Arbe Robotics Q2 2024 Earnings Report

Arbe Robotics EPS Results

• Actual EPS: -$0.09
• Consensus EPS: -$0.11
• Beat/Miss: Beat by +$0.02
• One Year Ago EPS: N/A

Arbe Robotics Revenue Results

• Actual Revenue: $0.41 million
• Expected Revenue: $0.20 million
• Beat/Miss: Beat by +$210.00 thousand
• YoY Revenue Growth: N/A

Arbe Robotics Announcement Details

• Quarter: Q2 2024
• Date: 8/6/2024
• Time: N/A
• Conference Call Date: Tuesday, August 6, 2024
• Conference Call Time: 8:30AM ET

Arbe Robotics (NASDAQ:ARBE) is a technology company specializing in high-resolution 4D imaging radar solutions for the automotive industry. The company’s radar platform is designed to enhance advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS) and support the development of autonomous vehicles by providing detailed object detection, precise range and velocity measurements, and accurate environmental mapping under diverse driving conditions.

Founded in 2015 and headquartered in Tel Aviv, Israel, Arbe Robotics has developed its own semiconductor chipset and accompanying software stack. Its flagship product line includes automotive-grade radar sensors and development kits that integrate seamlessly with vehicle architectures. The company’s scalable offerings aim to serve multiple vehicle tiers, from passenger cars equipped with Level 2+ ADAS features to fully autonomous platforms in testing and deployment phases.

Arbe operates globally, engaging with automotive original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), Tier 1 suppliers and mobility solution providers across North America, Europe and Asia. The company has established partnerships and joint development agreements to integrate its radar technology into next-generation vehicle programs. These collaborations are intended to accelerate the adoption of radar-based perception systems in markets with stringent safety and performance requirements.

Under the leadership of co-founders and executive chairman Kobi Marenko and chief technology officer Ilya Rozhkov, Arbe Robotics has pursued both organic growth and strategic collaborations. Since going public via a business combination in early 2021, the company has continued to invest in research and development, expanding its R&D footprint and refining its sensor architecture to meet the evolving needs of the autonomous mobility sector.

Arbe Robotics Q2 2024 Earnings Call Transcript

Key Takeaways

• Arbe secured two major customers: one top-10 OEM selected the VersaTIM imaging radar chipset for next-gen radar serial production, and a leading European truck manufacturer will integrate Arbe’s radar into its next-generation sensor suite.
• Q2 revenue was only $0.4 million (backlog of $0.8 million), with a negative gross margin widening to 9.5% and a net loss of $11.8 million, despite slight year-over-year improvement.
• The company began trading on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange and raised approximately $30 million via a convertible bond offering, with proceeds held in escrow pending covenant fulfillment.
• Arbe reaffirmed 2024 revenue guidance in line with 2023, aims for four automotive design-ins this year, and expects serial production revenues to begin in late 2025/early 2026.
• Industry momentum is shifting toward high-channel-count radars (32×32), and Arbe positions its technology as superior in both performance and price per channel.

Presentation

[Operator]

Good day, and welcome to the Arbe Robotics second quarter 2024 financial results conference call. All participants will be in listen-only mode. Should you need assistance, please signal a conference specialist by pressing the star key followed by zero. After today's presentation, there will be an opportunity to ask questions. To ask a question, you may press Star, then one on your touch-tone phone. To withdraw your question, please press Star, then two. Please note, this event is being recorded. I would now like to turn the conference over to Miri Segal, CEO of MS-IR. Please go ahead.

[Miri Segal, Founder and CEO of MS‑IR LLC at Arbe Robotics]

Thank you, operator, and everyone for joining us today. Welcome to Arbe's second quarter 2024 financial results conference call. Before we begin, I would like to remind our listeners that certain information provided on this call may contain forward-looking statements, and the safe harbor statement outlined in today's earnings release also applies to this call. If you have not received a copy of the release, please view it in the investor relations section of the company's website. Today, we are joined by Kobi Marenko, Arbe's co-founder and CEO, who will begin the call with the business update. Then we will turn the call over to Karine Pinto-Flomenboim, CFO, who will review the financials in more detail. Finally, we will open the call for the question-and-answer session. With that, I'd like to turn it over to Kobi Marenko, Arbe's CEO. Kobi, please go ahead.

