NUBURU Inc (BURU) 2023 Q3 法說會逐字稿

Good afternoon. Thank you for attending NUBURU Incorporated's third quarter 2023 financial results conference call. (Operator Instructions)

午安.感謝您參加 NUBURU Incorporated 2023 年第三季財務業績電話會議。（操作員指示）

I would now like to turn the conference over to your host, Ralf Esper, External Director of Investor Relations at Gateway Group. Thank you.

現在，我想將會議交給主持人、Gateway Group 投資者關係外部總監 Ralf Esper。謝謝。

You may proceed, Mr. Esper.

您可以繼續，艾斯柏先生。

Thank you, operator, and thanks to everyone for joining us on NUBURU's third quarter 2023 earnings conference call.

謝謝接線員，也謝謝大家參加 NUBURU 2023 年第三季財報電話會議。

Joining the call today are Brian Knaley, NUBURU's Chief Executive Officer; and Ron Nicol, Executive Chairman, to discuss our third quarter results.

今天參加電話會議的有 NUBURU 執行長 Brian Knaley 和執行主席 Ron Nicol，討論我們的第三季業績。

During this call, certain statements we make will be forward-looking. These statements are subject to risks and uncertainties, including those set forth in our Safe Harbor provisions for forward-looking statements that can be found at the end of our earnings release and also in our Form 10-Q that will be filed today, and provide further details about the risks related to our business. Additionally, except as required by law, we undertake no obligation to update any forward-looking statement.

在本次電話會議中，我們所做的某些陳述將具有前瞻性。這些聲明受到風險和不確定性的影響，包括我們的前瞻性聲明安全港條款中規定的風險和不確定性，這些條款可以在我們的收益報告末尾以及我們今天提交的 10-Q 表格中找到，並提供了有關我們業務相關風險的更多詳細信息。此外，除非法律要求，我們不承擔更新任何前瞻性聲明的義務。

We will also provide non-GAAP information regarding certain of our historical and targeted results to supplement the results provided in accordance with GAAP. This information should not be considered superior to or as a substitute for the comparable GAAP measures. Reconciliation of historical non-GAAP measures can be found in our third quarter earnings release published this afternoon and posted on the Investor Relations section of our website, ir.nuburu.net.

我們還將提供有關某些歷史和目標結果的非 GAAP 信息，以補充根據 GAAP 提供的結果。此資訊不應被視為優於或替代可比較的 GAAP 指標。歷史非公認會計準則指標的對帳可以在我們今天下午發布的第三季財報中找到，該報告發佈在我們的網站 ir.nuburu.net 的投資者關係部分。

I will now turn the call over to Ron.

現在我將把電話轉給羅恩。

Thank you, Ralf, and thanks everyone for joining us today for our third quarter 2023 earnings call.

謝謝你，拉爾夫，也謝謝大家今天參加我們的 2023 年第三季財報電話會議。

In light of recent corporate developments, I'd like to start today's discussion by reviewing the changes we've made to our executive management team to transition the company to its next stage of growth.

鑑於最近的公司發展情況，我想在今天的討論開始時回顧一下我們對執行管理團隊所做的變動，以使公司過渡到下一個發展階段。

Following that, I will turn it over to Brian to discuss further operational updates, the financial results of the quarter, and our out-year objectives.

接下來，我將與 Brian 討論進一步的營運更新、本季的財務表現以及我們未來的目標。

At the halfway point of the year, the Board of Directors had very carefully assessed the current status of NUBURU. Our cutting-edge blue laser is at the forefront of technological advancements for manufacturing.

在年中時，董事會非常仔細地評估了 NUBURU 的現狀。我們的尖端藍光雷射處於製造業技術進步的前沿。

Since the inception of NUBURU in 2015, our focus was on developing blue lasers to leverage fundamental physics and their high brightness, high power design. I want to thank Mark Zediker for his tireless efforts over the past years to lay the foundations for the company's success.

自 2015 年 NUBURU 成立以來，我們一直致力於開發藍色雷射器，以利用基礎物理學及其高亮度、高功率設計。我要感謝馬克·澤迪克過去幾年來為公司的成功奠定基礎所做的不懈努力。

Looking forward, our primary objectives will revolve around three central elements: strengthening our commercial efforts, scaling our production, and streamlining our administrative functions.

