CAUTIONARY NOTE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

This Annual Report on Form 10-K, or this Annual Report, contains forward-looking statements, including, without limitation, in the sections captioned “Business,” “Risk Factors,” “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations,” and elsewhere. Any and all statements contained in this Annual Report that are not statements of historical fact may be deemed forward-looking statements. Terms such as “may,” “might,” “would,” “should,” “could,” “project,” “estimate,” “pro-forma,” “predict,” “potential,” “strategy,” “anticipate,” “attempt,” “develop,” “plan,” “help,” “believe,” “continue,” “intend,” “expect,” “future,” and terms of similar import (including the negative of any of the foregoing) may be intended to identify forward-looking statements. However, not all forward-looking statements may contain one or more of these identifying terms. Forward-looking statements in this Annual Report may include, without limitation, statements regarding (i) the plans and objectives of management for future operations, including plans or objectives relating to the design, development and commercialization of exoskeleton products for humans, (ii) the manufacturing of our products and strengthening our supply chain, and potential opportunities for strategic partnerships, (iii) beliefs regarding regulatory path for our products, including potential approvals required and timing of approvals, (iv) statements regarding the financial and operational impacts on our business following the completion of the integration of our acquisition from Parker Hannifin Corporation of certain assets related to Parker Hannifin Corporation's human motion control business, and software applications, support services and cloud environments related to such business in December 2022 (the "HMC Acquisition"), (v) our future financial performance, including any statement contained in a discussion and analysis of our financial condition by management or in the results of operations included pursuant to the rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"), (vi) our beliefs regarding the potential for commercial opportunities, including for exoskeleton technology and, our exoskeleton products, and for strategic partnerships, (vii) our beliefs regarding potential clinical and other health benefits of our medical devices, (viii) the actions we will take in seeking a reimbursement from Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services ("CMS") and the success of such actions, the timing and amounts of potential CMS reimbursement, (ix) our ability to obtain CE certificates registered by Ekso Bionics, Inc. for our Ekso Indego Therapy and Ekso Indego Personal devices (x) the impact and effects of global health events and other risk factors on our business, results of operations or prospects, and (xi) the assumptions underlying or relating to any statement described in points (i) through (x) above.

The forward-looking statements are not meant to predict or guarantee actual results, performance, events or circumstances and may not be realized because they are based upon our current projections, plans, objectives, beliefs, expectations, estimates and assumptions and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties and other influences, many of which we have no control over. Actual results and the timing of certain events and circumstances may differ materially from those described by the forward-looking statements as a result of these risks and uncertainties. Factors that may influence or contribute to the inaccuracy of the forward-looking statements or cause actual results to differ materially from expected or desired results may include, without limitation, the Company's ability to obtain reimbursement from CMS at acceptable levels or at all and the effect and timing of CMS decisions with respect thereto, the highly competitive markets in which the Company’s products are sold, the Company's significant losses to date and anticipated future losses, the new and unproven nature of the market for the Company’s products, the long, cyclical and variable sales cycles for the Company’s products, the factors outside the Company’s control that affect the production and sales of its products, which include but are not limited to disruptions in the global supply chain, the costs related to and impacts of potential failure of the Company to obtain or maintain protection for the Company's intellectual property rights, the inability to successfully consummate and integrate acquisitions, including the HMC Acquisition, the failure of the Company to obtain or maintain regulatory approval to market the Company's medical devices, risks related to product liability, recall and warranty claims, the volatility of the market price of and limited trading in our common stock. A description of some of the risks and uncertainties that could cause our actual results to differ materially from those described by the forward-looking statements in this Annual Report appears in the section captioned “Risk Factors” and elsewhere in this Annual Report.

Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements because of the risks and uncertainties related to them and to the risk factors. We disclaim any obligation to update the forward-looking statements contained in this Annual Report to reflect any new information or future events or circumstances or otherwise.

Readers should read this Annual Report in conjunction with the discussion under the caption “Risk Factors,” our financial statements and the related notes thereto in this Annual Report, and other documents which we may file from time to time with the SEC.

Notes regarding references to Ekso Bionics

In this Annual Report, the “Company”, “we”, “its” and “our” refers to Ekso Bionics Holdings, Inc. and its wholly owned subsidiaries, and “Ekso Bionics” refers to Ekso Bionics, Inc. as it existed prior to the January 15, 2014 merger of our wholly owned subsidiary, Ekso Acquisition Corp., with and into Ekso Bionics, Inc., or the Merger. Ekso Bionics was the surviving corporation in the Merger and became our wholly owned subsidiary, and all of the outstanding Ekso Bionics stock was converted into shares of our common stock. Ekso®, Ekso Bionics®, EksoWorks®, EksoZeroG®, EksoNR™, EksoZeroG™, EVO™, EksoPulse™, Indego®, and Nomad® are registered and unregistered trademarks of the Company. All other trademarks that may appear in this Annual Report are the property of their respective owners.

PART  I

Item 1.  BUSINESS

Company Background

We design, develop, and market exoskeleton products that augment human strength, endurance and mobility. Our exoskeleton technology serves multiple markets and can be utilized both by able-bodied persons and persons with physical disabilities or impairments.

On December 5, 2022, we acquired the Human Motion and Control ("HMC") Business Unit from Parker Hannifin Corporation ("Parker"), an Ohio corporation  (the "HMC Acquisition"). The assets acquired from the business unit included intellectual property rights for devices which are U.S. Food and Drug Administration ("FDA") cleared lower-limb powered exoskeletons that enable task-specific overground gait training to patients with weakness or paralysis in their lower extremities. Throughout 2023 we integrated the HMC products and team into Ekso Bionics, Inc. and are currently operating as a combined business.

We continue to explore business development initiatives to fuel growth and long-term value and are committed to helping people improve mobility and live healthier lives through combining the use of technology with advanced rehabilitative programs.

Products

EksoNR

EksoNR is a wearable robotic exoskeleton specifically designed to be used in a rehabilitation setting to assist individuals recovering from both acute and chronic conditions. A trained clinician typically uses the EksoNR to provide adjustable levels of assistance to the wearer's legs to promote proper gait, active engagement, and higher dosage. EksoNR is FDA cleared for use in a clinical setting with individuals with a spinal cord injury ("SCI"), acquired brain injury ("ABI") - including stroke and traumatic brain injuries ("TBI"), and multiple sclerosis ("MS").

Ekso Indego Therapy

Ekso Indego Therapy is a modular, adjustable, lightweight, lower-limb powered exoskeleton that can be custom-sized and fitted to patients for use in rehabilitation and wellness applications. Ekso Indego Therapy is cleared by the FDA for use with individuals with stroke or SCI.

Ekso Indego Personal

Ekso Indego Personal is a lightweight powered lower limb orthosis that enables people with mobility impairments the opportunity to walk independently. Ekso Indego Personal is cleared by the FDA for use with individuals with SCI levels from T3 to L5 in community or home settings.

Ekso Nomad

Ekso Nomad is a power Knee Ankle Foot Orthosis, or KAFO. Nomad is a pre-revenue product that is currently under development. We expect that Nomad with be available in limited volumes for clinicals trials in 2024, with commercial launch currently planned for 2025.

Ekso EVO

EVO is a wearable upper body exoskeleton that elevates and supports a worker's arms to assist them with tasks from chest height to overhead. EVO is intended to reduce worker fatigue and reduce on-site injuries while boosting productivity. EVO is intended primarily for use with able-bodied individuals and has not been registered with or evaluated by the FDA.

Services

EksoPulse
EksoNR includes cloud connectivity through EksoPulse, which gathers and transmits statistics and device information during EksoNR walking sessions. 

EksoCare
For most of our Ekso Health products, we offer extended warranty and premium service options under our EksoCare program. EksoCare includes a comprehensive warranty, loaner devices to minimize downtime, clinical support, access to our EksoPulse online portal, and other benefits to customers.

Device servicing and repair
For devices not covered under warranty, we offer fee-for-service repairs and maintenance. Customers may also rent loaner devices on a short-term basis if the time required to service their device will interrupt their ongoing business. 

Training
We offer a range of training programs that are aimed at demonstrating to customers how to use our products safely and effectively. Training is delivered as an online service, in-person, or as a combination of the two. Training is often included with the purchase of a new device, but training can also be purchased separately. 

Segments

EksoHealth
Our EksoHealth segment represents sales of our regulated medical devices regardless of the end customer. We separate our EksoHealth segment into two business lines. Enterprise Health and Personal Health.

Enterprise  Health
Our Enterprise Health business line resides within our EksoHealth segment. Enterprise Health customers include inpatient rehabilitation hospitals and clinics as well as some outpatient rehabilitation clinics. The Enterprise Health product line includes EksoNR and Ekso Indego Therapy.

Personal Health
Our Personal Health business line also resides within our EksoHealth segment. Personal Health customers include the Veterans Administration, which provides our products to qualified veterans for individual use, individuals who are covered under worker’s compensation insurance, and  private individuals who pay out of pocket. As described in further detail below, we are pursuing Medicare reimbursement for products in this business line.

EksoWorks
Sales of products to able-bodied individuals for use in industrial or work-related use are represented by our EksoWorks segment. Our only active product within our EksoWorks segment is EVO.

Markets and Distribution

EksoHealth

Enterprise Health Market
Our sales priority for Enterprise Health customers involves the education of clinical and executive stakeholders on the economic and clinical value of our robotic exoskeleton portfolio, including the EksoNR and the Ekso Indego Therapy devices. In tandem, we continue to leverage our EksoNR and Ekso Indego customer base to educate and mentor strategic target centers that specialize in stroke, ABI and SCI rehabilitation in specific geographies. 

Rehabilitation treatments that can benefit from the use of our EksoNR and Ekso Indego Therapy products take place in a range of different types of facilities. These include inpatient rehabilitation facilities ("IRF"), long term acute care hospitals ("LTACH"), skilled nursing facilities ("SNF"), and outpatient rehabilitation clinics, among others. The primary facility types we currently serve are IRFs. Among these facilities, ownership structures also vary from small independent rehabilitation centers to larger networks of providers. Our current market focus is on the larger network providers, referred to as integrated delivery networks ("IDN"). Sales to IDNs typically involve multi-unit transactions that can benefit from lower selling costs, better pipeline visibility, and better economies of scale. In 2023, approximately 52% of our new unit shipments for EksoNR and Ekso Indego Therapy were to IDNs. Globally, multi-unit sales comprised approximately 70% of our unit shipments.

The sales cycle for the EksoNR and Ekso Indego Therapy devices varies, but typically takes from approximately eight to 12 months for a first device and six to eight months for subsequent devices. The typical sale of our EksoNR and Ekso Indego Therapy is a complete package, which includes the device and all relevant components, batteries for continuous run-time, training, and certification. Some customers also purchase EksoCare at the time of a new device purchase for up to four years of coverage. The purchase rate of EksoCare varies by country, with U.S. customers typically preferring to include it in their initial purchase. Other regions have lower rates of purchase.

In the Enterprise Health market, we offer a range of purchase options. In most cases and when capital is available, the product is sold outright to the customer as a capital sale and the full price is invoiced to the customer after title transfers. For customers who prefer to finance the purchase of their device, we have finance partners who facilitate such transactions. Often these arrangements will be marketed as a subscription product to the end customer. Typically, in a subscription arrangement we will sell the device to the third party financing partner who then contracts with the end customer for payment terms. In certain circumstances, we may elect to maintain ownership of a product sold as a subscription in lieu of selling it to a third party financing partner. Subscription arrangements typically last for 24 months to 36 months.

We distribute our products to the Enterprise Health market in all of our geographic regions through a combination of direct and indirect (distributor) channels. In the Americas geographic region, sales are primarily made through our direct salesforce. In the Europe, Middle East, and Africa region (“EMEA”), we sell through a combination of direct and indirect channels, with German speaking countries handled direct, and other countries and regions served through distributors. In the Asia Pacific region (“APAC”) we also use a combination of direct and indirect channels depending on the country.

Personal Health Market
Within the Personal Health market, we serve individual users with the Ekso Indego Personal, which is intended to provide overground ambulation in community and home settings. The primary use case for Ekso Indego Personal is for users with SCI. For this user population, confinement to a wheelchair can cause severe physical and psychological deterioration. As a result, the secondary medical consequences of paralysis can include difficulty with bowel and urinary tract function, osteoporosis, loss of lean mass, gain in fat mass, insulin resistance, diabetes, and heart disease. The cost of treating these conditions is substantial.

The sales cycle for the Ekso Indego Personal device averages eight to 12 months from the first interaction we have with the potential Ekso Indego Personal device user. The Ekso Indego Personal device is regulated by the FDA and the patient must have an injury level of T3 to L5 and have a support person when utilizing the device. 

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (the "VA") has an active program to provide products like Ekso Indego Personal to U.S. veterans with SCI. According to VA data, approximately 42,000 of such patients are veterans and are eligible for medical care and other benefits from the VA out of which 27,000 are receiving treatment annually. With 25 VA spinal cord injury centers, the VA has the largest single network of spinal cord injury care in the United States. 

Veterans who receive our products through the VA complete a screening, in-clinic training and a home trial prior to the VA purchasing a device for each eligible Veteran. We provide products to the VA through distributors classified as Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Businesses (SDVOSB).

We are working toward obtaining Medicare reimbursement for the Ekso Indego Personal device. If we are successful, we expect access to this market will allow us to serve a larger portion of the SCI population in the U.S. Specifically, according to the National Spinal Cord Injury Statistical Center an estimated 294,000 individuals are currently living with SCI and another 17,810 suffer from new SCI injuries each year. Approximately 56% of individuals with SCI are enrolled in Medicare or Medicaid within 5 years post-injury. If Medicare reimbursement goes into effect, we plan to sell products to individuals in this market through Durable Medical Equipment suppliers (DMEs). DMEs typically resell products from DME manufacturers to individual users. DMEs are responsible for the Medicare reimbursement process, which requires a physician’s prescription and evidence of medical necessity to be submitted to and approved by Medicare before reimbursement is provided. The level of such reimbursement, if any, and the timing of CMS's decisions with respect thereto are not within our control. See "Part I--Item 1A Risk Factors", specifically the risk titled "Coverage policies and reimbursement levels of third-party payers, including Medicare or Medicaid, may impact sales of our products," for more information.

Outside of the VA and Medicare, we sell Ekso Indego Personal to individuals who pay out-of-pocket or have obtained coverage through a worker’s compensation claim. Sales in EMEA and APAC have gained traction, and we believe there is additional potential in these regions for future sales to private individuals and through government-funded healthcare systems.

EksoWorks

Our primary end market for our EksoWorks segment is comprised of commercial enterprises that are focused on solving ergonomic challenges for their workers. These challenges range from injury prevention, fatigue reduction, and/or improved worker productivity. With EVO as our only commercially available product in this segment, we focus on applications that involve repetitive work at shoulder height and above. While EVO is a general-purpose product, we currently target specific vertical markets; including aerospace, automotive, general manufacturing, and certain construction trades. 

Within our EksoWorks segment, we offer our products for sale in the Americas, EMEA, and APAC. In the Americas, the majority of our sales to date have been direct to business customers in the U.S., with certain limited sales in 2023 being to business customers in Mexico and Canada. In EMEA and APAC, we have sold to a combination of businesses and distribution partners. Outside of the U.S., we expect distribution partners to account for a larger percentage of sales over time.
  
Third-Party Coverage and Payment

In our EksoHealth segment, third-party payers are often involved either to pay for procedures in which our products are used or to purchase our devices on behalf of an individual. These payment mechanisms vary by product line and are detailed below. Third-party payers are typically not involved in the purchase of products in our EksoWorks segment.

