Category Archives: Technology

Why Seeing Machines should be included in the ‘Humanoid 100’.

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As Morgan Stanley recently outlined in a broker note, robots represent the physical embodiment of AI, which appears to be why they are in the process of becoming THE hottest sector of tech. Yet, despite producing a brilliant note Morgan Stanley has overlooked one key player in its round-up of the top 100 players; Seeing Machines.

That may well be because, unlike the likes of Mobileye, Alphabet and Meta it has a miniscule market cap and resides in a stockmarket slum called AIM. Regardless, someone soon is going to want to marry this beauty. Let me explain why.

To quote the broker note of 6th February: “The physical embodiment of AI touches a $60tn Total Addressable Market (TAM), global GDP, and the meaning of work.”

In that note Morgan Stanley presented the ‘Humanoid 100’, which it described as “a global mapping of equities across a range of sectors and regions that may have an important role in bringing robots from the lab to your living room”.

It used this graphic to illustrate a rudimentary division of these companies into those developing the brain and body value chains.

I’d argue that Seeing Machines should be included in the portion of the Brain (Vision & Compute Semiconductors), which as it currently stands is overly simplistic. For true robots to be successful they will need to develop an understanding of the cognitive state of humans, perhaps even display traits we’d associate with empathy. 

I think SEE sits in the same niche as Mobileye in that diagram. “These are the companies producing semiconductors that are the core of the robot “brain”, allowing robots to learn from, perceive, and/or interact with their environments. Vision-focused semis lie at the edge and allow robots to visualize their environments,” states the note. However, Seeing Machines does something special: it allows robots to visualise humans


It is Seeing Machines, with its software and hardware, that can literally breathe life into robots. As Victor Frankenstein would have exclaimed: “It will pioneer a new way, explore unknown powers, and unfold to the world the deepest mysteries of creation.”

Mobile robots

Still skeptical? Well, Seeing Machines is displaying that technological capability and is applying it to mobile robots; cars, with its AI-powered driver monitoring.

Its technology uses advanced machine vision technology to precisely measure and analyse head pose, eyelid movements and eye gaze under a full spectrum of demanding in-vehicle lighting conditions. This data is then processed to interpret driver attention state, drowsiness, and impairment levels.

That same technology is also enabling an eco-system that provides highly intelligent vehicle interfaces that employ AI to not just respond to speech commands, but to understand more subtle cues from occupants as indicated by hand gestures and eye movements.

Is it so fanciful to imagine that in the near future the ability to assess reduced cognitive ability and understand more subtle clues could be vital for ‘care’ robots used to look after elderly or vulnerable charges. 

Recognition of its ability in the transport sector has brought partners rushing to sign deals with Seeing Machines – many of whom feature in the ‘Humanoid 100’ list. Yet, its latent qualities in the sphere of robotics remains unrecognised by most. Hence, its current market cap belies the true value within. That cannot last much longer
 Do you hear wedding bells?

The writer holds stock in Seeing Machines.

Volkswagen’s small ‘BEV for All’ will feature Seeing Machines technology

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Volkswagen has confirmed that its Volkswagen ID2, set to go on sale in 2026, will feature a camera-based driver monitoring system (DMS) in its rear view mirror. Powered by Seeing Machines technology it is expected to feature both driver and occupant monitoring.

This small battery electric vehicles (BEV), based on the ID2.all concept, which was revealed in 2023, is intended to be a huge seller for the German car company. It is expected to retail for around ÂŁ22k for the entry-level model. 

As a spokesperson for Volkswagen confirmed: “The all-new Volkswagen T-Roc and our up-coming small BEV will be the next vehicles to be equipped with the camera-based DMS from start of production. Since the function (Attention and Drowsiness Assist) will be required by EU law from mid-2026, we are working on equipping all other vehicles with a camera-based DMS.”

Seeing Machines has previously stated that when it comes to cost and packaging complexity, its integrated rear-view mirror (RVM) solution, offered exclusively by the Tier 1 Magna, is best in class.

