REFR
Research FrontiersDDocument history
Earnings documents stored for REFR.
Investor releaseQuarter not tagged2026-08-06Research Frontiers Reports Second Quarter 2026 Financial Results and Will Host a Conference Call at 4:30 p.m. Today
GlobeNewswire
Research Frontiers Reports Second Quarter 2026 Financial Results and Will Host a Conference Call at 4:30 p.m. Today
WOODBURY, N.Y., Aug. 06, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Research Frontiers Inc. (Nasdaq: REFR) announced its financial results for its second quarter of 2026. Management will host a conference call today at 4:30 p.m. Eastern Time to discuss its financial and operating results as well as recent developments. “The second quarter continued to reflect the temporary impact of our principal SPD-Smart light control film supplier's reduced production, rather than any change in the underlying demand for SPD-Smart technology," said Joseph M. Harary, President and CEO of Research Frontiers. "Throughout this period our customers remained committed, we added a new licensee, continued advancing new applications including black SPD technology, and maintained our strong intellectual property portfolio. While near-term financial results in the second quarter were affected by reduced SPD film production, we believe the resource-related issues at Gauzy is nearing its conclusion and we remain confident in the long-term opportunities for SPD technology.” Management expects during today’s conference call to discuss the status of developments at Gauzy including current SPD film production, and the Company's contingency plans to support future manufacturing capacity. For more details, please see the Company’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the fiscal quarter ending June 30, 2026. About Research Frontiers Research Frontiers (Nasdaq: REFR) is a publicly traded technology company and the developer of patented SPD-Smart light-control film technology that allows users to instantly, precisely and uniformly control the shading of glass or plastic products, either manually or automatically. Research Frontiers has licensed its smart glass technology to numerous companies that include well known chemical, material science and glass companies. Products using Research Frontiers’ smart glass technology are being used in tens of thousands of cars, aircraft, yachts, trains, homes, offices, museums and other buildings. For more information, please visit our website at www.SmartGlass.com, and on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube. Note: From time to time Research Frontiers may issue forward-looking statements which involve risks and uncertainties. This press release contains forward-looking statements. Actual results, especially those reliant on activities by third parties, could differ and are n…Read full documentShow less
WOODBURY, N.Y., Aug. 06, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Research Frontiers Inc. (Nasdaq: REFR) announced its financial results for its second quarter of 2026. Management will host a conference call today at 4:30 p.m. Eastern Time to discuss its financial and operating results as well as recent developments. “The second quarter continued to reflect the temporary impact of our principal SPD-Smart light control film supplier's reduced production, rather than any change in the underlying demand for SPD-Smart technology," said Joseph M. Harary, President and CEO of Research Frontiers. "Throughout this period our customers remained committed, we added a new licensee, continued advancing new applications including black SPD technology, and maintained our strong intellectual property portfolio. While near-term financial results in the second quarter were affected by reduced SPD film production, we believe the resource-related issues at Gauzy is nearing its conclusion and we remain confident in the long-term opportunities for SPD technology.” Management expects during today’s conference call to discuss the status of developments at Gauzy including current SPD film production, and the Company's contingency plans to support future manufacturing capacity. For more details, please see the Company’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the fiscal quarter ending June 30, 2026. About Research Frontiers Research Frontiers (Nasdaq: REFR) is a publicly traded technology company and the developer of patented SPD-Smart light-control film technology that allows users to instantly, precisely and uniformly control the shading of glass or plastic products, either manually or automatically. Research Frontiers has licensed its smart glass technology to numerous companies that include well known chemical, material science and glass companies. Products using Research Frontiers’ smart glass technology are being used in tens of thousands of cars, aircraft, yachts, trains, homes, offices, museums and other buildings. For more information, please visit our website at www.SmartGlass.com, and on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube. Note: From time to time Research Frontiers may issue forward-looking statements which involve risks and uncertainties. This press release contains forward-looking statements. Actual results, especially those reliant on activities by third parties, could differ and are not guaranteed. Any forward-looking statements should be considered accordingly. “SPD-Smart” and “SPD-SmartGlass” are trademarks of Research Frontiers Inc. CONTACT:Joseph M. HararyPresident and CEOResearch Frontiers [email protected] RESEARCH FRONTIERS INCORPORATEDCondensed Consolidated Balance Sheets RESEARCH FRONTIERS INCORPORATEDCondensed Consolidated Statements of Operations(Unaudited) RESEARCH FRONTIERS INCORPORATEDCondensed Consolidated Statements of Shareholders’ Equity(Unaudited) For the six months ended June 30, 2025 and 2026 For the three months ended June 30, 2025 and 2026 RESEARCH FRONTIERS INCORPORATEDCondensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows(Unaudited)
TranscriptFY2026 Q22026-08-06FY2026 Q2 earnings call transcript
Earnings source - 189 paragraphs
FY2026 Q2 earnings call transcript
Good afternoon, and welcome to Research Frontiers investor conference call to discuss the second quarter of 2026 results of operations and recent developments. The company will be answering many of the questions that were emailed to it prior to this conference call in their presentation. In some cases, the company has responded directly to email questions prior to this call or will do so afterwards. There will be a live question and answer session after the company's presentation. Some statements today may contain forward-looking information identified by words such as expect, anticipate, and forecast. These reflect current beliefs and actual results may differ materially from those expressed due to various risk factors, including those detailed in our SEC filings. Research Frontiers assumes no obligation to update or revise these statements.
The call is being recorded and will be available for replay on Research Frontiers' website at smartglass.com for the next 90 days. I would now like to turn the conference over to Joe Harary, President and Chief Executive Officer of Research Frontiers. Please go ahead, sir.
Thank you, Paul, and good afternoon, everyone. I'd like to welcome all of you to our second quarter 2026 investor conference call. Before I begin discussing the current quarter, I'd like to start by talking about our last conference call. Many of you have noticed that unlike virtually every other conference call we've held over the years, we did not have a live question and answer session. Some shareholders criticized that decision, and I understand why. The reason wasn't because we were trying to avoid questions. In fact, throughout our history, we've devoted an extraordinary amount of time to answering shareholder questions, not only during our conference calls, but also before and after them by email and telephone. I estimate we've probably spent more time in open dialogue with shareholders than many companies our size. The decision last quarter was driven by timing.
At the time of our last conference call, there were significant court proceedings underway involving our principal licensee, Gauzy. We believe it would have been inappropriate and potentially harmful to speculate publicly while those proceedings were still unfolding. Judges generally prefer that important matters be resolved in their courtroom rather than in the court of public opinion, and we believe the responsible course was to allow that legal process to move forward. Today, the situation is much clearer than it was three months ago, and so rather than simply reading mostly from a prepared script, I'd like this call to be more of a town hall meeting. I'll spend a few minutes discussing where we are today, what has happened over the past several quarters, and perhaps more importantly, what has not happened. I'd like to devote most of our remaining time to answering your questions.
Out of respect to your fellow shareholders, so we can answer as many live questions as we can on this call, I ask that you try to keep your questions to those that are of general interest to shareholders. When I step back and look objectively at the past nine months, I think it's important not to lose sight of the bigger picture. We spent the last several quarters dealing with an extraordinary situation. Let's be clear about what that situation actually was. Understanding this is important because it explains almost everything that has happened over the past nine months. It was not a technology problem. It was not a product problem. It was not a customer acceptance problem. It was not a competitive problem. It was fundamentally a supply chain disruption resulting from the financial restructuring of our principal SPD film manufacturer and licensee, Gauzy.
Everything that followed flowed from that one event. Making that distinction is important because it explains both the challenges we experienced and why we remain optimistic about the future. Sometimes companies and their investors become so focused on what did happen that they lose sight of what didn't happen. We did not lose confidence in our technology. We did not lose our intellectual property. We did not lose our automotive qualifications. We did not lose our development pipeline. We did not lose customer interest. Remarkably, we did not lose the major programs already underway. In fact, what impressed me most over the past nine months was the patience shown by our customers and the hard work by our licensees. These are sophisticated global companies with many alternatives available to them, yet they remain committed to SPD, and that tells me something very important.
They understand the unique performance advantages SPD technology provides, they continue to believe those advantages are worth having and worth waiting for. I think that patience is perhaps the strongest independent valuation of our technology that we could have asked for. Another proof point came from something that occurred during this very challenging period. We actually entered into a new license agreement with KLIM, a division of New York Stock Exchange-listed company, Polaris, and a globally recognized leader in premium motorcycle equipment to develop SPD applications for motorcycle helmet visors and sports goggles. Think about what that says. During one of the most difficult periods in our industry's recent history, another company carefully evaluated SPD technology, evaluated our intellectual property, evaluated the markets they wanted to serve, and decided that now is the right time to become a Research Frontiers licensee.
Companies don't make long-term product development decisions based on technologies they don't believe in. They do so because they see opportunity. That agreement wasn't just another press release. It was another independent validation of where SPD technology is headed. Many people have asked, what has management been doing during these past several quarters? The answer is simple. We haven't been standing still. While Gauzy worked through its restructuring, we continued to support them as well as moving the business forward. Development of Black SPD technology continued. Another encouraging validation came from the CEO of LTI or AIT, the company that developed our retrofit product for the architectural market. He not only remains enthusiastic about the opportunity for SPD retrofit products, but also personally participated in our February friends and family financing.
I believe that's another indication that people who know this technology best and know our industry best continue to have confidence in where it's all headed. Our retrofit product for the architectural market continued to advance and is well positioned to move forward as film production returns to normal. We continue supporting automotive OEM programs. We continue supporting aircraft programs. In fact, two major new programs were won during this period. We continue working with our licensees and customers around the world. We continue strengthening relationships with existing customers while adding new ones. We continue managing our expenses carefully while preserving the financial flexibility necessary to position the company for future growth. In other words, we didn't spend nine months waiting, we spent nine months preparing.
We spent nine months navigating through the challenges that Gauzy faced and helped them and their customers and their industries move forward. Some investors have asked, why don't we simply establish another SPD film manufacturer immediately? It's a reasonable question. Historically, Research Frontiers has had only one commercial SPD film manufacturer at any given time. First Hitachi, then Gauzy. Producing automotive-grade SPD film is not like purchasing an off-the-shelf commodity. It requires years of development, substantial capital investment, highly specialized manufacturing expertise, and perhaps most importantly, consistent quality that automotive manufacturers demand. Could there be additional film manufacturers in the future? Certainly. Those decisions have to be made thoughtfully because consistency and quality are absolutely critical in the automotive industry. I'd also like to briefly address two accounting matters that a few shareholders had asked us about right before this call.
First, the reserve and going concern language relating to receivables associated with Gauzy and Vision Systems. Our accounting treatment reflects uncertainty regarding timing, not uncertainty about our expectation of ultimate collectability. The test is you have to have auditable proof that you're going to get paid within 12 months to count something. We believe these amounts will ultimately be collected in full. However, because the exact timing depends upon court-supervised proceedings outside of our control, our auditors appropriately recommended that we take a conservative accounting approach. We would not have to do that had the court indicated, for example, that on September seventeenth or eighteenth, distributions will be made to creditors. In any event, this is prudent financial reporting, and it should not be interpreted as a change in management's confidence regarding ultimate collection. Second, regarding our Nasdaq listing compliance. Our board and management are actively monitoring the situation.
Our objective remains to regain compliance to improve business performance and improve market valuation. We believe that's the appropriate long-term solution rather than something like a reverse stock split. One thing I've learned over many years in this business is that technology companies are often tested not when everything is going well, but when unexpected events occur. Over the past nine months, I believe the entire SPD ecosystem has demonstrated remarkable resilience. Mercedes has continued supporting its existing SPD-equipped vehicles. Programs with Ferrari remain intact. Programs with Cadillac remain intact. Programs with McLaren remain intact. Aircraft opportunities continue moving forward, and as I mentioned earlier, two new ones from a large OEM were won recently. Retrofit development and project acquisition continues. New applications continue to emerge. New licensees continue joining us. Customer enthusiasm has remained strong.
When I look at all these facts together, I don't see a technology or a company in retreat. I see a technology whose underlying momentum has continued despite a temporary interruption in its supply chain. Our business model remains exactly what it's always been. We invent, we innovate, we license, and our licensees manufacture. Our customers incorporate SPD into products that improve the lives of people around the world. That business model has enabled us to build an extraordinary intellectual property portfolio while addressing markets ranging from automotive and aerospace to architecture, marine, transportation, and now premium eyewear. In addition to what our licensees have invested, Research Frontiers has invested well over $125 million over the years to bring SPD technology from the laboratory and into commercial production. Many companies spend years proving that a technology works in the laboratory but never succeed in commercializing it.
Others achieve commercialization but never reach the quality, consistency, reliability, and cost structure demanded by industries like automotive and aerospace. We and our licensees have accomplished all that. SPD today is not an experimental technology. It is a proven, reliable commercial product that has met the demanding standards of some of the world's leading manufacturers, and we're the only company that has done that across four different automotive OEMs. Many companies never get that far. They never accomplish that. Many spend considerably more before ultimately abandoning their technologies. We didn't. SPD has proven in reliable commercial technology. When I step back today and look at where we are today compared with a year ago, I actually see more reasons for optimism than pessimism. The smart glass market continues to expand. Our intellectual property portfolio is strong. Our application pipeline continues to broaden.