Enterprise Health
Our customers, including inpatient and outpatient rehabilitation facilities, typically bill third-party payors for the costs and fees associated with the procedures in which our products are used. In the U.S., in order to receive payment for the procedures performed using our products, our customers must report codes that describe the services provided and determine the medical necessity of the service or whether the service is included in the payors’ policy. Codes used for reimbursement for procedures that utilize our products are generic in nature and do not reference our products specifically. In the U.S. and most markets globally where we sell our products, payment for medical services provided by our customers (collectively “providers”) is determined by the government, commercial payors (insurers), or both. 

Personal Health
Within the Personal Health market, the Veterans Administration provides our products to qualified veterans for individual use. CMS and its fiscal intermediaries (Medicare Administrative Contractors) and state Medicaid programs establish reimbursement policies for medical and surgical services at the state and federal level for the Medicare and Medicaid programs. Our products currently do not have established reimbursement amounts with CMS. Although we are working with CMS to establish a set level of reimbursement, the amount, if any, of such reimbursement and CMS's timing for making a decision are not within our control.

Private third-party payors often rely upon Medicare coverage policy and payment limitations in setting their own coverage and payment policies but also have their own methods and approval processes. In some cases, individuals covered under worker’s compensation insurance have also purchased our products.

Government Regulation   

U.S. Medical Device Regulation

The U.S. government regulates the medical device industry through various agencies, including but not limited to the FDA, which administers the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act ("FDCA"). The design, testing, manufacturing, storage, labeling, distribution, advertising, and marketing of medical devices are subject to extensive regulation by federal, state, and local governmental authorities in the United States, including the FDA, and by similar agencies in other countries. Any medical device product that we develop must receive all requisite regulatory approvals or clearances, as the case may be, before it may be marketed in a particular country.

All of our EksoHealth products are registered with the FDA according to each device classification. The following table lists the FDA registration status for each product. Our lower extremity exoskeletons - EksoNR, Ekso Indego Therapy, and Ekso Indego Personal - are regulated as Class II devices and thus are covered under approved 510k fillings. 

In the year ended December 31, 2023, there was one report of an adverse event made to the FDA under the Manufacturer and User Facility Device Experience Database relating to our EksoNR product. There were no adverse events reported relating to our Ekso Indego Therapy or Ekso Indego Personal products.

The one adverse event was reported by us and related to a report of a patient injury. No field actions or recalls were performed as a result of the reported adverse event.

Foreign Medical Device Regulation
 
In addition to regulations in the United States, we are subject to a variety of foreign regulations governing clinical trials and commercial sales and distribution of our products in foreign countries. Regardless of the FDA’s approval requirements for a particular product, we must obtain approval of a product by the comparable regulatory authorities of foreign countries before we can commence clinical trials or marketing of the product in those countries. The requirements governing the conduct of clinical trials, product licensing, pricing and reimbursement vary greatly from country to country.
 
European Union

The European Union requires that manufacturers of medical devices obtain the right to bear the “CE” conformity marking which designates compliance with existing directives and standards regulating the design, manufacture and distribution of medical devices in member countries of the European Union. The rules for CE marking a product are set forth in the EU Medical Device Regulation (the “EU MDR”), which replace the EU Medical Device Directive (the “EU MDD”). The EU MDR regulations were adopted with transitional periods that allow some products to rely on EU MDD certificates for a period of time. As a result of the MDR transition, our products are currently CE marked with MDD certificates.

As of March 1, 2024, all of our EksoHealth products bear CE marks and certificates which were obtained under EU MDD regulations. Under MDR rules, we can continue to place these products on the market until December 31, 2028, provided that we adhere to certain restrictions. These restrictions include: (i) not making any substantial changes to the products prior to EU MDR certification, (ii) implementing certain MDR requirements immediately, and (iii) applying for an EU MDR conformity assessment and having a quality management system in place by May 26, 2024 and signing a written agreement with a notified body by September 26, 2024.

The CE certificates for our Ekso Indego Therapy and Ekso Indego Personal devices are currently held by Parker while we complete the process to obtain certificates registered by Ekso Bionics, Inc. As part of this transition, we are currently able to place the Indego products on the market in Europe through a series of manufacturing and quality agreements with Parker. The Parker certificates expire on May 25, 2024, and Parker does not intend to satisfy all of the requirements to allow the certificate to remain valid. As such, will no longer be able to use the Parker certificates to satisfy CE marking requirements for Indego products. We expect to receive new Ekso Bionics EU MDR CE certificates in 2024, but an exact date of certification has not been confirmed by the Notified Body.

For EksoNR, we believe we have satisfied all requirements to keep our EU MDD CE certificate valid and expect to complete the transition to EU MDR compliance in late 2024.

Regulatory requirements in the United Kingdom (“UK”) are also changing as a result of Brexit (the UK’s withdrawal from the EU), and regulatory requirements in Switzerland are changing as a result of the country’s withdrawal from its Mutual Recognition Agreement with the EU Commission. Complying with the EU MDR and the evolving regulatory regimes in the UK and Switzerland requires modifications to our quality management systems, additional resources in certain functions and updates to technical files, among other changes. As of December 31, 2023, none of our products had yet been approved under EU MDR.

Other countries

Regulations in other countries, including the requirements for approvals, certification, or clearance and the time required for regulatory review, vary by country. Certain countries, such as Australia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Canada, and others have their own regulatory agencies. These countries typically require regulatory approvals and compliance that we comply with either directly or through distribution partners. Failure to obtain regulatory approval in any foreign country in which we market our products, or failure to comply with any regulation in any foreign country in which we market our products may negatively impact our ability to generate revenue and harm our business.

Other U.S. and international regulations

We are subject to broadly applicable fraud and abuse, privacy, and other healthcare laws and regulations that may constrain the business or financial arrangements and relationships through which we research, market, sell and distribute our products. 
•    Federal Anti-Kickback Statute
•    Federal criminal and civil false claims laws
•    Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (“HIPAA”)
•    Physician Payments Sunshine Act
•    Similar state and foreign laws and regulations

The policies of the FDA and foreign regulatory authorities may change, and additional government regulations may be enacted which could prevent or delay regulatory approval of our products and could also increase the cost of regulatory compliance. We cannot predict the likelihood, nature or extent of adverse governmental regulation that might arise from future legislative or administrative action, either in the U.S. or abroad.

Competition

The medical technology and industrial robotics industries are characterized by intense competition and rapid technological change. Specifically, exoskeleton technology remains in its early stages. As this field develops, we believe that we will face increased competition on the basis of product features, critical outcomes, price, services and other factors. Our competitive position will depend on multiple, complex factors, including our ability to achieve market acceptance for our products, develop new products, implement production and marketing plans, secure regulatory approvals for products under development and protect our intellectual property. Beyond the competitors listed below, we also believe that a number of other companies are developing competitive technology and devices in our Enterprise Health, Personal Health, and EksoWorks product lines.

Enterprise Health
For our Enterprise Health product line, we face competition from products that target lower extremity gait therapy, ambulation, and rehabilitation. These include exoskeleton companies such as Cyberdyne, Wandercraft, and ExoAtlet, among others. Other non-exoskeleton products in this market include Hocoma, Tyromotion, AlterG, Aretech and Reha Technology, among others.
 
Personal Health
For our Personal Health product line, our primary competitor is LifeWard’s Rewalk 6.0. Other competitors that we believe either have or are developing products for the home and community ambulation market include Cyberdyne, Wandercraft, and Ottobock. 
 
EksoWorks
In the segment, there are multiple competitors with shoulder support devices, including products from Ottobock, Levitate, Hilti, Skel-ex, and others. 

Supply of Components

We manufacture our EksoNR at our facility in San Rafael, California for worldwide distribution. Our Ekso Indego Therapy and Ekso Indego Personal devices are manufactured, and we expect our Nomad device will be manufactured, at our facilities in Macedonia, Ohio. We currently run one shift per day at both facilities and believe we have the capacity to eventually run additional shifts should we deem it appropriate.
 
In 2023, we completed the process of transferring sufficient technology and know-how to manufacture our EVO product line at a contract manufacturing partner located in Malaysia. In 2023, approximately 89% of our EVO production was outsourced. 

As part of our manufacturing process, we purchase both custom and off-the-shelf components from a large number of suppliers and subject them to stringent quality specifications and processes. Whenever possible, we seek to secure dual source suppliers for our components. Some of the components necessary for the assembly of our products are currently provided to us by single-sourced suppliers (the only approved supply source for us among other sources). We purchase the majority of our components and major assemblies through purchase orders rather than long-term supply agreements and do not generally plan to hold finished goods inventory in excess of our anticipated demand. 

Research and Development

We focus our engineering and research and development efforts on both improvement to existing products and services and new products and services that align with our strategy. We believe that by investing in innovation we can expand the number of individuals whose lives are improved by the use of our products. We subscribe to a customer focused approach to new product development, wherein we use customer feedback and suggestions to inform development plans. Areas our engineering and R&D teams target for improvement include enhanced functionality, improved reliability and uptime, and lower cost, among others. 

Intellectual Property

We have established an extensive intellectual property portfolio that includes various U.S. patents and patent applications. The table below provides a summary of U.S. patents by issuing status and ownership status as of December 31, 2023.

Pending applications mean a complete application has been filed with the applicable patent authority and additional action is pending.

Many of these applications have also been filed internationally as appropriate for their respective subject matter. As of December 31, 2023, 299 applications have issued or have been allowed as patents internationally. Our patent portfolio contains 334 cases that have issued or are in prosecution in 22 countries outside the U.S.

Our patent portfolio includes product and method type claims, since the devices that we produce and the processes performed by those devices are patentable. Our patents encompass technologies relevant to our devices, including medical exoskeletons, commercial exoskeletons, actuators, and strength-enhancing exoskeletons. The earliest priority date of the portfolio reaches back to 2003, and new applications may continue to be filed from time-to-time.

Licensors include the Regents of the University of California, or UC Berkeley, and Vanderbilt University.

The license with UC Berkeley consists of two agreements and one amendment to the agreement covering ten patent cases exclusively licensed to us, nine of which have issued and one of which remains in prosecution. Inventions covered by a further three patent applications are co-owned by us and UC Berkeley, with no license agreement between us and UC Berkeley. As a result, UC Berkeley may license its rights in these patents to a third party. With respect to two of these co-owned patent applications, UC Berkeley has licensed their rights in the U.S. to an unrelated third party. The third patent application will need to be fully prosecuted before it can be determined which claims are exclusive to us (through a previous license) and which claims UC Berkeley may license to other entities.
 
Pursuant to the UC Berkeley License Agreements, we are required to pay a 1% royalty on sales, including sales generated by sublicenses. In addition, the UC Berkeley License Agreements call for minimum annual payments of $50,000. We do not pay royalties to UC Berkeley on products sold or to be resold to the U.S. government.
 
As part of the HMC acquisition, we are acquired and assumed certain intangible assets including license agreements with Vanderbilt University.
 
On October 15, 2012, Parker entered a license agreement (“Exoskeleton License Agreement”) with Vanderbilt University and was granted exclusive license within the HMC field of use to specific licensed patents and licensed software by paying a non-refundable, non-creditable license issue fee and running royalties. Subsequently, Parker entered three amendments with Vanderbilt University and was granted license to additional patents and software from 2014 to 2019 by paying license issue fee and running royalties. The royalties were set to be calculated at 6% of Net Sales for Licensed Patent Products (or a minimum of $250,000) and 3% of Net Sales for Licensed Software products.
 
On March 1, 2022, Parker entered a license agreement (“P-H Knee License Agreement”) with Vanderbilt University and was granted exclusive license to specific licensed patents, licensed software and copyrightable technical information by paying a non-refundable, non-creditable license issue fee and running royalties. Included in this agreement was the right to sublicense beginning in March 2024. We will pay Vanderbilt $100,000 as the second of two payments due April 30, 2023. In addition, royalties were set to be calculated at 3.75% of net sales of the licensed product. Beginning July 1, 2027, minimum annual royalties will be set at $75,000 (for the 12 month period through June 30, 2028) and $100,000 for each 12 month period thereafter.
 
In addition to the aforementioned agreements, various other subsidized research and development agreements have been entered into with Vanderbilt covering specific work product as articulated in those documents.
 
In some cases, as a result of government funding we receive, our patents have a government use license, granting the U.S. government a non-exclusive, non-transferable, irrevocable, paid-up license for use of the inventions for or on behalf of the U.S. government, as is typical in the case of government sponsored research.
 
In addition, we entered into a license agreement in December of 2021 with a third party that develops technologies having utility in robotic exoskeletons from research and development activities associated with a specific set of government funded research projects. Commencing in January 2022, we assisted with research and development activities in exchange for access to a worldwide, royalty free, transferable, sublicensable, exclusive license to design and market products that use or incorporate the jointly-developed technology within our target market segments.
 
Intellectual Property Out-Licensing
 
In June 2020, we entered into a non-exclusive license agreement with HAWE Hydraulik of Germany for rights to develop hydraulic pumps covered by a family of our patents. The agreement additionally includes an exclusivity option. We did not receive any royalty revenue from this license in the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022.

Clinical Evidence

Numerous research studies have been conducted focusing on safety and feasibility of exoskeletons and robotics in rehabilitation. As of March 1, 2024 a search for “robotic exoskeleton” on PubMed, a search engine for biomedical literature and life science journal articles, garners approximately 289 unique publications. The full portfolio of currently available and legacy Ekso exoskeletons (EksoNR and Ekso Indego) have been utilized in many of these protocols. The body of research examines a wide variety of diagnoses including ABI, SCI, stroke, MS, and others. The findings of this research are overall positive and promote use of an Ekso exoskeleton in rehabilitation to provide patient outcomes that are equal to or superior to traditional physical therapy in both the inpatient and outpatient setting. Some of these outcomes include faster gait speed, increased gait endurance, improvements in cardiometabolic responses, enhanced quality of life, more typical gait kinematics, increased function, and therapy session duration. 

Human Capital Resources and Management
 
As of March 1, 2024, we had 70 full-time employees and two-part time employees, including 60 employees in the United States, ten employees in Europe, and two in Singapore. None of our employees are covered by a collective bargaining agreement and we consider our relationship with our employees to be good.
 
We endeavor to maintain a workplace that is free from discrimination or harassment on the basis of color, race, sex, national origin, ethnicity, religion, age, disability, sexual orientation, gender identification or expression or any other status protected by applicable law. We conduct annual training to prevent harassment and discrimination and monitor employee conduct year-round, including by providing employees with access to an anonymous whistleblower hotline to report any violations. The basis for recruitment, hiring, development, training, compensation and advancement at the Company includes qualifications, performance, skills, and experience. We believe our employees are fairly compensated, without regard to gender, race and ethnicity, and routinely recognized for outstanding performance and are offered training and professional development opportunities. Our compensation program is designed to attract and retain talent. We continually assess and strive to enhance employee satisfaction and engagement.
 
Corporate Information
 
Our principal executive office is located at 101 Glacier Point, Suite A, San Rafael, California, 94901 and our telephone number is (510) 984-1761. 
 
We make available free of charge on or through our website our annual reports on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, current reports on Form 8-K, and all amendments to those reports as soon as reasonably practicable after they are electronically filed with, or furnished to, the SEC. Our internet address is www.eksobionics.com. This website address is intended to be an inactive, textual reference only; none of the material on this website is part of this Annual Report. Copies of our annual reports on Form 10-K will be furnished without charge to any person who submits a written request directed to the attention of our Secretary, at our offices located at 101 Glacier Point, Suite A, San Rafael, California, 94901. The SEC maintains an internet site (http://www.sec.gov) that contains reports, proxy and information statements, and other information regarding issuers that file electronically with the SEC.

Item 1A.  RISK FACTORS

Investing in our common stock involves a high degree of risk. You should carefully consider the risks and uncertainties described below, together with all of the other information in this Annual Report on Form 10-K including the section titled “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” and our consolidated financial statements and related notes, before making a decision to invest in our common stock. Our business, results of operations, financial condition or prospects could also be harmed by risks and uncertainties that are not presently known to us or that we currently believe are not material. If any of the risks actually occur, our business, results of operations and financial condition could be adversely affected. In that event, the market price of our common stock could decline, and you could lose all or part of your investment.

