase over the next 12 months as we continue to develop and market our products, perform commercial trials and work on nationally launching all stations on the Auddia App.
In February 2021, we completed an IPO of 3,991,818 units, at $4.125 per unit, consisting of one share of common stock and one warrant to purchase one share of common stock at an exercise price of $4.54 per share. After deducting underwriters commissions and expenses, the Company received net proceeds of approximately $15.2 million. Due to the successful completion of the IPO, all the Company’s existing convertible debt, accrued interest, accrued fees payable to related parties, and promissory notes were converted into shares of common stock.
| 21 |
Following the Company’s IPO in February 2021, the Company paid down the outstanding principal balance on its bank line of credit from $6 million to $2 million. The Company and the bank agreed to reduce the maximum available balance for the line of credit to $2 million.
In July 2021, certain holders of our publicly traded Series A Warrants exercised approximately 1.1 million warrants for approximately 1.1 million shares of common stock at the cash exercise price of $4.5375 per share and as a result, we received additional cash proceeds of approximately $5.0 million. In addition, we paid the remaining $2.0 million, out of our restricted cash, to pay off and terminate our line of credit.
During the nine months ended September 30, 2021, we have reduced our bank debt by $6.0 million, paid down a significant percentage of our accounts payable, and eliminated all deferred compensation owed to a related party.
Prior to our IPO, we funded our operations from cash flows generated from operations and cash from the sale of equity securities and debt financing.
Cash Flow Analysis
Our cash flows from operating activities have historically been significantly impacted by revenues received, our investment in sales and marketing to drive growth, and research and development expenses. Our ability to meet future liquidity needs will be driven by our operating performance and the extent of continued investment in our operations. Failure to generate sufficient revenues and related cash flows could have a material adverse effect on our ability to meet our liquidity needs and achieve our business objectives.
The following table summarizes the statements of cash flows for the nine months ended September 30, 2021 and 2020:
| Nine Months Ended September 30, | ||||||||||||
| 2021 | 2020 | % Change | ||||||||||
| Net cash provided by (used in): | ||||||||||||
| Operating activities | $ | (4,320,114 | ) | $ | (1,601,108 | ) | (169.8% | ) | ||||
| Investing activities | (967,425 | ) | (546,521 | ) | (77.0% | ) | ||||||
| Financing activities | 13,251,608 | 1,920,356 | 590.1% | |||||||||
| Change in cash | $ | 7,964,069 | $ | (227,273 | ) | 3,604.2% | ||||||
Operating activities
Cash used in operating activities for the nine months ended September 30, 2021 was $4,320,114, primarily resulting from our net loss of $12,099,421 and changes in working capital of $944,792, partially offset by non-cash charges of $8,724,099 primarily related to our conversion of outstanding debt to common stock from our February 2021 IPO. Changes in working capital primarily related to paying off outstanding accounts payable.
Cash used in operating activities for the nine months ended September 30, 2020 was $1,601,108, primarily resulting from our net loss of $3,479,548, partially offset by non-cash charges of $485,709 and changes in working capital of $1,392,731.
Cash used in operating activities primarily consisted of personnel-related expenditures, payments included costs of operations, and other sales efforts, research and development and administrative costs.
| 22 |
Investing activities
Cash flows used in investing activities for the nine months ended September 30, 2021 consisted primarily of capitalization of software development expenses of $904,957.
Cash flows used in investing activities for the nine months ended September 30, 2020 consisted primarily of capitalization of software development expenses of $543,835.
Financing activities
Cash flows provided by financing activities for the nine months ended September 30, 2021 increase by $20,182,244 related to the issuance of common shares related to our February 2021 IPO, exercise of Series A warrants and proceeds from the second PPP loan, partially offset by a $6,000,000 repayment on our line of credit, and repayment of deferred salary and related party notes payable of $930,636.
Cash flows provided by financing activities for the nine months ended September 30, 2020 was $1,920,356 primarily related to the proceeds related to the issuance of convertible notes payable of $1,467,841, related party debt of $490,539 and proceeds from our first PPP loan of $268,662, partially offset by repayments of related party debt and deferred salary of $257,797 and deferred offering costs capitalized of $91,624.
Funding Requirements
We historically have incurred significant losses and negative cash flows from operations since our inception and had an accumulated deficit of $63.4M and $51.4M as of September 30, 2021 and December 31, 2020, respectively. As of September 30, 2021 and December 31, 2020, we had cash of $8.1M and $0.1M, respectively. We believe that the net proceeds from our February 2021 IPO and additional net proceeds of $5.0 million received from the July 2021 Series A Warrant exercises, will be sufficient to fund our current operating plans through at least the next 12 months. We have based these estimates, however, on assumptions that may prove to be wrong, and we could spend our available financial resources much faster than we currently expect and need to raise additional funds sooner than we anticipate. If we are unable to raise capital when needed or on acceptable terms, we would be forced to delay, reduce or eliminate our technology development and commercialization efforts.