展望未來，我們的主要目標將圍繞在三個核心要素：加強我們的商業努力、擴大我們的生產規模和簡化我們的行政職能。

These actions are pivotal as we strive to not only ensure customer satisfaction, but also drive shareholder value growth as a public company.

這些行動至關重要，因為我們不僅努力確保客戶滿意度，而且還作為上市公司推動股東價值成長。

As I step into my newly extended role as Executive Chairman, my key responsibilities will encompass offering strategic guidance during this transformative phase as well as serving as a valuable resource to Brian in his new position as Chief Executive Officer, in addition to supporting the rest of our highly talented management team.

當我擔任執行董事長這一新職務時，我的主要職責包括在這個轉型階段提供策略指導，並為 Brian 擔任執行長的新職位提供寶貴的資源，此外還要為我們其他才華橫溢的管理團隊提供支援。

Brian Knaley is an accomplished and respected leader with over 25 years of experience in scaling and operating public companies. The Board of Directors and myself are confident in his abilities to lead NUBURU's next phase of growth.

Brian Knaley 是一位成就卓越、受人尊敬的領導者，在擴大和經營上市公司方面擁有超過 25 年的經驗。董事會和我都對他帶領 NUBURU 下一階段發展的能力充滿信心。

I'll now turn the call over to Brian to update you on further operational highlights, discuss our third quarter performance, and out year strategic objectives. Brian?

現在我將把電話轉給 Brian，讓他向您通報進一步的營運亮點，討論我們的第三季業績以及今年的策略目標。布賴恩？

Thanks, Ron. It's a great honor for me to lead NUBURU's next phase of growth as Chief Executive Officer. I want to thank the Board of Directors for their trust in me, and I'm looking forward to working with Ron, the Board, and the excellent NUBURU team in this position as we continue to execute on the vast commercial opportunities that lay ahead of us.

謝謝，羅恩。我很榮幸能夠擔任首席執行官，領導 NUBURU 的下一階段發展。我要感謝董事會對我的信任，我期待與羅恩、董事會以及優秀的 NUBURU 團隊一起在這個職位上合作，繼續把握擺在我們面前的巨大商業機會。

Speaking of which, I would like to start today's operational update with two very recent exciting examples. Earlier today, we announced fantastic news regarding our work with GE Additive for the US Air Force.

說到這裡，我想用最近兩個非常令人興奮的例子來開始今天的營運更新。今天早些時候，我們宣布了與 GE Additive 合作為美國空軍提供援助的重大消息。

The completion of the contract awarded by the US Air Force follows our successful demonstration of blue laser-based area of printing to develop scalable 3D printing manufacturing systems. Achieving this first-ever milestone is critical to accelerate the implementation of blue laser technology into large-scale additive manufacturing systems for defense, aerospace, and several other critical markets.

在我們成功展示基於藍色雷射的列印領域以開發可擴展的 3D 列印製造系統之後，美國空軍授予的合約得以完成。實現這一里程碑對於加速藍色雷射技術在國防、航空航太和其他幾個關鍵市場的大規模積層製造系統中的應用至關重要。

This announcement comes on the heels of a purchase order we've received from a major multinational electronics manufacturer with manufacturing capabilities across Asia, Latin America, Europe, and the US.

這項聲明是在我們收到一家大型跨國電子製造商的採購訂單後發布的，該製造商的生產能力遍及亞洲、拉丁美洲、歐洲和美國。

We are excited about the opportunity to deliver our industry disrupting BL-250 for next-generation 3C device manufacturing. Our transformational blue laser technology will be utilized at the manufacturing and a research and development capacity to demonstrate the integration of its laser welding capabilities as an alternative to conventional soldering manufacturing techniques.

我們很高興有機會為下一代 3C 設備製造提供顛覆產業的 BL-250。我們的變革性藍色雷射技術將用於製造和研發能力，以展示其雷射焊接能力的整合，作為傳統焊接製造技術的替代方案。

As you can tell, there is no shortage of interest in our technology, and we are excited about the opportunities that lay ahead of us. But Q3 also came with challenges.

