AUDDIA INC

Overview of Auddia

Auddia (the “Company”) is a technology company headquartered in Boulder, CO that is reinventing how consumers engage with audio through the development of a proprietary AI platform for audio and innovative technologies for podcasts. Auddia is leveraging these technologies within its industry-first audio Superapp,faidr (previously known as the Auddia App).

faidr gives consumers the opportunity to listen to any AM/FM radio station with commercial breaks replaced with personalized audio content, including popular and new music, news, and weather. The faidr app represents the first-time consumers can combine the local content uniquely provided by AM/FM radio with commercial-free and personalized listening many consumers demand from digital-media consumption. In addition to commercial-free AM/FM, faidr includes podcasts also with ads removed or easily skipped by listeners as well as exclusive content, branded faidrRadio, which includes new artist discovery, curated music stations, and Music Casts. Music Casts are unique to faidr. Hosts and DJs can combine on-demand talk segments with dynamic music streaming, which allows users to hear podcasts with full music track plays embedded in the episodes.

Auddia has also developed a differentiated podcasting capability with ad-skipping features and also provides a unique suite of tools that helps Podcasters create additional digital content for their podcast episodes as well as plan their episodes, build their brand, and monetize their content with new content distribution channels. This podcasting feature also gives users the ability to go deeper into the stories through supplemental, digital content, and eventually comment and contribute their own content to episode feeds.

The combination of AM/FM streaming and podcasting, with Auddia’s unique, technology-driven differentiators, addresses large and rapidly growing audiences.

The Company has developed its AI platform on top of Google’s TensorFlow open-source library that is being “taught” to know the difference between all types of audio content on the radio. For instance, the platform recognizes the difference between a commercial and a song and is learning the differences between all other content to include weather reports, traffic, news, sports, DJ conversation, etc. Not only does the technology learn the differences between the various types of audio segments, but it also identifies the beginning and end of each piece of content.

The Company is leveraging this technology platform within its premium AM/FM radio listening experience through the faidr App. The faidr App is intended to be downloaded by consumers who will pay a subscription fee in order to listen to any streaming AM/FM radio station and podcasts, all with commercial interruptions removed from the listening experience, in addition to the faidrRadio exclusive content offerings. Advanced features will allow consumers to skip any content heard on the station and request audio content on-demand. We believe the faidr App represents a significant differentiated audio streaming product, or Superapp, that will be the first to come to market since the emergence of popular streaming music apps such as Pandora, Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, etc. We believe that the most significant point of differentiation is that in addition to ad-free AM/FM streaming and ad-free podcasts, the faidr App is intended to deliver non-music content that includes local sports, news, weather, traffic and the discovery of new music alongside exclusive programming. No other audio streaming app available today, including category leaders like TuneIn, iHeart, and Audacy, can compete with faidr’s full product offerings.

The Company launched an MVP version of faidr through several consumer trials in 2021 to measure consumer interest and engagement with the App. The full app launched on February 15, 2022, and included all major U.S. radio stations in the US. In February 2023, the Company added faidrRadio, Auddia’s exclusive content offerings, to the app. Podcasts (standard) were added to the app for the iOS version before the end of Q1 2023 as planned and added to the Android app in May of 2023. Podcast functionality will continue to be enhanced through 2024, including the deployment of the Company’s ad-reduction technology.

The Company also developed a testbed differentiated podcasting capability called Vodacast, which leveraged technologies and proven product concepts to differentiate its podcasts offering from other competitors in the radio-streaming product category.

With podcasting growing and predicted to grow at a rapid rate, the Vodacast podcast platform was conceptualized to fill a void in the emerging audio media space. The platform was built to become the preferred podcasting solution for podcasters by enabling them to deliver digital content feeds that match the audio of their podcast episodes, and by enabling podcasters to make additional revenue from new digital advertising channels, subscription channels, on-demand fees for exclusive content, and through direct donations from their listeners. Throughout 2023, Auddia has been migrating their podcasting capabilities into the flagship faidr app with the intention to sunset the Vodacast platform and instead bring the advanced podcasting functionality that was found on Vodacast into faidr as part of the overall strategy to build a single audio Superapp. This includes Auddia’s new podcast ad-reduction technology.

