Ekso Bionics Holdings Inc (EKSO) 2024 Q4 法說會逐字稿

Greetings. And welcome to the Ekso Bionics fourth quarter 2024 financial results conference call. (Operator Instructions)

問候。歡迎參加 Ekso Bionics 2024 年第四季財務業績電話會議。（操作員指令）

As a reminder, this conference is being recorded. It is now my pleasure to introduce Stephen Kilmer. Thank you. You may begin.

提醒一下，本次會議正在錄音。現在我很高興介紹史蒂芬·基爾默。謝謝。你可以開始了。

Thank you, operator. And good afternoon, everyone. Earlier today, Ekso Bionics released financial results for the quarter, a year into December 30, 2024. A copy of the press release is available on our website.

謝謝您，接線生。大家下午好。今天早些時候，Ekso Bionics 發布了截至 2024 年 12 月 30 日的一年財務表現。新聞稿的副本可在我們的網站上查閱。

I would like to point out that management will make statements during this call that include forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Federal securities laws, which are made pursuant to the Safe Harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.

我想指出的是，管理層將在本次電話會議中發表的聲明包括聯邦證券法所定義的前瞻性聲明，這些聲明是根據 1995 年私人證券訴訟改革法的安全港規定做出的。

Any statements made during this call that are not statements of historical facts shall be deemed to be forward-looking statements.

本次電話會議中所做的任何非歷史事實陳述均應被視為前瞻性陳述。

All forward-looking statements, including statements regarding our business strategy, future financial or operational expectations, or our expectations of the regulatory landscape governing our products and operations, are based upon management's current estimates and various assumptions.

所有前瞻性陳述，包括有關我們的業務策略、未來財務或營運預期、或我們對管理我們產品和營運的監管環境的預期的陳述，均基於管理層當前的估計和各種假設。

These statements involve material risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results or events that materially differ from those anticipated or implied by these forward-looking statements. Accordingly, you should not place undue reliance on these statements.

這些聲明涉及重大風險和不確定性，可能導致實際結果或事件與這些前瞻性聲明預期或暗示的結果或事件有重大差異。因此，您不應過度依賴這些聲明。

For a list and description of the risks and uncertainties associated with the company's business, please see its filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

有關該公司業務相關的風險和不確定性的清單和說明，請參閱其向美國證券交易委員會提交的文件。

Ekso disclaims any obligation, except as required by law to update or revise any financial or operational projections as regulatory outlook, or other forward-looking statements, whether because of new information, future events, or otherwise. Any forward-looking statements made on this call, speak only as of the date of this call.

Ekso 不承擔任何義務，除非法律要求更新或修改任何財務或營運預測、監管展望或其他前瞻性聲明，無論是由於新資訊、未來事件或其他原因。本次電話會議中所做的任何前瞻性陳述均僅代表本次電話會議之日的觀點。

Representing Ekso Bionics today are Scott Davis, our Chief Executive Officer; Jerome Wong, our Chief Financial Officer; and Jason Jones, our Chief Operating Officer. With that said, I'll now turn the call over to Jerome.

今天代表 Ekso Bionics 的是我們的執行長 Scott Davis；我們的財務長 Jerome Wong；以及我們的營運長 Jason Jones。說完這些，我現在將電話轉給傑羅姆。

Thank you, Steve. Good afternoon, everyone. And welcome to our fourth quarter and full-year 2024 conference call.

謝謝你，史蒂夫。大家下午好。歡迎參加我們的 2024 年第四季和全年電話會議。

On behalf of the management team and everyone at Ekso Bionics, I would like to thank you for your interest in our company. And for those of you who are shareholders, we appreciate your support.

我謹代表 Ekso Bionics 管理團隊和全體員工感謝您對我們公司的關注。對於各位股東，我們感謝你們的支持。

For the benefit of those who are new to the Ekso Bionics story, I would like to take a moment to summarize our business. Ekso designs, develops, and markets exoskeleton products that augment human strength, endurance, and mobility.

為了讓那些剛了解 Ekso Bionics 故事的人了解，我想花點時間總結一下我們的業務。Ekso 設計、開發和銷售可增強人類力量、耐力和機動性的外骨骼產品。

The primary and market for exoskeleton technology is healthcare, where our technology primarily serves people with physical disabilities or impairment in both physical rehabilitation and mobility. We operate as one operating and reportable segment with two markets, enterprise health and personal health.

外骨骼技術的主要市場是醫療保健，我們的技術主要服務於身體殘疾或身體復健和行動不便的人士。我們作為一個營運和報告部門運營，涉及兩個市場，即企業健康和個人健康。

Our revenues are primarily generated through the sale and subscription of our EksoNR device. Our legacy wearable robotic exoskeleton, specifically designed to be used in a rehabilitation setting to assist individuals recovering from both acute and chronic conditions.

