Navitas Semiconductor (NVTS) Risk Factors

We face an inherent business risk of exposure to warranty and product liability claims if products fail to perform as expected or are alleged to result in bodily injury, death, and/or property damage. In addition, if any of our designed products are alleged to be defective, we may be required to participate in their recall. We carry various commercial liability policies, including umbrella/excess policies which provide some protection against product liability exposure. However, a successful warranty or product liability claim against us in excess of our available insurance coverage and established reserves, or a requirement that we participate in a product recall, could have adverse effects on our business results. Further, it is possible that, in the future, we will not be able to obtain insurance coverage in the amounts and for the risks we seek at policy costs and terms we desire. Additionally, in the event that our products fail to perform as expected or such failure of our products results in a recall, our reputation may be damaged, which could make it more difficult for us to sell our products to existing and prospective end customers and could materially and adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition. Furthermore, end customers may recall their end products if they prove to be defective or they may make compensatory payments in accordance with industry or business practice or in order to maintain good end customer relationships. If such a recall or payment is caused by a defect in one of our products, end customers may seek to recover all or a portion of their losses from us. If any of these risks materialize, our reputation would be harmed and there could be a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

We cannot assure that any of our current or future distributors will not cease purchasing products from us in favor of products of other suppliers, significantly reduce orders or seek price reductions in the future, and any such event could have a material adverse effect on our revenue, profitability, and results of operations. Furthermore, a significant portion of our revenue and accounts receivable is derived from one distributor. See Note 11, Significant Customers and Credit Concentrations, included in this Form 10-Q for the percentages of revenues and accounts receivable attributable to this one distributor. A downturn in the industry or lower sales could materially adversely affect our business and results of operations.

The fabrication of our GaN power ICs is a complex and technically demanding process. Minor deviations in the manufacturing process can cause substantial decreases in yields, and in some cases, cause production to be suspended. Our foundry vendor, from time to time, experience manufacturing defects and reduced manufacturing yields. Changes in manufacturing processes or the inadvertent use of defective or contaminated materials by our foundry vendors could result in lower than anticipated manufacturing yields or unacceptable performance of our ICs. Many of these problems are difficult to detect at an early stage of the manufacturing process and may be time consuming and expensive to correct. Poor yields from our foundry vendor, or defects, integration issues or other performance problems in our solutions, could cause us significant end customer relations and business reputation problems, harm our financial results and give rise to financial or other damages to our end customers. Our end customers might consequently seek damages from us for their losses. A product liability claim brought against us, even if unsuccessful, would likely be time consuming and costly to defend.