We've added a new licensee, we added two new aircraft programs, and our customers have remained committed. The restructuring process that has dominated so much of our recent discussion regarding Gauzy is substantially closer to its conclusion than to its beginning, and may be concluded as soon as next month. Nine months ago, some investors wondered whether SPD technology could survive the disruption created by Gauzy's restructuring. Today, I believe the evidence points to a very different conclusion. SPD didn't simply survive. It continued attracting customers. It continued attracting new licensees. It continued opening new applications, and it continued earning the confidence of companies making long-term commitments to the technology. Our job now is to convert that resilience into renewed growth as production returns to normal.
We have a great deal of work ahead of us, and I remain very confident in the long-term opportunities for SPD technology and the dedication of the people who work every day to realize that opportunity. With that, rather than continue with prepared remarks, I'd like to turn this town hall discussion over. Let's open the floor to questions. As always, if your questions are of general interest to our shareholders, we'll answer as many as we can during today's call. If we don't get to your question or if it's specific to your individual circumstances, please contact us after the call and we'll do our best to respond as promptly as possible. We usually respond to email questions within 24 hours. Thank you. Let's begin.
As we wait for people to join the Q&A queue, let me answer a question received from several shareholders about the status of current production of SPD emulsion and film, and possible scenarios that Research Frontiers might be considering. This is probably the most asked question I have received, so I know it's on many people's minds right now. As Gauzy has publicly disclosed, its financial restructuring substantially affected its operations over the past several months. Like many companies undergoing court-supervised restructurings, there were periods when liquidity constraints affected its ability to operate at normal production levels. Also, workers were unpaid, and some left and some were laid off. As a result, production of SPD emulsion and film slowed significantly and at some point essentially stopped while those issues were being addressed. Things started to flow again.
Gauzy has continued supplying customers using existing inventories of SPD emulsion and film while working through the restructuring process. That inventory, together with careful prioritization of customer requirements, has allowed important programs to continue, even though production has not yet been at the level any of us would like. You can see this reflected in the lower royalties that we had this quarter. Looking forward, there are several possible paths by which the supply of SPD film can continue, and they all ultimately support the same long-term objective: restoring and expanding production capacity. The first plan, Plan A, is what we believe to be the most likely outcome. Gauzy successfully completes its restructuring and resumes full-scale production of both SPD emulsion and SPD film. This would be the least disruptive to our supply chain and the timing of product deliveries.
Another possible outcome, Plan B, would be for Gauzy to continue manufacturing SPD emulsion while another qualified company coats that emulsion into finished SPD film. Plan C would be for another qualified manufacturer to produce both SPD emulsion and SPD film under license from us. Finally, depending on circumstances and opportunities that may arise, Plan D is that Research Frontiers itself could participate more directly in preserving or acquiring certain SPD manufacturing assets, if doing so we're determined to be in the best interest of our shareholders. The important point is that none of these scenarios changes the long-term opportunity for SPD technology. They simply represent different paths forward towards restoring and expanding manufacturing capacity. Some may be more disruptive to our supply chain than others, so we are also factoring that in.
Variants of these contingency plans are all underway, Once again, our expectation is that Gauzy will successfully emerge from bankruptcy shortly under Plan A. Our objective remains exactly what it has always been: to ensure that the market has a reliable, high-quality supply of SPD film capable of supporting the growing demand we continue to see across automotive, aerospace, architectural, and other markets. Paul, if we have any questions in the queue, let's try them.
If you would like to ask a question, please press star one on your telephone keypad now. You will be placed into the queue in the order received.
Please be prepared to ask your question when prompted. Once again, if you would like to ask a question, please press star one on your phone now. Our first question comes from Jeff Harvey, an investor.
Hi, Joe.
Hey, Jeff. How are you?
Good. Couple of questions. First of all, given the financial difficulty that Gauzy's in, I'm very concerned they're not going to be able to get funding to the level that they would need to really be able to ramp up film production for your customers. The second thing is, as you mentioned to me, it was announced that Clayens bought Vision Systems, then you told me that they never got approval for aerospace applications. I just wondered if you could talk a little bit about that. Today, Gauzy traded 230 million shares, which is a highly unusual number.
Yes, it is.
At $0.07, ended up at $0.40, now $0.38 after hours. I don't know if
Yeah
there's something today at the French court.
Okay. Great questions, Jeff, and thank you for asking them. Let me start with the first question you had, which is about the financial ability of Gauzy moving forward. I'm going to throw out some numbers, and it's my best understanding of the situation in France, in Germany, and in Israel. In France, there was a bankruptcy proceeding, an involuntary bankruptcy proceeding, or what they call a rehabilitation proceeding filed. As part of that process, Gauzy presents a plan of continuation, and they're presenting a revised plan on September 7th, so coming up. The plan of continuation that they presented actually had major funding coming from the sale of a division that doesn't involve SPD technology. My understanding was that it was an American company that was well-capitalized in the industry that offered $125 million.
For some reason, that was for a sliver of the Vision Systems company business. For some reason, I'm not sure what it was, the court instead directed that the entire Vision Systems company, including that division that could've been sold for $125 million, be sold to a company called Clayens, which is a local company not too far from where Vision Systems is in France. We may never know what happened there, and the lawyer representing France committed suicide at some point right before the hearing. It just seems odd that they would reach that result where they would accept EUR 9 million or roughly $10 million for the entire company compared to a signed agreement for $125 million for part of it. That's one of the things that I think in September will work itself through.
What I'm told is, one of the rules of tendering, like Clayens did, is that if you lose an appeal, you lose the money you put down. They put down EUR 9 million, and it's being held in escrow by the court. Regardless of whether Gauzy wins or loses that appeal, that $9 million is released to pay Vision Systems' debt, which pays us in full. If they win the appeal, they still get the EUR 9 million, but they also get $125 million. That alone can be a substantial benefit to Gauzy. They're not just relying on that. In Israel, they've got a court approval on July 18th rather, so very recently, for a debt restructuring plan. It's not through a bankruptcy proceeding. It's through a negotiated process under Israeli law.
What that process does, and I'm not an expert in Israeli reorganization law, but what it does basically is it pays all of the employees $1.00 on the dollar immediately. Okay. That's great because we got to get people back to work and making film and emulsion. It also takes some of the institutional creditors, like the Israeli equivalent of the IRS and their pension funds, pension regulatory agency, and it pays them off over five years after a six-month break before they start paying. Five years, they get pushed out interest-free, and they paid that off. Larger creditors, we don't qualify for that is my understanding, get paid after a six-month hiatus over three years. Then companies like us are owed less amounts of money, and we get paid immediately from that.
In order to do that, Gauzy has to show that they have the money to execute on that plan. They've arranged for, and I know two of the participants are former directors of Gauzy that have invested substantial amounts of money, and I think they're each billionaires, in Gauzy over the years, to supply a $7 million financing. That financing allows them to pay off the employees and the smaller creditors, get production started again in Germany. I'm told, as of this morning when I spoke to the CEO of Gauzy, that money has started to flow towards Germany now as a result of that financing. Things are starting to restart because of all this. I think ultimately what's going to happen is Gauzy is going to emerge from this as a leaner, better capitalized, and I think more focused company.
That'll be good for us. Your second question was why would the court sell plans to a company that didn't have the necessary operating permits to run an aerospace company? It's very hard to get an answer on that, so I can't opine. My understanding was that the equivalent of the French FAA actually weighed in to confirm that Clayens did not have the permits necessary to run an aerospace business. We'll see what happens in September on that. Your third question, I'm trying to remember. I'm sorry.
Well, as I mentioned, their stock traded 230 million shares today.
Oh.
Was there something that-
There was no news that either I nor the CEO of Gauzy was aware of that would account for that kind of price movement and volume. I think at one point it went up to $0.94. It was crazy. We were actually on the phone when it was happening. Around 10:30 A.M. this morning, the volume and the stock was going nuts.
In looking back, though, what would have been the process of switching to another manufacturer? I'm just concerned this is going to drag on a long time. Your revenue is going to be down for the next few quarters as a result of this. Why not go to the plan B and switch to somebody else?
Well, that takes time, and given the fact that there would be two entrants in the market sharing a market, it becomes a little more difficult than if there's one entrant in the market. It's one of the plans that we're pursuing, Jeff, is to talk to a third-party manufacturer that can do everything. It also takes time for them to gear up. If you look at Hitachi, they had this as the special project of the president with all the resources and best engineers and any money they needed, and they were licensed in 1999, and it wasn't until 2010 that after five years of testing at Mercedes-Benz, that a commercial product came out. The situation is different. You have an established market now. You don't have an emerging market with no customers like existed back then.
If you just do the math, it took them four or five years to get SPD film up to automotive quality. This is Hitachi Chemical, which has excellent precision coating capabilities. Gauzy took less time to do it. Because the technology has matured and technology has advanced, such as coating and curing technology, it probably is not going to take as long to get a new person up and running. In our discussions, a lot of the companies already have the necessary equipment and capabilities. That's kind of the things we're pursuing in parallel here.
Okay. Thank you.
Thanks a lot.
Thank you. Our next question comes from John Nelson, an investor.
Hi, Joe.
Hey, John.
Thanks for supplying a lot of useful information regarding updates for the company and the Gauzy situation. The options provided are available. The questions I have are more related to the product line. You had mentioned the German plant was not producing film, I'm assuming the Israeli plant is still producing?
Well, it's not really a matter of producing film. A lot of the people weren't allowed to return to work until there was actually a plan in place to pay them. Remember, these are countries that protect workers quite strongly. Once things started flowing back towards Germany and in Israel with the recent developments, including the July 18th court hearing where the court approved the debt restructuring plan. It still has to go to creditors, when they approved that started the flow of money towards getting people back to work. We don't have to wait for every T to be crossed and I to be dotted for that to happen. In the meantime, I think Gauzy doesn't want to deplete their inventory completely because they need to replenish it for some of the bigger orders that are waiting.
Are you, or I should say, is Gauzy currently shipping products to some or all of your current customer list?
They have been. As of today, I don't know if they have to wait to make more film. Everybody has been pretty much kept in the information loop and we're able to plan around this disruption, which is something that Research Frontiers took a very active role in terms of helping these customers as well as Gauzy. We want to keep the customers happy.
Okay, good. Do you think you'll be able to name the two new major aircraft programs that you said-
This morning I went on the manufacturer's website, and for whatever reason, they just said, "Smart windows." They didn't name it yet. I think like everything, with the passage of time, we're able to reveal more and more. Let's let the customer have a little bit of time, and then after that, you may hear their name on the conference call, on a future conference call. Similar to what we did with Ferrari, where we announced it a couple of years before Gauzy formally got permission, but we were able to do it.
Okay. Then, you mentioned Ferrari. They have a new model that they've introduced. Is there any indications that your product will be offered on the new model as an option?
I don't see on their configurator a lot of information about it. That doesn't mean that it's not an option or not. I think at some point, we'll be able to perhaps say something. It's a weird world that these automotive companies live in, and I can understand it. They want you thinking about their name, not Research Frontiers or anyone else's name. They're very reluctant to name who the suppliers are.
Mm-hmm. Understood. You had mentioned that the SPD Black development program was still being continued.
Moving forward, yes. The idea with the Black SPD, obviously, is to get something that's not the sapphire blue, but more of a black. I've seen samples of the product. It looks amazing. I saw it when I was in Israel. I saw it in the backroom at CES, a much cruder form than when I saw it in Israel, basically it's advanced a lot. Really, it's just a matter of resource and people. They have the emulsion. They need people and the ability to put that through. Certainly, it's an exciting product.
Okay, good. On the retrofit product, has that been officially introduced or marketed, and if not, do you have any sense of when the timing, when that product will be available for customers?
Sure. Let me share with you a conversation. I think it'll probably answer your question indirectly, if I could, John. The CEO of LTI, he's owed money from Gauzy. We had a conversation maybe about a week ago, and I gave him an update as to everything that I knew was going on at Gauzy, based on my own analysis and my conversations, almost on a daily basis with Gauzy. He said, "That's all really good, Joe, but the main thing I'm interested in is getting film production restarted again, because there is huge business in the retrofit that dwarfs anything I'm owed." He's already started, and is ready to hit the ground running with that.
Mm-hmm. Okay, good.
What I like about the architectural retrofit is the lead times are much more within everyone's control. It's really a sales and marketing and spec job. You speak to the project, you get it specced in, and then you deliver the glass. As opposed to automotive, where it could take three or four years.
Years.
This is a lot quicker, and especially when it's a retrofit where there's not a lot of prep you have to do. You could just go in over a weekend and upgrade an existing building.
Okay, good. Looking forward to seeing some product sales out of that category. Thank you.
Me too. Thanks.
Yeah.