如您所知，人們對我們的技術非常感興趣，我們對擺在我們面前的機會感到興奮。但第三季也面臨挑戰。

As mentioned in our second quarter earnings call, going into the second half of the year, we were cognizant of the supply chain conditions that presented bottlenecks in the procurement process for scanner components, in particular, the scanner and lens-related components, respectively, associated with our BL product line.

正如我們在第二季財報電話會議上提到的那樣，進入下半年，我們意識到供應鏈狀況在掃描器組件的採購過程中存在瓶頸，特別是與我們的 BL 產品線相關的掃描器和鏡頭相關組件。

While we've seen such material constraints abate throughout the third quarter, largely attributable to our alternative sourcing initiatives that we have implemented, we have seen a clear impact on our ability to ship systems to our customers.

雖然我們看到這種材料限制在第三季度有所減弱，這主要歸功於我們實施的替代採購計劃，但我們已經看到對我們向客戶運送系統的能力產生了明顯的影響。

During the third quarter, we were also confronted with additional headwinds from the integration of our systems into customer applications and subsequently experienced further delays in the shipment of our products. For those unaware of our sales cycle, while we benefit from deep integration into our customers' manufacturing processes, we need to customize our solutions to specific applications of their end markets.

在第三季度，我們還面臨著將我們的系統整合到客戶應用程式所帶來的額外阻力，因此我們的產品出貨進一步延遲。對於那些不了解我們銷售週期的人來說，雖然我們從與客戶製造流程的深度整合中受益，但我們需要根據其終端市場的特定應用來客製化我們的解決方案。

I'm confident in the solutions that we have developed not only will enhance our BL-250 product offerings, but also streamline the manufacturing process to improve the application and integration of our technologies within their respective end markets going forward.

我相信，我們開發的解決方案不僅將增強我們的 BL-250 產品供應，而且還將簡化製造流程，以改善我們的技術在未來各自終端市場中的應用和整合。

Turning now to our third quarter results. Further details on which can be found in our 10-Q that will be on file with the SEC.

現在來看看我們的第三季業績。更多詳細資訊請參閱我們將向美國證券交易委員會提交的 10-Q 報告。

Our third quarter sales were $0.2 million, which is a 78% decrease compared to the third quarter of 2022, primarily due to a decrease in the number of laser system sales during the period as a result of the challenges I've described earlier.

我們第三季的銷售額為 20 萬美元，與 2022 年第三季相比下降了 78%，這主要是由於我之前描述的挑戰導致該期間雷射系統銷售數量減少。

Our gross profit was $0.9 million loss compared to a loss of $1.0 million in the third quarter of 2022, primarily attributable to a decrease in cost of revenue following a decrease in the production of laser systems as the company focuses on the manufacturing of the BL-Series and offset by the decrease in revenues.

我們的毛利為虧損 90 萬美元，而 2022 年第三季虧損 100 萬美元，這主要歸因於公司專注於 BL 系列的製造，導致雷射系統產量下降，從而導致收入成本下降，但被收入的下降所抵消。

Our gross margin was a negative 497% compared to a gross margin of a negative 111% in the third quarter of 2022, primarily driven by decreasing revenue and partially offset by lower cost of revenues following the retirement of the AO series.

我們的毛利率為負 497%，而 2022 年第三季的毛利率為負 111%，這主要是由於收入下降，但 AO 系列退役後收入成本降低部分抵消了這一影響。

Total operating expenses in the third quarter of 2023 were $4.2 million compared to $2.9 million in the third quarter of 2022. The increase is primarily attributable to increased costs associated with becoming and operating a public company. Further contributors to the increase were increased research and development, personnel expenses, and addition of a new Chief Marketing and Sales Officer in March of 2023.

2023 年第三季的總營運費用為 420 萬美元，而 2022 年第三季為 290 萬美元。成長的主要原因是成為和經營上市公司的成本增加。導致這一增長的其他因素包括研發費用和人事費用的增加，以及 2023 年 3 月新任首席行銷和銷售長的加入。

Our net loss was $5.1 million or $0.14 per share compared to a net loss of $3.9 million or $0.71 per share in the third quarter of 2022. This is primarily related to the mentioned onetime expenses detailed previously.

