GÖTEBORG, SWEDEN / ACCESSWIRE / February 23, 2022 / Smart Eye (STO:SEYE)(OTC PINK:SMTEF)(FRA:SE9)
Increase in business activity and growth
October - December 2021
- Net sales amounted to SEK 43.7 (18.3) million, which is an increase of 139% compared to the corresponding period previous year, of which 20% was organic growth.
- EBITDA amounted to SEK -21.1 (-14.0) million. Increased activity including additional cost for the added resources from the Affectiva acquisition is the reason for the lower result.
- Operating loss amounted to SEK -43.6 (-19.4) million. Depreciation of the surplus value created in conjunction with the Affectiva and iMotions acquisitions amounts to SEK 18.8 million.
- Profit/loss after tax was SEK -45.4 (-19.6) million.
- Earnings after tax per share is negative.
- Cash and cash equivalents totaled SEK 278.4 million at the end of December
- In October the company entered into an agreement to acquire iMotions, a Copenhagen based provider of multimodal software for human behavior research, for a consideration of SEK 434 million and SEK 50 million in potential earn-out consideration based on achievement of certain financial targets. In conjunction with the acquisition a directed share issue of SEK 220 million was completed.
- In October 2021 an additional design win with an existing Japanese customer was communicated, estimated revenue of the order is SEK 25 million and on February 7th 2022 the company announced a design win from one of Europe's largest OEM:s. The estimated revenue of the order is SEK 50 million based on estimated product life cycle projections. The potential of further design wins on this new platform is estimated at SEK 500 million.
January - December 2021
- Net sales amounted to SEK 109.7 (65.1) million, which is an increase of 68% compared to the corresponding period previous year, of which 19% was organic growth
- EBITDA amounted to SEK -71.7 (-55.6) million.
- Operating loss amounted to SEK -130.9 (-77.2) million. Depreciation of the surplus value created in conjunction with the Affectiva and iMotions acquisitions amounts to SEK 33.3 million.
- Profit/loss after tax amounted to SEK -132.7 (-77.6) million.
- Earnings after tax per share is negative.
- In May the company entered into an agreement to acquire Affectiva, a Boston based Emotion AI company, for a consideration of 650 MSEK. In conjunction with the acquisition a directed share issue of SEK 275 million was completed.
Comments from the CEO
Just like last quarter the pickup is continuing, indicating that we have passed the peak of being affected by Covid. Each of our business units are performing well and our research portfolio is greatly strengthened by the acquisition of iMotions. 
Automotive
Let's continue to put some color on our automotive production programs, by giving general information while honoring our disclosure agreements. 
- We recently received a design-win from one more OEM, consolidating our market leadership by bringing the total number of OEMs we have design wins with 14.
- Our contracts with these 14 OEMs are planned for at least 90 car models. In addition, there is a high likelihood that the OEMs continue to buy the existing solution for more vehicles on the same platforms.
- Five of our OEMs have started series production, two more than last quarter.
- We are in production with OEMs in Europe, US, Korea, China and Japan.
- Deliveries increased in Q4 and we continue to be on track to surpass one million cars, powered by Smart Eye, on the roads during the first half of 2022.
In the ongoing automotive procurement scene, Smart Eye continue to stand strong thanks to our competitive technological position and regulatory tailwind. 
- Nominations of DMS suppliers among some of the world's largest groups of car manufacturers were decided in Q4 and early Q1. Smart Eye has held its ground so far while one major procurement is still in the making.
- There is an ongoing trend, that on top of the traditional DMS features, customers are more and more asking for additional features in relation to cabin monitoring. It is still early days and the feature lists of those projects that have been nominated in the market are still quite small. But some of the RFQs that are in play for nomination this or next year are quite rich in terms of features and can most definitely be described as legitimate Interior Sensing.
Our fleet product, AIS, is nearing the end of its development cycle. Extensive final testing is ongoing with the goal of starting the deliveries shortly. We hold a positive outlook on the market as everything seems ready to start up after the peak of the pandemic. 