Summary of Risk Factors

Our business is subject to numerous risks and uncertainties that you should consider before investing in our company, as fully described below. The principal factors and uncertainties that make investing in our company risky include, among others:

Business and Operational Risks

The markets in which our products are sold are highly competitive and continue to develop.

We face competition within the medical devices and industrial robotics markets on the basis of product features, clinical outcomes, price, services and other factors. Our competitive position will depend on multiple, complex factors, including our ability to achieve market acceptance for our products, develop new products, implement production and marketing plans, secure regulatory approvals for products under development and protect our intellectual property. Competitors may offer, or may attempt to develop, more efficacious, safer, cheaper, or more convenient alternatives to our products, including alternatives that could make the need for robotic exoskeletons obsolete. The entry into the market of manufacturers located in low-cost manufacturing locations may also create pricing pressure, particularly in developing markets. Our future success depends, among other things, upon our ability to compete effectively against current technology, as well as to respond effectively to technological advances, and upon our ability to successfully implement our marketing strategies and execute our research and development plan. If customers do not perceive our product offerings to be of value or to be easy and comfortable to use, we may not be able to attract and retain customers. If we are unable to successfully retain existing customers and attract new customers and achieve volume sales of our products, our business, prospects, financial condition and operating results will be materially and adversely affected.

Furthermore, the markets for medical and industrial robotic exoskeletons are continuing to develop. We cannot be certain that the markets for robotic exoskeletons will continue to develop as we expect, or that robotic exoskeletons for medical or industrial use will achieve market widespread market acceptance. Additionally, the development of new or improved products, processes or technologies by other companies may render our products or proposed products less competitive or obsolete. The use of robotic devices is not universally accepted in the rehabilitation community and may never be. Current or future clinical trials and studies may not provide sufficient data that the rehabilitation community interprets to support the use of exoskeletons in rehabilitation. Any of these outcomes could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition and operating results and prospects.

We may not be able to reduce the cost to manufacture or service our products as planned.

Our business plan assumes that exoskeletons can be manufactured more inexpensively than they are currently being manufactured. However, we have not yet found a way to significantly reduce the manufacturing cost of our products and doing so may prove more difficult than expected or even impossible. For example, if expectations for greater functionality of the products drive costs up as other factors drive costs down, the result may be that the overall cost of manufacturing the product stays the same or even increases. Likewise, we currently provide service and support of our products for our customers at a high standard (both in and out of warranty), and plan on continuing to do so. Our business plan also assumes that as we continue to improve our product, we achieve improved levels of product reliability and decreased service cost and frequency, which also may prove more difficult than expected.

If we or our third-party manufacturers are unable to produce our products at a satisfactory quality, in a timely manner, in sufficient quantities or at an acceptable cost, our business could be negatively impacted.

In order to reduce manufacturing costs, we intend to transition a significant amount of our manufacturing processes to third parties. Reliance on third parties to manufacture our products presents significant risks to us, including the potential that manufacturing costs may be higher than if we had kept manufacturing in house, as well as risks of reduced control over delivery schedules and product reliability, manufacturing deviations from internal and regulatory specifications, failure of a manufacturer to perform its obligations to us for technical, market or other reasons, misappropriation of our intellectual property, and other risks in meeting schedules and satisfying requirements of our customers.

We have not entered into any long-term manufacturing or supply agreements for any of our products, and we may need to enter into additional agreements for the commercial development, manufacturing and sale of our products. There can be no assurance that we can do so on favorable terms, if at all.

Our products have been produced in quantities, and on timelines, sufficient to meet commercial demand and for us to satisfy our delivery schedules. However, our dependence upon others for the production of a portion of our products, or for a portion of the manufacturing process, may adversely affect our ability to satisfy demand, as well as to develop and commercialize new products, on a timely and competitive basis. If manufacturing capacity is reduced or eliminated at one or more of our third-party manufacturers’ facilities, we could have difficulties fulfilling our customer orders, which could adversely affect customer relationships, and our net revenues and results of operations could decline.
 

Shortages in the materials used to manufacture our products, as well as reductions in manufacturer capacity, could impact our future results.
 
Due to a variety of factors, various materials we and the third-party manufacturers we rely on use to manufacture our products are currently, or may in the future, experience shortages and supply chain disruptions, including from shipping delays. Electronic components in general, battery cells, metals and plastics, all of which we use in our products, have, in the recent past, been in shorter supply compared to prior periods. Numerous factors, such as conflicts in the Middle East and Europe or further trade tensions between the United States and China, may prolong or deepen these challenges. Our operating results may be negatively impacted if global supply chains of semiconductors and other important commodities recur in the future.

Coverage policies and reimbursement levels of third-party payers, including Medicare or Medicaid, may impact sales of our products.
 

To the extent that the adoption of our products by our customers is dependent in the future on their ability to obtain adequate reimbursement for the products or treatments provided using our product from third-party payers, including government payors such as Medicare and Medicaid, managed care organizations and commercial payors, the coverage policies and reimbursement levels of these third-party payers may impact the decisions of healthcare providers, facilities, or end users to purchase our products or the prices they would be willing to pay for those products. Reimbursement rates could also affect the acceptance rates of new technologies. We have no control over these factors.

In the United States, the principal decisions about reimbursement for new medical products are typically made by CMS. CMS decides whether and to what extent a new product will be covered and reimbursed under Medicare and private payors tend to follow CMS to a substantial degree. Because there is no uniform policy of coverage and reimbursement in the United States, each payor generally determines for its own enrollees or insured patients whether to cover or otherwise establish a policy to reimburse our diagnostic tests, and seeking payor approvals is a time-consuming and costly process. Our business plan within our Personal Health business line depends in a large part on sales of our Ekso Indego Therapy product by individuals with SCI who are covered by Medicare or Medicaid.

On February 29, 2024, CMS announced that it deferred its payment determination for personal exoskeletons, including the Ekso Indego Personal, and requested additional examples of non-Medicare payer data that would support a payment determination under the applicable reimbursement code. While we intend to provide pricing documentation to CMS and ultimately finalize a reimbursement amount, we may be unsuccessful in obtaining an acceptable reimbursement amount, if reimbursement is approved at all. There could be material delays in this process which would impact our operating results. Until a reimbursement rate has been established, individual claims will be processed on a case-by-case basis, which may be yield lower rates of return on our product or be unsuccessful altogether.

If CMS determines to not provide reimbursement for our Ekso Indego Therapy at acceptable levels or at all, delays or cancels reimbursement decisions, or materially changes any reimbursement levels once set, our ability to sell into this market may be diminished. In addition, the policies affecting the implementation of individual reimbursement decisions are made by regional DME MACs. These policies are not yet known to us and may affect the number of individual purchases that are approved to receive reimbursement in the future. We cannot be certain that coverage for our current and our planned future products will be provided in the future by additional payors or that existing agreements, policy decisions or reimbursement levels will remain in place, remain adequate, or be fulfilled under existing terms and provisions. If we cannot obtain coverage and adequate reimbursement from private and governmental payors such as Medicare and Medicaid for our current products or new products that we may develop in the future, demand for such products may decline or may not grow as we expect, which could limit our ability to generate revenue and have a material adverse effect on our financial condition, results of operations and cash flow.

The coverage and reimbursement market may be additionally impacted by future legislative changes. There are increasing efforts by governmental and third-party payors in the United States and abroad to cap or reduce healthcare costs which may cause such organizations to limit both coverage and the level of reimbursement for newly approved products and, as a result, they may not cover or provide adequate payment for our products. Specifically, there have been several recent U.S. presidential executive orders, Congressional inquiries, and proposed and enacted federal and state legislation designed to, among other things, bring more transparency to drug and medical device pricing, reduce the cost under Medicare, review the relationship between pricing and manufacturer patient programs, and reform government program reimbursement methodologies. We expect to experience pricing pressures in connection with the sale of any of our products due to the trend toward managed healthcare, the increasing influence of health maintenance organizations, cost containment initiatives and additional legislative changes.

We will experience long and variable sales cycles.

The EksoNR and Ekso Indego products have a lengthy sale and purchase order cycle because it is a major capital expenditure item and generally requires the approval of senior management at purchasing institutions, which may contribute to substantial fluctuations in our quarterly operating results.

International sales of our products are subject to factors outside of our control.

Our business currently depends in part on our activities in the EMEA, APAC, and other foreign markets. Our international activities are subject to a number of risks inherent in selling and operating abroad, including failure of local laws to provide the same degree of protection against infringement of our intellectual property rights; protectionist laws and business practices that favor local competitors, which could slow our growth in international markets; the expense of establishing facilities and operations in new foreign markets; building an organization capable of supporting geographically dispersed operations; challenges caused by distance, language and cultural differences; challenges caused by differences in legal regulations, markets, and customer preferences, which may limit our ability to adapt our products or succeed in other regions; multiple, conflicting, and changing laws and regulations, including complications due to unexpected changes in regulatory requirements, foreign laws, tax schemes, international import and export legislation, trading and investment policies, exchange controls and tariff and other trade barriers; foreign tax consequences; fluctuations in currency exchange rates and foreign currency translation adjustments; foreign exchange controls that might prevent us from repatriating income earned outside the United States; imposition of public sector controls; differing payer reimbursement regimes, governmental payers or patient self-pay systems and price controls; political, economic and social instability; and restrictions on the export or import of technology.

We may not be able to enhance our product offerings through our research and development efforts.

In order to increase our sales and our market share in the exoskeleton market, we continue to invest in our research and development efforts and product offerings in response to the evolving demands of people with lower extremity impairment, other medical conditions and healthcare providers, as well as competitive technologies. We may decide to invest our business development resources in partnerships, licensing agreements, business acquisition, distribution arrangements, and other ways that will provide us new product offerings without significant research and development activities. We may not be successful in developing, obtaining regulatory approval for, or marketing our currently proposed products, or our approved products for additional indications, products proposed to be created in the future or products that will be available for us through business acquisitions and distribution arrangements. In addition, notwithstanding our market research efforts, our future products may not be accepted by consumers, their caregivers, healthcare providers or third-party payors who reimburse consumers for our products. The success of any proposed product offerings will depend on numerous factors, including our ability to:

If we fail to generate demand by developing products that incorporate features desired by consumers, their caregivers or healthcare providers, or if we do not obtain regulatory clearance or approval for proposed products in time to meet market demand, we may fail to generate sales sufficient to achieve or maintain profitability. We have in the past experienced, and we may in the future experience, delays in various phases of product development, including during research and development, manufacturing, limited release testing, marketing, and customer education efforts. Such delays could cause customers to delay or forgo purchases of our products, or to purchase our competitors’ products. Even if we are able to successfully develop proposed products when anticipated, these products may not produce sales in excess of the costs of development, and they may be quickly rendered obsolete by changing consumer preferences or the introduction by our competitors of products embodying new technologies or features.

We may never complete the development of any of our proposed products or product improvements into marketable products.

We do not know when or whether we will successfully complete the development of the planned development-stage or next generation exoskeletal technologies, or any other proposed, developmental, or contemplated product for any of our target markets. We continue to seek to improve our technologies before we are able to produce a commercially viable product. Failure to improve on any of our technologies could delay or prevent their successful development for any of our target markets.

Developing any technology into a marketable product is a risky, time-consuming and expensive process. You should anticipate that we will encounter setbacks, discrepancies requiring time-consuming and costly redesigns and changes and that there is the possibility of outright failure. We may not meet our product development, manufacturing, regulatory, commercialization and other milestones.

We have historically relied, and in the future may rely, on sales of our EksoNR, Ekso Indego Therapy and Ekso Indego Personal for a significant portion of our revenue.

We currently rely, and in the future will rely, on sales of our EksoNR, Ekso Indego Therapy and Ekso Indego Personal for a large portion of our revenue. These products are relatively new, and market acceptance and adoption depends on educating people with lower extremity impairment, physical therapists and other clinicians as to the distinct features, ease-of-use, improved quality of life and other benefits when compared to alternative therapies. These products may not be perceived to have sufficient potential benefits compared with their alternatives. In addition, physical therapists and other clinicians may be slow to change their treatment practices because of perceived liability risks arising from the use of new products. Accordingly, physical therapists and other clinicians may not recommend these products until there is sufficient evidence to convince them to alter the treatment methods they typically recommend. Such evidence may include endorsements from prominent healthcare providers or other key leaders in the lower extremity impairment and neurological impairment communities attesting to the effectiveness of these products in providing identifiable immediate and long-term quality of life benefits, and the publication of peer-reviewed clinical studies demonstrating their value. Any factors that negatively impact sales of these products would adversely affect our business, financial condition and operating results.

We rely on independent distributors for the sale and marketing of our products in certain geographies.
 
In non-German-speaking countries in Europe, other countries in EMEA, and countries in APAC except Singapore, we rely on independent distributors to distribute and assist us with the marketing and sale of our products. These distributors are our principal customers, and revenue growth will depend in large part on our success in establishing and maintaining this sales and distribution channel. If any of our key independent distributors were to cease to distribute our products, our sales could be adversely affected. In such a situation, we may need to seek alternative independent distributors or increase our reliance on our other independent distributors or our direct sales representatives, which may not prevent our sales from being adversely affected. 

We rely on service agreements and arrangements with Parker Hannifin to facilitate the production and sale of our Ekso Indego Therapy and Ekso Indego Personal devices, and such agreements and arrangements have or will soon expire.

As part of the HMC Acquisition, we entered into a series of service agreements with Parker Hannifin. Services provided Parker Hannifin under these agreements include providing us certain access to their facilities in Ohio, IT services, and distribution services, among others. If we are not able to transition to alternative sources for these services before these agreements expire, it could affect our ability to design, manufacture, market, and sell our Ekso Indego Therapy and Ekso Indego Personal devices. For example, we need to acquire or lease office space in Ohio as we transition our Ohio operation to our own facility. In addition, we need to contract with new distribution partners for our Ekso Indego Therapy and Ekso Indego Personal devices in Europe, as Parker Hannifin’s contracts in the region will expire in March 2024, as will our only distribution channel into the region. We also rely on Parker Hannifin’s CE mark, which expires in May 2024, for the sale of our Ekso Indego Therapy and Ekso Indego Personal devices into Europe. If we cannot replace these services provided by Parker Hannifin by the associated deadlines or expiration dates, it may materially affect our business results.

Our success depends on our management team, and on our ability to hire, train, retain, and motivate employees.

Our success depends on our management team and on our ability to identify, hire, train and retain highly qualified managerial, technical and sales and marketing personnel. Any significant leadership change and accompanying senior management transition, such as the change in our chief executive officer in December 2022, and the hiring of other new leaders in key roles, involves inherent risk and any failure to ensure a smooth transition could hinder our strategic planning, execution and future performance. In addition, as we introduce new products or services, we will need to hire additional personnel. Currently, competition for personnel with the required knowledge, skill and experiences is intense, particularly in the San Francisco Bay area, where we are headquartered, and we may not be able to attract, assimilate or retain such personnel. The inability to attract and retain the necessary managerial, technical and sales and marketing personnel could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition.

The acquisition and integration of other companies, businesses, or technologies could result in operating difficulties, dilution, and other harmful consequences.
 
We may selectively pursue strategic acquisitions, any of which could be material to our business, operating results, and financial condition. Future acquisitions could divert management’s time and focus from operating our business. In addition, integrating an acquired company, business or technology is risky and may result in unforeseen operating difficulties and expenditures associated with integrating employees from the acquired company into our organization and integrating each company’s accounting, management information, human resources and other administrative systems to permit effective management. The anticipated benefits of future acquisitions may not materialize, including our ability to expand our product offerings as a result of overlap in the addressable market for our existing products and the addressable market for products we may acquire. Future acquisitions or dispositions could result in potentially dilutive issuances of our equity securities, the incurrence of debt, contingent liabilities, amortization expenses, or write-offs of goodwill and intangible assets, any of which could harm our financial condition. Future acquisitions may also require us to obtain additional financing, which may not be available on favorable terms or at all.
 