Our next question comes from Bruce Denny, an investor. Mr. Denny, your line is open. Mr. Denny, can you hear us?
Can we come back to him? He may not otherwise resolve yet. Okay. All right. Just as a reminder, if you would like to ask a question, please press star one on your phone now. Our next question comes from Michael K. of K Associates.
Thank you. I may have to leave in the middle because someone will be coming. There was a conflict in terms of time. Could you hear me?
Sure, can we hear you. By the way, congratulations.
Oh, thank you.
Congratulations, professor, on the award that the university gave you.
Yeah.
It's a very nice recognition.
Thank you. I appreciate it. Several things. During many conference calls, you indicated two things, more than two, that the SPD was superior to all other types of light control technologies on the market, also that in terms of cost-cutting, the sweet spot had been reached. Given that, even before the Gauzy, as such a travesty or whatever you want to call it seems that-
I call it hitting a brick wall.
Yeah.
It's true. The performance and the cost were all coming in line nicely, then, around that same time, I think that was in September, by November they hit the brick wall.
Well, I want to ask that I would think that given those two attributes, lower cost and superiority of the technology, that there would have been many more contracts and deals being made with OEMs. I would think also that given the price of the shares, just pennies, that some companies simply wouldn't acquire Research Frontiers unless there's a poison pill or something like that that would make it difficult.
There is a poison pill in place, and other shark repellents to make sure that when we do get an offer, our shareholders are getting a fair offer. As far as deals, the way this works is you don't see an announcement of a deal between us and, let's say, a car company. You see a supply agreement being granted to a glass company, and that's usually the extent of the visibility, and usually that happens well after the contract has been awarded. I remember with Mercedes-Benz, I once asked the head of the project, I said, "Hans, why don't you announce that Pilkington and Asahi haven't won the business?" He goes, "Joe, we keep everybody off balance a little bit in our supply chain, so we wait till the last minute.
The other thing is, one of the positives, I've been a very long-time shareholder, as you had mentioned several times that it was important to have another company that could do the film and the emulsion. That was extremely prescient, so to speak, because now that would have come in handy to have a backup company.
Right
Given the mishegoss, if you'd pardon the expression.
Yes
that happened with Gauzy.
Right.
You didn't follow through on your feeling about the importance, maybe even having a company in the U.S., that could do film and emulsion and such.
I addressed it a bit earlier. I'm not sure if you were on the call back then, but we talked about that specific question about why do you have one film supplier and not multiple ones.
The other thing, the last one. What I don't understand, do you have contacts with the SEC or something? Given the share price of the company, the fact that it did not meet it's not profitable, but especially that it's been trading well under $1. How come it has not been delisted? I don't want such to occur, of course.
Well, it's not the SEC-
In the light of the circumstance, yeah.
Sure. Well, no, it's not a matter of circumvention. We received a notice from Nasdaq. It wouldn't be the SEC. The SEC basically deals with the registration of securities and making sure that in that process, there's proper disclosure of everything to investors. That's the extent of what the SEC really does. They also prosecute insider trading and all this other stuff. Basically, they don't get involved with listing. That's under the umbrella of Nasdaq or the New York Stock Exchange, who sets the listing standards. We did receive a notice when our stock went below $1 for a certain period of time, that we had 180 days, which puts us till the end of November, basically, to come back in compliance. That also puts us in compliance with the market value requirement as well.
What I said earlier was, we plan on addressing that by good old-fashioned operational excellence and results of operation. If it doesn't happen, we'll reevaluate that as we get closer to November. Usually, they give you another 180 days, although it's not guaranteed, if you don't meet the first one. So-
Basically, you have until November or even later to comply with.
Right. What I believe is going to happen, Michael, is that once the cloud is lifted over Gauzy. Because all this happened really as a result of Gauzy hitting that brick wall that they did. Once that left it.
I apologize.
Okay. All right. Thank you. Good talking to you.
Thank you very much.
Good talking to you. We'll catch up after the call if you want.
All right. At this time, we have no further questions in the queue. I'll turn the call back-
Okay.
Oh, actually, sorry. We did just get a question. As a reminder-
Sure
if you do have a question, make sure that you press star one on your telephone keypad. Our next question comes from Gerard Sherman, an investor.
Hi, Joe. A question for you on the cash situation. What are we looking at for the next raise, and how do you plan on doing it?
Not sure we're going to have to if we collect what we're owed, and that's part of the balancing. Also, if we go to plan D, okay, which is us maybe acquiring some of the production assets of Gauzy, we would need more than if we did plan A, B, or C. It's probably too early to figure out if we need to raise money and how much. If we do need to raise for a plan D, us acquiring the production assets, then it would be more than if it's just for working capital and things like that. As of the end of the quarter, we had over $1 million. Right.
Yeah, that makes sense. What are our options? Do we have any ability of taking on debt? Does it always have to be an equity raise? Do you have more than one option?
All options are available. We've avoided debt since 1986, but under the right circumstances, that may be appropriate. As a board, we'll discuss that if it becomes a discussion topic. If we collect what we're owed and the market restarts the way we think it will, we may not have to raise capital.
Okay. All right. Thank you.
Thanks.
Our next question comes from Bruce Denny, an investor.
Hello?
Hey, Dr. Denny. How are you?
Good. How are you?
Very good.
Sorry about the snafu earlier.
Glad you're okay.
Yeah. I wanted to ask about that new contract you're talking about with an airline or manufacturer.
Yes.
What scale are we talking about? Boeing or
Well, we already have Boeing and Airbus. This would be some new programs. This manufacturer was so interested and enthusiastic about SPD that it actually wrote a letter to the French court explaining why SPD is strategically important to it, which was nice to see. I happened to be in Melbourne, Florida, at the Vision Systems North America facility when that person was there, we had an opportunity also to chat about it, and he's very excited about it. That's all I can say. At this point, I do think that it's nice when customers support you like that, and they definitely stepped up to the plate for Gauzy.
Oh, very good. Are they major manufacturers?
Yes. You would've heard of them.
Right. Are they employing the SPD technology in greater numbers, or is it still very low volume that they're doing, or what do you see happening?
When you say very low volume, it depends on what you're comparing it to. For example, the transport category aircraft market is one-tenth of the size of the sunroof market for cars. It's still a $25 million revenue opportunity for Research Frontiers. Relatively speaking, it's not the volume that you would get from architectural or automotive in terms of the dollar values, but it's still very significant. The good thing about our business is it doesn't cost us anything to be diversified across all these different industries because we don't have the manufacturing costs.
Right.
We collect our royalty. The royalty per window is much higher there. One window in aircraft is like 10 windows in, let's say, automotive.
Oh, I see. Yeah. Are you aware of any-
Actually, it's 15 because we get a higher royalty also in aircraft.
Okay. Well, that's encouraging. How about General Motors? I know they're getting their toe in the water with the CELESTIQ. Have you been in discussions with them about introducing it in other products?
Yeah. We've had multiple discussions. One is just high volume cars within GM. Because of, I think, the benefits that SPD has that they're demonstrating in the CELESTIQ, they could easily translate that experience into other cars. Well, they didn't shoot themselves in the foot. Their supplier shot themselves in the foot with the Corvette roof. It was a competitor of ours, and it didn't go well. They weren't able to mass produce it, and they had to pull it from production. That hurt the supplier, but it helps us because I think it makes the fact that we've been in four different car model manufacturers and multiple car models even more remarkable, that we were able to operate in the rigors of the automotive environment.
Mm-hmm. How about the Asian market? Asian manufacturers interfacing with that?
Yeah. Moving forward on all fronts. Like I said earlier, the most remarkable thing about this process is that the technology is so strong and beneficial that people, I think, understand the value and it's remarkable, but they've stayed with us, so.
Okay. All right.
It's a tribute to our licensees and to our technology.
Okay, very good. Thank you, Joe.
Thank you.
Our next question comes from Leonard Litzau, an investor.
Good afternoon, Joe. I appreciate your call and the information you're giving us. I think we need people like that.
Len, I think we lost you for a minute there. Can you repeat that?
Yeah, she keeps telling me my line is on hold.
Hold on. Now I can hear you. Now I can hear you fine.
Okay
It just clicked off.
Okay. Well, I want to thank you for all of the information that came out. It seems like everything is moving forward. My question, assuming that we get through this thing between now and the end of September, how quick will the volumes start increasing so that when nobody's left and the auto manufacturers, you say, are still there, and with the retrofit of the windows, which would be obviously a very big push, I would assume. Are you seeing the ability of them to make enough film to satisfy what's out there? Will it happen by the end of the year?
Yeah, I believe yes to both questions. There's been a pent-up demand because of the supply issue that needs to be filled, but there's also new projects-
Black. Yeah
are out there. Right. Just in general, just new products for SPD and new customers that need it. There's a lot of different things that will be restarted almost immediately when film restarts. That's why I was so happy to hear this morning that they've started to direct money towards rehiring their people and things like that so that everyone can get back to the job they do so well when they do it.
that was a very important piece of information. I totally agree.
Yes.
I know you've worked hard, and I know you've had more on your plate than most people would like to have, and I think you've done a good job doing it. Thanks for keeping us in the loop.
Yeah. Thank you.
Our next question comes from Terry Christie, an investor.
Yeah. Hi, Joe.
Hi, Terry.
How you doing? We've been going back and forth a little bit the last couple of days.
Yes. Yeah.
Yeah. One of the companies that you mentioned in there as competitor is Ambilight.
Right.
I've been doing the good old-fashioned, let's get on AI and see what's going on. Not all of that's accurate. According to them, BYD and some of their subs, as well as Audi, are using the Ambilight products and say they're using, I guess, multiple film layers in order to get the various effects they want to get.
Yeah.
Do you know what the basic performance difference is between their product and the SPD-.
Sure
product?
Sure. It's an electrochromic product, which means as it gets bigger, it gets slower. I actually sat at CES in one of their cars with their CTO, and we had a nice chat about everything.
It has the same inherent limitations of other electrochromics, the iris effect. It gets slower as it gets bigger, those types of things. They do have one advantage, kind of, in China at least, and that is why maybe you see BYD there is, as you can imagine, in China, when the CCP says to do something, you do something. I imagine, and this is not just imagination, this was directly confirmed by somebody else, not the CTO, but somebody else.
Yeah.
They were directed. BYD was directed to do business with them, and they were directed to do business with BYD, you don't say no when that happens in China. We don't have that kind of situation where Xi Jinping is going to tell someone to use Research Frontiers' product. For the rest of the world, we're good.
Yeah. The thing that got my attention was the laminating. Obviously, that's something that's been working on, or being worked on here.
Yeah. All these companies have something that switches. The question is, what are the warts? Years ago, Merck had a thing that looked black, but it was a liquid that had to get poured between two pieces of glass. The wart was, you couldn't put it on anything that was remotely curved or not flat and horizontal or vertical. The warts become apparent when you try to move it from an idea into the real world. It doesn't mean there's not a market for it. Even slow-switching electrochromic, where you don't need speed, like on a warehouse glass or something like that, maybe you can get away with it. For things like homes or offices, electrochromic's not going to cut it. In automotive, they tend to not want to use electrochromics because the car usually arrives at its destination before the glass switches.
So that-
Well, there we're talking about using PDLC laminate.
Yeah. PDLC doesn't have a switching problem, but electrochromic does in terms of speed.
Yeah, they're talking layering them together.
Yeah. PDLC really is good for privacy only, and it may look like the glass is switching, but it's not doing any thermal benefit, which is really why you put it on the sunroof.
Anyway, I don't want to get into too many specifics about Ambilight. They are a competitor in some markets, and I think they wish they were us in most of them.
Okay. Well, that's good news. Okay. You think we're going to be up and running this year?
Yeah. I think that, well, since money is starting to flow to restart Germany, I think that helps a lot. Also, just in general, getting out of the bankruptcy will allow Gauzy management to focus on what they do best. We'll go back to normal, and then we'll also do better. That's where we're at.
Yeah. Okay, Jim. Thank you.
Thanks.
At this time, we have no further questions in queue. I will now turn the call back over to Mr. Harary for any closing remarks.
Okay. Thank you very much. I appreciate it, Paul, and thank you, everybody, for your patience as we went through a lot of detailed information, but I think everyone deserves to know what's going on. If I haven't fully answered anyone's questions, please feel free to call or email. Perhaps the most important point I'd like everyone to remember today is this. Nothing has happened over the past nine months that's changed our view of the long-term opportunity of SPD. If anything, the continued commitment of our customers, our licensees, and now a new licensee like KLIM, and a direct investment by a licensee, has reinforced that confidence. We also have four contingency plans for moving forward. The past nine months have undoubtedly been some of the most challenging periods our company's experienced in recent years, and we've never tried to minimize that.