Today, podcasters do not have a preference as to where their listeners access their episodes, as virtually all listening options (mobile apps and web players) deliver only their podcast audio. By creating significant differentiation on which they can make net new and higher margin revenue, we believe that podcasters will promote faidr to their listeners, thus creating a powerful, organic marketing dynamic.

One innovative and proprietary part of Auddia’s podcast capabilities, originally presented on their Vodacast differentiated podcasting capability, is the availability of tools to create and distribute an interactive digital feed, which supplements podcast episode audio with additional digital. These content feeds allow podcasters to tell deeper stories to their listeners while giving podcasters access to digital revenue for the first time. Podcasters will be able to build these interactive feeds using The Podcast Hub, a content management system that was originally developed and trialed as part of Auddia’s Vodacast platform, which also serves as a tool to plan and manage podcast episodes. The digital feed activates a new digital ad channel that turns every audio ad into a direct-response, relevant-to-the-story, digital ad, increasing the effectiveness and value of their established audio ad model. The feed also presents a richer listening experience, as any element of a podcast episode can be supplemented with images, videos, text and web links. This feed will appear fully synchronized in the faidr mobile App, and it also can be hosted and accessed independently (e.g., through any browser), making the content feed universally distributable.

Over time, users will be able to comment, and podcasters will be able to grant some users publishing rights to add content directly into the feed on their behalf. This will create another first for podcasting, a dialog between creator and fan, synchronized to the episode content. The interactive feed for podcasts has been developed and tested on Vodacast and is expected to be another differentiator added into faidr for podcast listeners later in 2024.

The podcast capabilities within faidr will also introduce a unique and industry first multi-channel, highly flexible set of revenue channels that podcasters can activate in combination to allow listeners to choose how they want to consume and pay for content. “Flex Revenue” allows podcasters to continue to run their standard audio ad model and complement those ads with direct response enabled digital ads in each episode content feed, increasing the value of advertising on any podcast. “Flex Revenue” will also activate subscriptions, on-demand fees for content (e.g., listen without audio ads for a micro payment fee) and direct donations from listeners. Using these channels in combination, podcasters can maximize revenue generation and exercise higher margin monetization models, beyond basic audio advertising. “Flex Revenue” and the initial inclusion of the new revenue channels that come with it will be added to podcasting in the faidr app, and the first elements of this new monetization capability is expected to be commercially available in 2024, beginning with subscription plans to access ad-reduction in podcasts.

The faidr mobile App is available today through the iOS and Android App stores.

Recent Developments

Mergers and Acquisitions Strategy

We are exploring various merger and acquisition options as part of a broader strategy which aims to scale the business more rapidly; accelerate user adoption and subscriber growth; enter new markets (international); and open new pathways toward raising capital. The overall strategy focuses on three areas: (1) acquiring users of a radio-streaming app, (2) bringing our proprietary ad-free products to the acquired userbase to generate significant subscription revenue, and (3) bringing together other differentiated features into the larger audio Superapp platform.

RFM Acquisition

On January 26, 2024, we entered into a Purchase Agreement (the “RFM Purchase Agreement”), pursuant to which we agreed to acquire RadioFM (the “RFM Acquisition”), which is currently a component of both AppSmartz and RadioFM (partnerships under common control). The aggregate consideration for the RFM Acquisition is $13,000,000 (plus $2,000,000 in contingent consideration if certain post-close milestones are reached), in addition to the assumption of certain liabilities, as may be adjusted pursuant to the terms of the RFM Purchase Agreement.

Reverse Share Split

The Company filed an amendment to its Certificate of Incorporation with the Secretary of State in Delaware which became effective as of 5:00 P.M. Eastern Time on February 26, 2024. As a result, every twenty-five (25) issued shares of common stock were automatically combined into one share of common stock.

The reverse stock split did not change the authorized number of shares of the Company’s common stock. No fractional shares were issued and any fractional shares resulting from the reverse stock split were rounded up to the nearest whole share. Therefore, stockholders with less than 25 shares received one share of stock.

The reverse stock split applied to the Company’s outstanding warrants, stock options and restricted stock units. The number of shares of common stock into which these outstanding securities are convertible or exercisable were adjusted proportionately as a result of the reverse stock split. The exercise prices of any outstanding warrants or stock options were also proportionately adjusted in accordance with the terms of those securities and the Company’s equity incentive plans.