If we fail to manage the complex and lengthy reimbursement process, our business and operating results could be adversely affected. 
 
The sale of products in our Personal Health business line primarily depends on reimbursements provided by third party payors. We distribute these products to end users through the VA hospitals. In the near future, we also anticipate our products may be distributed through DME suppliers, who will then pursue reimbursement from Medicare, Medicaid, or private insurance providers. Our financial condition and results of operations may be affected by coverage and reimbursement policies of these payors, which are also subject to change over time. The reimbursement process is complex and can involve lengthy delays between the time that a product is delivered to the consumer and the time that the reimbursement amounts are settled. Depending on the payor, we or our customers may be required to obtain certain payor-specific documentation from physicians and other healthcare providers before submitting claims for reimbursement. Certain payors have filing deadlines and they will not pay claims submitted after such time. We may be  subject to extensive pre-payment and post-payment audits by governmental and private payors that could result in material delays, refunds of monies received or denials of claims submitted for payment under such third-party payor programs and contracts. We cannot ensure that we will be able to continue to effectively manage the process which would adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Shutdowns of the U.S. federal government could materially impair our business and financial condition.

Development of our product candidates or regulatory approval may be delayed for reasons beyond our control. For example, in 2018 and 2019 the U.S. government shut down several times and certain regulatory agencies, such as the FDA and the SEC, had to furlough critical FDA, SEC, and other government employees and stop critical activities. If a prolonged government shutdown or budget sequestration occurs, it could significantly impact the ability of the FDA to timely review and process our regulatory submissions, which could have a material adverse effect on our business. In addition, while CMS reimbursement is considered an essential service and is thus less likely to be affected, other administrative functions within CMS could be affected. Further, in our operations as a public company, future government shutdowns could impact our ability to access the public markets, such as through the declaration of effectiveness of registration statements and obtain necessary capital in order to properly capitalize and continue our operations.

Financial & Accounting Risks

We have incurred significant losses to date and anticipate continuing to incur losses in the future, and we may not achieve or maintain profitability.

We have thus far been largely dependent on capital raised through the sale of equity securities in various public and private offerings, and we have incurred losses in each fiscal year since our incorporation in 2005. Our net losses were $15.2 million and $15.1 million for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively. As of December 31, 2023 and 2022, we had an accumulated deficit of $239.2 million and $223.9 million, respectively.

The operation of our business and our growth efforts will require significant cash outlays to support our operations. We believe we have sufficient resources to operate for the foreseeable future based upon our current cash resources, expected rate of cash to be used for operations assuming modest increases in current revenue and operating expenses remaining flat, and cash required to satisfy debt obligations. However, unless we are able to generate significant revenues from sales, we will not be able to achieve or maintain profitability in the near future or at all, and we will remain largely dependent on capital raised from past and future financings to implement our business plan, support our operations and service our debt obligations. Our lack of profitability may depress our stock price, and if we are unable to become profitable, we may be required to reduce the scope of our business development activities, which could harm our business plans, financial condition and operating results, or to cease our operations entirely.

Our loan agreement imposes certain financial, and operational restrictions on us, limiting the discretion of our management in operating our business.

Our loan agreement with Pacific Western Bank, which we entered into in August 2020 (the "PWB Loan Agreement"), contains, subject to certain carve-outs, various restrictive covenants that limit our management's discretion in operating our business. In particular, these instruments limit our ability to, among other things, hold cash outside Pacific Western Bank, incur additional debt, grant liens on assets, sell or acquire assets outside the ordinary course of business, pay dividends and make certain fundamental business changes. Our obligations, which become due in August 2026, are also secured by a security interest in all of our assets, exclusive of intellectual property. As a result, we may need to use our capital resources to repay the PWB Loan in order to undertake certain financing or strategic transactions.

We may be unable to generate sufficient cash flow to service our debt obligations and operate our business.

As described in Note 10 to the consolidated financial statements, we have material near-term indebtedness due to the PWB Loan Agreement and the $5 million unsecured, subordinated promissory note (the “Promissory Note”) we delivered to Parker Hannifin Corporation in connection with the HMC Acquisition.

Servicing our debt requires a significant amount of cash. While we anticipate that we will have adequate cash resources to fund our operations and satisfy our debt obligations, our ability to generate sufficient cash depends on numerous factors beyond our control and our business may not generate sufficient cash flow from operating activities. Our ability to make payments on, and refinance, our debt and fund planned capital expenditures will depend on our ability to generate cash in the future. To some extent, this is subject to general economic, financial, competitive, legislative, regulatory and other factors that are beyond our control, including rising interest rates.

We cannot assure our business will generate sufficient cash flow from operations, or future borrowings will be available to us in an amount sufficient to fund our liquidity needs.

If our cash flows and capital resources are insufficient to service our indebtedness, we may be forced to reduce or delay capital expenditures, sell assets or product lines, seek additional capital or restructure or refinance our indebtedness. These alternative measures may not be successful and may not permit us to meet our scheduled debt service obligations. Our ability to restructure or refinance our debt will depend on the condition of the capital markets and our financial condition at such time. Any refinancing of our debt could be at higher interest rates and may require us to comply with more onerous covenants, which could further restrict our business operations.

We might not be able to continue as a going concern.
 
Our audited consolidated financial statements as of December 31, 2023 have been prepared under the assumption that we will continue as a going concern for the next twelve months. As of December 31, 2023, we had cash and restricted cash of $8.6 million and an accumulated deficit of $239.2 million. We do not believe that our cash and restricted cash are sufficient to fund our operations for the next 12 months. We will need to increase revenues substantially beyond levels that we have attained in the past in order to generate sustainable operating profit and sufficient cash flows to continue doing business without raising additional capital from time to time. As a result of our expected operating losses and cash burn for the foreseeable future and recurring losses from operations, if we are unable to raise sufficient capital through additional debt or equity arrangements, there will be uncertainty regarding our ability to maintain liquidity sufficient to operate our business effectively, which raises substantial doubt as to our ability to continue as a going concern. If we cannot continue as a viable entity, our stockholders would likely lose most or all of their investment in us.
 
If we are unable to generate sustainable operating profit and sufficient cash flows, then our future success will depend on our ability to raise capital. We are seeking additional financing and evaluating financing alternatives in order to meet our cash requirements for the next 12 months. We cannot be certain that raising additional capital, whether through selling additional debt or equity securities or obtaining a line of credit or other loan, will be available to us or, if available, will be on terms acceptable to us. If we issue additional securities to raise funds, these securities may have rights, preferences, or privileges senior to those of our common stock, and our current stockholders may experience dilution. If we are unable to obtain funds when needed or on acceptable terms, we may be required to curtail our current product development programs, cut operating costs, forego future development and other opportunities or even terminate our operations.

We may not be able to leverage our cost structure or achieve better margins.

Due to the early-stage customer adoption of our products, our current sales and marketing, research and development, and general and administrative expenses are each a higher percentage of sales than they will need to be for us to reach profitability. While we do expect these expenses to grow as our business grows, we also expect these expenses to decline as a percentage of revenues over time. If we are unable to leverage these costs and grow revenues at a greater pace than these operating expenses as we expect, we will not be able to achieve viable operating margins and profitability.

We could fail to maintain effective internal control over our financial reporting.

Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 requires us to include in our annual reports on Form 10-K and quarterly reports on Form 10-Q an assessment by management of the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting. While we believe that the policies, processes and procedures we have put in place will be sufficient to render our internal controls over financial reporting effective, our initiatives may not prove successful. If so, management may not be able to conclude that our internal control over financial reporting is effective. This could result in a loss of investor confidence in the reliability of our financial statements, which in turn could negatively affect the price of our common stock. In addition, we must perform system and process evaluation and testing of our internal control over financial reporting to allow management to report on the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting, as required by Section 404. Our compliance with Section 404 may require that we incur substantial accounting expense and expend significant management efforts.

Intellectual Property Risks

Protecting our intellectual proprietary rights can be costly, and our success in doing so is not certain.

Our long-term success largely depends on our ability to market technologically competitive products. Failure to protect or to obtain, maintain or extend adequate patent and other intellectual property rights could have a material adverse impact on our competitive advantage and impair our business. Our issued patents may not be sufficient to protect our intellectual property and our patent applications may not result in issued patents. Even if our patent applications issue as patents, they may not issue in a form that will provide us with any meaningful protection, prevent competitors from competing with us or otherwise provide us with any competitive advantage. Our competitors may be able to circumvent our patents by developing similar or alternative technologies or products in a non-infringing manner or may challenge the validity of our patents. Our attempts to prevent third parties from circumventing our intellectual property and other rights ultimately may be unsuccessful. We may also fail to take the required actions or pay the necessary fees to maintain any of our patents that issue.

Furthermore, we have not filed applications for all of our inventions internationally and may not be able to prevent third parties from using our proprietary technologies or may lose access to technologies critical to our products in other countries. These include, in some cases, countries in which we are currently selling products and countries in which we intend to sell products in the future.

Intellectual property litigation and infringement claims could cause us to incur significant expenses or prevent us from selling certain of our products.

The industries in which we operate, including, in particular, the medical device industry, are characterized by extensive intellectual property litigation and, from time to time, we might be the subject of claims by third parties of potential infringement or misappropriation. Regardless of outcome, such claims are expensive to defend and divert the time and effort of our management and operating personnel from other business issues. A successful claim or claims of patent or other intellectual property infringement against us could result in our payment of significant monetary damages and/or royalty payments or negatively impact our ability to sell current or future products in the affected category and could have a material adverse effect on our business, cash flows, financial condition or results of operations.

Because competition in our industry is intense, competitors may infringe or otherwise violate our issued patents, patents of our licensors or other intellectual property. To counter infringement or unauthorized use, we may be required to file infringement claims, which can be expensive and time-consuming. Any claims we assert against perceived infringers could provoke these parties to assert counterclaims against us alleging that we infringe their patents. In addition, in a patent infringement proceeding, a court may decide that a patent of ours is invalid or unenforceable, in whole or in part, construe the patent’s claims narrowly, or refuse to stop the other party from using the technology at issue on the grounds that our patents do not cover the technology in question. An adverse result in any litigation proceeding could put one or more of our patents at risk of being invalidated or interpreted narrowly. We may also elect to enter into license agreements in order to settle patent infringement claims or to resolve disputes prior to litigation, and any such license agreements may require us to pay royalties and other fees that could be significant. Furthermore, because of the substantial amount of discovery required in connection with intellectual property litigation, there is a risk that some of our confidential information could be compromised by disclosure.

Some of the patents and patent applications in the intellectual property portfolio are not within our complete control, which could reduce the value of such patents.

Some of our U.S. patents (which have associated international patents and applications) are co-owned by UC Berkeley. UC Berkeley has exclusively licensed its rights under many of these patents to us, but we do not have an exclusive license to UC Berkeley’s rights under three of these patents.

UC Berkeley has licensed their U.S. rights in two of these three co-owned patents to an unrelated third-party.

The third patent is a continuation-in-part of a patent that UC Berkeley has licensed to us. Under the terms of the relevant license agreement between us and UC Berkeley, we have exclusive rights to any claims that are fully supported by the specification in the parent application. However, any claims that are not based on the specification in the parent application are co-owned by UC Berkeley and us, and UC Berkeley’s rights in respect of such claims are not exclusively licensed to us. There is no assurance that we will be able to obtain a license to UC Berkeley’s rights in any such claims on commercially reasonable terms or at all, and UC Berkeley may choose to license its rights to third parties instead of us.

If we fail to comply with our obligations in the agreements under which we license intellectual property rights from third-parties or otherwise experience disruptions to our business relationships with our licensors, we could lose intellectual property rights that are important to our business.

We are a party to two exclusive license agreements with UC Berkeley, covering ten patents exclusively licensed to us. In addition, as a result of the “HMC” acquisition, we are party to two license agreements with Vanderbilt University. We may also need to obtain additional licenses from others to advance our research and development activities or allow the commercialization of our devices or any other devices we may identify and pursue. Our license agreements with UC Berkeley and Vanderbilt University impose various development, diligence, commercialization, and other obligations on us, and any future license agreements may impose similar or other obligations on us. For example, under our license agreements with UC Berkeley we are required to submit a commercialization plan with performance milestones and progress report to UC Berkeley, and must satisfy specified minimum annual royalty payment obligations. In spite of our efforts, our licensors might conclude that we have materially breached our obligations under such license agreements and might therefore terminate the license agreements, thereby removing or limiting our ability to develop and commercialize products and technology covered by these license agreements. If our license agreements with UC Berkeley or Vanderbilt University are terminated, competitors or other third parties would have the freedom to seek regulatory approval of, and to market, products that may be identical or functionally similar to our devices and we may be required to cease our development and commercialization of such devices. Any of the foregoing could have a material adverse effect on our competitive position, business, financial conditions, results of operations and prospects.
 
Moreover, disputes may arise between us and our counterparties regarding intellectual property subject to a licensing agreement, including the scope of rights granted under the license agreement and other interpretation-related issues; the extent to which our devices, technology and processes infringe on intellectual property of the licensor that is not subject to the licensing agreement; the sublicensing of patent and other rights under our collaborative research and development relationships; our diligence obligations under the license agreement and what activities satisfy those diligence obligations; the ownership of inventions and know-how resulting from the joint creation or use of intellectual property by our licensors and us and our partners; and the priority of invention of patented or patentable technology. In addition, certain provisions in our license agreements with UC Berkeley and Vanderbilt University may be susceptible to multiple interpretations. The resolution of any contract interpretation disagreement that may arise could narrow what we believe to be the scope of our rights to the relevant intellectual property or technology, or increase what we believe to be our financial or other obligations under the agreement, either of which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects. Moreover, if disputes over intellectual property that we have licensed prevent or impair our ability to maintain our current licensing arrangements on commercially acceptable terms, we may be unable to successfully develop and commercialize the affected devices, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial conditions, results of operations and prospects.

Patent terms may be inadequate to protect our competitive position on our devices for an adequate amount of time.

Patents have a limited lifespan. In the United States, if all maintenance fees are timely paid, the natural expiration of a patent is generally 20 years from its earliest U.S. non-provisional filing date. Various extensions may be available, but the life of a patent, and the protection it affords, is limited. Even if patents covering our devices are obtained, once the patent life has expired, we may be open to competition from competitive products. Given the amount of time required for the development, testing and regulatory review of new devices, patents protecting such devices might expire before or shortly after such devices are commercialized. As a result, our owned and licensed patent portfolio may not provide us with sufficient rights to exclude others from commercializing products similar or identical to ours.

Legal and Regulatory Compliance Risks

If we fail to obtain or maintain necessary regulatory clearances or approvals for our medical device products, or if clearances or approvals for future products or modifications to existing products are delayed or not issued, our commercial operations would be harmed.

Our EksoNR, Ekso Indego, and Nomad products are medical devices and are regulated by the FDA, the European Union and other governmental authorities both inside and outside of the United States. These agencies enforce laws and regulations that govern the development, testing, clinical trials, manufacturing, labeling, advertising, marketing and distribution, recordkeeping, recalls and field safety corrective actions, and market surveillance of our medical products. Our failure to comply with these complex laws and regulations could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, financial condition and cash flows.

In the United States, before we can market a new medical device, or a new use of, new claim for or significant modification to an existing product, we must first receive either clearance under Section 510(k) of the FDCA or approval of a PMA application from the FDA, unless an exemption applies. Both the PMA and the 510(k) clearance process can be expensive, lengthy and uncertain. The FDA’s 510(k) clearance process may take anywhere from several months to over a year. The process of obtaining a PMA is much more costly and uncertain than the 510(k) clearance process and generally takes from one to three years, or even longer, from the time the application is filed with the FDA. In addition, PMA generally requires the performance of one or more clinical trials.