We've just tried to work through it. Our principal supplier went through a major financial restructuring, and certainly production slowed and stopped for a while, and programs were delayed. Our financial statements reflected an appropriate accounting conservatism while these proceedings worked their way through the courts, and these are simply the facts, but those facts only tell part of the story. The other part of the story is what didn't happen. Our technology didn't stop working, and our patents didn't lose their value, and our customers didn't abandon us, and our licensees didn't walk away. The markets we serve certainly didn't disappear. They actually expanded. In fact, despite all the uncertainty, we continue adding new opportunities, continuing advancing new applications, continuing strengthening our intellectual property, and continued earning the confidence of companies willing to make long-term commitments to SPD technology. The new license agreement with KLIM is very exciting.
It's just one example of that confidence. The volumes can be very large. I like the fact that it's a consumer application because it has visibility to a lot more people and a lot of different people than those that drive McLarens and Ferraris. The continued commitment we've seen from our automotive, aerospace, and other partners is another thing that I take great pride in. To me, those are the powerful indicators of where the technology is ultimately headed, but you can make your own judgment on this. Over the long history of Research Frontiers, we've seen economic recessions, financial crises, supply chain disruptions, industry changes and downturns and global events that no one could have predicted. Every one of those periods seemed enormously important at the time.
Yet through all of them We continued improving our technology, expanding our intellectual property portfolio, adding new licensees, entering into new markets, and moving steadily towards broader commercialization. I believe this period will ultimately be viewed much in the same way, not as a change in the long-term direction of our company, but as a temporary interruption and a much steadier journey upwards. Today, I believe we're much closer to the end of this difficult chapter than to its beginning. As Gauzy completes its restructuring and resumes full production, I believe the conversation will shift away from court proceedings and supply constraints and back to what has always driven this company: innovation, commercialization, and growth. As Gauzy completes its restructuring, I believe it will also emerge as a leaner, more focused, and more appropriately capitalized company.
That should ultimately benefit Gauzy and their customers, Research Frontiers, and the entire SPD-SmartGlass ecosystem. We're ready. Our technology is ready, our customers are ready, our licensees are ready, new applications are ready, and our management teams are ready. To our long-term shareholders, I'd like to sincerely thank you for your patience, your thoughtful questions, and your continued confidence during what has unquestionably been a very difficult period. Many of you have been with us for years, and some, including a number of our board members, for decades. We never take that support for granted. For those that have joined us more recently, we welcome you, and we hope today's discussion has helped provide greater context for where we are, how we got here, and why we remain optimistic about the future.
We don't control every event that affects our business, but we do control how we respond. Over the past nine months, we've stayed focused, we've stayed disciplined, we've continued investing in our future, and we've continued building value for the long term. Perhaps the strongest endorsement of SPD over the past nine months didn't come from us at all. It came from our customers. Despite every delay, despite every headline, despite every challenge, they've stayed with the technology. In business, actions speak louder than words, and I think that's one of the strongest votes of confidence SPD could receive from our customers. Many times, the mark of a good captain is a steady, watchful, and experienced hand at the tiller, especially in rough seas.
Our mission today is the same as it has always been: to make SPD-SmartGlass a standard featured in products around the world that improve comfort, safety, energy efficiency, and the user experience. I remain as excited about that opportunity today as I have ever been. I thank you for your continued support of Research Frontiers, and we look forward to updating you again next quarter with Gauzy continuing to execute on their plans in Israel, Germany, and France, and the final appeal in France scheduled for mid-September that could bring substantial additional capital to the company, also Gauzy expanding in the United States. I'm very confident that we will be able to once again focus where our attention belongs on the steady and growing adoption of SPD technology across the automotive, aerospace, architectural, and consumer markets that we serve. Thank you again.
This concludes today's conference call. Thank you for attending.
Investor releaseQuarter not tagged2026-08-03RESEARCH FRONTIERS TO HOST SECOND QUARTER 2026 CONFERENCE CALL
GlobeNewswire
RESEARCH FRONTIERS TO HOST SECOND QUARTER 2026 CONFERENCE CALL
WOODBURY, NY, Aug. 03, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Research Frontiers Inc. (Nasdaq: REFR) announced today that it will release its second quarter 2026 financial results on Thursday, August 6, 2026. Research Frontiers will also host a conference call at 4:30 p.m. Eastern Time on Thursday, August 6, 2026 to discuss its second quarter 2026 financial and operating results, as well as recent developments. Who: Joseph M. Harary, President & CEO Date/Time: Thursday, August 6, 2026, 4:30 PM ET Dial-in Information: 1-888-334-5785 Conference Link: https://join.broaddata.com/?id=research-frontiers Questions: Email to [email protected] Replay: Available on Friday, August 7, 2026 for 90 days at https://smartglass-ir.com/ About Research Frontiers Research Frontiers (Nasdaq: REFR) is a publicly traded technology company and the developer of patented SPD-Smart light-control film technology which allows users to instantly, precisely and uniformly control the shading of glass or plastic products, either manually or automatically. Research Frontiers has licensed its smart glass technology to numerous companies that include well known chemical, material science and glass companies. Products using Research Frontiers’ smart glass technology are being used in tens of thousands of cars, aircraft, yachts, trains, homes, offices, museums and other buildings. For more information, please visit our website at www.SmartGlass.com, and on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube. Note: From time to time Research Frontiers may issue forward-looking statements which involve risks and uncertainties. This press release contains forward-looking statements. Actual results, especially those reliant on activities by third parties, could differ and are not guaranteed. Any forward-looking statements should be considered accordingly. “SPD-Smart” and “SPD-SmartGlass” are trademarks of Research Frontiers Inc. CONTACTJoseph M. HararyPresident and CEOResearch Frontiers Inc. [email protected]
Investor releaseQuarter not tagged2026-05-09REFR Q1 2026 Earnings Transcript
Motley Fool
REFR Q1 2026 Earnings Transcript
Image source: The Motley Fool. Thursday, May 7, 2026 at 4:30 p.m. ET Chief Executive Officer — Joseph Harary Joseph Harary: Thank you, Paul, and good afternoon, everyone, and thank you for joining us on our first quarter 2026 investor conference call. I was informed a little after 4:00 p.m. that the SEC website was down. I'm not sure if it's up yet or not, but our 10-K should be filed once everything gets straightened out and whatever backlog they have is cleared. As always, I appreciate the time and interest of our shareholders, customers, licensees and industry partners joining us today. Today, I want to talk about Research Frontiers, our business, our markets and also address the question I've been asked most frequently over the past 6 months, what's happening with our licensee, Gauzy. I'm going to give you an honest, informed and candid assessment of the situation and explain why I remain optimistic about their future and ours. Before discussing our operations and recent developments, I want to briefly address our first quarter financial results and some of the factors affecting the quarter. First, first quarter reported revenues compared to the same period last year were affected by the timing of revenue recognition under our license agreements as well as the nonrecurrence of upfront revenue recognized from a new license agreement entered into during the first quarter of 2025. Typically, royalties in the first quarter are almost always lower than the underlying economic activity taking place in our business because GAAP accounting requires that additional royalty revenue is not recognized until a licensee exceeds their minimum annual royalty obligation for the year. And until it exceeds that level, minimum annual royalties are basically spread out roughly evenly over each of the 4 quarters of the year. Another factor affecting the comparison was ASC 606 accounting treatment associated with the new license agreement entered into during the first quarter of 2025. Under generally accepted accounting principles, or GAAP, much of that revenue was front-loaded into the first quarter of last year. As a result, from an accounting perspective, the quarter looked weaker than the underlying economic activity taking place across several areas of our business. Sequentially, royalties from the automotive and aircraft markets increased from the fourth quarter of 2025…Read full documentShow less
Image source: The Motley Fool. Thursday, May 7, 2026 at 4:30 p.m. ET Chief Executive Officer — Joseph Harary Joseph Harary: Thank you, Paul, and good afternoon, everyone, and thank you for joining us on our first quarter 2026 investor conference call. I was informed a little after 4:00 p.m. that the SEC website was down. I'm not sure if it's up yet or not, but our 10-K should be filed once everything gets straightened out and whatever backlog they have is cleared. As always, I appreciate the time and interest of our shareholders, customers, licensees and industry partners joining us today. Today, I want to talk about Research Frontiers, our business, our markets and also address the question I've been asked most frequently over the past 6 months, what's happening with our licensee, Gauzy. I'm going to give you an honest, informed and candid assessment of the situation and explain why I remain optimistic about their future and ours. Before discussing our operations and recent developments, I want to briefly address our first quarter financial results and some of the factors affecting the quarter. First, first quarter reported revenues compared to the same period last year were affected by the timing of revenue recognition under our license agreements as well as the nonrecurrence of upfront revenue recognized from a new license agreement entered into during the first quarter of 2025. Typically, royalties in the first quarter are almost always lower than the underlying economic activity taking place in our business because GAAP accounting requires that additional royalty revenue is not recognized until a licensee exceeds their minimum annual royalty obligation for the year. And until it exceeds that level, minimum annual royalties are basically spread out roughly evenly over each of the 4 quarters of the year. Another factor affecting the comparison was ASC 606 accounting treatment associated with the new license agreement entered into during the first quarter of 2025. Under generally accepted accounting principles, or GAAP, much of that revenue was front-loaded into the first quarter of last year. As a result, from an accounting perspective, the quarter looked weaker than the underlying economic activity taking place across several areas of our business. Sequentially, royalties from the automotive and aircraft markets increased from the fourth quarter of 2025 to the first quarter of 2026. The quarter was also affected by what we believe to be temporary operational and liquidity impacts relating to the ongoing French rehabilitation proceedings involving French subsidiaries of our licensee, Gauzy. The processing of payments to us and revenue recognition slowed because of the French proceedings and the liquidity constraints that resulted from them. Since both Gauzy and Vision Systems are strategic licensees with meaningful businesses in multiple industries relevant to us, those issues also temporarily affected our own liquidity and financial strength. Not knowing exactly how long the situation in France would take to resolve, we took steps during the quarter to strengthen our balance sheet through a focused financing with long-term accredited investors. As of March 31, 2026, cash and cash equivalents increased to approximately $1.28 million compared to approximately $664,000 at year-end 2025, and the company remains debt-free. Our operating expenses and R&D expenses also declined compared to the same period last year. We run a tight ship. Now let me turn in more detail to the subject many of you have asked about, Gauzy. There's been a tremendous amount of hard and focused work taking place there. Things have been improving, and they have been actively working through the situation. The liquidity issues affecting Gauzy have certainly impacted us temporarily. Funds sitting in France were subject to oversight as part of the rehabilitation proceedings and both Gauzy and Vision Systems needed approval from the French administrator for many financial transactions during the process. That naturally slowed payments to Research Frontiers as well as other companies. But importantly, the flow of funds has already begun loosening up. A few weeks ago, we received a meaningful payment from Vision Systems that was authorized by the French monitor. So while things have not yet fully normalized, they are beginning to normalize, and we remain optimistic that they will continue to do so. This Tuesday, May 12, there is a court hearing in France to determine the next steps. The range of possible outcomes include liquidation of the French subsidiaries, a sale process, approval of Gauzy's plan of continuance or potentially an extension of the monitoring period, although we currently believe that the most likely outcome, fortunately, is approval of Gauzy Vision Systems continuation plan. As a lawyer, I know you can never predict the outcome of a court proceeding with certainty. But based on what has been shared with me, I believe the best outcome, not only for Research Frontiers, but also for Gauzy, Vision Systems, their employees, suppliers, lenders, customers and the SPD industry overall is approval of Gauzy's continuation plan. The details underlying the continuation plan have been described to me. The plan eliminates unprofitable non-SPD business lines and provides enough capital for Gauzy to emerge from the process substantially healthier, leaner and better capitalized. Importantly, based on the information shared with me, the reorganized company could emerge with stronger working capital, lower overhead and without the drag of unprofitable legacy operations outside of the SPD business. Gauzy would have substantial working capital and suppliers, lenders and employees would be paid in full, not only in France but worldwide. In other words, if the continuation plan is approved, Gauzy could emerge from this process as a much healthier and stronger strategic partner for us and for the SPD industry overall. We have also worked on contingency plans in case the court approval does not approve Gauzy's continuation plan or decides to delay decision. Amid the mostly public silence from Gauzy, many of the things I've discussed today have been referred to in their SEC filings. Hopefully, I've helped connect some of the dots for you with additional color, context and details. Throughout this period, Gauzy has kept me informed and we have had many in-person meetings and many late night and early morning conversations. At times during the height of the war involving Iran and its proxies, conversations literally started with, I just got out of the bomb shelter or ended with, I have to call you back because sirens are going off. Travel became extraordinarily difficult at times with executives operating from multiple countries and dealing with severe transportation disruptions throughout the region. I mentioned this because it illustrates both the operational challenges they were facing outside of France and also the determination of the people there to keep their business moving forward. These circumstances also temporarily slowed some of the R&D work involving next-generation SPD products, including black SPD and certain specialized SPD film being developed primarily for automotive and architectural applications and for specific customers. Some of these projects are now getting very close to completion. If you step back and look at the last 12 months objectively, we have seen 2 licensees liquidate, another licensee -- key licensee go through restructuring proceedings in France and a highly volatile military environment in the Middle East. Despite