I’m therefore expecting many other car manufacturers who are late to the DMS/OMS party (but whose cars sell in Europe and are therefore required to meet GSR2 mandatory safety legislation) to choose the rear view mirror solution for their new cars.

Seeing Machines’ cutting-edge DMS/OMS is also available in a two camera-solution, should car manufacturers wish to use that.

The writer holds stock in Seeing Machines.

Disappointing growth, SEE’s broker downgrades

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Following Seeing Machines’ disappointing first half Trading Update combined with quarterly KPIs, both house broker Stifel and Peel Hunt downgraded their price targets and cut revenue expectations, while increasing their estimates for the losses expected for this year. 

In terms of the KPIs: cars produced with SEE technology grew more slowly than expected, falling 34% to 267K in 2Q25 compared with the previous quarter. In addition, sales of Gen 3 Guardian were only 288, making just 1,779 units sold in the first half of the 2025 financial year.

House broker Stifel’s Analyst Peter McNally cut his Price Target from 11.4p to 9.6p but maintained his ‘Buy’ recommendation. McNally summarised his view as follows:

“Seeing Machines’ H1 performance is indicative of wider auto industry struggles, with broadly flat revenues and ARR, leading to a larger-than-expected adjusted cash EBITDA loss of $17.5-18.0m. 

However, cost initiatives over the past 12 months and further planned in H2’25 should reduce cash operating expenses significantly. We also highlight the recent $32.8m strategic investment from Mitsubishi Electric Mobility, which provides  stability as the company gets closer to reaching cash flow breakeven.

While cars on the road has been healthy with 90% y/y growth, Q2 production was down 34% q/q. Although there is a lack of certainty with regard to when exactly this volatility will reverse, we still expect a strong tailwind from the approaching GSR deadline (July 2026) as it moves closer.

Sales of Aftermarket Guardian 3 units have also faced slight delays, however we expect sales to accelerate in H2 as a result of a full commercial release and benefit from the new referral agreement with Mitsubishi Electric Automotive America, which opens the Guardian 3 up to a 1m+ vehicle fleet market.

We reset revenue estimates to a more conservative level based on market uncertainty, but do expect a reduction in the cost base by FY26E to mitigate much of this in FY26/27E. We moderate our target price to 9.6p (from 11.4p) to reflect these new forecasts.”

Explaining in more detail his changes in forecast and valuation, McNally said: 

“We reduce FY25-27E revenues by $10m, primarily as a result of softer royalties, prudently assuming that production volumes do not pick up in FY25E, with possible upside. While the FY25E adj. EBITDA loss increases by $7.5m to $24.4m, we expect the revenue reduction beyond FY25E to be largely mitigated by cost initiatives and as a result we reduce adj. EBITDA profit by just $2m in FY26/27E. As a result of our forecast changes, our DCF-based target price reduces to 9.6p (11.4p). At current levels the shares trade at 3.6x our FY25E EV/Sales, or 11.8x FY26E EV/EBITDA. Buy.”

In addition, Peel Hunt today downgraded from a ‘Buy’ to ‘Reduce’, slashing its Price Target from 7p to 3p. In its note, analysts wrote: “We cut FY25/26/27E revenue by 17%/19%/10% to reflect weaker automotive demand and the slow start from the Guardian generation 3.”

My view

Naturally, I’m disappointed by the update today. I had expected cars on the road to whizz past 3m, despite volatility in the auto market. I didn’t expect car makers to sacrifice safety in an effort to cut costs, thereby risking reputational damage by producing more dangerous cars for consumers. It is shocking that saving lives from driver fatigue and distraction is deemed a lower priority than making profits. Still, it highlights why regulation (in the form of GSR) and pressure from Euro NCAP are vitally important in forcing car manufacturers to improve car safety.

I don’t hold the management of Seeing Machines responsible for this atrocious attitude from car manufacturers, although it has clearly impacted revenues in the short term – and is likely to continue for two more quarters we’ve been advised.

Still, it shouldn’t be ignored that Seeing Machines continues to have more cars on the road with its technology than any of its rivals and I don’t expect this to change.