The FDA also has substantial discretion in the medical device review process. Despite the time, effort and cost, we cannot assure you that any particular device will be approved or cleared by the FDA. Any delay or failure to obtain necessary regulatory approvals could harm our business. Failure can occur at any stage, and we could encounter problems that cause us to repeat or perform additional development, standardized testing, pre-clinical studies and clinical trials. Any delay or failure to obtain necessary regulatory approvals could harm our business.

The FDA or other non-U.S. regulatory authorities can delay, limit or deny clearance or approval of a medical device candidate for many reasons, including a medical device candidate may not be deemed to be substantially equivalent to a device lawfully marketed either as a grandfathered device or one that was cleared through the 510(k) premarket notification process; a medical device candidate may not be deemed to be substantially equivalent to a device lawfully marketed either as a grandfathered device or one that was cleared through the 510(k) premarket notification process; a medical device candidate may not be deemed to be in conformance with applicable standards and regulations; FDA or other regulatory officials may not find the data from pre-clinical studies and clinical trials or other product testing date to be sufficient; other non-U.S. regulatory authorities may not approve our processes or facilities or those of any of our third-party manufacturers, thereby restricting export; or the FDA or other non-U.S. regulatory authorities may change clearance or approval policies or adopt new regulations.

Even after regulatory clearance or approval has been granted, a cleared or approved product and its manufacturer are subject to extensive regulatory requirements relating to manufacturing, labeling, packaging, adverse event reporting, storage, advertising and promotion, recordkeeping, and recalls and field safety corrective actions of the product. If we fail to comply with the regulatory requirements of the FDA or other non-U.S. regulatory authorities, or if previously unknown problems with our products or manufacturing processes are discovered, we could be subject to administrative or judicially imposed sanctions, including restrictions on the products, manufacturers or manufacturing process; adverse publicity; adverse inspectional observations (Form 483), warning letters, non-warning letters incorporating inspectional observations; consent decrees; civil or criminal penalties or fines; injunctions; product seizures, detentions or import bans; voluntary or mandatory product recalls and publicity requirements; suspension or withdrawal of regulatory clearances or approvals; total or partial suspension of production; imposition of restrictions on operations, including costly new manufacturing requirements; refusal to clear or approve pending applications or premarket notifications; and import and export restrictions.

If imposed on us, any of these sanctions could have a material adverse effect on our reputation, business, results of operations and financial condition.

Modifications to our current and our future EksoHealth products may require new 510(k) clearances or premarket approvals, or may require us to cease marketing or recall the modified products until clearances are obtained.

An element of our strategy is to continue to upgrade our robotic exoskeleton platform to incorporate new software and hardware enhancements. Any modification to a 510(k)-cleared device, including our EksoNR, Ekso Indego Therapy, and Ekso Indego Personal, that could significantly affect its safety or effectiveness, or that would constitute a major change in its intended use, design, or manufacture, requires a new 510(k) clearance or, possibly, a PMA. The FDA requires every manufacturer to make this determination in the first instance based on the final guidance document issued by the FDA in October 2017 addressing when to submit a new 510(k) application due to modifications to 510(k)-cleared devices and a separate guidance document on when to submit a new 510(k) application due to software changes to 510(k)-cleared devices. Although largely aligned with the FDA’s longstanding guidance document issued in 1997, the 2017 guidance includes targeted changes intended to provide additional clarity on when a new 510(k) application is needed. The FDA may review our determinations regarding whether new clearances or approvals are necessary, and may not agree with our decisions. If the FDA disagrees with our determinations for any future changes, or prior changes to previously marketed products, as the case may be, we may be required to cease marketing or to recall the modified products until we obtain clearance or approval, and we may be subject to significant regulatory fines or penalties.

We may introduce new products with enhanced features and extended capabilities from time to time. The products may be subject to various regulatory processes, and we may need to obtain and maintain regulatory approvals in order to sell our new products. If a potential purchaser of our products believes that we plan to introduce a new product in the near future or if a potential purchaser is located in a country where a new product that we have introduced has not yet received regulatory approval, planned purchases may be deferred or delayed. As a result, new product introductions may adversely impact our financial results.

We must obtain certain regulatory approvals in the EU, which could be costly and time-consuming and subject us to unanticipated delays or prevent us from marketing certain devices.

In the EU, we are required to comply with the EU MDR and obtain CE Certificates of Conformity in order to affix the CE Mark and market medical devices. As of December 31, 2023, none of our products had yet been approved under the EU MDR. We are currently in the process of obtaining CE Certificates of Conformity in order to affix the CE Mark to the products we acquired in the HMC Acquisition, including Ekso Indego Therapy and Ekso Indego Personal.  Failure to receive the CE Mark as required under the EU MDR, prior to May 25, 2024, for the products acquired in the HMC Acquisition will prevent us from selling those products within the EU. While our application for the CE mark for these products is under regulatory review, we have not received confirmation that we will be able to complete the necessary regulatory steps to obtain the CE Mark by such deadline. In addition, changes in regulatory policy for the approval or CE marking of a medical device during the period of product development and regulatory agency review or notified body review of each submitted new application may cause delays or rejections. In March 2023, the European Commission extended the original compliance dates for the EU MDR.   As a result, the MDR transitional period deadline of May 2024 to 2027 or 2028, based upon the risk class of the device. Failure to comply with the EU MDR requirements by the MDR transitional period deadline would prevent us from generating revenue from sales of our products in the EU, which could adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.

Our failure to meet strict post-market regulatory requirements with respect to our products could require us to pay fines, incur other costs or even close our facilities.

We are required to comply with the FDA’s Quality System Regulation, or QSR, which is a complex regulatory scheme that covers the procedures and documentation of the design, testing, production, process controls, quality assurance, labeling, packaging, handling, storage, distribution, installation, servicing and shipping of our marketed products. These regulatory requirements may significantly increase our production costs and may even prevent us from making our products in amounts sufficient to meet market demand. If we change our approved manufacturing process, the FDA may need to review the process before it may be used. The FDA enforces the QSR through periodic announced and unannounced inspections of manufacturing facilities. Failure to comply with regulatory requirements such as QSR may result in changes to labeling, restrictions on such products or manufacturing processes, withdrawal of the products from the market, voluntary or mandatory recalls, a requirement to repair, replace or refund the cost of any medical device we manufacture or distribute, fines, suspension of regulatory approvals, product seizures, injunctions or the imposition of civil or criminal penalties which would adversely affect our business, operating results and prospects.

Federal, state and non-U.S. regulations regarding the manufacture and sale of medical devices are subject to future changes. The complexity, timeframes and costs associated with obtaining marketing clearances are unknown. Although we cannot predict the impact, if any, these changes might have on our business, the impact could be material.

We may be subject to fines, penalties or injunctions if we are determined to be promoting the use of our products for unapproved or “off-label” uses.

Any cleared or approved product may be promoted only for its indicated uses and our promotional materials must comply with FDA and other applicable laws and regulations. We believe that the specific use for which our products are marketed fall within the scope of the indications for use that have been cleared by the FDA. However, if the FDA determines that our promotional materials or training constitutes promotion of an unapproved use, it could request that we modify our promotional materials or subject us to regulatory or enforcement actions, including the issuance of an untitled letter, a warning letter, injunction, seizure, civil fine and criminal penalties. It is also possible that other federal, state or foreign enforcement authorities might take action if they consider our promotional or training materials to constitute promotion of an unapproved use, which could result in significant fines or penalties under other statutory authorities, such as laws prohibiting false claims for reimbursement. In that event, our reputation could be damaged and adoption of the products would be impaired.

We may be subject to adverse medical device reporting obligations, voluntary corrective actions or agency enforcement actions.

Under the FDA’s medical device reporting or MDR regulations, we are required to report to the FDA any incident in which our product may have caused or contributed to a death or serious injury or in which our product malfunctioned and, if the malfunction were to recur, would likely cause or contribute to death or serious injury. For example, we have been informed of a limited number of events with respect to our EksoNR device that have been determined to be reportable pursuant to the MDR regulations. In each case, the required MDR report was filed with the FDA.

In addition, all manufacturers bringing medical devices to market in the European Economic Area are legally bound to report any incident that led or might have led to the death or serious deterioration in the state of health of a patient, user or other person, and which the manufacturer’s device is suspected to have caused, to the competent authority in whose jurisdiction the incident occurred. In such case, the manufacturer must file an initial report with the relevant competent authority, which would be followed by further evaluation or investigation of the incident and a final report indicating whether further action is required. The events described above that were reported to the FDA were also reported to the relevant EU regulatory authorities.

We are also required to follow detailed recordkeeping requirements for all Company-initiated medical device corrections and removals, and to report such corrective and removal actions to the FDA if they are carried out in response to a risk to health and have not otherwise been reported under the MDR regulations. The FDA and similar foreign governmental authorities also have the authority to require the recall of commercialized products in the event of material deficiencies or defects in design, labeling or manufacture of a product or in the event that a product poses an unacceptable risk to health. Depending on the corrective action we take to redress a product’s deficiencies or defects, the FDA may require, or we may decide, that we will need to obtain new approvals or clearances for the device before we may market or distribute the corrected device. Seeking such approvals or clearances may delay our ability to replace the recalled devices in a timely manner. Moreover, if we do not adequately address problems associated with our devices, we may face additional regulatory enforcement action, including adverse publicity, FDA warning letters, product seizure, injunctions, administrative penalties, or civil or criminal fines. We may also be required to bear other costs or take other actions that may have a negative impact on our sales as well as face significant adverse publicity or regulatory consequences, which could harm our business, including our ability to market our products in the future.

Any adverse event involving our products could result in future voluntary corrective actions, such as recalls or customer notifications, or agency action, such as inspection or enforcement action. Recalls of our products, or agency actions relating to our failure to comply with our reporting or recordkeeping obligations, could harm our reputation and financial results.

Failure to comply with anti-kickback and fraud regulations could result in substantial penalties and changes in our business operations.

Although we do not provide healthcare services, submit claims for third-party reimbursement, or receive payments directly from Medicare, Medicaid or other third-party payers for our products, we are subject to healthcare fraud and abuse regulation and enforcement by federal, state and foreign governments, which could significantly impact our business. These laws may constrain the business and financial arrangements and relationships through which we conduct our operations, including how we research, market, sell and distribute any product for which we have obtained regulatory approval, or for which we obtain regulatory approval in the future. The principal U.S. federal laws implicated include, but are not limited to, those that prohibit, among other things, (i) filing, or causing to be filed, false or improper claims for federal payment, known as the false claims laws, (ii) payment, solicitation or receipt of unlawful inducements, directly or indirectly, for the referral of business reimbursable under federally-funded health care programs, known as the anti-kickback laws, and (iii) health care service providers from seeking reimbursement for providing certain services to a patient who was referred by a physician who has certain types of direct or indirect financial relationships with the service provider, known as the Stark law. Many states have similar laws that apply to reimbursement by state Medicaid and other government funded programs as well as in some cases to all payers.

Efforts to ensure that our business arrangements will comply with applicable healthcare laws and regulations will involve substantial costs. We are subject to the risk that a person or government could allege we have engaged in fraud or other misconduct, even if none occurred. It is possible that governmental and enforcement authorities will conclude that our business practices do not comply with current or future statutes, regulations or case law interpreting applicable fraud and abuse or other healthcare laws and regulations. If our operations are found to be in violation of any of the laws described above or any other governmental regulations that apply to us now or in the future, we may be subject to penalties, including civil and criminal penalties, damages, fines, disgorgement, exclusion from governmental health care programs, additional integrity oversight and reporting obligations, contractual damages, reputational harm and the curtailment or restructuring of our operations, any of which could adversely affect our ability to operate our business and our financial results.

Changes in law or regulation could make it more difficult and costly for us to manufacture, market and distribute our products or obtain or maintain regulatory approval of new or modified products.

From time to time, legislation is drafted and introduced in Congress that could significantly change the statutory provisions governing the regulatory approval, manufacture and marketing of regulated devices. In addition, FDA regulations and guidance are often revised or reinterpreted by the FDA in ways that may significantly affect our business and our products. Any new regulations or revisions or reinterpretations of existing regulations may impose additional costs or lengthen review times of future products. In addition, FDA regulations and guidance are often revised or reinterpreted by the agency in ways that may significantly affect our business and our products. Elections could result in significant changes in, and uncertainty with respect to, legislation, regulation and government policy that could significantly impact our business and the health care industry. It is impossible to predict whether legislative changes will be enacted or FDA regulations, guidance or interpretations changed, and what the impact of such changes, if any, may be.

Any change in the laws or regulations that govern the clearance and approval processes relating to our current and future products could make it more difficult and costly to obtain clearance or approval for new products, or to produce, market, and distribute existing products. Significant delays in receiving clearance or approval, or the failure to receive clearance or approval, for any new products would have an adverse effect on our ability to expand our business.

Healthcare changes in the United States and other countries, including recently enacted legislation reforming the U.S. healthcare system, could have a negative impact on our future operating results.

In the United States and some foreign jurisdictions, there have been a number of legislative and regulatory proposals to change the health care system in ways that could affect our ability to sell our products profitably. For example, in 2010, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, or ACA, was enacted into law. The legislation seeks to reform the United States healthcare system. It is far-reaching and is intended to expand access to health insurance coverage, improve quality and reduce costs over time. We expect the law will have a significant impact upon various aspects of our business operations. The ACA reduces Medicare and Medicaid payments to hospitals, clinical laboratories and pharmaceutical companies, and could otherwise reduce the volume of medical procedures. These factors, in turn, could result in reduced demand for our products and increased downward pricing pressure. It is also possible that the ACA will result in lower reimbursements. While the ACA is intended to expand health insurance coverage to uninsured persons in the United States, the impact of any overall increase in access to healthcare on sales of our products remains uncertain.

Since its enactment, there have been numerous judicial, administrative, executive, and legislative challenges to certain aspects of the ACA, and we expect there will be additional challenges in the future. As a result, there have been delays in the implementation of, and action taken to repeal or replace, certain aspects of the ACA. Most recently, under President Biden, the Department of Justice dropped support of two Supreme Court cases challenging the ACA in addition to a case before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.

We cannot predict the impact that such actions against the ACA or other health care reform under the Biden administration will have on our business, and there is uncertainty as to what healthcare programs and regulations may be implemented or changed at the federal and/or state level in the United States, or the effect of any future legislation or regulation. However, it is possible that such initiatives could have an adverse effect on our ability to obtain approval and/or successfully commercialize products in the United States in the future. For example, any changes that reduce, or impede the ability to obtain, reimbursement for the type of products we intend to commercialize in the United States (or our products more specifically, if approved) could adversely affect our business plan to introduce our products in the United States.

Other legislative changes have been proposed and adopted in the United States since the ACA was enacted. For example, in August 2011, the Budget Control Act of 2011, among other things, created measures for spending reductions by Congress. A Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction, tasked with recommending a targeted deficit reduction of at least $1.2 trillion for the years 2012 through 2021, was unable to reach required goals, thereby triggering the legislation’s automatic reduction to several government programs. This includes aggregate reductions of Medicare payments to providers of up to 2% per fiscal year, which went into effect in April 2013 and will remain in effect through 2030 unless additional Congressional action is taken.