我們的收入主要來自於 EksoNR 設備的銷售和訂購。我們傳統的可穿戴機器人外骨骼，專為康復環境而設計，可幫助患者從急性和慢性疾病中恢復。

Our Ekso Indego therapy device, our modular, adjustable, lightweight, lower-limb-powered exoskeleton that can be custom sized and fitted to patients for use in rehabilitation and wellness applications.

我們的 Ekso Indego 治療設備是一種模組化、可調節、輕巧、下肢動力的外骨骼，可根據患者需求客製尺寸並適合其用於復健和健康應用。

Our Ekso Indego personal device, which is a wearable, lower-extremity-powered exoskeleton that enables certain individuals, living with spinal cord injuries with the ability to stand and walk independently, along with the sale of support and maintenance contracts.

我們的 Ekso Indego 個人裝置是一種可穿戴的、由下肢驅動的外骨骼，使某些脊髓損傷患者能夠獨立站立和行走，同時也銷售支援和維護合約。

I will turn the call over to Scott in a moment for an update on our commercial activities and growth plans. However, before I do, I would like to provide a brief summary of our financial results. To streamline things, all of the numbers I will refer to have been rounded, so they are approximate.

稍後我將把電話轉給斯科特，以了解我們的商業活動和成長計劃的最新情況。不過，在此之前，我想先簡單介紹一下我們的財務表現。為了簡化事情，我將引用的所有數字都經過了四捨五入，因此它們都是近似值。

The company recorded revenue of $5.1 million in the fourth quarter of 2024, an increase of 5% compared to $4.8 million for the same period in 2023.

該公司 2024 年第四季的營收為 510 萬美元，較 2023 年同期的 480 萬美元成長 5%。

Gross profit for the fourth quarter was $2.7 million, representing a gross margin of approximately 53% compared to a gross profit of $2.4 million and a gross margin of 49% for the same period of 2023. The increase in gross profit and gross margin was primarily due to cost savings in supply chain and reduction in service costs.

第四季毛利為 270 萬美元，毛利率約為 53%，而 2023 年同期的毛利為 240 萬美元，毛利率為 49%。毛利及毛利率的增加主要由於供應鏈成本節省及服務成本的降低。

Operating expenses for the fourth quarter of 2024, which consists of RD, G&A, and sales and marketing expenses, for $4.9 million, a 15% decrease compared to $5.8 million for the fourth quarter of 2023. This was primarily due to a decrease in headcount, discretionary payroll, and consultant costs.

2024 年第四季的營運費用包括研發、一般及行政費用以及銷售和行銷費用，為 490 萬美元，較 2023 年第四季的 580 萬美元下降 15%。這主要是由於員工人數、可自由支配的工資和顧問費用的減少。

Net loss applicable to common stockholders for the fourth quarter was $3.4 million or $0.14 per basic and diluted share compared to a net loss of $3.2 million or $0.22 per basic and diluted share for the same period of 2023.

第四季普通股股東淨虧損為 340 萬美元，即每股基本虧損和稀釋虧損均為 0.14 美元，而 2023 年同期的淨虧損為 320 萬美元，即每股基本虧損和稀釋虧損均為 0.22 美元。

For the fourth quarter of 2024, the company used $1.4 million of net cash in operations compared to $1.6 million for the same period in 2023.

2024 年第四季度，該公司的營運淨現金為 140 萬美元，而 2023 年同期為 160 萬美元。

Turning now to our full-year 2024 results. Revenue of $17.9 million was down from $18.3 million for the same period in 2023. I think it's fair to pause here for a moment to address the marginal, year-over-year decline.

現在來談談我們的 2024 年全年業績。1790 萬美元的收入低於 2023 年同期的 1830 萬美元。我認為現在應該暫停一下，討論一下同比略有下降的情況。

It essentially came down to a difficult 2023 comparable, driven by two main factors. First, we were on the procurement cycle with several of the large independent delivery networks in 2023, but not in 2024. Second, 2023 was the first full year of having the Indego personal product line, which we acquired from Parker Hannifin in late 2022.

從本質上講，它歸結為與 2023 年的艱難比較，主要受兩個因素影響。首先，我們在 2023 年與幾家大型獨立配送網路進行了採購週期，但 2024 年沒有。其次，2023 年是 Indego 個人產品線的第一個完整年份，該產品線是我們於 2022 年底從派克漢尼汾收購的。

As part of that acquisition, we inherited an approximately $2 million pipeline that Parker Hannifin had with the VA but weren't able to fulfill due to the impact of COVID. We delivered most of those devices in 2023. And we're rebuilding that pipeline in VA through 2024.

作為此次收購的一部分，我們繼承了派克漢尼汾與 VA 之間約 200 萬美元的管道，但由於 COVID 的影響而未能履行。我們在 2023 年交付了大部分設備。我們將在 2024 年前重建維吉尼亞州的這條管道。

Gross profit for the full year ended December 31, 2024, with $9.5 million, representing a gross margin of approximately 53% compared to a gross profit of $9.1 million for the same period in 2023, representing a gross margin of 50%. The increase in gross profit was a result of cost savings and supply chain and a reduction in service costs.