[Kobi Marenko, CEO, Co‑Founder, and Director at Arbe Robotics]

Thank you, Miri. Good morning, everyone, and thank you for joining us. On this conference call, we are happy to share significant progress and market endorsement from major industry players. We've hit a major milestone by securing 2 key customers for the development of our imaging radar for production. We see these selections as strong endorsement of Arbe's technological superiority and evidence that we are strategically positioned and on track to capture additional OEMs this year. Let me elaborate on these two important announcements. First, one of the top 10 OEMs in the world selected Arbe's chipset for the development of its next-gen imaging radar geared toward serial production. This leading OEM has confirmed that preparations for serial production will begin immediately. The decision came after a deep competitive evaluation and careful field testing of our chipset, proving just how reliable and high-performing our technology is.

[Kobi Marenko, CEO, Co‑Founder, and Director at Arbe Robotics]

The adoption of Arbe's technology by this major automotive OEM not only validates our innovative solutions, but also opens a significant commercial opportunity. Our versatile chipset can be used across a wide range of vehicle classes, boosting market appeal and potential for broad adoption. Secondly, we are proud to be teaming up with a well-known European truck manufacturer who will revolutionize truck safety using our imaging radar. They are gearing up to include our radar in their next-generation sensor suite, a big step forward in their move to more advanced technology. The trucking industry faces distinctive challenges that our imaging radar technology is designed to tackle, including larger vehicle sizes, longer braking distances, and greater collision potential. These factors make it essential for trucks to operate safely in all weather and lighting conditions.

[Kobi Marenko, CEO, Co‑Founder, and Director at Arbe Robotics]

As with the OEM selection, our imaging radar went through rigorous testing and evaluation before being selected and was compared directly against other front-end sensors like LiDAR and conventional radar. We view these selections as an acknowledgment of Arbe's technological edge, highlighting the confidence that leading manufacturers have in our technology. These approvals not only validate our innovative solutions, but also demonstrate that our technology stands out in a competitive market. Further, they serve as a clear indicator that we are well-positioned to increase our market share and appeal to other key OEMs. The auto industry continues to constantly evolve with new safety standards and regulatory changes, driving widespread demand for high channel count solutions.

[Kobi Marenko, CEO, Co‑Founder, and Director at Arbe Robotics]

Since Arbe solution is widely recognized by leading OEMs as the radar with the largest channel array at the best price per channel, we believe that the opportunities are only beginning to emerge. In fact, in Q2, we supported the final stages of OEM RFQ processes in collaboration with our Tier 1, Magna, HiRain, and Weifu, and Sensrad, and we look forward to sharing more updates very soon. We are actively engaged in obtaining full design-ins with leading global automakers, and we expect those decisions in the coming months. Finally, we are happy to report that we have successfully begun trading on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange. In June, we raised approximately $30 million through a convertible bond offering, and we expect it will help increase our cash reserves in anticipation of upcoming OEM selection.

[Kobi Marenko, CEO, Co‑Founder, and Director at Arbe Robotics]

The proceeds from the bond offering are being held in escrow and will be released upon meeting certain conditions by March 21, 2025. We are progressing in fulfilling the conditions for the release of the funds, and we will be sharing updates along the way. Now, I'd like to turn it over to our CFO, Karine, to go over our financials.

[Karine Pinto-Flomenboim, CFO at Arbe Robotics]

Thank you, Kobi, and hello, everyone. I'd like to review our financial results for the second quarter of 2024 in more details. Total revenue in the second quarter was $0.4 million, an increase from $0.3 million in Q2 2023. Backlog as of June 30th was $0.8 million and is expected to be recognized as revenue during 2024. Negative gross margin for Q2 2024 was 9.5%, compared to a negative gross margin of 1% in Q2 2023. The increase in the negative gross margin was primarily related to a headcount increase. Moving on to expenses. In Q2 2024, we reported total operating expenses of $11.6 million, compared to $12.6 million in Q2 2023.