Further, there has been heightened governmental scrutiny in recent years over the manner in which manufacturers set prices for their marketed products and the cost of prescription drugs to consumers and government healthcare programs, which have resulted in several recent Congressional inquiries and proposed and enacted bills designed to, among other things, reduce the cost of prescription drugs, bring more transparency to product pricing, review the relationship between pricing and manufacturer patient programs, and reform government program reimbursement methodologies for products. In addition, the United States government, state legislatures, and foreign governments have shown significant interest in implementing cost containment programs, including price-controls, restrictions on reimbursement and requirements for substitution of generic products for branded prescription drugs to limit the growth of government paid health care costs. For example, the United States government has passed legislation requiring pharmaceutical manufacturers to provide rebates and discounts to certain entities and governmental payors to participate in federal healthcare programs. Further, Congress and the current administration have each indicated that it will continue to seek new legislative and/or administrative measures to control drug costs, and the current administration recently released a “Blueprint”, or plan, to reduce the cost of drugs. The current administration’s Blueprint contains certain measures that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is already working to implement. Individual states in the United States have also been increasingly passing legislation and implementing regulations designed to control pharmaceutical product pricing, including price or patient reimbursement constraints, discounts, restrictions on certain product access and marketing cost disclosure and transparency measures, and, in some cases, designed to encourage importation from other countries and bulk purchasing.

Additional changes may affect our business, including those governing enrollment in federal healthcare programs, reimbursement changes, fraud and abuse enforcement, and expansion of new programs, such as Medicare payment for performance initiatives.

These initiatives, as well as other healthcare reform measures that may be adopted in the future, may result in more rigorous coverage criteria and in additional downward pressure on the price that we receive for any approved product. Any reduction in reimbursement from Medicare or other government programs may result in a similar reduction in payments from private payors. The implementation of cost containment measures or other healthcare reforms could result in reduced demand for our product candidates or additional pricing pressures and may prevent us from being able to generate revenue, attain profitability, or commercialize our products.

Finally, future elections in the United States could result in significant changes in, and uncertainty with respect to, legislation, regulation, implementation of Medicare and/or Medicaid, and government policy that could significantly impact our business and the healthcare industry. The President and the executive branch of the federal government have a significant impact on the implementation of the provisions of the ACA, and the current or future administrations could make changes impacting the implementation and enforcement of the ACA, which could harm our business, operating results and financial condition. If we are slow or unable to adapt to any such changes, our business, operating results and financial condition could be adversely affected.

Failure to comply with the Federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, or HIPAA, the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act, or HITECH Act, and implementing regulations could result in significant penalties.

Numerous federal and state laws and regulations, including HIPAA and the HITECH Act, govern the collection, dissemination, security, use and confidentiality of patient-identifiable health information. HIPAA and the HITECH Act require us to comply with standards for the use and disclosure of such protected health information within our company and with third parties. The Privacy Standards and Security Standards under HIPAA establish a set of basic national privacy and security standards for the protection of individually identifiable health information by health plans, healthcare clearinghouses and certain healthcare providers, referred to as covered entities, and the business associates with whom such covered entities contract for services. Notably, whereas HIPAA previously directly regulated only these covered entities, the HITECH Act, which was signed into law in 2009, makes certain of HIPAA’s privacy and security standards directly applicable to covered entities’ business associates. Both covered entities and business associates are subject to significant civil and criminal penalties for failure to comply with the Privacy Standards and Security Standards under HIPAA.

HIPAA requires healthcare providers like us to develop and maintain policies and procedures with respect to protected health information that is used or disclosed, including the adoption of administrative, physical and technical safeguards to protect such information from unauthorized disclosure. The HITECH Act expanded the notification requirement for breaches of patient-identifiable health information, restricts certain disclosures and sales of patient-identifiable health information and provides a tiered system for civil monetary penalties for HIPAA violations. The HITECH Act also increased the civil and criminal penalties that may be imposed against covered entities, business associates and possibly other persons and gave state attorneys general new authority to file civil actions for damages or injunctions in federal courts to enforce the federal HIPAA laws and seek attorney fees and costs associated with pursuing federal civil actions. The 2013 final HITECH omnibus rule modified the breach reporting standard in a manner that made more data security incidents qualify as reportable breaches. Additionally, certain states have adopted comparable privacy and security laws and regulations, some of which may be more stringent than HIPAA.

If we are determined to be out of compliance with existing or new laws and regulations related to patient health information, we could be subject to criminal or civil sanctions. New health information standards, whether implemented pursuant to HIPAA, the HITECH Act, congressional action or otherwise, could have a significant effect on the manner in which we handle healthcare related data and communicate with payors, and the cost of complying with these standards could be significant.

Any liability from a failure to comply with the requirements of HIPAA or the HITECH Act could adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition. The costs of complying with privacy and security related legal and regulatory requirements are burdensome and could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations.

Regulations requiring the use of “standard transactions” for healthcare services issued under HIPAA may negatively affect our profitability and cash flows.

Pursuant to HIPAA, final regulations have been implemented to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the healthcare system by facilitating the electronic exchange of information in certain financial and administrative transactions while protecting the privacy and security of the information exchanged.

The HIPAA transaction standards are complex, and subject to differences in interpretation by third-party payors. For instance, some third-party payors may interpret the standards to require us to provide certain types of information, including demographic information not usually provided to us by physicians. As a result of inconsistent application of transaction standards by third-party payors or our inability to obtain certain billing information not usually provided to us by physicians, we could face increased costs and complexity, a temporary disruption in accounts receivable and ongoing reductions in reimbursements and net revenue. Changes and updates to HIPAA transaction standards could prove technically difficult, time-consuming or expensive to implement, all of which could harm our business.

Regulatory requirements under Proposition 65 could adversely affect our business.

We are subject to California’s Proposition 65, or Prop 65, which requires a specific warning on any product that contains a substance listed by the State of California as having been found to cause cancer or birth defects, unless the level of such substance in the product is below a safe harbor level. Prop 65 required that all businesses must be in compliance by August 30, 2018 with new regulations that require modifications to product warnings and for businesses to coordinate with upstream vendors or downstream customers for the 800+ regulated chemicals in consumer products and assess whether new occupational exposure warnings need to be posited in California facilities. We have taken steps to add warning labels to our products packaged in California and manufactured after August 30, 2018. Although we cannot predict the ultimate impact of these requirements, they could reduce overall consumption of our products or leave consumers with the perception (whether or not valid) that our products do not meet their health and wellness needs, all of which could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.

We are subject to evolving laws, regulations, and other obligations related to privacy, data protection, and information security, and our actual or perceived failure to comply with such obligations could harm our reputation, subject us to significant fines and liability or otherwise adversely affect our business, financial condition, and operating results.

The regulatory frameworks for privacy, data protection, and information security issues worldwide are rapidly evolving and likely to remain uncertain for the foreseeable future. The U.S. federal and various state, local, and foreign government bodies and agencies have adopted or are considering adopting laws and regulations governing the collection, distribution, use, disclosure, storage, security, and other processing of personal information.

For example, California adopted the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), which became effective in January 2020. The CCPA establishes a privacy framework for covered businesses, including an expansive definition of personal information and data privacy rights for California residents. The CCPA includes a framework with potentially severe statutory damages and private rights of action. Additionally, a new privacy law, the California Privacy Rights Act (CPRA), was approved by California voters in the November 2020 election and went into effect on January 1, 2023. The CPRA significantly modifies the CCPA, potentially resulting in further uncertainty. Other states have begun to propose and enact similar laws. The U.S. federal government also is contemplating federal privacy legislation. Compliance with these laws and regulations is a rigorous and time-intensive process, and we may be required to put in place additional mechanisms to comply with such laws and regulations.

The collection and use of health data and other personal data is governed in the EU by the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), which imposes substantial obligations upon companies and rights for individuals, and by certain EU member state-level legislation. Failure to comply with the GDPR may result in fines up to the greater of €20,000,000 or 4% of the total worldwide annual turnover of the preceding financial year. The UK has implemented legislation similar to the GDPR, referred to as the UK GDPR, which provides for fines of up to the greater of £17.5 million or 4% of global turnover. Many other jurisdictions globally are considering or have enacted legislation providing for local storage of data or otherwise imposing privacy, data protection, and data security obligations in connection with the collection, use, and other processing of personal data. As a general matter, compliance with laws, regulations, contractual obligations, and other actual and asserted obligations, such as industry standards, and any rules or guidance from self-regulatory organizations, relating to privacy, data protection, and data security that apply, or are asserted to apply, to our operations may result in substantial costs and may necessitate changes to our policies and practices, which may compromise our growth strategy, adversely affect our ability to acquire customers, and otherwise adversely affect our business, results of operations, and financial condition.

With laws, regulations, and other obligations relating to privacy, data protection, and information security imposing new and relatively burdensome obligations, and with substantial uncertainty over the interpretation and application of these and other obligations, we may face challenges in addressing their requirements and making necessary changes to our policies and practices. We also may incur significant costs and expenses in an effort to do so. Additionally, if third parties we work with, such as contractors or service providers, violate applicable laws or regulations or our policies, such violations may also put our data at risk and could in turn have an adverse effect on our business. Any failure or perceived failure by us or our contractors or service providers to comply with our applicable policies or notices, our contractual or other obligations to third parties, or any of our other actual or asserted legal obligations relating to privacy or data protection, may result in governmental investigations or enforcement actions, litigation, claims, and other proceedings, harm our reputation, and could result in significant liability. Any such event may adversely affect our business, operating results, and financial condition.

We are subject to cybersecurity risks to our systems, infrastructure, and technology, and data processed by us or third-party vendors.

Our business and operations involve the collection, storage, transmission, and other processing of personal data and certain other sensitive and proprietary data. Numerous organizations have disclosed breaches of their information security systems and other information security incidents, some of which have involved sophisticated and highly targeted attacks. We have been and may in the future be a target for cybersecurity attacks designed to disrupt our operations or to attempt to gain access to our systems, data processed or maintained in our business, trade secrets, or other proprietary information or financial resources. Many of our personnel work remotely all or part of the time, which increases certain security risks. In addition, the risk of state-supported and geopolitical-related cybersecurity attacks is believed to be heightened in connection with the conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East and any related political or economic responses and counter-responses.

We are at risk for interruptions, outages, and breaches of our operational systems, including business, financial, accounting, product development, data processing or production processes, as well as our security systems, in-product software and technology, and customer data. We use third parties to process some data on our behalf, and they face similar security risks. Because techniques used to obtain unauthorized access to or to sabotage information systems change frequently and may not be known until launched against a target, we and the third parties on which we rely may be unable to anticipate or prevent these attacks, react in a timely manner or implement adequate preventive measures, and we may face delays in our detection or remediation of, or other responses to, security breaches and other privacy-and security-related incidents. Such incidents could materially disrupt our systems, result in loss of intellectual property and misappropriation of trade secrets or other proprietary or competitively sensitive information, compromise the confidentiality, security, and integrity of our information, including employees’ personal information, and information of customers or others, jeopardize the security of our facilities, or affect the performance of our products. The loss, corruption, or unavailability of clinical trial data from completed or future clinical trials could result in delays in our regulatory approval efforts and significantly increase our costs to recover or reproduce the impacted data. Certain efforts may be state-sponsored or supported by significant financial and technological resources, making them even more difficult to detect, remediate and otherwise respond to.

Although we have implemented and are in the process of implementing additional systems and processes that are designed to protect our data and systems within our control, prevent data loss, and prevent other security breaches and security incidents, these measures cannot guarantee security. The systems and infrastructure used in our business may be vulnerable to cyberattacks or security breaches or incidents, and third parties may be able to access data, including personal data and other sensitive and proprietary data or other sensitive and proprietary data, or such data otherwise may be subject to unauthorized use, disclosure, unavailability, modification, or other processing. Employee error, malfeasance or other errors in the storage, use or transmission of any of these types of data could result in an actual or perceived privacy or security breach or other security incident.

Any security breach or security incident impacting our systems or infrastructure, or data we or third parties on which we rely maintain or otherwise process, or any outages or other disruptions to systems used in our business, could interrupt our operations and result in the loss of or improper access to, or acquisition or disclosure of, data or a loss of intellectual property protection. Any such breach or incident, or the perception it has occurred, also may harm our reputation and competitive position, harm our product development and regulatory approval efforts, reduce demand for our products, damage our relationships with customers, partners, collaborators or others, and result in claims, demands, litigation, regulatory investigations and proceedings and significant legal, regulatory and financial exposure. Any such event may adversely affect our business, operating results, and financial condition. We expect to incur significant costs in an effort to detect and prevent privacy and security breaches and other privacy- and security-related incidents, and may face increased costs and requirements to expend substantial resources in the event of an actual or perceived privacy or security breach or other incident.

While we maintain insurance that may cover certain liabilities in connection with certain disruptions, security breaches, and incidents, our insurance policies may not be adequate to compensate us for the potential losses arising from any disruption in or, failure or security breach or incident of or impacting our systems or third-party systems where information important to our operations or product development is stored or processed. In addition, such insurance may not be available to us in the future on economically reasonable terms, or at all. Further, our insurance may not cover all claims made against us and could have high deductibles in any event, and defending a suit, regardless of its merit, could be costly and divert management attention.

Product Liability Risks

Our products may become subject to voluntary or involuntary recall.

The FDA and similar foreign governmental authorities have the authority to require the recall of commercialized products in the event of material deficiencies or defects in design or manufacture or in the event that a product poses an unacceptable risk to health. In addition, manufacturers may, under their own initiative, recall a product if any material deficiency in a device is found. A government-mandated or voluntary recall by us could occur as a result of an unacceptable risk to health, component failures, manufacturing errors, design or labeling defects or other deficiencies and issues. 

When a medical human exoskeleton is used by a paralyzed individual to walk, the individual relies completely on the exoskeleton to hold them upright. There are many exoskeleton components that, if they were to fail catastrophically, could cause a fall resulting in severe injury or death of the patient. Certain of our competitors have reported injuries caused by the malfunction of human exoskeleton devices (in at least one case to the FDA). Injuries caused by the malfunction or misuse of human exoskeleton devices, even where such malfunction or misuse occurs with respect to one of our competitor’s products, could cause regulatory agencies to implement more conservative regulations on the medical human exoskeleton industry, which could significantly increase our operating costs.

Similarly, when an industrial exoskeleton is used by a healthy individual - for example to operate heavy machinery overhead - malfunction of the device at an inopportune moment could result in severe injury or death of the person using the device. Such occurrences could result in regulatory action on the part of OSHA or its foreign counterparts.

Any future recalls of any of our products could divert managerial and financial resources, impair our ability to manufacture our products in a cost-effective and timely manner, and have an adverse effect on our reputation, results of operations and financial condition. In some circumstances, such adverse events could also cause delays in new product approvals. We may also be required to bear other costs or take other actions that may have a negative impact on our future sales and our ability to generate profits.

In addition, personal injuries relating to the use of our products could also result in product liability claims being brought against us. Any product liability claim brought against us, with or without merit, could result in substantial damages, be costly and time-consuming to defend and could increase our insurance rates or prevent us from securing insurance coverage in the future.

Our product liability insurance may not adequately cover potential claims or recalls.

The testing, manufacture, marketing and sale of medical devices and industrial products entail the inherent risk of liability claims or product recalls. Although we maintain product liability insurance, the coverage is subject to deductibles and limitations, and may not be adequate to cover future claims. A successful product liability claim or product recall could inhibit or prevent the successful commercialization of our products, cause a significant financial burden on us, or both, which in either case could have a material adverse effect on our business and financial condition.

Warranty claims and our accelerated maintenance program results in additional operating costs to us.

Sales of our EksoNR and Ekso Indego products generally include a one-year warranty for parts and services in the United States and a two-year warranty in EMEA and APAC. We also generally provide customers with an option to purchase an extended warranty for up to an additional four years. The costs associated with such warranties, including any warranty-related legal proceedings, could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations, cash flows and liquidity. As we enhance our product and in an effort to build our brand and drive adoption, we have elected to incur increased service expenses related to an accelerated maintenance program, field corrections and the implementation of technological improvements developed subsequent to many of our units being placed into service, sometimes outside of its warranty and contractual obligations. Continuation of these activities could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations, cash flows and liquidity.