Our cash is comprised primarily of demand deposit accounts and money market funds. We believe our existing cash and cash generated from operations will be sufficient to meet our working capital and capital expenditure needs over at least the next 12 months.
We expect our expenses to increase substantially in connection with our ongoing activities, particularly as we continue the development of the Auddia and Vodacast Apps. In addition, we expect to incur additional costs associated with operating as a public company, including significant legal, accounting, investor relations and other expenses. Our future funding requirements will depend on many factors, including, but not limited to:
| · | the scope, progress, results and costs related to commercial trials and national launch related to our Auddia App and obtaining market acceptance | |
| · | the ability to attract and retain podcasters to our Vodacast App and retaining listeners on the platform | |
| · | the costs, timing and ability to continue to develop our technology | |
| · | effectively addressing any competing technological and market developments | |
| · | avoiding and defending against intellectual property infringement, misappropriation and other claims |
| 23 |
Off-balance sheet arrangements
We did not have during the periods presented, and we do not currently have, any off-balance sheet arrangements, as defined in the rules and regulations of the SEC.
Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates
Our condensed financial statements and accompanying notes have been prepared in accordance with U.S. GAAP. The preparation of these condensed financial statements requires us to make estimates, judgments and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets, liabilities, revenues, costs and expenses, and related disclosures. On an ongoing basis, we continually evaluate our estimates and assumptions believed to be reasonable under current facts and circumstances. Actual amounts and results may materially differ from these estimates made by management under different assumptions and conditions.
A summary of our critical accounting policies is presented in Part II, Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations, of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2020. There were no material changes to our critical accounting policies during the nine months ended September 30, 2021.
Emerging growth company and smaller reporting company status
The Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act of 2012 permits an “emerging growth company” such as us to take advantage of an extended transition period to comply with new or revised accounting standards applicable to public companies until those standards would otherwise apply to private companies. We have elected to not “opt out” of this provision and, as a result, we will adopt new or revised accounting standards at the time private companies adopt the new or revised accounting standard and will 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 are also a “smaller reporting company” meaning that the market value of our stock held by non-affiliates is less than $700 million and our annual revenue was less than $100 million during the most recently completed fiscal year. We may continue to be a smaller reporting company if either (i) the market value of our stock held by non-affiliates is less than $250 million or (ii) our annual revenue was less than $100 million during the most recently completed fiscal year and the market value of our stock held by non-affiliates is less than $700 million. If we are a smaller reporting company at the time we cease to be an emerging growth company, we may continue to rely on exemptions from certain disclosure requirements that are available to smaller reporting companies. Specifically, as a smaller reporting company we may choose to present only the two most recent fiscal years of audited financial statements in our Annual Report on Form 10-K and, similar to emerging growth companies, smaller reporting companies have reduced disclosure obligations regarding executive compensation.
| Item 3. | Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures about Market Risk |
We are a smaller reporting company as defined by Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act and are not required to provide the information required under this item.
| 24 |
| Item 4. | Controls and Procedures |
Evaluation of Disclosure Controls and Procedures
Our management, with the participation of our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, evaluated the effectiveness of our disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Rule 13a-15(e) of the Exchange Act) as of the end of the period covered by this report. Based on that evaluation, our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer concluded that our disclosure controls and procedures as of the end of the period covered by this report were not effective at a reasonable assurance level due to the material weaknesses in internal control over financial reporting described below. The Company’s disclosure controls and procedures are designed to provide reasonable assurance that information required to be disclosed by us in reports that we file or submit under the Exchange Act (i) is recorded, processed, summarized and reported within the time periods specified in the SEC’s rules and forms; and (ii) accumulated and communicated to management, including our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, as appropriate, to allow timely discussions regarding required disclosure. We believe that a control system, no matter how well designed and operated, cannot provide absolute assurance that the objectives of the control system are met, and no evaluation of controls can provide absolute assurance that all control issues and instances of fraud, if any, within a company have been detected.
Internal Control Over Financial Reporting
In preparation of our financial statements to meet the requirements of our IPO, we determined that material weaknesses in our internal control over financial reporting existed during fiscal 2018 and remained unremediated as of September 30, 2021. A material weakness is a deficiency or combination of deficiencies in internal control over financial reporting, such that there is a reasonable possibility that a material misstatement of a company’s annual and interim financial statements will not be detected or prevented on a timely basis.
The material weaknesses we identified are related to the design and maintenance of an effective control environment commensurate with our financial reporting requirements. Specifically, we lacked a sufficient complement of professionals with an appropriate level of accounting knowledge, training and experience to appropriately analyze, record and disclose accounting matters timely and accurately and we did not design and maintain controls to ensure adequate segregation of duties within our financial reporting function including the preparation and review of journal entries.