History of Auddia

The Company was originally formed in 2012 as Clip Interactive, LLC to provide the broadcast radio industry with digital consumer products (mobile apps and web applications) that increased radio listener engagement and generated new revenue for radio stations from digital ads synchronized to the audio ad. In late 2017 the Company recognized a need to provide the radio industry with a new capability that would allow for a more efficient business model, similar to the subscription models that had emerged for music and video through companies like Apple, Spotify, SiriusXM and Netflix. The Company began to conceptualize what would become Auddia, a commercial-free subscription platform for broadcasters and radio listeners.

Management of the Company commenced evaluating essential aspects of the opportunity such as technical feasibility, consumer viability, basic economics, intellectual property matters and basic legality. The Company’s Executive Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and Chief Technology Officer all have experience in performing similar assessments for consumer facing products in various industries, including elections, gaming, secure document processing, and digital advertising. Further, our Executive Chairman has extensive experience developing strategy and determining business viability of products in the several previous companies that he founded.

Management’s assessment also included metrics from subscription platforms for broadcast audio content, which show that consumers are willing to pay a subscription fee for commercial-free audio content. For example, SiriusXM, Inc. offers a service that demonstrates the viability of a commercial-free broadcast audio product that is purchased by consumers, in their case, for an average $13 (estimated) per month. SiriusXM has 33.97 million subscribers (end of 2023) at this average price point. SiriusXM does not offer the local content and personalities that local broadcast radio exclusively delivers.

In early 2018 and over the period of next year, management analyzed and assessed the commercial viability of the proposed faidr platform to determine whether a subscription-based commercial free radio service would generate consumer interest. This assessment was based upon: (a) the Company’ experience in having developed, deployed and operated over 580 mobile apps for broadcast radio companies over the last seven years; (b) discussions of the Auddia concept with radio industry leaders, most of whom were our current or previous customers; (c) discussions with radio industry analysts; and (d) research into the state of broadcast and subscription radio industries. As part of the management assessment, in January of 2019, we commenced discussions with a Harris Insights and Analytics, LLC (“Harris”), to assist management in gauging consumer response to our planned service, and in March of 2019 we commissioned Harris to conduct a survey. The results of that survey, when integrated with our internally developed analysis, supported our conclusion of consumer interest and viability of the product. Harris asked consumers to answer a variety of questions exploring their interest in such a service; how much they would be willing to pay; and several other related topics. Our interpretation of the results of the survey, also supported our assessment that consumers will continue to listen to local radio channels, and they are willing to pay a monthly subscription fee to avoid commercials.

Based upon management’s analysis, the above discussions, and industry research, the Company concluded that a subscription product for local radio’s audio content, where commercials are removed, was of great interest to the radio broadcast industry. Further, the Company also concluded that consumers would be interested in subscribing to commercial free local audio content that only local radio produces and broadcasts, and that faidr would have commercial viability.

The Company’s podcast platform was conceptualized during this transition period described above, when management recognized the opportunity to leverage previously developed technology and mobile app capabilities to provide products to podcasters and podcast listeners in the burgeoning podcasting space. Having provided interactive digital content feeds for radio stations for several years, a similar product for podcasting was explored. The Company presented a product concept to podcasters and podcaster “rep firms” and sufficient interest from those explorations warranted the development of a minimally viable mobile app product, branded Vodacast. Eventually, with further support and interest from prospect podcasters and listeners, the product was expanded to include both iOS and Android mobile apps and the development of the podcast Hub, which is the platform’s content management system.

The Company was poised to execute early, small-scale marketing trials in which podcasters would promote the Vodcast mobile app to their listeners via the audio of their podcast episodes. The incentive for podcasters to promote Vodacast came from the monetization features that are inherent on the platform, where podcasters understand that a “download” or unique listening session would generate more revenue for podcasters when it occurs on the Vodcast mobile app. The expectation was that listeners will convert at sufficiently high rates to justify wide scale launch and broad promotion by podcasters. After the launch of the proof-of-concept Vodacast app, and monitoring engagement and retention for close to a year, Auddia was confident the podcast platform achieved differentiation and should be moved into the company’s audio Superapp faidr as the podcast offering.