That is because I expect Seeing Machines to win a significant share of the RFQs that are currently underway. News of a significant contract win could ease investor concerns and encourage brokers eventually to upgrade estimates.

However, I’m far less forgiving of the time it has taken to ramp up production of Guardian Gen 3, which to be frank was late to launch and has so far sold only in small volumes. It’s no wonder many private investors have sold out. However, given CEO Paul McGlone’s statement in a video interview with Tylah Tully that there are 7 significant trials in progress – one of which I believe is Amazon – I hope that things are now on track for significant sales in the final quarter of this financial year. 

Fortunately, the company currently has a $39.6m cash balance and time to set things right before the end of this financial year.

Personally, I’m prepared to hold as I expect the share price to rebound on contract news before the end of this financial year. However, do your own research.

The writer holds stock in Seeing Machines.

Mitsubishi’s strategic stake in Seeing Machines

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A few thoughts on the strategic investment in Seeing Machines taken by Mitsubishi Electric Mobility Corporation, part of the huge Mitsubishi conglomerate.

  • It secures the cash for Seeing Machines to hit breakeven regardless of the vagaries of the economy, automotive sector or machinations of any single industry player or partner. 
  • It ensures that when a bid is made for Seeing Machine it will be at a very competitive price. The company cannot possibly go on the cheap. 
  • It provides a local partner in the Japanese market, which should make it much easier to gain a strategic stranglehold in the Japanese automotive sector, while also ensuring further diversification in its Tier 1 relationships.
  • Via Mitusubishi’s network we should see Gen 3 Guardian sales in trucks rocket from here on in. It also produces and sells buses and trucks via the FUSO brand – a collaboration with Daimler Trucks. 
  • It potentially opens up new markets to Seeing Machines technology. Mitsubishi manufacturers road construction, agricultural equipment and even forklifts, which could use Seeing Machines’ driver monitoring technology to reduce accidents caused by driver fatigue.
  • The fact that Mitsubishi was determined to take the maximum percentage of shares it could take without triggering a bid (19.9 per cent) tells me how highly it values this investment. It plans to develop more personalised robots in the future for a rapidly ageing society in Japan and combining Seeing Machines’s human fatigue/cognitive state detection with heartbeat detection would be useful features for a domestic ‘carer’ robot to have. 

Consumer Electronics Show

With the Consumer Electronics Show (Jan 7-9) expected to bring news of further license deals, the list of possible buyers of Seeing Machines grows ever longer. 

Moreover, in calendar 2025 I expect its market leadership to become both undeniable and unassailable in the medium term, as:

  • It surpasses 5m cars on the road with its DMS/OMS technology
  • It becomes profitable on a monthly basis by June.
  • Guardian goes past 100k units.
  • The Aviation product is readied for use. 

VW Tayron on sale now

The Volkswagen Tayron, which includes Seeing Machines DMS in its rear view mirror, is due to go on sale in the UK this week. 

The first UK reviews of the vehicle should take place in the spring, possibly mid-to-late March; there may well be some reviews from overseas drives before that, in late February or early March.

This should rapidly boost the profile of its life-saving technology, not to mention public interest in buying shares in a tangible AI product.

The writer holds stock in Seeing Machines

Stifel flash note: SEYE KO’d by Seeing Machines?

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In a flash note published yesterday, Stifel confirmed that Smart Eye’s Q3 results clearly show it is taking at beating at the hands of the global leader Seeing Machines.

Stifel analyst Peter McNally confirmed what well researched investors already know; that the auto industry is in a tough place, particularly for Smart Eye. Regarding Smart Eye, he commented: “Automotive revenue shows a slight dip (-1.5% q/q) to SEK 32.4m and is therefore similar to last quarter, which was flattish also. Part of the reason for being flattish is a transition away from services (NRE) to licences, which grew 100% y/y to an undisclosed amount.”