[Karine Pinto-Flomenboim, CFO at Arbe Robotics]

The decrease in operating expenses was primarily driven by a decrease in research and development expenses as we progress towards finalization of our production, and to a lesser extent, decrease in our labor cost and favorable exchange rate impact. Operating loss in the second quarter of 2024 was $11.6 million, a decrease from second quarter of 2023 operating loss of $12.6 million. Net loss in the second quarter of 2024 decreased to $11.8 million, compared to a net loss of $12.6 million in the second quarter of 2023. Net loss in the second quarter of 2024 included $0.1 million of financial expenses. Adjusted EBITDA, a non-GAAP measurement, which excludes expenses for share-based compensation and for non-recurring items, was a loss of $7.5 million in Q2 of 2024.

[Karine Pinto-Flomenboim, CFO at Arbe Robotics]

This is compared to a loss of $8.4 million in the second quarter of 2023. Moving to our balance sheet. As of June 30, 2024, Arbe had $8.8 million in cash and cash equivalents and $17.7 million in short-term bank deposits. In June, we issued a convertible bond in the principal amount of 110 million ILS, or approximately $30 million. The proceeds from the sale of the bond, which were approximately 112.4 million ILS, or approximately $30.5 million, are held in escrow and will be released upon meeting certain conditions by March 31, 2025. As Kobi stated, we are in the process of fulfilling the conditions for the raise, and we will be sure to update as we progress.

[Karine Pinto-Flomenboim, CFO at Arbe Robotics]

With respect to our guidance for the year, we would like to reiterate what we previously shared. Our goal of achieving four design-ins with automakers remains unchanged, as we observe continued strong interest in our market-leading offering. We have strengthened our positioning in all our RFQ engagements, even though the OEM have shifted their decision timelines from late 2023 -2024. The 2024 annual revenue are expected to be in line with those of 2023, followed by revenue growth in 2025. These revenue projections are based on our expectation that we will be in full production in the second half of 2024, as well as our decision to exclusively focus on getting our chipset into production. We are committed to maintaining a strong and well-managed balance sheet, focusing on cost effectiveness and the ability to fund our revenue growth.

[Karine Pinto-Flomenboim, CFO at Arbe Robotics]

Adjusted EBITDA for 2024 is projected to be in the range of $30 million-$36 million loss. Now, we will be happy to take your questions. Operator?

[Operator]

Thank you. We will now begin our question-and-answer session. To ask a question, you may press star then one on your touchtone phone. To withdraw your question, please press star then two. At this time, we will pause momentarily to assemble our roster. Our first question will come from Joshua Buchalter with TD Cowen. Please go ahead.

[Joshua Buchalter, Senior Equity Research Analyst at TD Cowen]

Hey, guys. Good afternoon. Thanks for taking my question, and congrats on all the progress interquarter. For my first one, I wanted to ask about the selection at the top 10 OEM. Obviously, a great sign there. It mentions in the press release. I get when it was initially signed; it's aimed at serial production. Can you maybe walk us through some of the milestones that need to be hit and when you to enter series production, and when you would expect that decision to be made? Thank you.

[Kobi Marenko, CEO, Co‑Founder, and Director at Arbe Robotics]

So first of all, the decision to go to production with this radar was already made. The process that we are going through now is basically that this OEM has internal Tier 1 that takes reference design from us, adapts it to their needs, and start developing a full radar model for production based on that. And based on the timeline of this process, the OEM will decide on the exact year model or the exact timing of full production. But right now, it's basically the train is already moving and we know where it should go. It's just a matter of how long will it take to bring up this kind of production, a full production.

