It’s ironic that someone who prides himself on being fairly hard-headed should have made the mistake of failing to follow this advice from Benjamin Graham, arguably the greatest investor of all time.

All I can say in my own defence is that my faith in the technology of Seeing Machines has, at times, blinded me to the lack of tangible returns as a shareholder in this company. It has been a costly lesson for me, as for others.

I still believe that Seeing Machines will be taken over because of the quality of its technology. However, it is clear that successive management has not given sufficient priority to protecting shareholder value.

Even a takeover may not compensate for the opportunity cost of this mistake. It is a sobering reminder that being right about a company’s technology is not necessarily the same as being right about the investment.

I’m not about to sell out of Seeing Machines while I believe my original investment thesis remains intact. However, management must ultimately be judged on what it delivers for shareholders over the coming months.

The writer holds stock in Seeing Machines.