all of that, SPD production has continued, development work has continued. Customer programs and customer engagement remain active and plans are now in place that could allow Gauzy to emerge stronger, healthier and better capitalized. That resilience says a great deal about the determination of the people involved and their belief in our SPD technology.A number of shareholders e-mailed questions primarily relating to Gauzy. I'll answer them now. John Nelson asked whether Gauzy continues to produce and deliver SPD film on schedule and whether the current situation is limiting new business opportunities. John, while there have certainly been delays and distractions associated with the French proceedings and broader operational challenges, SPD production activity has continued and multiple automotive, aerospace and architectural programs remain active. Turning now to questions mailed to me about some of the other markets, starting with automotive. Automotive projects in North America, Europe and Asia continue moving forward during the first quarter and into the second quarter of 2026. When Ferrari business transitioned from AGP to another European licensee, this transition required the successor licensee to purchase and install new specialized advanced equipment. That equipment has now been installed. So activity and investment in the SPD ecosystem continues at multiple levels from the licensees to OEMs to end customers. We continue to see strong interest in SPD because of its ability to instantly and uniformly control light, glare and heat while improving comfort, energy efficiency and the user experience. Several shareholders have submitted questions regarding the previously discussed Asian vehicle program and black SPD technology. Jared asked whether the mid-market Asian vehicle program may involve black SPD technology, while Rick Carrell has asked whether the Asian program remains active since it was not discussed in our last call. Last call was kind of long, so I didn't have a chance to catch everything, but the Asian program remains active, and it does involve black SPD. I point out that is often the case with large automotive programs, time lines and launch schedules can shift because of platform timing, integration testing, design changes, supply chain coordination and other factors. We're pretty good at dealing with that. We've been in 4 different OEMs with products put in series production. So I don't think anybody else in the world can say that. We're actively working with multiple parties on these programs, including projects involving black SPD technology currently under development. And regarding black SPD specifically, we're making encouraging progress. Black SPD has the potential to significantly expand the design flexibility and addressable market for SPD technology, particularly in automotive and architectural applications where darker neutral aesthetics are important. Several shareholders also asked about the large volume quotations we discussed on previous conference calls and whether any have been awarded. At this stage -- well, first of all, the awards go to our licensees. We just collect the royalties from those licensees. At this stage, we remain limited in what we could publicly disclose regarding customer programs and quotations, but discussions and evaluations remain active in multiple areas, including ultimate supply licensee selection. As I have noted in the past, the 2 biggest challenges to wider adoption in the automotive industry were color, especially in vertical glass applications and cost. As I said on previous conference calls, we were given aggressive price targets to match competitive technologies, and we and our licensees were able to meet those targets. So cost and color are being addressed nicely between that and the black particle. Turning to aerospace. Deliveries of SPD-Smart electronically dimmable windows for aircraft applications continued during the first and second quarter of 2026. Just today, I saw an announcement of another ACJ TwoTwenty being delivered by Airbus to one of its customers. As you may know, Vision Systems handles this business. Aerospace remains an important long-term market for SPD technology because of the operational, passenger comfort, weight maintenance and performance advantages that SPD offers compared to traditional mechanical shading systems and also compared to competing technologies. We are also advancing development efforts in specialty transportation and other applications where dynamic light control and energy management are becoming increasingly important. On the architectural side, we continue advancing our retrofit initiatives with our licensee AIT LTI. Judy McKay asked whether AIT's SPD RetroWAL system may qualify under certain low-carbon building standards. Thanks, Judy, and I apologize for the delay in responding. Retrofit applications like these are becoming increasingly attractive because they improve energy efficiency and occupant comfort without requiring full window replacement. They also can meaningfully reduce the carbon footprint of a building and allow the SPD Smart Glass to work symbiotically with the other systems in the building such as HVAC and lighting systems. That is particularly important in government buildings, transportation hubs, historic structures, commercial retrofits and other projects where replacing exterior glazing is expensive, disruptive or impractical. We believe architectural retrofit applications represent an important and near-term growth area for SPD Technology. Another shareholder asked whether there have been renewed discussions with General Motors regarding SPD following the previously reported issues with the Corvette Targa roof involving another company's electrochromic glass technology. That's a well-known competitor of ours. As you may know, like other automotive industry suppliers, we don't comment on specific OEM discussions unless programs become public. But SPD remains one of the most capable technologies available for large area automotive glazing applications because of its switching speed, uniformity, heat management and overall user experience. It is also the only switchable shading technology that has been reliably commercialized in serial production. And frankly, our public profile in automotive smart glass is second to none, and I mean to none. I recently served as keynote speaker at North America's premier automotive glass conference with many OEMs, licensees and prospective new licensees in attendance. We're also the only company that has successfully worked with 4 different OEMs to incorporate switchable glass into multiple production vehicle platforms. That's multiple models and multiple spec standards and procurement systems, and we were able to succeed in all of them. No one else has been able to do that as recently exhibited by one of our competitors. But to answer your specific question, I think that the recent negative experience that GM had with the Corvette and another supplier's technology and execution has helped us tremendously. It has shown them the strength and resiliency of our supply chain and the dominant and superior performance of SPD Smart Glass technology. We also received questions regarding sun visor development. SPD remains very well suited for dynamic visor applications because of its ability to instantly manage glare and light transmission while maintaining visibility and user comfort, and we have been approached specifically about that. Development discussions and evaluation in this area remain active. Because sun visors have relatively small surface areas, this market, similar to aircraft, also has several technologies that try to compete against us. However, none of them have the combination of switching speed, range of light transmission and logistical and performance benefits that we have with SPD technology. Now before concluding, I want to briefly address today's format. As many of you know, our conference calls are normally very open and often include extensive live Q&A. They also tend to run much longer than most typical quarterly conference calls at other companies. However, because of Gauzy's ongoing legal rehabilitation proceedings as well as ongoing discussions involving strategic opportunities and alternative paths forward, we decided not to conduct a live Q&A session today. I'm glad that we received so many mailing questions because it allowed me to cover them earlier. Given the circumstances and the sensitivity surrounding Tuesday's court proceedings in France regarding Gauzy Vision Systems, I wanted to avoid saying anything that could potentially interfere with a successful outcome there. At the same time, I also wanted to share as much meaningful information and context with our shareholders as I responsibly could. As you heard today, we incorporated many shareholder questions directly into this presentation, and I want to stress, we remain available following the call by e-mail and telephone. And in closing, as we look forward, we believe the long-term opportunities for SPD Technology remain significant. Despite the disruptions of the past year at some of our licensees, the overall platform supporting SPD technology today is broader, more diversified and more mature than any previous point in our company's history. We see opportunities across automotive, aerospace, architecture, specialty transportation and other emerging applications. Our focus remains straightforward, supporting our licensees and customers, advancing next-generation SPD technologies, executing carefully and positioning Research Frontiers for long-term and sustained growth. Thank you again for joining us today and for your continued support of Research Frontiers. Operator: The meeting has now concluded. Thank you for joining, and have a pleasant day. Before you buy stock in Research Frontiers, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Research Frontiers wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $475,926!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $1,296,608!* Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 981% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 205% for the S&P 500. Don't miss the latest top 10 list, available with Stock Advisor, and join an investing community built by individual investors for individual investors. See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of May 8, 2026. This article is a transcript of this conference call produced for The Motley Fool. While we strive for our Foolish Best, there may be errors, omissions, or inaccuracies in this transcript. As with all our articles, The Motley Fool does not assume any responsibility for your use of this content, and we strongly encourage you to do your own research, including listening to the call yourself and reading the company's SEC filings. Please see our Terms and Conditions for additional details, including our Obligatory Capitalized Disclaimers of Liability. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. REFR Q1 2026 Earnings Transcript was originally published by The Motley Fool
Investor releaseQuarter not tagged2026-05-08Research Frontiers Reports First Quarter 2026 Financial Results and Will Host a Conference Call at 4:30 p.m. Today
GlobeNewswire
Research Frontiers Reports First Quarter 2026 Financial Results and Will Host a Conference Call at 4:30 p.m. Today
WOODBURY, N.Y., May 07, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Research Frontiers Inc. (Nasdaq: REFR) announced its financial results for its first quarter of 2026. Management will host a conference call today at 4:30 p.m. Eastern Time to discuss its financial and operating results as well as recent developments. Joseph M. Harary, President and CEO of Research Frontiers noted: “First quarter reported revenues compared to the same period last year were affected by the timing of revenue recognition under our license agreements and the non-recurrence of upfront revenue recognized from a new license agreement entered into during the first quarter of 2025.” “During the quarter, we made progress across multiple strategic initiatives. Automotive projects initiated in North America, Europe and Asia advanced forward in 2026. In addition, SPD-Smart electronically dimmable windows were produced for OEMs and other customers in the aircraft industry during the first and second quarter of 2026. We also advanced our SPD-Smart architectural retrofit initiatives, next-generation black SPD film technology, and additional SPD product and R&D initiatives.” For more details, please see the Company’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the fiscal quarter ending March 31, 2026. About Research Frontiers Research Frontiers (Nasdaq: REFR) is a publicly traded technology company and the developer of patented SPD-Smart light-control film technology that allows users to instantly, precisely and uniformly control the shading of glass or plastic products, either manually or automatically. Research Frontiers has licensed its smart glass technology to numerous companies that include well known chemical, material science and glass companies. Products using Research Frontiers’ smart glass technology are being used in tens of thousands of cars, aircraft, yachts, trains, homes, offices, museums and other buildings. For more information, please visit our website at www.SmartGlass.com, and on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube. Note: From time to time Research Frontiers may issue forward-looking statements which involve risks and uncertainties. This press release contains forward-looking statements. Actual results, especially those reliant on activities by third parties, could differ and are not guaranteed. Any forward-looking statements should be considered accordingly. “SPD-Smart” and “SPD-SmartGlass” are…Read full documentShow less
WOODBURY, N.Y., May 07, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Research Frontiers Inc. (Nasdaq: REFR) announced its financial results for its first quarter of 2026. Management will host a conference call today at 4:30 p.m. Eastern Time to discuss its financial and operating results as well as recent developments. Joseph M. Harary, President and CEO of Research Frontiers noted: “First quarter reported revenues compared to the same period last year were affected by the timing of revenue recognition under our license agreements and the non-recurrence of upfront revenue recognized from a new license agreement entered into during the first quarter of 2025.” “During the quarter, we made progress across multiple strategic initiatives. Automotive projects initiated in North America, Europe and Asia advanced forward in 2026. In addition, SPD-Smart electronically dimmable windows were produced for OEMs and other customers in the aircraft industry during the first and second quarter of 2026. We also advanced our SPD-Smart architectural retrofit initiatives, next-generation black SPD film technology, and additional SPD product and R&D initiatives.” For more details, please see the Company’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the fiscal quarter ending March 31, 2026. About Research Frontiers Research Frontiers (Nasdaq: REFR) is a publicly traded technology company and the developer of patented SPD-Smart light-control film technology that allows users to instantly, precisely and uniformly control the shading of glass or plastic products, either manually or automatically. Research Frontiers has licensed its smart glass technology to numerous companies that include well known chemical, material science and glass companies. Products using Research Frontiers’ smart glass technology are being used in tens of thousands of cars, aircraft, yachts, trains, homes, offices, museums and other buildings. For more information, please visit our website at www.SmartGlass.com, and on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube. Note: From time to time Research Frontiers may issue forward-looking statements which involve risks and uncertainties. This press release contains forward-looking statements. Actual results, especially those reliant on activities by third parties, could differ and are not guaranteed. Any forward-looking statements should be considered accordingly. “SPD-Smart” and “SPD-SmartGlass” are trademarks of Research Frontiers Inc. CONTACT: Joseph M. Harary President and CEO Research Frontiers Inc. +1-516-364-1902 [email protected] RESEARCH FRONTIERS INCORPORATED Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets RESEARCH FRONTIERS INCORPORATED Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations (Unaudited) RESEARCH FRONTIERS INCORPORATED Condensed Consolidated Statements of Shareholders’ Equity (Unaudited) For the three months ended March 31, 2026 and 2025 RESEARCH FRONTIERS INCORPORATED Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows (Unaudited)
Investor releaseQuarter not tagged2026-05-08Research Frontiers: Q1 Earnings Snapshot
Associated Press
Research Frontiers: Q1 Earnings Snapshot
WOODBURY, N.Y. (AP) — WOODBURY, N.Y. (AP) — Research Frontiers Inc. (REFR) on Thursday reported a loss of $525,000 in its first quarter. On a per-share basis, the Woodbury, New York-based company said it had a loss of 2 cents. The maker of light-control technology posted revenue of $136,000 in the period. _____ This story was generated by Automated Insights (http://automatedinsights.com/ap) using data from Zacks Investment Research. Access a Zacks stock report on REFR at https://www.zacks.com/ap/REFR