We rely on a single supplier to supply and fabricate silicon wafers used in the manufacture of our IC products and purchases a number of key materials and components used in the manufacture of our products from single or limited sources which means that any disruption in their supply (including ceasing or suspending operations entirely), may require us to transfer manufacturing processes to a new location or facility. Our success is dependent upon our ability to successfully partner with our suppliers and our ability to produce wafers with competitive performance attributes and prices, including smaller process geometries. In addition, terms with respect to the volume and timing of wafer production and the pricing of wafers produced by the semiconductor foundries are determined through periodic negotiations with wafer foundries, which usually result in short-term agreements that do not provide for long-term supply or allocation commitments for end customers, including us. We cannot guarantee that the foundry that supplies our wafers will offer us competitive pricing terms or other commercial terms important to our business. We cannot guarantee that our suppliers will not experience manufacturing problems, including delays in the realization of advanced manufacturing process technologies or difficulties due to limitations of new and existing process technologies. For example, we may experience supply shortages due to the difficulties our supplier and other foundries may encounter if they must rapidly increase their production capacities from low utilization levels to high utilization levels because of an unexpected increase in demand. Furthermore, we cannot guarantee that the supplier will be able to manufacture sufficient quantities of our products or that they will continue to manufacture a given product for the full life of the product. We could also experience supply shortages due to very strong demand for our products, or a surge in demand for semiconductors in general, which may lead to tightening of foundry capacity across the industry. We do not have long-term contracts with some of our suppliers and third-party manufacturers. As a result, such supplier or third-party manufacturer can discontinue supplying components or materials to us at any time without penalty. Converting or transferring such fabrication processes from one of our primary facilities to an alternative or backup facility due to a disruption would likely be expensive and could take substantial time, given our highly complex manufacturing and fabrication processes, which incorporate our proprietary technologies. During such a transition, we may attempt to meet end customer demand through our existing inventories, or may attempt to modify partially finished goods to meet the required fabrication specifications. Given the rapid obsolescence timeline to which our products are typically subject, however, we generally do not maintain significant levels of excess inventory and, as a result, it is unlikely that our existing inventory will be sufficient to meet end customer demand during such a transition. In addition, any attempt to modify partially finished goods to meet the required fabrication specifications may not be successful and will require us to incur unanticipated costs. As a result, we may not be able to meet our end customers' needs during such a transition, which would negatively impact our net sales, potentially damage our end customer relationships and our reputation and may have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. Further, public health crises such as an outbreak of contagious diseases like Covid-19 have negatively affected the supply chain for silicon wafers, resulting in shortages, and may affect the operations of our supplier and other foundries. In addition, weak economic conditions may adversely impact the financial health and viability of the supplier and result in its insolvency or its inability to meet its commitments to us. The insolvency of our supplier or any significant manufacturing problem or insufficient foundry capacity would disrupt our operations and negatively impact our financial condition and results of operations. If we fail to maintain our supplier relationships, if our suppliers do not provide facilities and support for our development efforts, if our suppliers are insolvent or experience financial difficulty, or if we elect or are required to change foundry, we may incur significant costs and delays. If our suppliers are unable to, or do not, manufacture sufficient quantities of our products at acceptable yields, we may be required to allocate the affected products among our end customers, prematurely limit or discontinue the sales of certain products, or incur significant costs to transfer products to another foundry, which could harm our end customer relationships and operating results.

Our manufacturing operations depend on deliveries of materials in a timely manner and, in some cases, on a just-in-time basis. From time to time, suppliers may extend lead times, limit the amounts supplied or increase prices due to capacity constraints or other factors. Supply disruptions may also occur due to shortages in critical materials or components. We have encountered shortages and delays in obtaining components and materials and may encounter additional shortages and delays in the future. Because our products are complex, it is frequently difficult or impossible to substitute one type of material with another. Further, a failure by suppliers to deliver requirements could result in disruptions to our third party manufacturing operations. Our business, financial condition and results of operations could be harmed if we are unable to obtain adequate supplies of materials in a timely manner or if there are significant increases in the costs of materials. In addition, our next-generation technology depends on other new technologies supplied by third-party vendors. We depend on these third parties to supply us with new technology in a timely manner that meets our performance, cost and quality needed by our end customers. We do not have any long-term supply agreements with any of our suppliers. If these new technologies are not available in the future or if we encounter any problems with the delivery, quality, cost or performance of these new technologies, our business could be materially impacted and our financial condition and results of operation could be harmed.

We sell our power chips to end customers who select our solutions for inclusion in their product offerings. This selection process is typically lengthy and may require us to incur significant design and development expenditures and dedicate scarce engineering resources in pursuit of a single design win, with no assurance that our solutions will be selected. If we fail to convince our current or prospective end customers to include our products in their product offerings or to achieve a consistent number of design wins, our business, financial condition, and results of operations will be harmed. Because of our extended sales cycle, our revenue in future years is highly dependent on design wins we are awarded in prior years. It is typical that a design win will not result in meaningful revenue for one year or more or later, if at all. If we do not continue to achieve design wins in the short term, our revenue in the following years will deteriorate. Further, a significant portion of our revenue in any period may depend on a single product design win with a large customer. As a result, the loss of any key design win or any significant delay in the ramp of volume production of the customer's products into which our product is designed could adversely affect our business, financial condition, and results of operations. We may not be able to maintain sales to our key end customers or continue to secure key design wins for a variety of reasons, and our end customers can stop incorporating our products into their product offerings with limited notice to us and suffer little or no penalty. If we fail to anticipate or respond to technological shifts or market demands, or to timely develop new or enhanced products or technologies in response to the same, it could result in decreased revenue and the loss of our design wins to our competitors. Due to the interdependence of various components in the systems within which our products and the products of our competitors operate, end customers are unlikely to change to another design, once adopted, until the next generation of a technology. As a result, if we fail to introduce new or enhanced products that meet the needs of our end customers or penetrate new markets in a timely fashion, and our designs do not gain acceptance, we will lose market share and our competitive position. The loss of a key end customer or design win, a reduction in sales to any key customer, a significant delay or negative development in our end customers' product development plans, or our inability to attract new significant end customers or secure new key design wins could seriously impact our revenue and materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition, and results of operations.