Risks Related to Ownership of Common Stock

You may be diluted from future issuances of our equity securities, including from compensatory equity awards, exercise of outstanding warrants, or issuances of securities in financing or strategic transactions, and such issuances, or perception that such issuances may occur, could depress the market price of our common stock.

Future operating or business decisions may cause dilution to our stockholders. For example, we may sell equity securities or issue securities exercisable or convertible into shares of our common stock in connection with strategic transactions or for financing purposes, including under an At The Market Offering Agreement we entered into in October 2020 with H.C. Wainwright & Co., LLC ("Wainwright") or otherwise through our “shelf” registration statement on Form S-3 (File No. 333-272607). Through March 4, 2024, we have $4.3 million available for future offerings under our current prospectus for our “at the market offering”. We may also make equity grants under one or more employee equity incentive plan or our Employee Stock Purchase Plan. You may also be subject to dilution from the exercise or settlement of outstanding options or restricted stock units under the Incentive Plan, and from the exercise of our warrants. In addition, sales or issuances of a substantial number of shares of our common stock, or other equity-related securities in the public markets, or the perception that such sales or issuances could occur, could depress the market price of our common stock.

We do not expect, nor do our historical operating results suggest, that cash flows generated from operations will be sufficient to meet our material cash requirements in the long term. Management expects that our historical reliance on external financing, from both equity and debt financings, like issuances under our At The Market Offering Agreement and our recently completed registered direct offering in January 2024, for example, will continue to provide the capital necessary to meet our material cash requirements in the long term. Management has not yet determined the form such additional financing may take, but management expects that the most likely forms include one or more of the following: (i) underwritten offerings of shares of our common stock, (ii) sales of shares of our common stock under an "at the market" offering program, (iii) incurring indebtedness with one or more financial institutions, (iv) sale of product line or technology, and (v) the factoring of trade receivables.

The ability of our Board of Directors to issue additional stock may prevent us from making more difficult transactions, including a sale or merger.

Our Board of Directors is authorized to issue up to 10 million shares of preferred stock with powers, rights and preferences designated by it. Shares of voting or convertible preferred stock could be issued, or rights to purchase such shares could be issued, to create voting impediments or to frustrate persons seeking to effect a takeover or otherwise gain control of us. The ability of the Board of Directors to issue such additional shares of preferred stock, with rights and preferences it deems advisable, could discourage an attempt by a party to acquire control of us by tender offer or other means. Such issuances could therefore deprive stockholders of benefits that could result from such an attempt, such as the realization of a premium over the market price for their shares in a tender offer or the temporary increase in market price that such an attempt could cause. Moreover, the issuance of such additional shares of preferred stock to persons friendly to the Board of Directors could make it more difficult to remove incumbent officers and directors from office even if such change were to be favorable to stockholders generally.

We have never paid and do not intend to pay cash dividends.

Cash dividends have never been declared or paid on our common stock, and we do not anticipate such a declaration or payment for the foreseeable future. We expect to use future earnings, if any, to fund business growth. Therefore, stockholders will not receive any funds absent a sale of their shares of common stock. If we do not pay dividends, our common stock may be less valuable because a return on investment will only occur if our stock price appreciates

The market price of our common stock has been, and may continue to be, highly volatile.

During the period from our initial listing on Nasdaq on August 9, 2016 through December 31, 2023, the closing price of our common stock fluctuated from a high of $93.15 per share to a low of $0.67 per share (on a split-adjusted basis), and our stock price continues to fluctuate. The market price of our common stock may continue to fluctuate significantly in response to numerous factors, some of which are beyond our control, such as our ability to grow our revenue and customer base; the announcement of new products or product enhancements by us or our competitors; developments concerning regulatory oversight and approvals; variations in our and our competitors’ results of operations; changes in earnings estimates or recommendations by securities analysts, if our common stock is covered by analysts; successes or challenges in our collaborative arrangements or alternative funding sources; developments in the rehabilitation and industrial robotics markets; the results of product liability or intellectual property lawsuits; future issuances of common stock or other securities; the addition or departure of key personnel; announcements by us or our competitors of acquisitions or divestments, investments or strategic alliances; and general market conditions and other factors, including factors unrelated to our operating performance or otherwise disclosed herein.

Trading of our common stock is limited, which may affect our stock price.

Trading of our common stock is currently conducted on Nasdaq. The liquidity of our common stock is limited, not only in terms of the number of shares that can be bought and sold at a given price, but also as it may be adversely affected by delays in the timing of transactions and low coverage by research analysts and the media, if at all. These factors may result in different prices for our common stock than might otherwise be obtained in a more liquid market and could also result in a larger spread between the bid and asked prices for our common stock. In addition, without a large public float, our common stock is less liquid than the stock of companies with broader public ownership, and, as a result, the trading prices of our common stock may be more volatile. In the absence of an active public trading market, an investor may be unable to liquidate his or her investment in our common stock. Trading of a relatively small volume of our common stock may have a greater impact on the trading price of our stock than would be the case if our public float were larger. Additionally, sales by stockholders of substantial amounts of our shares of common stock, the issuance of new shares of common stock by us or the perception that these sales may occur in the future could materially and adversely affect the market price of our common stock, and you may lose all or a portion of your investment in our common stock.

Item 1B.  UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS

None.

Item 1C. CYBERSECURITY

Risk Management and Strategy

We perform a formal risk assessment each year. As part of its risk assessment, we consider the potential for cybersecurity threats, including but not limited to interruptions, outages and breaches to its operational and financial systems. We have policies, processes, internal controls and tools to assess, identify, and manage material risks from potential cybersecurity threats. We utilize a combination of cybersecurity awareness training, manual processes, specialized software and automated tools, and third-party assessments to build our cybersecurity program. We engage third-party service providers, with significant information technology and cybersecurity experience, to assist with designing, implementing and managing our information technology infrastructure and cybersecurity program. We are also currently developing a cybersecurity incident response plan that establishes a formal framework for responding to cybersecurity incidents, including defining what constitutes a reportable cybersecurity incident; establishing specific escalation and communication channels; identifying parties responsible for managing and responding to each incident; and other preparedness and response activities. 

Governance

The Audit Committee of our Board of Directors (the "Audit Committee") provides oversight over our internal control program, including the adequacy and effectiveness of our information technology infrastructure and cybersecurity program. Each quarter, management provides updates to the Audit Committee regarding its internal control program, including any significant changes to its information technology infrastructure or cybersecurity program. Management also reports any material risks from cybersecurity threats to the Audit Committee. Management periodically provides the Audit Committee with updates on cybersecurity risks and/or trends.

Our management team, specifically the chief executive officer and the chief financial officer, are responsible for the day-to-day administration of our business operations, including our risk management of cybersecurity risks. Management is responsible for the design and implementation of policies, processes and internal controls to manage our cybersecurity risks. Our management team regularly meets with their information technology resources, including its third-party service providers, to ensure that we are appropriately positioned to manage our cybersecurity risks. Our management team also sponsors periodic cybersecurity awareness training for employees.

As of the date of this Form 10-K, we are not aware of any cybersecurity threats that have materially affected or are reasonably likely to materially affect us, including our business strategy, results of operations or financial condition. For further discussion of the cybersecurity risks, see "Part I—Item 1A. Risk Factors," specifically the risks titled "We are subject to cybersecurity risks to our systems, infrastructure, and technology, and data processed by us or third-party vendors.” No matter how well designed or implemented our internal controls are, we will not be able to anticipate all cybersecurity threats, and we may not be able to implement effective preventive or detective measures against such security breaches in a timely manner. While we maintain insurance that may cover certain liabilities in connection with certain disruptions, security breaches, and incidents, there can be no guarantee that our insurance coverage will be adequate to compensate us for the potential losses.

Item 2.  PROPERTIES

Our principal executive offices are currently located at 101 Glacier Point, Suite A, San Rafael, California, 94901, where we lease approximately 17,000 square feet. The San Rafael office serves as headquarters for our medical device and industrial device sales segments. We currently lease manufacturing facilities in Macedonia, Ohio from Parker Hannifin Corporation to support the production and service of the Ekso Indego product lines. Outside of the United States, we lease approximately 3,000 square feet of office space at Friesenweg 4, House 13, 4th floor, 22763 Hamburg, Germany for our European headquarters.

We do not own any real property.

Item 3.  LEGAL PROCEEDINGS

From time to time we are subject to legal proceedings and claims arising in the ordinary course of business. Based on our current knowledge, we believe that the amount or range of reasonably possible losses will not, either individually or in the aggregate, have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, or financial condition.

The results of any litigation cannot be predicted with certainty, and an unfavorable resolution in any legal proceedings could materially affect our future business, results of operations, or financial condition. Regardless of the outcome, litigation can have an adverse impact on us because of defense and settlement costs, diversion of management resources, and other factors. For additional information, please refer to Note 16. Commitments and Contingencies in our notes to the consolidated financial statements.

Item 4.  MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURES

Not applicable.

PART  II

Item 5.  MARKET FOR REGISTRANT'S COMMON EQUITY, RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS AND ISSUER PURCHASES OF EQUITY SECURITIES

Market Information and Dividend Policy

Our common stock has been traded on the Nasdaq Capital Market under the symbol “EKSO” since August 9, 2016. Prior to August 9, 2016, our common stock was eligible for quotation and traded on the OTC Market. The quotation of our common stock on the OTC market began on or about January 16, 2014. The closing price of EKSO stock as of  March 1, 2024 was $1.99.

As of March 1, 2024, we had approximately 175 stockholders of record of our common stock. This number does not include stockholders whose shares are held in investment accounts by other entities. We believe that the actual number of stockholders is greater than the number of holders of record.

We have never declared or paid cash dividends on our common stock and do not intend to pay cash dividends in the foreseeable future. Payment of future dividends, if any, will be at the discretion of our board of directors after taking into account various factors, including our financial condition, operating results, restrictions imposed by financing arrangements, if any, legal and regulatory restrictions on the payment of dividends, current and anticipated cash needs and other factors the board of directors deems relevant. 

Securities Authorized for Issuance Under Equity Compensation Plans

See Item 12, “Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management and Related Stockholder Matters” of this Annual Report on Form 10-K for information regarding securities authorized for issuance under equity compensation plans.

Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities

None.

Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities

None.

Item 6.  RESERVED

Item 7.  MANAGEMENT'S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

You should read the following discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations together with the consolidated financial statements and the related notes included elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K. This discussion and other parts of this Annual Report on Form 10-K contain forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties, such as statements of our plans, objectives, expectations and intentions, which are based on the beliefs of our management, as well as assumptions made by, and information currently available to, our management. Our actual results could differ materially from those discussed in or implied by these forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include, but are not limited to, those discussed in the section of this Annual Report on Form 10-K titled “Risk Factors.” For a discussion related to the results of operations for 2022 compared to 2021, refer to “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” in our 2022 Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the SEC on March 28, 2023.

Overview

 
Our Business
 
We design, develop, and market exoskeleton products that augment human strength, endurance, and mobility. Our exoskeleton technology serves multiple end markets and can be utilized both by able-bodied persons and those with physical disabilities or impairments. The majority of our sales have and are expected to be generated in our EksoHealth Segment, which includes the sales of products and services related to neurorehabilitation in clinical settings. We believe that our Enterprise Health business line will be a source of stable and growing sales. As a result of our acquisition of the Human Motion and Control (“HMC”) Business Unit from Parker Hannifin Corporation (“Parker”), in 2022, we also provide products and service to individual users, primarily driven by sales of our Ekso Indego Personal product in our Personal Health business line.

In addition to our current products and services, we continue to explore business development initiatives to fuel growth and long-term value in our existing segments. 
 
EksoHealth
 
Our Enterprise Health business line focuses on sales of our EksoNR and Ekso Indego Therapy products to customers, including inpatient rehabilitation hospitals and clinics as well as some outpatient rehabilitation clinics. Our marketing to these customers involves the education of clinical and executive stakeholders on the economic and clinical value of our products and services. In tandem, we continue to leverage our EksoNR and Ekso Indego customer base to educate and mentor strategic target centers that specialize in stroke, ABI and SCI rehabilitation in specific geographies.

Our Personal Health business line is focused on marketing and sales of our Ekso Indego Personal product to individual users. These individual users are currently served by the Veterans Administration, which provides our products to qualified veterans for individual use, individuals who are covered under worker’s compensation insurance, and private individuals who pay out of pocket.  We are pursuing Medicare reimbursement for products in this business line.

EksoWorks

Sales of products to able-bodied individuals for use in industrial or work-related use are represented by our EksoWorks segment. Our only active product within our EksoWorks segment is EVO. Our primary end market for our EksoWorks segment is comprised of commercial enterprises that are focused on solving ergonomic challenges for their workers. These challenges include injury prevention, fatigue reduction, and/or improved worker productivity. While EVO is a general-purpose product, we currently target specific vertical markets including aerospace, automotive, general manufacturing, and certain construction trades. 

Economic and Industry Trends   
 

Our revenue is highly dependent on market demand for our exoskeleton products. This market demand is influenced by many factors including the level of awareness of robotic exoskeleton rehabilitation among the rehabilitation clinics with significant stroke, ABI, and SCI populations, the imperatives among construction and manufacturing companies to drive adoption of improved safety and health practices, the levels of reimbursements our customers will be able to receive, as well as conditions relating to overall economic growth and general business activity. Difficult and challenging economic conditions, including an increasingly inflationary environment, could lead to increased price-based competition. In particular, the effects of such increasing price-based competition may have an especially significant impact on certain products that we offer, including the EksoNR and Ekso Indego, which have a lengthy sale and purchase order cycle because they are major capital expenditure items and generally require the approval of senior management at purchasing institutions. Furthermore, we do business in the Americas, EMEA and APAC, which results in our business being impacted by demand changes in each of those regions, as well as changes in the strength of the local currencies relative to the U.S. Dollar. 
 
If we are successful in obtaining CMS reimbursement for Indego Personal, we believe we will see increased demand for this device as we are able to more economically serve the larger U.S. patient population suffering from SCI. Specifically, according to the National Spinal Cord Injury Statistical Center, an estimated 294,000 individuals are currently living with SCI and another 17,810 suffer from new SCI injuries each year. Approximately 56% of individuals with SCI are enrolled in Medicare or Medicaid within 5 years post-injury. If Medicare reimbursement goes into effect, we plan to sell products to individuals in this market through Durable Medical Equipment suppliers (DMEs). DMEs typically resell products from DME manufacturers to individual users. DMEs are responsible for the Medicare reimbursement process, which requires a physician’s prescription and evidence of medical necessity to be submitted to and approved by Medicare before reimbursement is provided.  See “Part I—Item 1A. Risk Factors,” specifically the risk titled “Coverage policies and reimbursement levels of third-party payers, including Medicare or Medicaid, may impact sales of our products,” for more information.

Results of Operations

Consolidated Results of Operations: December 31, 2023 compared to the year ended December 31, 2022 (dollars in thousands):

Revenue

Revenue increased $5.4 million, or 42%, for the year ended December 31, 2023, compared to the same period of 2022. This increase was comprised of a $5.9 million increase in EksoHealth revenue, partially offset by a $0.5 million decrease in EksoWorks. The increase in EksoHealth revenue is primarily due to an increase in the volume of EksoNR and Indego device sales. The decrease in EksoWorks revenue was primarily driven by a reduction in the volume of EVO sales and the absence of the recognition of royalty revenue in the comparable period of 2022 related to an expired license and distribution agreement. Revenue from our EVO product line was affected by delays from our transition to our contract manufacturer.

Gross Profit and Gross Margin

Gross profit increased $2.9 million, or 46%, for the year ended December 31, 2023, compared to the same period of 2022, due to an increase in EksoHealth device sales.