截至 2024 年 12 月 31 日的全年毛利為 950 萬美元，毛利率約為 53%，而 2023 年同期的毛利為 910 萬美元，毛利率為 50%。毛利的增加是由於成本節約和供應鏈以及服務成本的降低。

Operating expenses for the 2024 full year were $20 million, a 17% decrease from $24.2 million for the prior-year period. The improvement was a result of lower headcount, discretionary payroll, consultant, legal, and accounting costs.

2024 年全年營運費用為 2,000 萬美元，較去年同期的 2,420 萬美元下降 17%。業績改善的原因是員工人數減少、可自由支配的薪資、顧問、法律和會計成本減少。

Net loss applicable to common stockholders for the 2024 full year was $11.3 million or $0.56 for basic and diluted share, compared to a net loss of $15.2 million or $1.10 for basic and diluted share for the 2023 full year.

2024 年全年普通股股東淨虧損為 1,130 萬美元，即基本虧損和稀釋虧損分別為 0.56 美元和 0.56 美元，而 2023 年全年淨虧損為 1,520 萬美元，即基本虧損和稀釋虧損分別為 1.10 美元和 1.10 美元。

Cash used in operating activities in the 2024 fiscal year was $9.8 million, down from $12.1 million for the same 12-month period in 2023. As of December 31, 2024, the company had cash and restricted cash of $6.5 million.

2024 財年經營活動所用現金為 980 萬美元，低於 2023 年同期的 1,210 萬美元。截至 2024 年 12 月 31 日，該公司擁有現金和受限現金為 650 萬美元。

That's it for my summary of the fourth quarter and full-year 2024 results. Please see our Form 10-K for further details regarding the results. I'll now turn the call over to Scott.

這是我對 2024 年第四季和全年業績的總結。有關結果的更多詳細信息，請參閱我們的 10-K 表格。我現在將電話轉給斯科特。

Thank you, Jerome. While we're pleased to achieve record revenue in the 2024 fourth quarter, in many respects, our primary focus throughout those three months was on the future, particularly for Ekso Indego Personal.

謝謝你，傑羅姆。雖然我們很高興在 2024 年第四季實現創紀錄的收入，但在許多方面，我們在這三個月的主要關注點是未來，特別是對於 Ekso Indego Personal。

As many of you know, CMS established pricing determination for the device in Q2 2024. Our main focus previous to this event was on post-acute care, rehab hospitals, and selling capital equipment within the legacy enterprise health market with some focus on veterans' administration for at-home devices.

大家可能都知道，CMS 已在 2024 年第二季確定了該設備的定價。在此次活動之前，我們的主要關注點是急性後期護理、復健醫院以及在傳統企業健康市場中銷售資本設備，同時也關注退伍軍人的家用設備管理。

So establishing an effective market access function to operate within the CMS reimbursement environment was new to Ekso Bionics.

因此，建立有效的市場准入功能以在 CMS 報銷環境中運作對於 Ekso Bionics 來說是新鮮事。

As we discussed on our last call, after CMS provided pricing determination last year, we immediately set out to establish a go-to-market strategy aimed at notifying as many early physician and provider adopters as possible of the new CMS benefit category redetermination and the fee schedule listing.

正如我們在上次電話會議上所討論的那樣，在 CMS 去年提供定價確定後，我們立即著手製定市場進入戰略，旨在盡可能多地通知早期採用者的 CMS 福利類別重新確定和費用表清單。

This regulatory change has created a significant opportunity to help Medicare enrollees living with a spinal cord injury by removing what has historically been a primary barrier to accessing our exoskeleton.

這項監管變化為幫助患有脊髓損傷的醫療保險參保者創造了重要機會，因為它消除了歷史上獲取外骨骼的主要障礙。

Additionally, we began working closely with our extensive network of neuro-rehabilitation partners across the country, focused on education efforts on appropriate patient selection and process for patients prescribed in Ekso Indego Personal for the home and community setting.

此外，我們開始與全國廣泛的神經復健合作夥伴網路密切合作，重點是針對家庭和社區環境中使用 Ekso Indego Personal 處方的患者進行適當的患者選擇和流程的教育工作。

That good work was necessary, but only part of what is required to drive the compelling growth opportunity that we continue to see ahead for the Ekso Indego Personal starting in 2025.

這些出色的工作是必要的，但這只是推動 Ekso Indego Personal 從 2025 年開始實現強勁成長機會所需的一部分。

So throughout the year, we shifted our primary focus from building awareness and providing customer education to advancing our scalable go-to-market strategy for the personal channel. Significantly, in Q4, our earlier efforts led us to deciding to make some key changes, which we believe will expand access to our technology and accelerate revenues in 2025 and beyond.

因此，在這一年中，我們將主要關注點從建立知名度和提供客戶教育轉移到推進個人管道的可擴展的市場進入策略。值得注意的是，在第四季度，我們先前的努力促使我們決定做出一些關鍵改變，我們相信這些改變將擴大我們技術的使用範圍，並加速 2025 年及以後的收入成長。

One of these key changes was engaging Priya Healthcare, a leading full spectrum reimbursement services and market access firm, which has been instrumental in the successful commercialization of over 300 medical devices.