For those who still think Smart Eye is a contender for the automotive crown, McNally’s killer punch is that: “On a like-for-like basis, Seeing Machines Automotive revenue (excluding Aerospace) in FY24 was well over $60m versus Smart Eye’s $11.4m (Q323- Q224), so it still looks like Seeing Machines is well ahead.”

According to McNally, two more take-aways from the results were, firstly: “Commentary on growth in Automotive licences is positive saying the growth rate should increase in Q4 and ‘even higher growth in 2025.’ Clearly this suggests that they see adoption is increasing, which is good news for the industry, but we still think they are playing catch up at this stage as their revenues are significantly lower.”

Secondly, “Smart Eye is also suggesting that volumes will pick up in Q4 in Aftermarket, which somewhat agrees with Seeing Machines’ expectation of a ramp in volumes in its fiscal H225 (Jan-Jun 2025).”

Having listened to the Smart Eye presentation, I found the reluctance of the company to state the number of cars on the road with its technology a telling indication that it has been bested in autos by Seeing Machines. Smart Eye once used to boast of having 1m cars on the road but, as Seeing Machines approaches 3m by the end of this calendar year, the Swedish company has yet to announce hitting 2m, preferring to use the opaque terms ‘design wins’ and ‘models’.

Of course, do your own research.

The writer holds stock in Seeing Machines.

Euro NCAP pushes for quality DMS, as provided by Seeing Machines

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Following the publication of the 2026 Euro NCAP safety protocols, Seeing Machines is on the cusp of a significant re-rate as OEMs and Tier 1s race to meet higher performance requirements for driver/occupant monitoring.

The two documents can be viewed here, courtesy of Colin Barnden, Principal Analyst at Semicast Research: 

The significance of these documents appear to have passed many investors by. However, no less a figure than Richard Schram, Technical Director at Euro NCAP, has confirmed to me that from January 1st, 2026 a new passenger car will not achieve a 5 star Euro NCAP safety rating in Europe unless it has a driver/occupant monitoring system that meets the criteria specified in these 2026 protocols.

The implications of this news are huge for any OEM wishing to sell new passenger cars models in Europe. This is because, even though driver monitoring is mandatory in Europe from July 2026, Euro NCAP is effectively “pushing for higher performance than the regulation does”, according to Schram.

This is great news for Seeing Machines as, being the most technically proficient provider of DMS/OMS with a fast to implement rearview mirror system, it offers the most realistic solution for many OEMs in that timeframe whose premium models will certainly require 5 star safety. [Elon Musk are you listening?]

I’m therefore anticipating a raft of extensions to existing contracts as well as new contracts to secure its services via Magna, but also via its other partners over the next 6 months.

I think that in the short term there will be such demand for its technology that its average selling price (ASP) will not drop significantly even as volumes expand. Moreover, that ASP is, I believe, already at a significant premium to its competitors. 

The upshot is that within the next 6 months, as SEE speeds towards 4m cars on the road with its technology, SEYE will be left in the dust, alongside Tobii and Cipia – which must be feeling the pain from the economic collapse of Israel.

Seeing Machines itself has previously stated that it expects to take around 40 per cent of the global passenger car market for DMS by volume, 50 per cent by value. I’ve long held the view that 75 per cent by value is possible and I think this news from Euro NCAP confirms that there was a sound reason for my holding onto this stock, despite experiencing a roller-coaster ride.

As OEMs, Tier 1s and fund managers realise the implications of this news I expect increased buying of SEE stock as it brushes off misplaced investor concerns. This should push the price up significantly. 

Call me paranoid but over the next 6-8 months I believe private investors should beware market makers shaking the tree in order to acquire their shares cheaply for institutional buyers.

Of course, do your own research as this is only my opinion. Maybe my prediction of a 75 per cent market share of the global DMS market 8 years ago was a fluke.

The writer holds stock in Seeing Machines.

Seeing Machines drives towards cashflow breakeven 

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Despite well publicised woes in the auto industry, Seeing Machines penetration of the auto market continues apace with the latest quarterly KPIs showing that it is on track to pass 3m cars on the road for this calendar year, as predicted by Safestocks back in May. 