Gross margin increased to approximately 50% for the year ended December 31, 2023, compared to a gross margin of 48% for the same period in 2022, due to lower device costs.

Operating Expenses

Sales and marketing expenses increased $1.3 million, or 18%, for the year ended December 31, 2023, compared to the same period of 2022. The increase was primarily due to additional headcount associated with the acquisition of HMC.

Research and development expenses increased $1.4 million, or 39%, for the year ended December 31, 2023, compared to the same period of 2022, primarily due to additional headcount associated with the acquisition of HMC and costs associated with HMC-sponsored research agreements.

General and administrative expenses decreased $0.3 million, or 3%, for the year ended December 31, 2023, compared to the same period of 2022, primarily due to the absence of legal expenses incurred in 2022 associated with the acquisition of HMC, partially offset by an increase in audit services incurred in 2023 in connection with the acquisition of HMC.

Other (Expense) Income, Net

Interest expense, net increased $0.1 million, or 94%, for the year ended December 31, 2023, compared to the same period of 2022, due to the interest related to the promissory note in connection with the HMC acquisition.

Loss on revaluation of warrant liabilities of $0.1 million and gain on revaluation of warrant liabilities of  $1.3 million for the years ended December 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022, respectively, were associated with the revaluation of warrants issued in 2019, 2020 and 2021. Gains and losses on revaluation of warrants are primarily driven by changes in our stock price.

Unrealized gain on foreign exchange was $0.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2023, compared to unrealized loss on foreign exchange of $0.7 million for the same period of 2022, primarily due to foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations producing unrealized gains and losses on our inter-company monetary assets and liabilities.

Liquidity and Capital Resources

As of December 31, 2023, we had $8.6 million of cash of which $8.0 million was held domestically and $0.6 million was held by our foreign subsidiaries. On January 16, 2024, we sold an aggregate of 3.0 million shares of common stock in a registered direct offering at a price of $1.55 per share, which generated net proceeds of approximately $3.9 million after deducting placement agent fees and our estimated offering expenses. We intend to use such net proceeds for general corporate purposes. Cash consisted of bank deposits with third-party financial institutions.

As of December 31, 2023, we had working capital of $12.1 million, compared to $21.8 million as of December 31, 2022. The decrease in working capital was primarily due to cash outflows from operations of $12.1 million. 

We have financed our operations primarily through the issuance and sale of equity securities for cash consideration and through bank debt.

In October 2020, we entered into an At The Market Offering Agreement (the "ATM Agreement") with H.C. Wainwright & Co., LLC (the "Agent"), under which we may issue and sell shares of our common stock, from time to time, to or through the Agent. Offers and sales of shares of common stock by us through the Agent may be made by any method deemed to be an “at the market offering” as defined under SEC Rule 415 or in privately negotiated transactions, subject to certain conditions. Such shares may be offered pursuant to the registration statement on Form S-3 (File No. 333-272607) (the “Registration Statement”), which was declared effective by the SEC on June 20, 2023, and a related prospectus supplement filed with the SEC on July 28, 2028 (the “ATM Prospectus”). Pursuant to the Registration Statement and the ATM Prospectus, shares having an aggregate offering price of up to $5.0 million may be offered and sold, subject to certain SEC rules limiting the amount of shares of the Company’s common stock that we may sell under the Registration Statement. In June 2023, we entered into an amendment to the ATM Agreement that removed the requirement that shares of our common stock may not be sold for a price lower than $6.75 per share. During the year ended December 31, 2023, we sold 451,321 shares of common stock under the ATM Agreement at an average price of $1.59, for aggregate proceeds of $0.7 million, net of commission and issuance costs. As of December 31, 2023, we had $4.3 million available for future offerings under the prospectus filed with respect to the ATM Agreement.

As described in Note 10. Notes Payable, Net in the notes to our consolidated financial statements, borrowings under our secured term loan agreement with Pacific Western Bank have a requirement of minimum cash on hand equivalent to the current outstanding principal balance, which is due in full in August 2026. As of December 31, 2023, $2.0 million of cash must remain as restricted. After considering cash restrictions, effective unrestricted cash as of December 31, 2023 is estimated to be $6.6 million. 

Cash and Restricted Cash

The following table summarizes the sources and uses of cash for the periods stated (in thousands):

Net Cash Used in Operating Activities

Net cash used in operating activities decreased $2.6 million for the year ended December 31, 2023, compared to the same period of 2022, primarily due to an increase in sales and the absence of business development costs incurred in the comparable period, partially offset by payments of acquisition and integration costs associated with HMC.

Net Cash Used in Investing Activities

Net cash used in investing activities decreased $5.0 million for the year ended December 31, 2023, compared to the same period of 2022 due to the absence of the payment of $5.0 million for the HMC Acquisition in 2022.

Net Cash Provided by Financing Activities

Net cash provided by financing activities of $0.3 million for the year ended December 31, 2023, was generated from the sale of common stock through our “at-the-market offering” program, which was offset by a principal payment related to our notes payable. There were no comparable cash inflows generated in financing activities for the year ended December 31, 2022.

Material Cash Requirements

The Company's material cash requirements include the following items, some of which are represented in the table of Contractual Obligations and Commitments: (1) employee wages, benefits and incentives, (2) the procurement of raw materials and components to support the manufacturing and sale of the Company's products, (3) expenditures for the ongoing improvement and development of existing and new technologies, (4) debt repayments (for additional information see Note 10. Notes Payable, net in the notes to the Company's consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in the Annual Report on Form 10-K), and (5) operating lease payments (for additional information see Note 11. Lease Obligations in the notes to our consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in the Annual Report on Form 10-K).

As described in Note 1. Organization: Liquidity and Going Concern of the notes to our consolidated financial statements, management believes that substantial doubt exists about our ability to meet cash requirements twelve months from the issuance of such financial statements, and such substantial doubt is not alleviated by our plans.

The Company does not expect, nor do our historical operating results suggest, that cash flows generated from operations will be sufficient to meet our material cash requirements in the long term. Management expects that the Company's historical reliance on external financing, from both equity and debt financings, will continue to provide the capital necessary to meet its material cash requirements in the long term. Management has not yet determined the form such additional financing may take, but management expects that the most likely forms include one or more of the following: (i) underwritten offerings of shares of our common stock or other offerings of equity and/or equity-linked securities, (ii) sales of shares of our common stock under an "at the market" offering program, (iii) incurring indebtedness with one or more financial institutions, and (iv) the factoring of trade receivables.

Contractual Obligations and Commitments

The following table summarizes our outstanding contractual obligations, including interest payments, as of December 31, 2023 and the effect those obligations are expected to have on our liquidity and cash flows in future periods (in thousands):

Refer to Note 16. Commitments and Contingencies in our notes to the consolidated financial statements for additional information regarding our contractual obligations and commitments.

Off-Balance Sheet Arrangements

As of December 31, 2023, we did not have any significant off-balance sheet arrangements, as defined in Item 303(a)(4)(ii) of SEC Regulation S-K promulgated under the Exchange Act.

Critical Accounting Estimates

Our discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations is based upon our consolidated financial statements, which have been prepared in accordance with U.S. GAAP. The preparation of these consolidated financial statements requires us to make estimates, judgments and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets, liabilities, revenue and expenses, and the related disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities. We base our estimates on historical experience and on various other assumptions that we believe are reasonable under the circumstances. Our estimates form the basis for our judgments about the carrying values of assets and liabilities that are not readily apparent from other sources. Actual results may differ from these estimates. Our most critical accounting estimates include:

Standalone Selling Prices

Our device sales arrangements contain multiple products and services, most often including the device(s) and service, both of which we have identified as distinct performance obligations. Revenue is allocated to each performance obligation based on its relative standalone selling price. Standalone selling prices are based on observable prices at which we separately sell the products or services. If a standalone selling price is not directly observable, then we estimate the standalone selling prices considering market conditions and entity-specific factors including, but not limited to, features and functionality of the products and services, geographies, type of customer, and gross margin targets. Changes in the relative standalone selling price between devices and service can have an impact on how transaction prices are allocated between revenue and deferred revenue.

Warrant Liabilities

We use the Black-Scholes option-pricing model to value our warrant liabilities at each reporting period, which requires the input of highly subjective assumptions, most notably the estimated volatility of our common stock over the expected term. We use our historical common stock volatility to estimate expected volatility over the warrant terms. Management must also make uncertain estimates regarding the likelihood and timing of certain future events for application of the Lattice Model for the valuation of certain warrants. Changes in these assumptions could have potential material impacts on the estimated fair value of warrant liabilities. During the year ended December 31, 2023, management made changes to its estimates regarding the likelihood and timing of future events. We do not believe the revision resulted in a material impact to the estimated fair value of warrant liabilities measured using the Lattice Model.

Inventory Valuation

Inventory is stated at the lower of cost or net realizable value. Cost is computed using the standard cost method which approximates actual cost on a first-in, first-out basis. The cost basis of our inventory is reduced for any products that are considered excessive or obsolete based upon assumptions about future demand and market conditions. If actual future demand or market conditions are less favorable than those projected by management, additional inventory write-downs may be required, which could have a material adverse effect on the results of our operations.

Deferred Tax Asset

We estimate a valuation allowance in consideration of the realizability of our net deferred tax assets, primarily based on our assessment of the timing, likelihood and amounts of potential future income during which such items become deductible. It is inherently difficult and subjective to estimate such amounts, as we must determine the probability of various possible outcomes and estimate future amounts. Management does not believe it is more likely than not that we will generate future income in a time frame and amount sufficient to realize our net deferred tax assets. Changes in management's estimate of future income in the timeframe during which the temporary differences and carryforwards comprising our deferred tax assets become deductible could result in a material impact to our financial position including the recognition of a net deferred tax asset.

Assets acquired and liabilities assumed in business combinations

We allocate the fair value of the purchase price of an acquisition to the tangible and intangible assets acquired and liabilities assumed based on their estimated fair values. Such valuations require management to make significant estimates and assumptions, especially with respect to intangible assets. Significant estimates in valuing certain intangible assets include, but are not limited to, the amount and timing of projected future cash flows based on expected future growth rates and margins, discount rate used to determine the present value of these cash flows, future changes in technology and royalty for similar brand licenses, and asset lives. Management's estimates of fair value are based upon assumptions believed to be reasonable, but which are inherently uncertain and unpredictable, and as a result, actual results may differ from estimates. Allocation of purchase consideration to identifiable assets and liabilities affects our amortization expense, as acquired finite-lived intangible assets are amortized over the useful life, whereas any indefinite-lived intangible assets, including goodwill, are not amortized. During the measurement period, which may be up to one year from the acquisition date, we may record adjustments to the assets acquired and liabilities assumed, with the corresponding offset to goodwill. Upon the conclusion of the measurement period, any subsequent adjustments are included in the consolidated statement of operations.

Future warranty costs

Sales of devices generally include an initial warranty for parts and services for one year in the Americas, two years in Europe, the Middle East, Africa (EMEA), and one or two years in the Asia Pacific (APAC) region. A liability for the estimated cost of product warranty is established at the time revenue is recognized based on the historical experience of known product failure rates and expected material and labor costs to provide warranty services. Specific additional warranty accruals may be made if unforeseen technical problems arise. Alternatively, if estimates are determined to be greater than the actual amounts necessary, a portion of the liability may be reversed in future periods. At the end of each reporting period, we estimate our future warranty costs related to products sold during the period. This liability represents our best estimate of the costs we will incur to fulfill warranty obligations for products sold during the period. At least annually, we review and update our estimates based on actual warranty claims experience.

Accounting for leases

In accordance with ASC 842, Leases, at the inception of an arrangement, we determine whether the arrangement is or contains a lease based on the unique facts and circumstances present, generally based on whether we have the right to obtain substantially all of the economic benefits from the use of an identified asset and whether we have the right to direct the use of an identified asset in exchange for consideration, which relates to an asset which we do not own. Operating lease liabilities and their corresponding right-of-use assets are recorded based on the present value of lease payments over the expected lease term. The interest rate implicit in lease contracts is typically not readily determinable. As such, we utilize our incremental borrowing rate to determine the present value of the future lease payments, which is a hypothetical rate based on our understanding of what our credit rating would be to borrow and resulting interest we would pay to borrow on a collateralized basis over a similar term an amount equal to the lease payments in a similar economic environment. Certain adjustments to the right-of-use asset may be required for items, such as initial direct costs paid or incentives received. Lease payments may be fixed or variable; however, only fixed payments are included in our lease liability. Variable lease payments may include costs such as common area maintenance, utilities, or other costs. Variable lease payments are recognized in operating expenses in the period in which the obligation for those payments is incurred.

Useful lives assigned to long-lived assets

The useful life of an asset represents the period during which the asset is expected to contribute directly or indirectly to future cash flows. We estimate the useful lives of the Company’s long-lived assets based on various factors, including the expected period of economic benefit of the asset in use, our intended use of the asset, economic factors such asset obsolescence and technological advances, any limitations imposed by legal, regulatory, or contractual requirements, and industry norms. These assumptions affect the timing and amount of depreciation expense, which could have a material adverse effect on the results of our operations.

Accounting Policies

An accounting policy is considered to be critical if it requires an accounting estimate to be made based on assumptions about matters that are highly uncertain at the time the estimate is made, and if different estimates that reasonably could have been used, or changes in the accounting estimate that are reasonably likely to occur, could materially impact the consolidated financial statements. We believe that our critical accounting policies reflect the more significant estimates and assumptions used in the preparation of the consolidated financial statements. Refer to Note. 2 Summary of Significant Accounting Policies and Estimates in the notes to our consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

Recent Accounting Pronouncements

See Note 2. Summary of Significant Accounting Policies and Estimates—Recent Accounting Pronouncements in the notes to our consolidated financial statements for a discussion of new accounting pronouncements.

ITEM 7A.  QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURES ABOUT MARKET RISK

Foreign Currency Risk

We report our financial results in United States dollars; however, we conduct business in foreign countries. For U.S. reporting purposes, we translate all assets and liabilities of our non-U.S. subsidiaries at the period-end exchange rate, equity at historical exchange rates, and revenue and expenses at the average exchange rates in effect during the periods. The net effect of these translation adjustments is shown in the accompanying consolidated financial statements as a component of stockholders’ equity.

Currently, we sell our products mainly in U.S. dollars, Euros, and Singapore dollars in our company entities in the Americas, EMEA, and APAC regions, respectively. We generate a portion of our revenue and collect receivables in foreign currencies other than the functional currencies of our company entities and, as such, we have foreign currency exposure. Future fluctuations in the foreign exchange rates of these currencies can result in foreign exchange gains and losses that may impact our financial results. In the past, we have not hedged our exposures to foreign currencies or entered into any other derivative instruments and we have no current plans to do so. For the year ended December 31, 2023, sales denominated in foreign currencies were approximately 29% of total revenue. A hypothetical 10% increase in the United States dollar exchange rate used would have resulted in a $0.5 million decrease to revenues for 2023.

Interest Rate Risk

Our exposure to market rate risk for changes in interest rates relates primarily to our term loan. The variable interest rate related to our long-term debt is charged at the greater of  the variable rate of interest announced by the lender as its “prime rate” then in effect or 4.50%. A hypothetical 10% change in the lender's prime rate would have an immaterial impact on our annualized interest expense.

Ekso Bionics Holdings, Inc.

Consolidated Balance Sheets

(In thousands, except par value amounts)

See accompanying notes to consolidated financial statements

Ekso Bionics Holdings, Inc.

Consolidated Statements of Operations and Comprehensive Loss

(In thousands, except per share amounts)

See accompanying notes to consolidated financial statements

  Ekso Bionics Holdings, Inc.

Consolidated Statements of Stockholders’ Equity

(In thousands)

See accompanying notes to consolidated financial statements

Ekso Bionics Holdings, Inc.

Consolidated Statement of Cash Flows

(In thousands)