Investor releaseQuarter not tagged2026-05-08Research Frontiers Incorporated Q1 2026 Earnings Call Summary
Moby
Research Frontiers Incorporated Q1 2026 Earnings Call Summary
Our analysts just identified a stock with the potential to be the next Nvidia. Tell us how you invest and we'll show you why it's our #1 pick. Tap here. Reported revenue declines were primarily driven by GAAP accounting requirements that defer royalty recognition until licensees exceed minimum annual obligations, rather than reflecting underlying economic activity. The company's financial results were temporarily impacted by liquidity constraints at Gauzy and Vision Systems due to ongoing French rehabilitation proceedings, which slowed payment processing and revenue recognition. Management strengthened the balance sheet through a focused financing with accredited investors, increasing cash reserves to approximately $1.28 million to buffer against licensee uncertainty. Operational resilience was demonstrated by sequential royalty growth in automotive and aircraft markets despite two licensee liquidations and a key licensee restructuring within the past year. The transition of Ferrari business to a new European licensee required significant capital investment in specialized equipment, which is now fully installed and operational. Management noted that the two primary barriers to mass automotive adoption, cost and color, continue to be addressed, with licensees previously meeting aggressive price targets to match competitive technologies. Management anticipates a critical court hearing on May 12 to determine the future of Gauzy's French subsidiaries, with the most likely expected outcome being the approval of a continuation plan. The proposed Gauzy continuation plan aims to eliminate unprofitable non-SPD business lines, potentially resulting in a leaner, better-capitalized strategic partner with improved working capital. Development of 'Black SPD' technology is nearing completion, which is expected to expand the addressable market in automotive and architectural sectors where neutral aesthetics are a requirement. Architectural growth is focused on the RetroWAL system, targeting the retrofit market to improve energy efficiency in government and commercial buildings without requiring full window replacement. The company is maintaining contingency plans in the event the French court delays or denies the Gauzy restructuring plan to protect its interests in the SPD ecosystem. Geopolitical volatility in the Middle East has created severe operational challenges, inclu…Read full documentShow less
Our analysts just identified a stock with the potential to be the next Nvidia. Tell us how you invest and we'll show you why it's our #1 pick. Tap here. Reported revenue declines were primarily driven by GAAP accounting requirements that defer royalty recognition until licensees exceed minimum annual obligations, rather than reflecting underlying economic activity. The company's financial results were temporarily impacted by liquidity constraints at Gauzy and Vision Systems due to ongoing French rehabilitation proceedings, which slowed payment processing and revenue recognition. Management strengthened the balance sheet through a focused financing with accredited investors, increasing cash reserves to approximately $1.28 million to buffer against licensee uncertainty. Operational resilience was demonstrated by sequential royalty growth in automotive and aircraft markets despite two licensee liquidations and a key licensee restructuring within the past year. The transition of Ferrari business to a new European licensee required significant capital investment in specialized equipment, which is now fully installed and operational. Management noted that the two primary barriers to mass automotive adoption, cost and color, continue to be addressed, with licensees previously meeting aggressive price targets to match competitive technologies. Management anticipates a critical court hearing on May 12 to determine the future of Gauzy's French subsidiaries, with the most likely expected outcome being the approval of a continuation plan. The proposed Gauzy continuation plan aims to eliminate unprofitable non-SPD business lines, potentially resulting in a leaner, better-capitalized strategic partner with improved working capital. Development of 'Black SPD' technology is nearing completion, which is expected to expand the addressable market in automotive and architectural sectors where neutral aesthetics are a requirement. Architectural growth is focused on the RetroWAL system, targeting the retrofit market to improve energy efficiency in government and commercial buildings without requiring full window replacement. The company is maintaining contingency plans in the event the French court delays or denies the Gauzy restructuring plan to protect its interests in the SPD ecosystem. Geopolitical volatility in the Middle East has created severe operational challenges, including transportation disruptions and R&D delays for executives operating from conflict zones. The company remains debt-free and has actively reduced operating and R&D expenses to maintain a 'tight ship' during periods of licensee instability. Management noted that a competitor's recent execution failure with General Motors has highlighted the relative strength and reliability of the SPD supply chain to major OEMs. The SEC website outage delayed the formal filing of the company's 10-K, though management confirmed it was prepared for submission. One stock. Nvidia-level potential. 30M+ investors trust Moby to find it first. Get the pick. Tap here. Production of SPD film has continued despite the French legal proceedings and broader operational distractions. Multiple automotive, aerospace, and architectural programs remain active and are moving forward through the restructuring period. The Asian vehicle program remains active and specifically utilizes the new Black SPD technology currently under development. Management cautioned that launch schedules for large automotive programs often shift due to platform timing and integration testing. SPD is being actively evaluated for dynamic sun visors due to its instant switching speed and light management compared to slower competing technologies. The aerospace market remains a stable long-term driver, evidenced by recent deliveries of the Airbus ACJ TwoTwenty featuring SPD windows.
TranscriptFY2026 Q12026-05-07FY2026 Q1 earnings call transcript
Earnings source - 22 paragraphs
FY2026 Q1 earnings call transcript
Afternoon, welcome to Research Frontiers investor conference call to discuss the Q1 of 2026 results of operations and recent developments. The company will be answering many of the questions that were emailed to it prior to this conference call in their presentation. In some cases, the company has responded directly to email questions prior to this call or will do so afterwards. Some statements today may contain forward-looking information identified by words such as expect, anticipate, and forecast. These reflect current beliefs and actual results may differ materially from those expressed due to various risk factors, including those detailed in our SEC filings. Research Frontiers assumes no obligation to update or revise these statements. The call is being recorded and will be available for replay on Research Frontiers website at smartglass.com for the next 90 days.
I would now like to turn the conference over to Joe Harary, President and Chief Executive Officer of Research Frontiers. Please go ahead, sir.
Thank you, Paul, and good afternoon, everyone, and thank you for joining us on our Q1 2026 investor conference call. I was informed a little after 4:00 P.M. that the SEC website was down. I'm not sure if it's up yet or not, but our 10-K should be filed once everything gets straightened out and whatever backlog they have is cleared. As always, I appreciate the time and interest of our shareholders, customers, licensees, and industry partners joining us today. Today, I want to talk about Research Frontiers, our business, our markets, and also address the question I've been asked most frequently over the past six months, "What's happening with our licensee, Gauzy." I'm going to give you an honest, informed, and candid assessment of the situation and explain why I remain optimistic about their future and ours.
Before discussing our operations and recent developments, I want to briefly address our Q1 financial results and some of the factors affecting the quarter. First, Q1 reported revenues compared to the same period last year were affected by the timing of revenue recognition under our license agreements, as well as the non-recurrence of upfront revenue recognized from a new license agreement entered into during the Q1 of 2025. Typically, royalties in the Q1 are almost always lower than the underlying economic activity taking place in our business because GAAP accounting requires that additional royalty revenue is not recognized until a licensee exceeds their minimum annual royalty obligation for the year. Until it exceeds that level, minimum annual royalties are basically spread out roughly evenly over each of the four quarters of the year.
Another factor affecting the comparison was ASC 606 accounting treatment associated with a new license agreement entered into during the Q1 of 2025. Under generally accepted accounting principles, or GAAP, much of that revenue was front-loaded into the Q1 of last year. As a result, from an accounting perspective, the quarter looked weaker than the underlying economic activity taking place across several areas of our business. Sequentially, royalties from the automotive and aircraft markets increased from the fourth quarter of 2025 to the Q1 of 2026. The quarter was also affected by what we believe to be temporary operational and liquidity impacts relating to the ongoing French rehabilitation proceedings involving French subsidiaries of our licensee, Gauzy. The processing of payments to us and revenue recognition slowed because of the French proceedings and the liquidity constraints that resulted from them.
Since both Gauzy and Vision Systems are strategic licensees with meaningful businesses in multiple industries relevant to us, those issues also temporarily affected our own liquidity and financial strength. Not knowing exactly how long the situation in France would take to resolve, we took steps during the quarter to strengthen our balance sheet through a focused financing with long-term accredited investors. As of March 31st, 2026, cash and cash equivalents increased to approximately $1.28 million compared to approximately $664,000 at year-end 2025, while the company remains debt-free. Our operating expenses and R&D expenses also declined compared to the same period last year. We run a tight ship. Let me turn in more detail to the subject many of you have asked about, Gauzy. There's been a tremendous amount of hard and focused work taking place there.
Things have been improving, and they have been actively working through the situation. The liquidity issues affecting Gauzy have certainly impacted us temporarily. Funds sitting in France were subject to oversight as part of the rehabilitation proceedings, and both Gauzy and Vision Systems needed approval from the French administrator for many financial transactions during the process. That naturally slowed payments to Research Frontiers as well as other companies. Importantly, the flow of funds has already begun loosening up. A few weeks ago, we received a meaningful payment from Vision Systems that was authorized by the French monitor. While things have not yet fully normalized, they are beginning to normalize, and we remain optimistic that they will continue to do so. This Tuesday, May 12th, 2026 there is a court hearing in France to determine the next steps.
The range of possible outcomes include liquidation of the French subsidiaries, a sale process, approval of Gauzy's plan of continuance, or potentially an extension of the monitoring period. We currently believe that the most likely outcome, fortunately, is approval of Gauzy Vision Systems' continuation plan. As a lawyer, I know you can never predict the outcome of a court proceeding with certainty. Based on what has been shared with me, I believe the best outcome, not only for Research Frontiers, but also for Gauzy, Vision Systems, their employees, suppliers, lenders, customers, and the SPD industry overall, is approval of Gauzy's continuation plan. The details underlying the continuation plan have been described to me. The plan eliminates unprofitable, non-SPD business lines and provides enough capital for Gauzy to emerge from the process substantially healthier, leaner, and better capitalized.
Importantly, based on the information shared with me, the reorganized company could emerge with stronger working capital, lower overhead, and without the drag of unprofitable legacy operations outside of the SPD business. Gauzy would have substantial working capital, suppliers, lenders, and employees would be paid in full, not only in France, but worldwide. In other words, if the continuation plan is approved, Gauzy could emerge from this process as a much healthier and stronger strategic partner for us and for the SPD industry overall. We have also worked on contingency plans in case the court approval does not approve Gauzy's continuation plan or decides to delay decision. Amid the mostly public silence from Gauzy, many of the things I've discussed today have been referred to in their SEC filings. Hopefully, I've helped connect some of the dots for you with additional color, context, and details.
Throughout this period, Gauzy has kept me informed, and we have had many in-person meetings and many late-night and early-morning conversations. At times during the height of the war involving Iran and its proxies, conversations literally started with, I just got out of the bomb shelter, or ended with, I have to call you back because sirens are going off. Travel became extraordinarily difficult at times, with executives operating from multiple countries and dealing with severe transportation disruptions throughout the region. I mention this because it illustrates both the operational challenges they were facing outside of France and also the determination of the people there to keep their business moving forward. These circumstances also temporarily slowed some of the R&D work involving next-generation SPD products, including black SPD and certain specialized SPD film being developed primarily for automotive and architectural applications and for specific customers.
Some of these projects are now getting very close to completion. You know, if you step back and look at the last 12 months objectively, we have seen two licensees liquidate, another licensee, key licensee go through restructuring proceedings in France, and a highly volatile military environment in the Middle East. Despite all of that, SPD production has continued, development work has continued, customer programs and customer engagement remain active, and plans are now in place that could allow Gauzy to emerge stronger, healthier, and better capitalized. That resilience says a great deal about the determination of the people involved and their belief in our SPD technology. A number of shareholders emailed questions primarily relating to Gauzy. I'll answer them now. John Nelson asked whether Gauzy continues to produce and deliver SPD film on schedule and whether the current situation is limiting new business opportunities.
John, while there's certainly been delays and distractions associated with the French proceedings and broader operational challenges, SPD production activity has continued and multiple automotive, aerospace, and architectural programs remain active. Turning now to questions mailed to me about some of the other markets, starting with automotive. Automotive projects in North America, Europe, and Asia continue moving forward during the Q1 and into the second quarter of 2026. When Ferrari business transitioned from AGP to another European licensee, this transition required the successor licensee to purchase and install new specialized advanced equipment. That equipment has now been installed. Activity and investment in the SPD ecosystem continues at multiple levels, from the licensees to OEMs to end customers. We continue to see strong interest in SPD because of its ability to instantly and uniformly control light, glare, and heat while improving comfort, energy efficiency, and the user experience.
Several shareholders had submitted questions regarding the previously discussed Asian vehicle program and black SPD technology. Jared asked whether the mid market Asian vehicle program may involve black SPD technology, while Rick Corrales asked whether the Asian program remains active since it was not discussed in our last call. Last call was kind of long, so I didn't have a chance to catch, you know, everything, but the Asian program remains active, and it does involve black SPD. I point out that is often the case with large automotive programs, timelines and launch schedules can shift because of platform timing, integration testing, design changes, supply chain coordination, and other factors. We're pretty good at dealing with that. We've been in four different OEMs with products put in series production, so I don't think anybody else in the world could say that.