我們的淨虧損為 510 萬美元，即每股 0.14 美元，而 2022 年第三季的淨虧損為 390 萬美元，即每股 0.71 美元。這主要與前面詳述的一次性費用有關。

Our EBITDA was a negative $4.8 million compared to a negative $3.8 million in the third quarter of 2022. In the quarter, we had a free cash flow usage of $4.9 million compared to a usage of $2.7 million, primarily attributable to decreasing revenue and an increase in total operating expenses. As a result, and as of September 30, 2023, the company had cash and cash equivalents of $1.6 million.

我們的 EBITDA 為負 480 萬美元，而 2022 年第三季為負 380 萬美元。本季度，我們的自由現金流使用量為 490 萬美元，而去年同期為 270 萬美元，主要歸因於收入減少和總營運費用增加。因此，截至 2023 年 9 月 30 日，該公司擁有現金和現金等價物 160 萬美元。

Looking forward, I am pleased to tell you that we are very well positioned to have updates forthcoming regarding our short-term financing as well as longer-term solutions.

展望未來，我很高興地告訴大家，我們已做好準備，隨時發布有關短期融資和長期解決方案的最新資訊。

We are not quite ready to announce at this point. but we will keep the market updated as we track -- as we are on track to bolster our balance sheet.

我們目前還沒有準備好宣布，但我們會持續向市場通報最新情況——因為我們正在逐步加強我們的資產負債表。

With the anticipation of a rebound in deliveries of our laser systems during the fourth quarter of 2023, we have adjusted our full year 2023 outlook accordingly and are eagerly awaiting the positive impact of our technological improvements.

由於預計 2023 年第四季我們的雷射系統交付量將出現反彈，我們相應調整了 2023 年全年預期，並熱切期待技術改進帶來的正面影響。

As such, we are revising our full year 2023 outlook for total revenue to $2.1 million, EBITDA to be in the range between negative $18 million and a negative $21 million, and free cash flow to be in the range of negative $17 million and negative $20 million.

因此，我們將 2023 年全年預期總收入調整為 210 萬美元，EBITDA 調整為負 1,800 萬美元至負 2,100 萬美元之間，自由現金流調整為負 1,700 萬美元至負 2,000 萬美元之間。

In closing, while quarter three was without challenges, we are more than ever excited about the growth opportunity ahead of us with growing commercial interest for a technology-driven solutions.

最後，雖然第三季沒有挑戰，但隨著商業對技術驅動解決方案的興趣日益濃厚，我們對未來的成長機會比以往任何時候都更加興奮。

Our market outlook remains robust with momentum and revenue generation accelerating in 2024 and beyond as we roll out more of our BL and SML systems.

隨著我們推出更多 BL 和 SML 系統，我們的市場前景依然強勁，2024 年及以後的發展動能和營收成長將加速。

Finally, we would like to thank our employees and our customers for their continued efforts and dedication to the company, which ultimately drives our success as an organization. Together, we're focused on driving innovation, supporting the global transition to sustainable solutions, and delivering strong profitable growth for our shareholders.

最後，我們要感謝我們的員工和客戶對公司的持續努力和奉獻，這最終推動了我們作為一個組織的成功。我們共同致力於推動創新，支持全球向永續解決方案的轉型，並為股東實現強勁的獲利成長。

We are entering a new phase as we transition toward the commercialization of our technology, and I hope you all are with us for the journey.

我們正進入一個轉型為科技商業化的新階段，我希望大家能與我們一起踏上這趟旅程。

I will now turn the call back over to the operator, who will assist us in taking your questions. Operator?

我現在將電話轉回給接線員，接線員將協助我們回答您的問題。操作員？

Thank you. (Operator Instructions) Ananda Baruah, Loop Capital.

謝謝。（操作員指令）Ananda Baruah，Loop Capital。

Hey, thanks, guys. Good afternoon. Appreciate it. Yeah, so a couple of things. I jumped on -- I had a few companies reporting this evening. I jumped on a few minutes late.