Remediation Activities
Management has been actively engaged in remediating the above described material weaknesses. The following remedial actions have been taken during the quarter ended September 30, 2021:
| · | continue to strengthen our internal policies, processes and reviews, including drafting of related documentation thereof; | |
| · | engage outside consultants to ensure that appropriate level of knowledge and experience is applied based on risk and complexity of transactions and tasks under review | |
| · | started internal control documentation along with engage outside consultants to assist in the design, implementation and documentation of internal controls to address the relevant risks | |
| · | hired additional accounting resources with appropriate levels of experience, including a new Chief Financial Officer |
| 25 |
The process of implementing an effective financial reporting system is a continuous effort that requires us to anticipate and react to changes in our business and the economic and regulatory environments and to expend significant resources to maintain a financial reporting system that is adequate to satisfy our reporting obligations. As we continue to evaluate and take actions to improve our internal control over financial reporting, we may take additional actions to address control deficiencies or modify certain of the remediation measures described above.
While progress has been made to enhance our internal control over financial reporting, we are still in the process of implementing these processes, procedures and controls. Additional time is required to complete implementation and to assess and ensure the sustainability of these procedures. We believe the above actions will be effective in remediating the material weaknesses described above and we will continue to devote significant time and attention to these remedial efforts. However, the material weaknesses cannot be considered remediated until the applicable remedial controls operate for a sufficient period of time and management has concluded that these controls are operating effectively.
Changes in Internal Control Over Financial Reporting
Other than the applicable remediation efforts described in “Remediation of Previously Reported Material Weaknesses” above, there have been no changes in our internal control over financial reporting (as defined in Rules 13a-15(f) and 15d-15(f) of the Exchange Act) during the second quarter of 2021 that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal control over financial reporting.
| 26 |
PART II – OTHER INFORMATION
| Item 1. | Legal Proceedings |
From time to time, we may become involved in legal proceedings arising in the ordinary course of our business. We are not currently aware of any such proceedings or claims that we believe will have, individually or in the aggregate, a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition or results of operations.
| Item 1A. | Risk Factors |
In addition to the information set forth in this Form 10-Q, you should carefully consider the risk factors disclosed under the heading “Risk Factors” in Part I, Item 1A of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2020. There have been no material changes to our risk factors from those included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2020.
| Item 2. | Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities and Use of Proceeds |
In February 2021, upon the closing of our IPO, all of our outstanding pre-IPO equity and convertible debt securities automatically converted into 7,300,010 shares of common stock. The issuance of such common stock was exempt from the registration requirements of the Securities Act, pursuant to Section 3(a)(9) of the Securities Act, involving an exchange of securities exchanged by the issuer with its existing security holders exclusively where no commission or other remuneration is paid or given directly or indirectly for soliciting such exchange. No underwriters were involved in this issuance of shares.
Use of Proceeds
On February 16, 2021, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission declared effective our registration statement on Form S-1 (File No. 333-235891), as amended, filed in connection with our IPO. There has been no material change in the planned use of proceeds from our IPO from that described in the related prospectus dated February 16, 2021, filed with the SEC pursuant to Rule 424(b)(4) under the Securities Act. As described in such IPO prospectus, we have used IPO proceeds to reduce our bank debt by $4.0 million, to fund a $2.0 million cash reserve to serve as collateral for our remaining $2.0 million of bank debt that replaces collateral previously provided by a related party, to pay down a significant percentage of our accounts payable, and to pay deferred compensation owed to a related party.
Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities
We did not repurchase any of our equity securities during the nine months ended September 30, 2021.
| Item 3. | Defaults Upon Senior Securities |
| None. |
| Item 4. | Mine Safety Disclosures |
None.
| Item 5. | Other Information |
None.
| 27 |
| Item 6. | Exhibits |
The exhibits required by Item 601 of Regulation S-K and Item 15(b) of this Quarterly Report are listed in the Exhibit Index below. The exhibits listed in the Exhibit Index are incorporated by reference herein.
| 28 |
| 101.INS | Inline XBRL Instance Document (the instance document does not appear in the Interactive Data File because its XBRL tags are embedded within the Inline XBRL document) | |
| 101.SCH | Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Schema Document | |
| 101.CAL | Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Calculation Linkbase Document | |
| 101.DEF | Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Definition Linkbase Document | |
| 101.LAB | Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Label Linkbase Document | |
| 101.PRE | Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Presentation Linkbase Document | |
| 104 | Cover Page Interactive Data File (formatted in IXBRL, and included in exhibit 101). |
____________________________
| # | Indicates management contract or compensatory plan. |
| ** | Certain information contained in this Exhibit has been redacted and appears as “XXXXX” as the disclosure of same would be a disadvantage to the Registrant in the marketplace |
| 29 |
SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.
| AUDDIA INC. | ||
| By: | /s/ Michael Lawless | |
| Michael
Lawless President, Chief Executive Officer and Director | ||
| By: | /s/ Brian Hoff | |
| Brian
Hoff Chief Financial Officer | ||
Date: November 12, 2021
| 30 |