其中一項關鍵變革是與 Priya Healthcare 合作，這是一家領先的全方位報銷服務和市場准入公司，在 300 多種醫療設備的成功商業化中發揮了重要作用。

Let me provide some perspective on why that move is so important. Through a national durable Medical Equipment or DME partner, we submitted our first Medicare claim at the end of May.

讓我從某些角度來解釋為何這項措施如此重要。透過全國耐用醫療設備或 DME 合作夥伴，我們在五月底提交了第一份醫療保險索賠。

In July, we saw our first claim reimbursed. All subsequent claims are currently being managed through the appeals process. And in Q4, we elected not to submit additional claims. But that's not to say that we haven't been busy.

七月份，我們的第一筆索賠得到了報銷。所有後續索賠目前正在透過上訴程序進行處理。在第四季度，我們選擇不再提交額外索賠。但這並不是說我們不忙。

In fact, we've already built a backlog of more than 25 Medicare beneficiaries that we believe are great candidates for Ekso Indego Personal and through our retargeting efforts, are continually identifying new candidates who we believe are qualified.

事實上，我們已經累積了超過 25 名醫療保險受益人的名單，我們認為他們是 Ekso Indego Personal 的優秀候選人，並且透過我們的重新定位工作，我們正在不斷地尋找我們認為符合條件的新候選人。

Moving forward with Priya's help throughout the submission process, we anticipate submitting those claims to CMS over the next six to nine months.

在 Priya 的整個提交過程中，我們預計將在未來六到九個月內向 CMS 提交這些索賠。

While we obviously cannot guarantee those claims will be submitted in that time frame or ultimately be paid, we are confident that Priya has the ability to provide us with strategic guidance and leverage, its expertise to help Ekso navigate the complexities of coding, coverage, and payment, ensuring that Ekso Indego Personal reaches the individuals who need this potentially life-changing mobility enhancing technology.

雖然我們顯然無法保證這些索賠將在規定的時間內提交或最終得到支付，但我們相信 Priya 有能力為我們提供戰略指導和影響力，其專業知識可以幫助 Ekso 處理複雜的編碼、覆蓋範圍和支付問題，確保 Ekso Indego Personal 能夠惠及需要這種可能改變生活的移動增強技術的個人。

Quite frankly, we didn't have that confidence without them. Thus, our reluctance to submit Medicare claims in fourth quarter.

坦白說，沒有他們，我們就沒有那麼大的信心。因此，我們不願意在第四季提交醫療保險索賠。

In another move designed to broaden access to Ekso Indego Personal, a few weeks ago, we named National Seating and Mobility as the company's exclusive distributor of the personal device within the complex rehabilitation technology or CRT industry in the United States.

為了擴大 Ekso Indego Personal 的使用範圍，我們幾週前採取了另一項舉措，將 National Seating and Mobility 指定為該公司在美國複雜復健技術或 CRT 行業內個人設備的獨家經銷商。

This marks our first entrance into the large and growing CRT space with a network of over 180 locations and more than 2,400 team members who support more than 250,000 mobility solutions each year. We believe NSM is ideally suited to help us expand the distribution of Indego personnel through this new strategic partnership.

這標誌著我們首次進入龐大且不斷成長的 CRT 領域，該領域擁有超過 180 個地點和超過 2,400 名團隊成員的網絡，每年支援超過 250,000 個行動解決方案。我們相信，透過這項新的策略合作夥伴關係，NSM 非常適合幫助我們擴大 Indego 人員的分佈。

We are also ramping up pilots and partnerships with both regional and national DME suppliers who focus on traditional orthotics and prosthetics or ONP.

我們也正在加強與專注於傳統矯正器和義肢或 ONP 的區域和國家 DME 供應商的試點和合作。

All that said, I want to reiterate that this is a go-to market program for the Ekso Indego Personal that will continue to take time to scale and produce results. But the good news is, while the majority of our revenue in 2025 will still come from enterprise, we believe we will start to see increased contribution from our personal health products in 2025.

儘管如此，我想重申，這是 Ekso Indego Personal 的市場推廣計劃，需要繼續時間來擴大規模並產生成果。但好消息是，雖然 2025 年我們的大部分收入仍將來自企業，但我們相信，到 2025 年，個人健康產品的貢獻將會增加。

Now shifting briefly to operations, we are continuing to drive more efficiencies throughout our business. Our improvements in supply chain and inventory management, along with efficiencies gained in production, resulted in strong gross margins for the fourth quarter.

現在簡要轉向運營，我們將繼續提高整個業務的效率。我們在供應鏈和庫存管理方面的改進，以及生產效率的提高，使得第四季的毛利率強勁。

Overall, we are pleased to have improved our operating margins in the quarter. And while gross margin may continue to vary some quarter over quarter, we believe that it will continue to trend up as 2025 progresses.