嘿，謝謝大家。午安.非常感謝。是的，有幾件事。我立即採取行動——今晚有幾家公司要報告。我晚了幾分鐘才上車。

Could you just talk to you again what like just the source of the -- and I apologize, if you sort of hear this again, the source of the constraints and what it is, it sounds like you feel like you have your arms around it. But -- and the things that are leading you to feel like you have your arms around it. Like that context would be super helpful. Thanks.

您能否再跟您講一下問題的根源——我很抱歉，如果您再次聽到這個，限制的根源是什麼，聽起來您感覺自己已經掌握了它。但是——有些事情讓你感覺到你已經可以擁抱它了。類似這樣的背景將會非常有幫助。謝謝。

Absolutely. And thanks for the question. Appreciate it.

絕對地。感謝您的提問。非常感謝。

As we said a little bit before, and as we said in the second quarter summary, we were experiencing supply chain restrictions on scanner and the ancillary type of support related to our peripherals in that supply chain.

正如我們之前所說，正如我們在第二季度總結中所說，我們在掃描器和與該供應鏈中的外圍設備相關的輔助支援方面遇到了供應鏈限制。

So we were experiencing that in coming out of the second quarter and into the third quarter here. We're seeing it abate a little bit really for two reasons. One, looking for alternative solutions, and we have identified a few as we moved through as well as some of that shortfall or constraint is starting to abate.

所以我們在第二季和第三季就經歷了這種情況。我們看到這種現象確實有減弱，原因有二。第一，尋找替代解決方案，我們在推進過程中已經確定了一些解決方案，而且一些不足或限制也開始減輕。

Some of those lead times have come down. But again, that has not really happened until the end of the quarter.

其中一些交貨時間已經縮短。但同樣，直到本季末這種情況才真正發生。

Got it. And that's super helpful. And is there -- the genesis of the constraint, is this all market related or or is there anything that is sort of more specific than market-related? (multiple speakers)

知道了。這非常有幫助。那麼，這種限制的起源是否全都與市場有關，或者是否存在比市場相關更具體的原因？（多位發言者）

Not specific to us. It's across -- really across the market in these critical peripherals.

並非特定於我們。它確實遍布這些關鍵週邊設備的市場。

Okay. Awesome. And this is more of a high-level housekeeping question, I guess, but Brian, are you, I mean are you guys looking for a stand-alone CFO as well? Or what's that situation right now?

好的。驚人的。我想，這更像是一個高層的內部問題，但布萊恩，你是說你們也在找一位獨立的財務長嗎？或是現在的情況是怎麼樣的？

Absolutely, Ananda. We're actively looking for a CFO now. So my role will transition straight into the CEO role and then bringing -- a good CFO coming into the company.

當然，阿南達。我們現在正在積極尋找財務長。因此，我的角色將直接轉變為執行長角色，然後為公司帶來一位優秀的財務長。

Okay. Great. That's great to hear. And I guess the last one for me for now is, can you remind us if the AO series retirement, was that planned? Or is that -- was that a decision made in intra-quarter to do that?

好的。偉大的。聽到這個消息真是太好了。我想現在對我來說最後一個問題是，您能否提醒我們 AO 系列退休是否是計劃好的？或者那是——這是在季度內做出的決定嗎？

That was planned as we brought on the BL-250 in the one kilowatt, that was planned to sunset.

這是我們在一千瓦級 BL-250 上進行的計劃，計劃於今年年底停產。

Okay, awesome. Just wanted to housekeep that. I appreciated it. Thanks, guys.

好的，太棒了。只是想把那件事處理好。我很感激。謝謝大家。

Thanks for the questions.

謝謝你的提問。

(Operator Instructions) There are no further questions at this time, sir. Please proceed.

（操作員指示）先生，目前沒有其他問題。請繼續。

Thank you, everybody, for joining the quarter 3 NUBURU earnings call. We look forward to talking to you in the next quarter.

感謝大家參加 NUBURU 第三季財報電話會議。我們期待下個季度與您交談。

Thank you. Ladies and gentlemen, the conference has now ended. Thank you all for joining. You may all disconnect.

謝謝。女士們、先生們，會議現已結束。感謝大家的加入。你們都可以斷開連線。