After incurring significant design and development expenditures and dedicating engineering resources to achieve a single initial design win for a product, a substantial period of time generally elapses before we may generate meaningful net sales relating to such product, if at all. The reasons for this delay include, among other things, the following: - changing end customer requirements, resulting in an extended development cycle for the product;- delay in the ramp-up of volume production of the customer's products into which our solutions are designed;- delay or cancellation of the customer's product development plans;- competitive pressures to reduce our selling price for the product;- the discovery of design flaws, defects, errors or bugs in the products;- lower than expected end customer acceptance of the solutions designed for the customer's products;- lower than expected acceptance of our end customers' products; and - higher manufacturing costs than anticipated. If we do not achieve design wins in the short term, then we may not be able to achieve expected net sales levels associated with these design wins. If we experience delays in achieving such sales levels, our operating results could be adversely affected. Moreover, even if an end customer selects our products, we cannot guarantee that this will result in any sales of our products, as the end customer may ultimately change or cancel our product plans, or our end customers' efforts to market and sell our product may not be successful.

The success of some of our products are heavily dependent on the timely introduction, quality, and market acceptance of our end customers' products incorporating our solutions, which are impacted by factors beyond our control. Our end customers' products are often very complex and subject to design complexities that may result in design flaws, as well as potential defects, errors, and bugs. We have in the past been subject to delays and project cancellations as a result of design flaws in the products developed by our end customers, changing market requirements, such as the end customer adding a new feature, or because a customer's product fails their end customer's evaluation or field trial. In other cases, end customer products are delayed due to incompatible deliverables from other vendors. Such end customers have in the past, and may in the future, vary order levels significantly from period to period, request postponements of scheduled delivery dates, modify their orders or reduce lead times. This is particularly common during periods of low demand. We incur significant design and development costs in connection with designing our products for end customers' products that may not ultimately achieve market acceptance. As the company offers more products to new and existing customers, potentially expands its supply relationships, and enters new markets, the company may encounter yield, bugs and reliability issues with specific products, and any such issues could cause customer problems or adversely affect financial results. No assurance can be given that future reliability issues will not have a material effect on financial results in any given period. If our end customers discover design flaws, defects, errors, or bugs in their products, or if they experience changing market requirements, failed evaluations or field trials, or incompatible deliverables from other vendors, they may delay, change, or cancel a project, and we may have incurred significant additional development costs and may not be able to recoup our costs, which in turn would adversely affect our business, financial condition, and results of operations. Furthermore, developing industry trends, including end customers' use of outsourcing and new and revised supply chain models, may affect our revenue, costs and working capital requirements.

Our ability to obtain additional patents is uncertain and the legal protection afforded by these patents may not adequately protect our rights or permit us to gain or keep competitive advantage. In addition, the specific content required of patents and patent applications that are necessary to support and interpret patent claims can be uncertain due to the complex nature of the relevant legal, scientific and factual issues. Changes in either patent laws or interpretations of patent laws in the United States or elsewhere may diminish the value of our intellectual property or narrow the scope of our patent protection. Even if patents are issued regarding our products and processes, our competitors may challenge the validity of those patents.