The Q1 FY2025 auto figures showed quarterly production of 405,669 units, taking the number of cars on the road with Seeing Machines’ technology to 2,617,091.

That represents 100 per cent growth year-on-year, which sets it apart from all its rivals – none of which has even hit 2m cars on the road.

In a note published today by house analyst Stifel, analyst Peter McNally wrote: “Reassuringly, the company’s 8th Automotive production programme has commenced, which adds another since the 7th was announced at the Q424 KPIs in August (6th at the end of FY23). Although Automotive industry volumes are light, more of the company’s OEM customers are launching, meaning adoption/ royalties should continue to rise further. We think two more are likely in 2025 and additional programmes are launching within individual OEMs providing a compound effect.”

He added: “We think it can probably add another 1.9m cars on the road in FY25E (vs 1.1m in FY24) with only mild decreases in average selling price.”

In a separate interview with Proactive Investors today, Seeing Machines CEO Paul McGlone confirmed that 2 more auto programmes are due to be launched this financial year.

Guardian

McGlone also explained that Guardian Gen 3 sales would be ramping up in the second half. Given that average recurring revenue for Aftermaket driver monitoring (excluding any effect from Caterpillar) rose 13 per cent over Q1 2024, the improved gross margin from Gen 3 hardware sales should underpin an even better performance over the remainder of this financial year.

Indeed, in that same interview CFO Martin Ive again confirmed that the company is determined to hit cashflow breakeven on a monthly basis by the end of this financial year. 

Undervalued

Certainly, the company’s share price has recently been hit by concerns over cash, however McNally’s view on this is: “
we believe 3rd party development costs will reduce in addition to headcount, and cash should benefit from growth in higher margin OEM Royalties (c.100% GM) and a Guardian Gen 3 ramp in H225. We think the company has a portfolio of non-dilutive additional cash options if needed, as history suggests.”

McNally adds: “Following the recent share price decline, the shares trade at 3.1x EV/Sales, which we think is attractive for a market leader in a large industry with a 3-year forecast revenue CAGR of 23% or 42% for gross profit through FY27E. Buy.” 

Personally, I’m expecting further auto OEMs wins, license deals and a ramp in Gen 3 Guardian sales in the second half to raise the share price significantly as this financial year progresses. Furthermore, many funds are watching this stock from the sidelines and profitability is the key catalyst that I believe will see them buy in.

In my experience, nervous private investors tend to move out of a stock just when they should be buying more or at the very least holding. Mr Market hasn’t done years of research in this stock and is driven by fear and greed. Of course, do your own research.

The writer holds stock in Seeing Machines

Auto industry woes affect Seeing Machines

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While Seeing Machines’ FY24 results illustrated a year of significant progress, auto industry headwinds and a slower than expected ramp in Guardian Gen 3 sales have led to Stifel reducing its revenue estimates for FY25-26. This in turn has led to it reducing its DCF-based target price to 11.4p from 13p.

It’s certainly disappointing news for shareholders but Peter McNally, analyst at Stifel, commented in a detailed note issued on October 31st: “Despite delays we maintain our positive stance on the shares moderating our target price to 11.4p (13.0p) and see the company extending its leadership with proven implementation and deployment into an increasingly regulated market.”

Revenues for 2025 are now predicted to be US$73.1m with a pre-tax loss of $13.3m, while in 2026 revenues of $97.5m produced a pre-tax profit of $5m.

Material uncertainty

In the full Annual Report (on page 46), the auditor PWC also made a comment about ‘material uncertainty’, reflecting the cash outflow of $11.9m in the FY24 results. Personally, I believe they are only fulfilling their obligations to warn investors about potential risks (while also covering themselves), yet it is unsettling for green investors unused to the conservative ways of auditors.

Stifel’s McNally certainly didn’t appear unduly concerned, stating: “We note the auditor’s “material uncertainty” comment but see a path to breakeven given strong (although reduced) operational drivers and cash costs containment”.