[Kobi Marenko, CEO, Co‑Founder, and Director at Arbe Robotics]

We have our estimations from the current Tier 1 that we're already working with them. So we expect to start gaining revenues from this win by end of 2025, early 2026.

[Joshua Buchalter, Senior Equity Research Analyst at TD Cowen]

Okay, got it. Thank you for all the color there. And then on the goal of achieving the four design-ins this year, any more details you can share on what types of applications and maybe timelines or revenue you would expect if you are indeed able to convert those wins that you're in discussions for?

[Kobi Marenko, CEO, Co‑Founder, and Director at Arbe Robotics]

Yeah. So first of all, and we already achieved one out of these four, so we still left with three. So, 25% already done. And, we are now in last phases with a few major RFQs. Actually, one of them stated for us in the last few weeks that we are in a pole position to win this contract. With all of the RFPs that we are now in final stages, we expect new models to be 2028, application to be safety, the new regulation for emergency braking and hands-free driving, mainly on the highway. And we expect to start gaining revenues from that since it's year model 2028. We will start shipping chips to Magna, that is our main Tier 1 for this, those projects by the second half of 2026.

[Joshua Buchalter, Senior Equity Research Analyst at TD Cowen]

Thank you for that, Kobi. A last one for me. I mean, you mentioned in the press release, you know, reaffirming the 2024 annual revenue in line with 2023, followed by revenue growth in 2025. Any initial guardrails or range of revenue growth you'd like to provide for 2025? Thank you.

[Kobi Marenko, CEO, Co‑Founder, and Director at Arbe Robotics]

So we have preliminary orders from China, and HiRain and Weifu both are in great progress towards production. So we would expect to get those revenues that HiRain and Weifu indicated for us for 2025. I can also add to that, that Weifu just announced a few weeks ago that they spun off their radar business into a new company, and Bosch is one of the investors in this subsidiary, so we expect it also to help Weifu gain more business and gain more traction in the Chinese market. So overall, our target is the numbers that we have in a preliminary order from the Chinese market, more or less.

[Joshua Buchalter, Senior Equity Research Analyst at TD Cowen]

Thanks, Kobi.

[Operator]

The next question will come from Suji Desilva, from Roth Capital. Please go ahead.

[Suji Desilva, MD and Senior Research Analyst at ROTH Capital]

Hi, Kobi, Karine. Congratulations on the progress here. Kobi, now that you've had some wins here, maybe you can revisit the key factors you're seeing in selection of our radar, and maybe you can update us on the competitive landscape that you're seeing, you know, three months later.

[Kobi Marenko, CEO, Co‑Founder, and Director at Arbe Robotics]

So, the main advantage of automotive, and the main disadvantage of automotive is that the landscape is not changing. So what we saw three months ago and six months ago, and actually a year ago, is the same that we see today because of the fact that it's so complicated to bring chips to production in automotive. Actually, when we started this company seven or eight years ago, if we even imagined how complicated would it be to take three chips to production in automotive, we would probably choose a much easier industry, like pharma. So, we don't see here a huge difference since last quarter.

[Kobi Marenko, CEO, Co‑Founder, and Director at Arbe Robotics]

So, what we see is a major shift in the understanding of the OEM, that a multi-channel radar, a high multi-channel radar, is a must for any kind of safety application. And the fact that Mercedes stated on stage that 32 by 32 channels radar is the minimum, and the fact that we see major RFPs, that's basically putting a line that below that you cannot even get to the RFP. This is the major change that we saw in the industry since the beginning of this year, and we are seeing it more and more. Companies that took lower channels count, like six by eight in China or 12 by 16 in Europe, understand that this is not sufficient.

[Kobi Marenko, CEO, Co‑Founder, and Director at Arbe Robotics]

That, basically, if you want to see a pedestrian that is coming out of his car on the highway, or you wanna see tire on the road, on the highway, near the guardrail, or you want to drive in an urban area and to understand that there is a bridge or, or there is a pedestrian below the bridge, or there is a motorcycle on the side of the road, it's clear for everyone that the amount of channels that is less than 32 by 32 is meaningless. Also, the fact that we are able to bring down chips that allowing Magna to sell in high rate to sell a radar in a price that is similar to the 12 by 16, I think also makes the difference.