整體而言，我們很高興本季的營業利潤率有所提高。儘管毛利率可能仍會逐季度變化，但我們相信，隨著 2025 年的到來，毛利率將繼續呈上升趨勢。

In summary, the fourth quarter was another period of tremendous change and significant progress for Ekso Bionics. Marked by record revenues, strong gross margins, and the building of a scalable go-to-market strategy for Indego Personal, supported by both established and new industry leading DME and market access partners.

總而言之，第四季對於Ekso Bionics來說又是一個巨大的變化和重大進步的時期。其特點是創紀錄的收入、強勁的毛利率，以及為 Indego Personal 建立的可擴展的市場進入策略，得到了現有和新興的行業領先 DME 和市場准入合作夥伴的支持。

This ends our prepared remarks for today. With that, we are happy to take any questions you might have. Operator?

今天的準備好的發言到此結束。我們很樂意解答您的任何問題。操作員？

Thank you. We'll now be conducting a Q&A session. (Operator Instructions)

謝謝。我們現在將進行問答環節。（操作員指令）

Li Chen, H.C. Wainwright.

李晨，H.C.溫賴特。

Hello. This is Lee, in for RK. Thanks for the question. So my first question is, would you mind talking about your confidence in securing multi-order, multi-unit orders for this year? And then second is how should we think of the volume of illegal claims do you plan to submit this year?

你好。這是李，代替 RK。謝謝你的提問。所以我的第一個問題是，您介意談談您對今年獲得多訂單、多單位訂單的信心嗎？第二，我們應該如何考慮您今年計劃提交的非法索賠數量？

Okay, Li. Thank you. Thank you for your question. Thanks for joining us today. To answer your first question, in terms of multi-unit orders, this is in reference to -- I assume our enterprise health, business, as it relates to some of our larger, independent health delivery networks that are out there, our larger network providers, as we have said, you know, throughout 2024.

好的，李。謝謝。感謝您的提問。感謝您今天加入我們。回答您的第一個問題，就多單位訂單而言，這是指 - 我認為我們的企業健康業務，因為它與我們現有的一些較大的獨立健康服務網絡、我們的較大的網絡提供商有關，正如我們所說的那樣，在整個 2024 年。

We were -- it was an off-cycle year for those larger institutions as it related to their equipment purchases. And we expect and believe that in 2025, we are back within those standard procurement cycles for those larger customers. So the short answer is that we do expect more multiple orders, occurring, particularly back here in North America in 2025.

對於那些較大的機構來說，這是一個非週期年，因為這與他們的設備採購有關。我們預計並相信，到 2025 年，我們將重新回到針對這些較大客戶的標準採購週期。因此，簡短的回答是，我們確實預計會出現更多的多份訂單，特別是在 2025 年的北美。

Now relative to the volume of claims submissions for CMS as we stated. We have a current customer pipeline of individuals, who we believe have effective and suitable claims, relative to Medicare that about 25 individuals that we expect we will be putting through this year.

正如我們所述，現在相對於 CMS 的索賠提交量。我們目前擁有一群個人客戶，我們相信這些客戶對醫療保險有有效且合適的索賠，我們預計今年將為約 25 名個人提供理賠服務。

In addition to that, we've really ramped up our marketing efforts throughout 2024. And we are getting individuals, really daily, who are coming into the queue and are interested in pursuing this technology.

除此之外，我們在 2024 年確實加大了行銷力道。每天都會有一些個人加入我們的隊伍，對這項技術感興趣。

So we do see growth as we move through the year. And we expect that -- it will be meaningful to the top line of our business as we move through. Through the year and more importantly, we're really excited that we are starting to see individuals who can really benefit from using this technology in their day-to-day lives. So we remain quite excited about that.

因此，隨著時間的推移，我們確實看到了成長。我們期望，隨著我們的發展，這將對我們的業務收入產生重大影響。今年，更重要的是，我們非常高興地看到人們在日常生活中真正受益於使用這項技術。因此我們對此仍然感到非常興奮。

Okay. Thanks for the color. Another question is I see that the revenue in the Europe and the APAC regions is growing very nicely. Can you provide additional color on the growth trajectory you see; you think it will be in 2025 and beyond?

好的。謝謝你的顏色。另一個問題是，我發現歐洲和亞太地區的收入成長非常好。您能否提供有關您所看到的成長軌蹟的更多細節？您認為會在 2025 年及以後實現嗎？

Sure. Well, in APAC, generally speaking, we have growth inside of APAC, generally year over year with our EksoNR and our Indego therapy devices. We also believe that in 2025, there's an opportunity for growth within the Indego Personal product line as well as there are reimbursement programs that exist in several of the regions in APAC. So we believe that that growth will continue to track.