We're actively working with multiple parties on these programs, including projects involving black SPD technology currently under development. Regarding black SPD specifically, we're making encouraging progress. Black SPD has the potential to significantly expand the design flexibility and addressable market for SPD technology, particularly in automotive and architectural applications where darker neutral aesthetics are important. Several shareholders also asked about the large volume quotations we discussed on previous conference calls and whether any have been awarded. At this stage Well, first of all, the awards go to our licensees. We just collect the royalties from those licensees. At this stage, we remain limited in what we could publicly disclose regarding customer programs and quotations, but discussions and evaluations remain active in multiple areas, including ultimate supply licensee selection.
As I've noted in the past, the two biggest challenges to wider adoption in the automotive industry were color, especially in vertical glass applications, and cost. As I said on previous conference calls, we were given aggressive price targets to match competitive technologies, and we and our licensees were able to meet those targets. Cost and color are being addressed nicely between that and the black SPD. Turning to aerospace, deliveries of SPD-SmartGlass for aircraft applications continued during the Q1 and Q2 of 2026. Just today, I saw an announcement of another ACJ TwoTwenty being delivered by Airbus to one of its customers. As you may know, Vision Systems handles this business.
Aerospace remains an important long-term market for SPD technology because of the operational, passenger comfort, weight maintenance, and performance advantages that SPD offers compared to traditional mechanical shading systems, and also compared to competing technologies. We are also advancing development efforts in specialty transportation and other applications where dynamic light control and energy management are becoming increasingly important. On the architectural side, we continue advancing our retrofit initiatives with our licensee, AIT LTI. Judy McKay asked whether AIT's SPD RetroWAL system may qualify under certain low carbon building standards. Thanks, Judy, I apologize for the delay in responding. Retrofit applications like these are becoming increasingly attractive because they improve energy efficiency and occupant comfort without requiring full window replacement.
They also can meaningfully reduce the carbon footprint of a building and allow the SPD-SmartGlass to work symbiotically with the other systems in the building, such as HVAC and lighting systems. That is particularly important in government buildings, transportation hubs, historic structures, commercial retrofits, and other projects where replacing exterior glazing is expensive, disruptive, or impractical. We believe architectural retrofit applications represent an important and near-term growth area for SPD technology. Another shareholder asked whether there have been renewed discussions with General Motors regarding SPD following the previously reported issues with the Corvette Targa Roof involving another company's electrochromic glass technology. That's a well-known competitor of ours. As you may know, like other automotive industry suppliers, we don't comment on specific OEM discussions unless programs become public.
SPD remains one of the most capable technologies available for large area automotive glazing applications because of its switching speed, uniformity, heat management, and overall user experience. It is also the only switchable shading technology that has been reliably commercialized in serial production. Frankly, our public profile in automotive smart glass is second to none, and I mean to none. I recently served as keynote speaker at North America's Premier Automotive Glass Conference with many OEMs, licensees, and prospective new licensees in attendance. We're also the only company that has successfully worked with four different OEMs to incorporate switchable glass into multiple production vehicle platforms. That's multiple models and multiple spec standards and procurement systems, and we were able to succeed in all of them. No one else has been able to do that as recently exhibited by one of our competitors.
To answer your specific question, I think that the recent negative experience that GM had with the Corvette and another supplier's technology and execution has helped us tremendously. It has shown them the strength and resiliency of our supply chain and the dominant and superior performance of SPD-SmartGlass technology. We also received questions regarding sun visor development. SPD remains very well-suited for dynamic visor applications because of its ability to instantly manage glare and light transmission while maintaining visibility and user comfort, and we had been approached specifically about that. Development discussions and evaluation in this area remain active. Because sun visors have relatively small surface areas, this market, similar to aircraft, also has several technologies that try to compete against us. However, none of them have the combination of switching speed, range of light transmission, and logistical and performance benefits that we have with SPD technology.
Before concluding, I want to briefly address today's format. As many of you know, our conference calls are normally very open and often include extensive live Q&A. They also tend to run much longer than most typical quarterly conference calls at other companies. However, because of Gauzy's ongoing legal rehabilitation proceedings, as well as ongoing discussions involving strategic opportunities and alternative paths forward, we decided not to conduct a live Q&A session today. I'm glad that we received so many mail-in questions because it allowed me to cover them earlier. Given the circumstances and the sensitivity surrounding Tuesday's court proceedings in France regarding Gauzy Vision Systems, I wanted to avoid saying anything that could potentially interfere with a successful outcome there. At the same time, I also wanted to share as much meaningful information and context with our shareholders as I responsibly could.
As you heard today, we incorporated many shareholder questions directly into this presentation. I want to stress we remain available following the call by email and telephone. In closing, as we look forward, we believe the long-term opportunities for SPD technology remain significant. Despite the disruptions of the past year at some of our licensees, the overall platform supporting SPD technology today is broader, more diversified, and more mature than any previous point in our company's history. We see opportunities across automotive, aerospace, architecture, specialty transportation, and other emerging applications. Our focus remains straightforward, supporting our licensees and customers, advancing next generation SPD technologies, executing carefully, and positioning Research Frontiers for long-term and sustained growth. Thank you again for joining us today and for your continued support of Research Frontiers.
The meeting has now concluded. Thank you for joining, and have a pleasant day.
Investor releaseQuarter not tagged2026-05-04RESEARCH FRONTIERS TO HOST FIRST QUARTER 2026 CONFERENCE CALL
GlobeNewswire
RESEARCH FRONTIERS TO HOST FIRST QUARTER 2026 CONFERENCE CALL
WOODBURY, NY, May 04, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Research Frontiers Inc. (Nasdaq: REFR) announced today that it will release its first quarter 2026 financial results on Thursday, May 7, 2026. Research Frontiers will also host a conference call at 4:30 p.m. Eastern Time on Thursday, May 7, 2026 to discuss its first quarter 2026 financial and operating results, as well as recent developments. Who: Joseph M. Harary, President & CEO Date/Time: Thursday, May 7, 2026, 4:30 PM ET Dial-in Information: 1-888-334-5785 Conference Link: https://join.broaddata.com/?id=research-frontiers Questions: Email to [email protected] Replay: Available on Friday, May 8, 2026 for 90 days at https://smartglass-ir.com/ About Research Frontiers Research Frontiers (Nasdaq: REFR) is a publicly traded technology company and the developer of patented SPD-Smart light-control film technology which allows users to instantly, precisely and uniformly control the shading of glass or plastic products, either manually or automatically. Research Frontiers has licensed its smart glass technology to numerous companies that include well known chemical, material science and glass companies. Products using Research Frontiers’ smart glass technology are being used in tens of thousands of cars, aircraft, yachts, trains, homes, offices, museums and other buildings. For more information, please visit our website at www.SmartGlass.com, and on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube. Note: From time to time Research Frontiers may issue forward-looking statements which involve risks and uncertainties. This press release contains forward-looking statements. Actual results, especially those reliant on activities by third parties, could differ and are not guaranteed. Any forward-looking statements should be considered accordingly. “SPD-Smart” and “SPD-SmartGlass” are trademarks of Research Frontiers Inc. CONTACT Joseph M. Harary President and CEO Research Frontiers Inc. +1-516-364-1902 [email protected]
Investor releaseQuarter not tagged2026-03-06Research Frontiers Reports Fourth Quarter and Year-End 2025 Financial Results and Will Host a Conference Call at 4:30p.m. Today
GlobeNewswire
Research Frontiers Reports Fourth Quarter and Year-End 2025 Financial Results and Will Host a Conference Call at 4:30p.m. Today
WOODBURY, N.Y., March 05, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Research Frontiers Inc. (Nasdaq: REFR) announced its financial results for its fourth quarter and full year 2025. Management will host a conference call today at 4:30 p.m. Eastern Time to discuss its financial and operating results as well as recent developments. Key Highlights for 2025: 1. First North American OEM Serial Production – Cadillac Celestiq SPD-SmartGlass entered serial production and customer deliveries on General Motors’ Cadillac Celestiq, marking the first North American OEM production program for SPD-SmartGlass technology. The Cadillac Celestiq program represents a significant validation milestone and establishes a platform for potential expansion into additional, higher-volume vehicle models. 2. Ferrari Program Transition and Royalty Recognition During 2025, the Ferrari Purosangue SPD-SmartGlass program transitioned from one European licensed supplier to another. Production levels resulted in minimum annual royalty thresholds exceeded during the third and fourth quarters of 2025. 3. Architectural Retrofit Market Entry At GlassBuild America 2025, the Company and its partners introduced a new SPD-SmartGlass retrofit system for the architectural market enabling conversion of existing glazing without full window replacement in homes, apartment buildings, and commercial office and government spaces. This development expands the addressable architectural market beyond new construction into retrofit projects and represents the first scalable pathway for installation into the large installed base of existing buildings. 4. SPD Film Advancements The Company and its licensees made significant progress on new types of SPD film designed to enhance optical uniformity, aesthetic integration and manufacturing efficiency. These advancements strengthen SPD’s competitive positioning, especially in the premium automotive and architectural applications. 5. Expanded Automotive Surface-Area Integration SPD-SmartGlass continued to be incorporated into concept and evaluation vehicles by global OEMs demonstrating broader glazing applications beyond traditional sunroof installations. The Mercedes Vision V concept integrated SPD across approximately 75% of vehicle glazing, highlighting the potential for materially larger surface-area adoption in future vehicle platforms. 6. Aerospace Production and Certification Streng…Read full documentShow less
WOODBURY, N.Y., March 05, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Research Frontiers Inc. (Nasdaq: REFR) announced its financial results for its fourth quarter and full year 2025. Management will host a conference call today at 4:30 p.m. Eastern Time to discuss its financial and operating results as well as recent developments. Key Highlights for 2025: 1. First North American OEM Serial Production – Cadillac Celestiq SPD-SmartGlass entered serial production and customer deliveries on General Motors’ Cadillac Celestiq, marking the first North American OEM production program for SPD-SmartGlass technology. The Cadillac Celestiq program represents a significant validation milestone and establishes a platform for potential expansion into additional, higher-volume vehicle models. 2. Ferrari Program Transition and Royalty Recognition During 2025, the Ferrari Purosangue SPD-SmartGlass program transitioned from one European licensed supplier to another. Production levels resulted in minimum annual royalty thresholds exceeded during the third and fourth quarters of 2025. 3. Architectural Retrofit Market Entry At GlassBuild America 2025, the Company and its partners introduced a new SPD-SmartGlass retrofit system for the architectural market enabling conversion of existing glazing without full window replacement in homes, apartment buildings, and commercial office and government spaces. This development expands the addressable architectural market beyond new construction into retrofit projects and represents the first scalable pathway for installation into the large installed base of existing buildings. 4. SPD Film Advancements The Company and its licensees made significant progress on new types of SPD film designed to enhance optical uniformity, aesthetic integration and manufacturing efficiency. These advancements strengthen SPD’s competitive positioning, especially in the premium automotive and architectural applications. 5. Expanded Automotive Surface-Area Integration SPD-SmartGlass continued to be incorporated into concept and evaluation vehicles by global OEMs demonstrating broader glazing applications beyond traditional sunroof installations. The Mercedes Vision V concept integrated SPD across approximately 75% of vehicle glazing, highlighting the potential for materially larger surface-area adoption in future vehicle platforms. 6. Aerospace Production and Certification Strength SPD electronically dimmable windows continued flying across more than 40 aircraft models spanning commercial, business and specialty aviation segments, including HondaJet, Textron Beechcraft King Air, Daher TBM 960, Epic E1000, Airbus ACJ TwoTwenty and select Boeing 737 configurations. SPD remains the only commercially available light-control smart window technology known to the Company to have received FAA Supplemental Type Certification (STC) for retrofit programs, reinforcing its differentiated regulatory position and long-standing aviation track record and making SPD-Smart Electronically DimmableWindows (EDWs) uniquely suited for the aftermarket. 7. Increased Industry Visibility and Leadership The Company expanded its presence at major global automotive, aerospace and architectural forums. At the Automotive Glazing Summit in Detroit, the Company’s CEO served as Chairman and keynote speaker, reinforcing SPD’s growing recognition within OEM engineering and glazing leadership communities. 8. Financial Results, Liquidity and Capital Resources For the year ended December 31, 2025, revenue was approximately $1.12 million and net loss was approximately $2.05 million. During the year, revenue recognition was negatively impacted by the restructuring or bankruptcy of two licensees, which affected timing of royalty flows. The Company ended the year debt-free with approximately $0.7 million in cash and approximately $0.9 million in working capital. Subsequent to year-end, the Company bolstered its balance sheet by raising $1.1 million in a private placement to accredited investors, including members of a director’s family and the Company’s licensee responsible for the architectural retrofit application, further strengthening liquidity entering 2026. Joseph M. Harary, President and CEO of Research Frontiers noted: “2025 marked a meaningful inflection point for SPD-SmartGlass. We achieved our first North American OEM serial production program with Cadillac Celestiq, successfully transitioned and normalized Ferrari royalty recognition, introduced a scalable architectural retrofit solution, and advanced next-generation black SPD film technology. Since our last conference call, we have also begun work with several new automotive OEMs in Europe, expanded programs with existing OEMs into higher-volume vehicle models, and initiated specialty automotive and other applications beyond traditional sunroof configurations. While commercialization timing remains dependent on our licensees and their customers, we believe the breadth of ongoing evaluations, expanding surface-area integration, and entry into new application categories position SPD-SmartGlass for broader production deployment and long-term royalty growth. We believe the foundation now in place across automotive, aerospace and architectural markets creates increasing strategic opportunities and operating leverage as programs mature and move toward higher-volume implementation.” For more details, please see the Company’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-K which was filed today with the SEC, the contents of which are incorporated by reference herein. About Research Frontiers Research Frontiers (Nasdaq: REFR) is a publicly traded technology company and the developer of patented SPD-Smart light-control film technology which allows users to instantly, precisely and uniformly control the shading of glass or plastic products, either manually or automatically. Research Frontiers has licensed its smart glass technology to numerous companies that include well known chemical, material science and glass companies. Products using Research Frontiers’ smart glass technology are being used in tens of thousands of cars, aircraft, yachts, trains, homes, offices, museums and other buildings. For more information, please visit our website at www.SmartGlass.com, and on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube. Note: From time to time Research Frontiers may issue forward-looking statements which involve risks and uncertainties. This press release contains forward-looking statements. Actual results, especially those reliant on activities by third parties, could differ and are not guaranteed. Any forward-looking statements should be considered accordingly. “SPD-Smart” and “SPD-SmartGlass” are trademarks of Research Frontiers Inc. CONTACT: Joseph M. Harary President and CEO Research Frontiers Inc. +1-516-364-1902 [email protected] RESEARCH FRONTIERS INCORPORATED Consolidated Balance Sheets December 31, 2025 and 2024 See accompanying notes to consolidated financial statements. RESEARCH FRONTIERS INCORPORATED Consolidated Statements of Operations Years ended December 31, 2025 and 2024 See accompanying notes to consolidated financial statements. RESEARCH FRONTIERS INCORPORATED Consolidated Statements of Shareholders’ Equity Years ended December 31, 2025 and 2024 See accompanying notes to consolidated financial statements. RESEARCH FRONTIERS INCORPORATED Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows Years ended December 31, 2025 and 2024 See accompanying notes to consolidated financial statements.