Our industry is subject to foreign direct investment ("FDI") regulations in many countries, including the United States. Our ability to invest in companies or operations in, and our ability to raise capital from investors affiliated with, those jurisdictions may be subject to review or approval requirements, restrictions, conditions, or prohibitions. Any review and approval of an investment or transaction by an FDI regulator may have outsized impacts on transaction certainty, timing, feasibility, and cost, among other things. FDI regulatory policies and practices are rapidly evolving, and in the event that an FDI regulator reviews one or more proposed or existing investments, there can be no assurance that we will be able to maintain, or proceed with, such investments on terms acceptable to us. We may be unable to complete commercially desirable acquisitions in such jurisdictions or be subject to material costs or restrictions in connection with such acquisitions. While we strive to comply with all applicable laws and regulations, the application of FDI regulations could also in some circumstances result in financial or other penalties or require divestments, any of which could have a material impact on us. In the United States, certain investments that involve the acquisition of, or investment in, a U.S. business by an investor subject to foreign control (a "foreign person") may be subject to review and approval by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States ("CFIUS"). Whether CFIUS has jurisdiction to review an acquisition or investment transaction depends on, among other factors, the nature and structure of the transaction, including the level of beneficial ownership interest and the nature of any information or governance rights involved, and the nature of the technology possessed by the U.S. business. For example, investments that result in "control" of a U.S. business, which may include governance rights falling well short of majority control, by a foreign person are always subject to CFIUS jurisdiction. CFIUS's jurisdiction also extends to investments that do not result in control of a U.S. business by a foreign person, if they afford foreign investors with information or governance rights in a U.S. business that has a nexus to, among other things, "critical technologies." Transactions involving companies that develop, produce, or test critical technologies may be subject to mandatory filing requirements. In addition, recent U.S. regulatory initiatives have classified certain semiconductor technologies as "critical to national security," including compound semiconductors and wide-bandgap semiconductors. Both gallium nitride (GaN) and silicon carbide (SiC) are compound semiconductors and wide-bandgap semiconductors. As a result, our company's exclusive focus on GaN- and SiC-based products, together with our global presence in rapidly growing markets, including China, may subject our company to additional regulatory restrictions or scrutiny, including by CFIUS, in connection with past or future transactions that involve investments in us or by us. Although we believe all of our GaN and SiC products are generally not subject to export controls under the U.S. Export Administration Regulations (EAR), CFIUS could choose to review proposed or past investments in us by foreign persons whether or not our business is deemed to involve "critical technologies." In the case of such review, CFIUS could prohibit or impose conditions on the relevant investment. Such conditions might include limitations or obligations on our operations that could result in material costs or disruptions of our current or future operations. The prospect of CFIUS review, or any such prohibitions or conditions, could result in material costs or disruptions in our current or future operations or plans, and could also have a negative impact on our stock price. Furthermore, we have had communications with CFIUS with respect to our products, investors and acquisitions, and may have additional communications in the future with respect to these or other matters. Any future communications with CFIUS or other similar regulatory agency with authority over FDI, if not satisfactorily resolved, may result in material restrictions, conditions, prohibitions or penalties on us or our investors. Finally, U.S. authorities have publicly announced plans to institute an outbound investment review regime, and various legislative proposals to implement such a regime are also pending. For example, on August 9, 2023, the U.S. Treasury Department issued an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking announcing a proposed program that would prohibit certain types of investments by U.S. companies into certain Chinese entities with capabilities or activities related to specified semiconductor technologies, including integrated circuits manufactured from a gallium-based compound semiconductor. The final scope and content of this program remain to be defined through public comment and further rule-making. There can be no assurance that any such regime will not restrict our ability to engage in commercially desirable investments in jurisdictions outside the United States, particularly China, or that any such restrictions will not impose material costs or competitive disadvantages on us.

The Company and Legacy Navitas are a U.S. corporation for U.S. federal income tax purposes and thus subject to U.S. corporate income tax on our worldwide income. In addition, because Legacy Navitas is also incorporated under Irish law, Legacy Navitas is also subject to Irish income tax on its worldwide income. We, through our foreign subsidiaries, are subject to income taxes in other foreign jurisdictions as a result of foreign operations in such jurisdictions. Thus, new laws and policy relating to either U.S., Irish or other applicable foreign jurisdiction taxes may have an adverse effect on our business and future profitability. Further, existing U.S., Irish or other foreign tax laws, statutes, rules, regulations, ordinances or treaties could be interpreted, changed, modified or applied adversely to us, possibly with retroactive effect. The passage of any legislation resulting in changes in U.S. federal income tax laws could adversely affect our business and future profitability. Further, we could be adversely impacted by changes in tax treaties or the interpretation or enforcement thereof by any tax authority. Such changes could materially and adversely affect the effective tax rate of our business and require us to take further action, at potentially significant expense, to seek to preserve our effective tax rate.