當然。嗯，在亞太地區，總體而言，我們的 EksoNR 和 Indego 治療設備在亞太地區呈現成長趨勢，而且逐年成長。我們也相信，到 2025 年，Indego Personal 產品線將有成長機會，而亞太地區的多個地區也會推出報銷計畫。因此我們相信這種成長將會持續下去。

In Europe, particularly in 2024, we had really just exceptional growth in Europe, as we had a huge opportunity within the French hospital systems, where they were adding this technology into their, neuro-rehab programs.

在歐洲，特別是在 2024 年，我們在歐洲確實實現了非凡的成長，因為我們在法國醫院系統中擁有巨大的機會，他們正在將這項技術添加到他們的神經復健計劃中。

So as we are now in 2025, we believe that will begin to taper off. And we'll get back to sort of what we call normal growth in that region, but we are projecting growth in in both, relative to our normal numbers in both of those regions in 2025.

因此，我們相信，隨著現在到 2025 年的到來，這一趨勢將開始逐漸減弱。我們將回到所謂的該地區的正常成長狀態，但我們預計 2025 年這兩個地區的成長都將相對於正常數字成長。

Got it. That's very helpful. Thank you very much and congratulations on the quarter.

知道了。這非常有幫助。非常感謝，並祝賀本季取得佳績。

Thank you, Li.

謝謝你，李。

Ben Haynor, Lake Street Capital. Please proceed with your question.

本‧海諾 (Ben Haynor)，Lake Street Capital。請繼續回答您的問題。

Good afternoon, gentlemen. Thanks for taking the questions. First off for me, just think about the patient interest that you're generating via your marketing activities for the personal units. And I think you mentioned, almost daily you're seeing folks enter the queue.

先生們，下午好。感謝您回答這些問題。對我來說，首先要考慮一下您透過針對個人單位的行銷活動所激發的患者興趣。我記得您提到過，幾乎每天都會看到人們排隊。

How many of those folks that you do get into the queue, ultimately are, well, qualified if you will? Or you think that would benefit from taking through the the next steps?

在排隊的這些人中，有多少人最終是合格的？或者您認為採取下一步措施將會有所裨益？

Sure. Thanks, Ben. I appreciate your question and you joining today. We -- I mean we process a large and growing number of leads that that are coming into our website. So we have a lot of interest from individuals who are many of whom are living with a spinal cord injury.

當然。謝謝，本。我很感謝您的提問以及您今天的參與。我們——我的意思是我們處理進入我們網站的大量且不斷增長的潛在客戶。因此，我們對許多患有脊髓損傷的人很感興趣。

But we have people who call us who have other mobility challenges related to other conditions as well. So our qualification process, today is really taking individuals who are living with a spinal cord injury and meet the required FDA indication for use for the technology.

但也有一些人打電話給我們，他們也面臨與其他情況相關的行動不便的問題。所以，我們今天的資格認證流程實際上是針對那些患有脊髓損傷並且符合 FDA 對該技術使用要求的個人。

From there, those individuals are screened, just to ensure that they have the right health background and no pre-existing conditions that would prevent them from effectively using the technology. And we also are prioritizing individuals with Medicare coverage, with pure Medicare coverage today.

從那時起，這些人就接受篩檢，以確保他們有正確的健康背景並且沒有任何阻礙他們有效使用該技術的先前存在的疾病。我們也優先考慮擁有醫療保險的個人，即今天擁有純醫療保險的個人。

You know what that means is that we have really different tiers of individuals who come in prioritizing Medicare first. But we have individuals who have Medicare Advantage, who have private insurance, who are otherwise, well qualified for the technology.

您知道這意味著我們有不同層級的個人，他們首先優先考慮醫療保險。但是，我們有一些個人擁有醫療保險優勢計劃，他們有私人保險，他們也很有資格使用這項技術。

We continue to collect and foster those individuals' interests as we go forward and expect over time that we'll be able to have reimbursement through those private insurance carriers over time. But today, we're prioritizing individuals with Medicare, who meet the physical requirements and the health requirements for the technology.

我們將繼續收集和培養這些個人的利益，並期望隨著時間的推移，我們將能夠透過這些私人保險公司獲得報銷。但今天，我們優先考慮那些擁有醫療保險、符合該技術的身體要求和健康要求的個人。

And in general, we -- our number of qualified individuals that we talked about is about 25 that we have identified right now. But the reality is that there's an exponentially larger number of individuals that we continue to work with, that we believe as this program becomes more mainstream and potentially moves into private insurance, that will be good candidates in the future.

總體而言，我們談到的合格人員數量目前已確定約 25 人。但實際情況是，我們繼續與之合作的個人數量呈指數級增長，我們相信，隨著該計劃變得更加主流並可能進入私人保險領域，他們將來會成為優秀的候選人。

Okay. Then that's [all cool]. And then on that latter point for the private payers, I mean, is that something that you can have free start helping with you with now? Or is that down the road? What's the right way to think about that?

好的。那麼[一切都很酷]。然後關於後一點，對於私人付款人，我的意思是，這是現在可以免費開始幫助您的事情嗎？還是那是在路上？怎樣思考這個問題才正確？

Well, I think the way we think about that today is, we think about it today for down the road. I think one of the most critical elements of this is ensuring that we have a good and consistent success with individuals with Medicare. And then we can build upon that, as we begin to engage with Medicare Advantage or with private insurance.