He went on to explain his estimate changes and assumptions in detail: “We reduce FY25/26E revenue by 11%/17% assuming a slightly higher GM% of 64% (62%), driven by a slightly higher software mix resulting in a cash EBITDA loss of $14.9m ($10.8m) for FY25E but profit of $8.6m ($19.5m) in FY26E. This is based on stable cash opex of $65m, resulting in $9.8m cash at FY25E year-end and cash generation thereafter as royalties continue to ramp and Guardian Gen 3 volumes increase.”

In his presentation today on Investor Meet, Paul McGlone reiterated that the company still expects to hit breakeven on a monthly basis in Q4 of this financial year.

He went to explain that if additional working capital is required due to the lumpy nature of automotive revenues: “We have a reasonably simple solution in the form of receivables funding and that process is underway. We expect it to deliver additional working capital in the range of $5-10m.”

Furthermore, he added: “To the extent that we need additional cash, we have a whole range of opportunities before us, some of which are well progressed and are consistent with the types of programmes or results that we’ve delivered in the last 2-3 years.”

I assume here that he is referring to license deals which, as Stifel points out have had a dramatic effect on profitability and cash given its similar 100% gross margin nature to royalties. McNally teased in his note: “Licensing is very difficult to predict but the company has benefitted from licensing deals over the past few years from Magna for $5.4m in October 2022, Collins Aerospace for $10.0m in May 2023, and most recently Caterpillar for $16.5m in June 2024.”

I’m therefore fairly confident Paul McGlone and his team will pull another rabbit out of the bag this year. Happily, it seems smarter people that me are thinking the same.

Speaking directly about the cash concerns McNally wrote: “With $23.4m of cash on the balance sheet we feel that the company has sufficient cash for the year with the goal of reaching run-rate cash flow break even by the end of FY25E (June). The company also has a history of sourcing strategic funding and software license agreements that have benefited cash. We believe these options still exist and can provide additional cash if required.”

Peel Hunt

In a short note issued today Peel Hunt reiterated its ‘BUY’ rating but reduced its target price to 7p from 9p. Analyst Oliver Tipping stated:

“Management has re-affirmed its commitment to reach a cash break-even run rate in FY25. However, we believe this could be challenging. 

“Ultimately,  OEMs  across  the  industry  have  been  struggling  and  they dictate the speed of production. We fear timelines could shift to the right. 

“Seeing Machines’ ability to reach its break-even  run  rate  goal  is  likely  to hinge on its ability to control costs. Competitors, like Tobii, have already begun severe  spending  cuts  and we  believe  Seeing  Machines  will  require similar measures given  its  current  cash  burn  rate of $2m a month. To account for wider industry weakness, we reduce our TP from 9p to 7p.”

Reasons to be cheerful

While the share price tanked on Thursday, as nervous private investors do what they usually do when real life intervenes; panic and sell low, there are reasons to be cheerful.

In the Investor Meet presentation today Seeing Machines did confirm that for this financial year it expects: 

  1. 1.9 – 2.1 million annual production units for Automotive, contributing to high-margin royalty revenue. 
  2. A 20% increase in connected Guardian units generating monthly services revenue. 
  3. 13,000 – 15,000 Guardian Gen 3 units to be sold, predominantly in Q2 at a much higher margin (50%) than previously with Gen 2 units (10%). 
  4. Aviation to achieve Blue Label (functioning prototype) product delivery, adaptable for certain fields of use (simulator, air traffic control). 
  5. Cash flow break-even run rate target at end of FY2025.

In addition, during the Investor Meet presentation CEO Paul McGlone revealed that there has been a resurgence in the inflow of RFIs and RFQs for the auto industry. “We are currently processing RFQs for OEMS based in Japan, Korea, Europe, China and North America. The vehicles associated with those RFQs are largely for Europe, Japan and North America and would have start of production timing between 2027 and 2029. And we expect the sourcing of these programmes to begin in 2025 calendar year.”

Thus, I think Peel Hunt’s fears of auto timelines shifting to the right are unfounded. Indeed, Seeing Machines has already suffered from that and the market is now hot for DMS/OMS once more.