Investor releaseQuarter not tagged2026-03-06Research Frontiers Inc (REFR) Q4 2025 Earnings Call Highlights: Navigating Challenges and ...
GuruFocus.com
Research Frontiers Inc (REFR) Q4 2025 Earnings Call Highlights: Navigating Challenges and ...
This article first appeared on GuruFocus. Release Date: March 05, 2026 For the complete transcript of the earnings call, please refer to the full earnings call transcript. Research Frontiers Inc (NASDAQ:REFR) maintained production continuity in the automotive sector through licensee transitions, expanding OEM engagement, and cost reductions. The company successfully transitioned Ferrari's SPD Smart Glass production to a new licensee, Isu Klima, after previous suppliers filed for bankruptcy. Cadillac entered the market with SPD Smart Glass in its flagship ultra-luxury vehicle, the Celestique, marking the first adoption by a major US OEM. Mercedes showcased SPD technology in a concept vehicle, indicating potential broader adoption across vehicle surfaces. Research Frontiers Inc (NASDAQ:REFR) launched an architectural retrofit SPD product, significantly expanding its addressable market by allowing upgrades without replacing exterior glazing. Gauzi, a key licensee, faced financial difficulties with its French subsidiaries entering court-supervised rehabilitation, impacting liquidity and operations. The company experienced slower collection of certain receivables, affecting cash flow and necessitating a modest capital raise. Despite positive developments, the stock price of Research Frontiers Inc (NASDAQ:REFR) and its licensee Gauzi have been under pressure, raising concerns about potential delisting. The company had to raise capital through a private placement at a low share price, which some investors viewed as unfavorable timing. There are concerns about Gauzi's ability to pay royalties on time and potential customer reluctance to engage with them due to financial distress. Warning! GuruFocus has detected 3 Warning Signs with REFR. Is REFR fairly valued? Test your thesis with our free DCF calculator. Q: How concerned are you about Gauzi's French rehabilitation proceedings? What happens if things deteriorate further? A: Joe Harari, President and CEO, explained that the rehabilitation process applies only to Gauzi's French subsidiaries and not to their German SPD film production or SPD emulsion production in Israel. He emphasized that SPD production and program execution continue, and restructuring efforts are aimed at strengthening the company. Harari assured that they have contingency plans in place if needed. Q: Can you provide a postmortem on why SPD technol…Read full documentShow less
This article first appeared on GuruFocus. Release Date: March 05, 2026 For the complete transcript of the earnings call, please refer to the full earnings call transcript. Research Frontiers Inc (NASDAQ:REFR) maintained production continuity in the automotive sector through licensee transitions, expanding OEM engagement, and cost reductions. The company successfully transitioned Ferrari's SPD Smart Glass production to a new licensee, Isu Klima, after previous suppliers filed for bankruptcy. Cadillac entered the market with SPD Smart Glass in its flagship ultra-luxury vehicle, the Celestique, marking the first adoption by a major US OEM. Mercedes showcased SPD technology in a concept vehicle, indicating potential broader adoption across vehicle surfaces. Research Frontiers Inc (NASDAQ:REFR) launched an architectural retrofit SPD product, significantly expanding its addressable market by allowing upgrades without replacing exterior glazing. Gauzi, a key licensee, faced financial difficulties with its French subsidiaries entering court-supervised rehabilitation, impacting liquidity and operations. The company experienced slower collection of certain receivables, affecting cash flow and necessitating a modest capital raise. Despite positive developments, the stock price of Research Frontiers Inc (NASDAQ:REFR) and its licensee Gauzi have been under pressure, raising concerns about potential delisting. The company had to raise capital through a private placement at a low share price, which some investors viewed as unfavorable timing. There are concerns about Gauzi's ability to pay royalties on time and potential customer reluctance to engage with them due to financial distress. Warning! GuruFocus has detected 3 Warning Signs with REFR. Is REFR fairly valued? Test your thesis with our free DCF calculator. Q: How concerned are you about Gauzi's French rehabilitation proceedings? What happens if things deteriorate further? A: Joe Harari, President and CEO, explained that the rehabilitation process applies only to Gauzi's French subsidiaries and not to their German SPD film production or SPD emulsion production in Israel. He emphasized that SPD production and program execution continue, and restructuring efforts are aimed at strengthening the company. Harari assured that they have contingency plans in place if needed. Q: Can you provide a postmortem on why SPD technology wasn't adopted by certain car models like VW or Rivian? A: Harari noted that VW initially chose a PDLC product for the Porsche Taycan, which was later removed, indicating potential performance issues. He also mentioned that the Corvette's electrochromic sunroof was removed due to production scale challenges, suggesting that SPD technology could be reconsidered in the future. Q: When do you expect meaningful revenue growth from automotive programs, and what gives you confidence in 2026 and beyond? A: Harari highlighted that automotive integration takes time, but the groundwork has been laid with multiple OEMs. He expressed confidence in 2026 due to the breadth of their pipeline, ongoing engineering engagements, and new investments by licensees, which are expected to lead to revenue growth as programs move from quotation to production. Q: Why did Research Frontiers conduct a capitalization at $1 per share despite having sufficient working capital for more than five years? A: Harari explained that the decision was influenced by strategic reasons, including ensuring liquidity amid payment delays and supply disruptions. He emphasized the importance of maintaining financial flexibility to execute their business plan and capitalize on market opportunities. Q: Has Ferrari expressed interest in expanding SPD roofs to other models? A: Harari confirmed that Ferrari is interested in expanding SPD technology to other models, noting that they are pleased with the performance and profitability of the SPD option. For the complete transcript of the earnings call, please refer to the full earnings call transcript.
Investor releaseQuarter not tagged2026-03-06Research Frontiers Incorporated Q4 2025 Earnings Call Summary
Moby
Research Frontiers Incorporated Q4 2025 Earnings Call Summary
Performance in 2025 was characterized by structural supply chain adjustments, specifically transitioning the Ferrari business to Isoclima following the bankruptcy of previous licensees AGP and Soliver. Management attributes the successful continuity of automotive production to the robustness of the SPD supply chain, which allowed for a mid-year supplier shift without disrupting OEM delivery. The entry of Cadillac Celestiq and continued Ferrari production validates SPD technology in both American ultra-luxury and European ultra-performance segments, serving as a catalyst for broader OEM adoption. Strategic positioning has shifted toward 'Black SPD' to meet OEM demands for neutral aesthetics, which management believes is critical for moving beyond niche sunroof applications into full-vehicle glazing. The architectural strategy has pivoted toward the retrofit market, targeting the vast installed base of existing buildings where replacing exterior facades is cost-prohibitive or restricted by historical designations. Management justified a $1.1 million private placement as a prudent measure to reinforce the balance sheet against slower receivable collections and temporary liquidity reallocations at licensee Gauzy. The 2026 outlook assumes a transition from 'halo' vehicle programs to high-volume production, supported by four active high-volume quotations that enable significant cost reductions through scale. Management expects the architectural retrofit product to compress manufacturing and installation timelines, providing a faster path to revenue than traditional new construction cycles. Future revenue growth is contingent on programs moving from the quotation phase to serial production, with specialty programs alone representing potential annual volumes in the tens of thousands of units. Guidance assumes the stabilization of Gauzy's French subsidiaries through court-supervised rehabilitation, with production of SPD emulsion and film expected to continue in Israel and Germany respectively. Strategic initiatives for 2026 include the development of innovative ancillary control systems and peripherals to enhance the ease of installation for the architectural retrofit system. The bankruptcy of licensee AGP and its affiliate Soliver resulted in a six-figure negative impact on recorded royalties for 2025. Gauzy's French subsidiaries entered court-supervised rehabilita…Read full documentShow less
Performance in 2025 was characterized by structural supply chain adjustments, specifically transitioning the Ferrari business to Isoclima following the bankruptcy of previous licensees AGP and Soliver. Management attributes the successful continuity of automotive production to the robustness of the SPD supply chain, which allowed for a mid-year supplier shift without disrupting OEM delivery. The entry of Cadillac Celestiq and continued Ferrari production validates SPD technology in both American ultra-luxury and European ultra-performance segments, serving as a catalyst for broader OEM adoption. Strategic positioning has shifted toward 'Black SPD' to meet OEM demands for neutral aesthetics, which management believes is critical for moving beyond niche sunroof applications into full-vehicle glazing. The architectural strategy has pivoted toward the retrofit market, targeting the vast installed base of existing buildings where replacing exterior facades is cost-prohibitive or restricted by historical designations. Management justified a $1.1 million private placement as a prudent measure to reinforce the balance sheet against slower receivable collections and temporary liquidity reallocations at licensee Gauzy. The 2026 outlook assumes a transition from 'halo' vehicle programs to high-volume production, supported by four active high-volume quotations that enable significant cost reductions through scale. Management expects the architectural retrofit product to compress manufacturing and installation timelines, providing a faster path to revenue than traditional new construction cycles. Future revenue growth is contingent on programs moving from the quotation phase to serial production, with specialty programs alone representing potential annual volumes in the tens of thousands of units. Guidance assumes the stabilization of Gauzy's French subsidiaries through court-supervised rehabilitation, with production of SPD emulsion and film expected to continue in Israel and Germany respectively. Strategic initiatives for 2026 include the development of innovative ancillary control systems and peripherals to enhance the ease of installation for the architectural retrofit system. The bankruptcy of licensee AGP and its affiliate Soliver resulted in a six-figure negative impact on recorded royalties for 2025. Gauzy's French subsidiaries entered court-supervised rehabilitation in November 2025, causing temporary liquidity constraints and a reallocation of management focus toward stabilization. Geopolitical tensions in Israel led to temporary airspace closures, impacting the timeline for technical developments and international management meetings, though production remains operational. A $1.1 million private placement was completed at $1 per share with 5-year warrants to ensure operational continuity despite delayed payments from restructuring licensees. Our analysts just identified a stock with the potential to be the next Nvidia. Tell us how you invest and we'll show you why it's our #1 pick. Tap here. Management stated that customers are not expressing concern regarding Gauzy's viability because they are locked into long-term, lucrative contracts with a large backlog of profitable orders. The primary challenge is maintaining liquidity to supply this backlog while navigating the bureaucratic 'monitor' process required by French regulators for payment approvals. CEO Harary clarified that the previous '5-year' liquidity projection was conditional on being paid what was owed and experiencing no further supply disruptions, neither of which occurred. The modest $1.1 million raise was described as a strategic safety net to avoid 'rolling the dice' with the company's execution during the French rehabilitation process. Management noted that approximately half of the receivables from Gauzy's Vision Systems are pre-filing obligations subject to the regulator, while the other half are post-filing and in the queue for payment. The company expects to see a change in receivables and cash position by the next quarterly call in May as the French monitor approves outstanding invoices. One stock. Nvidia-level potential. 30M+ investors trust Moby to find it first. Get the pick. Tap here.