嗯，我認為我們今天思考這個問題的方式是，我們今天考慮的是未來的事情。我認為其中最關鍵的因素之一是確保我們為享受醫療保險的個人取得良好且持續的成功。然後，當我們開始與醫療保險優勢計劃或私人保險合作時，我們就可以在此基礎上繼續發展。

It really kind of sets the precedent for those private payers down the road. Now that being said, the way we work with Priya to understand coding and coverage and payments, and all of the various required medical letters -- medical necessity and notes from physicians and all of this.

這實際上為以後的私人付款人樹立了先例。話雖如此，我們與 Priya 合作的方式是了解編碼、覆蓋範圍和付款，以及所有各種所需的醫療信件——醫療必要性和醫生的證明等等。

This is all going -- it all translates into what will happen with private insurance. So a lot of what we're building today lends itself to those additional payers as we expand the program. But you know, we're really trying to be a conscientious as an organization.

這一切都將影響私人保險未來的方向。因此，隨著我們擴大該計劃，我們今天所建立的許多內容都將有助於那些額外的付款人。但你知道，我們確實在努力成為一個有責任感的組織。

It's a little more of a challenging road at this point with people who have private insurance. And we really want to level set expectations for individuals who want to need access to the technology.

對於擁有私人保險的人來說，這條路現在變得更具挑戰性。我們確實希望為那些需要使用該技術的個人設定一定的期望。

We're trying to be very clear and forthright with people on -- that this is a new program, and it will. As it is taking a bit of time to develop, as we predicted. But with Priya, helping us, it ensures that we're not taking missteps along the way and we're guiding people in the right direction.

我們試圖向人們明確、坦率地表明——這是一個新計劃，而且它將是新的。正如我們所預料的那樣，它需要一些時間來開發。但有了 Priya 的幫助，我們就能確保不會在前進的道路上犯錯，並引導人們朝著正確的方向前進。

Okay. Got it. And then on the 25 or so patients that are Medicare, are there any commonalities between them? I mean are they -- whether it's the time since their spinal cord injury or age, range or anything male, female, anything like that that stands out?

好的。知道了。那麼，對於大約 25 名享有醫療保險的患者來說，他們之間有什麼共同點嗎？我的意思是他們——無論是脊髓受傷以來的時間、年齡、範圍或任何男性、女性等突出的東西？

At this point, Ben, they really run the run the gamut. We've had successful candidates. If we go back and we look at at Vicky Garrison, I mean she had been in a wheelchair for 20 years. And you had an incredibly positive experience and continues to with our Indego Personal.

在這一點上，本，他們確實做到了極致。我們有過成功的候選人。如果我們回顧一下維姬·加里森 (Vicky Garrison)，就會發現她已經在輪椅上度過了 20 年。您對我們的 Indego Personal 有著非常積極的體驗，而這種積極體驗將繼續下去。

We have -- it really, it's difficult to point to any specific demographic at this point. It runs the gamut. I will say at this juncture, what we are really seeking out is that people fit the screening that they get the appropriate healthcare screening and have the right coverage.

我們有—確實，目前很難指出任何特定的人口統計。其範圍涵蓋了所有方面。我想說，此時此刻，我們真正尋求的是人們符合篩檢標準，得到適當的醫療保健篩檢和適當的保障。

But in addition to that, they're motivated and self-advocating, because this is a new program. It's not as straightforward as going out and just getting a wheelchair or a brace or a CPAP or something like that.

但除此之外，他們還積極進取、自我倡導，因為這是一個新計畫。這並不像出門買輪椅、支架、一台 CPAP 或類似的東西那麼簡單。

This is a new program. So it does take a bit of time. There's a certain amount of training involved. There's a commitment by the individual for this.

這是一個新程式。所以這確實需要一點時間。這需要一定量的培訓。個人對此做出了承諾。

So you know we're very clear in the process as we are screening these individuals that they understand what that is. And that we just do a good job with education and level setting expectations for how the program works.

因此，您知道，我們在篩選這些人的過程中非常清楚，他們了解那是什麼。我們只是在教育方面做得很好，並為該計劃的運作設定了期望水準。

So today, it really does run the gamut. We're really excited as these individuals start to get their devices at home and hearing their stories over time. And we'll really be able to see the sort of myriad of of individuals that wind up, being able to benefit from this.

所以今天，它確實涵蓋了所有內容。當這些人開始在家裡使用他們的設備並隨著時間的推移聽到他們的故事時，我們感到非常興奮。我們將真正看到無數人最終能夠從中受益。

Okay. Got it. And then lastly for me, on the national and mobility as the exclusive distributor within the complex rehab technology industry. Can you kind of tell us more about how that relationship came about, maybe a little bit more on the CRT industry for folks that don't necessarily -- getting into the weeds there? You know, anything else that you might think that you think might be helpful on that?