Amazing news?

Regarding Gen 3 sales, I’m also hearing a whisper that Seeing Machines has begun trials with a global US online retailer, which is A household name. If they are successful and a deal is announced a few months from now I’m pretty confident the share price will soar on that news alone. Can you guess the name?

I’ve been in this stock a long time, too long in truth. However, I’ve no intention of selling out when the company is so close to achieving breakeven. That’s because I believe it will trigger a bidding war. Do your own research of course.

The writer holds stock in Seeing Machines.

P.S. If anyone does make any money from this information do please consider making a small donation to a charity for the people in Gaza. As we worry about money they are being murdered en masse and ethnically cleansed, which according to international law constitutes genocide. Thanks.

Significant Xeros license deal but Indian delay impacts short term revenues

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Investors in Xeros saw it fall approximately 40% last week, despite news that it has won its most significant licence deal to date with the huge Chinese company Donlim. 

The main reason for the fall was a separate Trading Update warning of increased losses and reduced revenues for the current financial year and FY2025, putting back breakeven on a monthly basis to late 2025. House broker Cavendish stated: “Net cash was £4.0m on 30 August, with FY24 cash expected at £2.9m. The Board expects to have sufficient cash resource to see the company through until it achieves net monthly cash breakeven during the latter part of FY25. On lower near-term forecasts, we reduce our Target Price from 18p to 16p, although the longer- term market opportunity and the environmental benefits of its technology remain significant.”

The main reason behind this disappointing update was short term delays to the launch of its Indian partner IFB’s 9kg washing machine. Still, having spoken at length with CEO Neil Austin, I’m convinced that the share price fall to 0.7p is an over-reaction. My reasoning is fairly straightforward and outlined below: 

1) The quality of the licence deal with Donlim, opens up a huge global market in filtration for Xeros, which includes China. Donlim (owner of the Murphy Richards brand) is listed on the Shanghai Stock Exchange and trades in 120 countries with annual revenues of over ÂŁ1.5bn. It will be manufacturing its external washing machine filter (XF3), as well as the internal one (XF1). My understanding is that for each internal device sold Xeros will receive between ÂŁ2-3 licence fee and slightly more for the external device. Mass production of the XF3 external filter is set to begin in Q2 FY2025.

In addition the RNS states that ‘the strategic partnership further enables Donlim and Xeros to collaborate on the future development of innovative filtration and water saving products. For instance, given the fact that microplastic pollution is ubiquitous in the very air we breathe and water we drink everything from hoovers/fans to coffee makers could potentially use Xeros’ filtration expertise. 

2)  The delay to French legislation for microfibre filtration in washing machines, (which was supposed to come into effect in January 2025) is unlikely to stop it from happening within the next couple of years. Indeed, public concern and evidence of the dangers posed by such pollution is steadily growing and some with the EU are working to legislate standards to reduce microplastic pollution. Here in the UK environmental groups, such as the Marine Conservation Society are also pushing for such legislation. Before sceptics shout ‘Balls!’ – read this  article in The Guardian, which painfully brings home the need to reduce microplastic pollution in the environment.

3) The delay to the IFB launch of its 9kg machine with Xeros technology, doesn’t involve its water saving Xorbs technology and is merely a technical fix to avoid consumers overloading their machines. I expect it will be sorted out by the end of Q1 2025 given the ability of Indian companies such as IFB to quickly innovate. I’d also expect the new head of IFB’s consumer division to want to prove their worth by making this happen as soon as possible. 

4) Lastly, Neil Austin has proven he can make deals happen. He has said there are other significant license deals he progressing. Specifically, he mentioned “We are working with a major SE Asian washing machine brand, a major North American washing machine brand and a major European washing machine brand to effectively get them to license the Care technology.” While trials are ongoing I see no reason to doubt his ability to make close at least one or more of them in the next 6-8 months.

Cash position

Clearly, there are concerns over its cash position. It is expected to have £2.9m by year end and some fear it may need to raise again before the end of FY 2025. Currently, it is priced to go bust but I don’t think this is likely.