[Kobi Marenko, CEO, Co‑Founder, and Director at Arbe Robotics]

This is our core advantage as opposed to Mobileye, that their product is much more expensive and much more power hungry, which is also a major issue in today's car.

[Suji Desilva, MD and Senior Research Analyst at ROTH Capital]

Okay, thank you for that detailed answer there, Kobi. And then, maybe you can talk about the trucking opportunity separate from the auto opportunity, and distinguish the addressable market sizes. I'm sure it's different units. Understanding the unit TAM and then the pricing difference. And maybe is the content per truck, one radar per truck, similar to cars?

[Kobi Marenko, CEO, Co‑Founder, and Director at Arbe Robotics]

So trucks were basically the lower volume, and you know, some of the Tier 1s are not even selling to trucks. So where the price there of the radar is more than regular automotive, but the volume is much lower and the adaptation that is needed is also much more important than in regular automotive, in commercial, in private vehicles. So trucks is not a major part of our business and won't be a major part of our business, but I think that the fact that the truck company selected our radar means that this is basically the highest level of safety that is needed in the market, and I think for us, it's a major milestone.

[Suji Desilva, MD and Senior Research Analyst at ROTH Capital]

Okay, that's very helpful. And then maybe a last question on the financials or just the, I think, Karine, you mentioned the headcount went up. I'm just curious, what areas of the company are you increasing headcount in? Thanks.

[Karine Pinto-Flomenboim, CFO at Arbe Robotics]

So the headcount went up in our cost of sale, which is mainly our customer support. When we actually finalize our production stages and we want to be ready for the next stage of full production, serial production, and also supporting our customer support. So these are mainly the areas where we boost our headcount for this stage.

[Suji Desilva, MD and Senior Research Analyst at ROTH Capital]

Okay, very good. Thanks, guys.

[Karine Pinto-Flomenboim, CFO at Arbe Robotics]

Thank you, Suji.

[Operator]

Again, if you would like to ask a question, please press star then one. The next question will be from Matthew Galinko from Maxim Group. Please go ahead.

[Matthew Galinko, SVP and Senior Equity Research Analyst at Maxim Group]

Hi, thanks for taking my question. I just wanted to get a sense for, you know, as you look into the pipeline a little bit beyond the four design-ins that you're targeting for this year, what does the pipeline look like geographically, you know, into 2025?

[Kobi Marenko, CEO, Co‑Founder, and Director at Arbe Robotics]

So the current pipeline, I would say it's like this: short term, customers that we assume we will have wins in Q3 and Q4, all of them are, the headquarters is European, of course, they are selling cars all over the world. For next year, we see, of course, China, and Japan as the major countries, and U.S. just after that.

[Matthew Galinko, SVP and Senior Equity Research Analyst at Maxim Group]

Great. Thank you.

[Operator]

Ladies and gentlemen, this concludes today's question and answer session. I will turn the conference back over to Kobi Marenko for any closing remarks.

[Kobi Marenko, CEO, Co‑Founder, and Director at Arbe Robotics]

Thank you, everybody, for joining us today, and we look forward to update you shortly on new news coming from us, and thank you, everyone.

[Operator]

Thank you. The conference has now concluded. Thank you for attending today's presentation. You may now disconnect.

Participants

Executives

• Karine Pinto-Flomenboim, CFO
• Kobi Marenko, CEO, Co‑Founder, and Director
• Miri Segal, Founder and CEO of MS‑IR LLC

Analysts

• Joshua Buchalter, Senior Equity Research Analyst at TD Cowen
• Matthew Galinko, SVP and Senior Equity Research Analyst at Maxim Group
• Suji Desilva, MD and Senior Research Analyst at ROTH Capital