Research
Since the acquisition of iMotions in the quarter we have three business units offering products to researchers: iMotions, Research Instruments and Media Analytics. iMotions is a company founded in Copenhagen, Denmark that is pioneering a multimodal software platform for human behavioral research. During the last five years the two companies have collaborated extensively, with iMotions selling our eye trackers and Smart Eye selling their gaze analysis software.
We were always aligned in our view of how the market is developing and more generally in terms of company values. We were already in conversation regarding strategic alternatives before the pandemic, but it had to be halted due to Covid, just like so many other things. When the markets stabilized, we prepared for the deal, to be done as soon as possible after closing the Affectiva acquisition. Also, Affectiva and iMotions were in close collaboration for many years before the merger, with iMotions selling Affectiva's Emotion SDK as part of their solution. The multimodal concept is extremely interesting for the automotive market in a near future, as gaining a deep understanding of what is happening in a vehicle requires combining input from multiple sensors and modalities.  
Research Instruments continued to do well. The rate of growth in Q4 was increasing compared to earlier in the year. For the full year the growth was 30%. We are doing well with both partner sales and direct sales. We believe the positive trend continues in 2022.
Media Analytics fourth quarter was one where we continued to pick up speed. We had the highest revenue of the year and also several key customers where onboarded. 
Innovation
While delivering on our customer commitments remains a priority, we continue to invest in research and our science to stay ahead of technological innovation. This has always been critical to the success of each of Smart Eye's business units. Post the pandemic peak we have seen our research collaborations in industry and academia pick up steam. We have also been able to ramp up our in-person data collection again, a key enabler of our deep-learning based technology. At the end of Q4 we were awarded a CES 2022 Innovation Award for our Interior Sensing solution - great validation that our technology is solving a critical market need and recognition for the innovative technologies the Smart Eye team continues to develop.  
Final Words
Even though we see an impact from the semi-conductor shortage affecting the whole automotive industry, still all our business units and markets are growing, both organically and because of the Affectiva and iMotions acquisitions. Each of our markets are gaining momentum as the effects of the pandemic seems to abate, and we are approaching 2022 with eager anticipation.
Martin Krantz
CEO Smart Eye
For more information:
Martin Krantz, CEO Smart Eye AB
Phone: +46 70-329 26 98
Email: [email protected]
Anders Lyrheden, CFO Smart Eye AB
Phone: +46 70-320 96 95
Email: [email protected]
About Smart Eye
Smart Eye is the global leader in Human Insight AI, technology that understands, supports and predicts human behavior in complex environments. Bridging the gap between humans and machines for a safe and sustainable future. 
Today, our technology is embedded in next-generation vehicles, leading the way towards human-centric mobility through Driver Monitoring Systems and Interior Sensing solutions. Our Research Instruments offer unparalleled insights into Automotive, Aviation & Aerospace, Assistive Technology, Media & Marketing, Psychology and many more fields. Our subsidiary Affectiva is pioneering Emotion AI, connecting machine logic with human empathy to gain a deeper understanding of how consumers engage with content and products.
Smart Eye was founded in 1999 and is headquartered in Sweden with offices in the US, UK, Germany, Egypt, Japan and China. A publicly traded company since 2016, our customers include NASA, Nissan, Boeing, Honeywell, Volvo, GM, BMW, Geely, Harvard University, 70% of the world's largest advertisers and 28% of the Fortune Global 500 companies.
Visit www.smarteye.ai for more information.
Visit our investor web for more financial information: http://www.corp.smarteye.se/en/
Smart Eye is listed on Nasdaq First North Growth Market. Erik Penser is Certified Adviser and can be reached at +46-8-463 8000 or [email protected] .
This information is information that Smart Eye is obliged to make public pursuant to the EU Market Abuse Regulation. The information was submitted for publication, through the agency of the contact persons set out above, at 2022-02-23 07:30 CET.
Attachments
Year-End Report January-December 2021
SOURCE: Smart Eye