Of course, investors must be aware of the possible downside if deals/sales don’t pick up. Cash is set to be tight towards the end of 2025 and further funding could be needed. However, the company is aware of the constraints and has several levers at its disposal. Cost cutting is one option, it may also be possible to obtain an advance on license deal revenues. Other companies I follow have done this to avoid dilution, most notably Seeing Machines.

It’s certainly important to monitor the cash situation but I’m confident that further license deals currently under negotiation, revenues from sales from Yilmak, not to mention the launch of the IFB 9kg machine will raise revenues and increase the share price significantly over the next year.

I personally don’t view this as a get rich quick investment but more as a medium term one that could multi-bag on a 2-3 year time horizon. However, over the following months I will be monitoring it to ensure that my investment thesis remains intact.

As an investor it’s difficult to get in at the cheapest point and this is a high risk investment. However, I bought more on the 5th September (before speaking to Neil Austin) as I believed the deal with Donlim would prove to be hugely significant, while the delays are only temporary. Moreover, the backing of significant institutional investors who are in this for the long term gives me confidence that if the business continues to strengthen the revenues will rise, breakeven will be achieved and the price  has to rise significantly.

Interestingly, it seems other canny investors are also viewing the fall as an opportunity. On September 5th  William Black of Armstrong Investments increased his holding to just under 7.3%.

The writer holds stock in Xeros and Seeing Machines.

Seeing Machines takes gold with new world record

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Seeing Machines has proved to the world that it is the leading company in DMS, with its latest set of KPIs taking it past the 2.2m level for cars on the road an increase of 104% year-on-year. It seems set to pass the 3m level, as predicted here a few months ago.

Guardian sales for Aftermarket were also solid: monitored connections rose 19% over the past 12 months to 62k despite the Gen 2 box approaching end of production.

Peter McNally, analyst at house broker Stifel commented: “Seeing Machines seems strategically well positioned for continued market leadership with Tier 1 automotive suppliers Valeo and Magna as partners, rising adoption, a recently homologated Gen 3 aftermarket product and a healthy balance sheet as it heads toward a monthly cash break even run-rate in FY25E.” 

Paul McGlone, CEO of Seeing Machines, said: “We have maintained growth of over 100% in the number of cars on road featuring our technology from 12 months ago, despite the quarter-on-quarter volatility experienced during the year. Regulations are now in place so we are confident that these figures will continue to grow for existing Automotive programs and as new programs start production.

“Similarly in Aftermarket, the new regulation in Europe will require more commercial vehicle OEMs to seek After Manufacture fitment for our Guardian technology, underpinned by successful homologation (regulatory approval) with our Northern Ireland customer, Wrightbus, as announced on 30 July 2024. With Guardian Generation 2 stock sold we are now focused on Guardian Generation 3, initially with European commercial vehicle OEMs, then all customers across existing markets in Europe, The Americas and Asia Pacific.”

Unassailable lead

Seeing Machines has now surpassed Smart Eye and there appears to be no way its Swedish rival can catch up in the short term.

Peter McNally, gave a useful summary of where we stand now:

“Cars on the road is proof of engineering execution: Although its competitor Smart Eye was the first to break the 1 million cars on the road threshold in June 2022, it was still “not quite 2 million” in May 2024 (Smart Eye report Q224 on Aug 21st). Seeing Machines reached 1 million in June 2023 and has been the first to announce 2 million. Seeing Machines has 7 Automotive programs currently in production and we believe most of these are still ramping given it takes roughly 18 months to reach full production. The company has a total of 17 programmes signed worth $392m with many more likely to be added in the future given increasing regulatory drivers and evidence of execution.”

Were there a DMS Olympics Seeing Machines would take gold, with Smart Eye in second place. As for Bronze, I’d hoped to award it to Cipia. However, I wonder if Cipia may be hampered by the likely fallout from Israel’s escalating Israel war in the Middle East.

The writer holds stock in Seeing Machines