好的。知道了。最後，對我來說，作為複雜復健技術行業的獨家經銷商，我要關注全國和行動領域。您能否向我們詳細介紹一下這種關係是如何產生的，是否可以為那些不一定了解該行業的人多講一些有關 CRT 行業的情況？您知道嗎，您認為還有什麼可能對此有幫助的嗎？

Yeah, absolutely. So one of the key elements to this program, being successful. And we've been having these discussions quarter over quarter.

是的，絕對是如此。所以這個計劃的關鍵因素之一就是成功。我們每季都在進行這些討論。

Our view of Ekso's view of go-to-market strategy for this, really involves working with best-in-breed players, individuals, or companies that have an expertise in -- as DMEs. And that is that they're used to working with with payers, with physicians, with healthcare providers to be able to tie all these different elements together for reimbursement. It is a complicated process.

我們認為 Ekso 的市場進入策略實際上涉及與擁有 DME 專業知識的最佳參與者、個人或公司合作。他們習慣與付款人、醫生、醫療保健提供者合作，以便將所有這些不同要素結合在一起進行報銷。這是一個複雜的過程。

So it was early in 2024, where we began to really classic business development of looking at who those top players were in the industry. And NSM is certainly one of the big players in this space.

因此，從 2024 年初開始，我們開始進行真正經典的業務開發，尋找業界的頂尖參與者。NSM 無疑是該領域的巨頭之一。

Now CRT is, I guess the simple way of looking at it is they do a lot with wheelchairs, with power wheelchairs, with mobility access for individuals who need help there. And these are generally, larger ticket items, complicated, they all go through relatively complex, reimbursement process. They work with with Medicare as well as with private insurers.

現在，我想簡單來看，CRT 為需要幫助的個人提供大量輪椅、電動輪椅和行動通道。這些通常都是較大且複雜的項目，都需要經過相對複雜的報銷流程。他們與 Medicare 以及私人保險公司合作。

Now, what is unique, we've had direct meetings with their CEO. I've met with him personally. And there's a common customer set here. The individuals who need power wheelchairs and need these mobility aids, this is the next evolution in that path for them, is to be able to stand and to be able to walk.

現在，獨特的是，我們已經與他們的執行長直接會面。我曾親自見過他。這裡有一群共同的客戶。對於需要電動輪椅和這些行動輔助設備的人來說，這是他們人生道路上下一步的進化，能夠站立，能夠行走。

And starting with individuals spinal cord injury, but over time, there's a belief that this can lend this technology can lend itself to others with mobility challenges. So with this relationship, it really is sort of a natural evolution for for NSM.

這項技術最初應用於脊髓損傷患者，但隨著時間的推移，人們相信這項技術也可以幫助其他行動不便的人。因此，對於 NSM 來說，這種關係實際上是一種自然的演變。

And for Ekso, it was really important to us to be able to work with one of the leading providers in this space. And you know, they really are the biggest and the best we feel in in that space now. At the same time, we continue to work on business development with durable medical equipment providers who are focused also in ONP or orthotics and prosthetics.

對於 Ekso 來說，能夠與該領域的領先供應商之一合作對我們來說確實非常重要。你知道，它們確實是我們現在在那個領域感受到的最大和最好的。同時，我們繼續與專注於 ONP 或矯正器和義肢的耐用醫療設備供應商合作開展業務發展。

We believe that that is effectively another targeted distribution group to be able to work with. So we're -- while we're signed with NSM exclusively in their space, we are also beginning work with some regional and national DMEs who focus on ONP as well.

我們相信，這實際上是另一個可以合作的目標分發群體。因此，我們 — — 在與 NSM 簽訂獨家協議的同時，我們也開始與一些專注於 ONP 的地區和國家 DME 合作。

Okay, great. That's very helpful. Thank you so much for taking the questions, guys.

好的，太好了。這非常有幫助。非常感謝你們回答這些問題。

Thank you, Ben.

謝謝你，本。

Thank you. And with that, there are no further questions at this time. I'd like to turn the call back to Scott Davis for any closing remarks.

謝謝。至此，現在沒有其他問題了。我想將電話轉回給史考特戴維斯，請他做最後發言。

Thank you, operator. And thank you to everyone for joining us today. As pleased as we are with the progress made in 2024 on the sales, distribution, reimbursement, and operations fronts, we're now excited and energized by what we believe 2025 will bring in terms of overall commercial traction in both the enterprise and personal markets. We look forward to updating you as we progress.

謝謝您，接線生。感謝大家今天的出席。我們對 2024 年在銷售、分銷、報銷和營運方面取得的進展感到高興，同時，我們對 2025 年將在企業和個人市場帶來的整體商業吸引力感到興奮和充滿活力。我們期待向您通報進度。

Thank you. This does conclude today's teleconference. Thank you for your participation. You may disconnect your lines at this time.

謝謝。今天的電話會議到此結束。感謝您的參與。現在您可以斷開您的線路。