In February of 2022, Auddia launched faidr and began acquiring users to assess App performance and adoption. The faidr App has gone through multiple iterations since launch, including the major feature additions of podcasts and faidrRadio.

Overview of the Evolving Audio Ecosystem and the Positioning of AM/FM Broadcast Radio

We believe that audio as a medium is experiencing a renaissance as advanced artificial intelligence capabilities such as voice recognition are ushering in an era where voice is becoming the most efficient interface to interact with audio and video content. Historically, audio has been a passive medium where content is selected by a professional program director and delivered to large audiences who have no choice in personalizing the delivered content. But audio is now transitioning to an active medium where consumers can interact with streaming content through advanced algorithms and feedback mechanisms that include skipping content, providing thumbs up and thumbs down input, sharing content socially, creating playlists, following other playlists and customizing the programming of content routines for specific parts of the day through smart speakers like Alexa (e.g., providing a morning routine). Advanced artificial intelligence capabilities are facilitating these new capabilities and accelerating the trend towards consumer consumption of on-demand personalized content. To support this trend, audio content needs to be understood, indexed, stored and made retrievable through search methods so it can be provided to consumers when they ask for particular content.

Broadcast radio remains the dominant force in audio. The Q3 2023 Share of Ear Study shows broadcast radio with a 37% share of listening and the next most popular form of listening being music videos on YouTube at 14% followed by owned music at 5%. Although AM/FM radio continues to dominate audio listening, streaming audio is the fastest growing segment according to Share of Ear studies going back to 2014. We believe streaming audio will continue to grow as on-demand content in the form of streaming music podcasting, short-form audio and other emerging formats of audio content become more prevalent and artificial intelligence technologies facilitate the introduction of new and improved listening experiences. As streaming audio has demonstrated its growth trajectory, AM/FM radio has responded by streaming their radio stations but with, we believe, very little success in comparison to the streaming music players as measured by consumer listening.

Most common streaming platforms in the U.S. offer a paid subscription model to eliminate or reduce advertisements during the listening experience. With very few exceptions, AM/FM radio has not adopted this model to date. Most AM/FM streams are simulcasts of the on-air station and carry the same advertisement load as the on-air product. In 2020, the average advertisement load was 16.7 minutes per hour (an increase of approximately 2 30-second ads from 2018’s average of 16.1 minutes). This means that if these 16.7 minutes were filled with the common 30-second spot, this would equate to 33.4 advertisements per hour. Given that the free ad-supported tiers of the music streaming services commonly limit ads to 4 per hour, a streaming service with 32 audio ads per hour is more disruptive to the content listening experience. We believe the combination of AM/FM radio’s advertisement load and the inability for listeners to skip content or request on-demand content in an AM/FM radio stream is the main reason broadcast radio is not gaining ground in the audio streaming market relative to the other music players.

There are a handful of successful radio-streaming mobile applications on the market today. Between the top five, there are more than 150 million users, which includes some overlap. According to Statista, the reach of online radio, which includes AM/FM streaming, has increased sharply over the past decade, with 68% of the US population having listened to online radio within a month in 2021 compared to only 34% ten years earlier. This migration of audience is expected to continue. The total addressable market for radio streaming is expanding year-over-year, and faidr is the only app currently available that can (1) provide ad-free listening and (2) can aggregate all stations in the US in one place, as it is not beholden to any exclusivity deals with the larger AM/FM media corporations.

The Company believes the faidr App will give subscribers the technology solution they need to enjoy the local content presented by AM/FM radio while not only avoiding the interruption of 16.7 minutes of ads per hour, but also personalizing the listening experience with skips and on-demand content. We believe the faidr App represents the consumer product that modernizes the radio-listening experience, combines AM/FM with the right mix of other content options—podcasts and exclusive content and programming—and gives users the control they expect in the current audio-streaming landscape.

Overview of Podcasting in the Audio Ecosystem

Another area of significant change within the broader audio ecosystem, we believe, is that podcasting is an emerging new type of audio media and that there are opportunities to develop new forms of content consumption, distribution, and monetization around this new form of audio media. With more than 177 million monthly listeners in the U.S. in 2023, podcasting has exploded within a relatively short period of time. Yet the core offering of a podcast is still very basic, including only audio content for the listener and leveraging audio advertising (embedded within the podcast episode content) as the primary and often exclusive mechanism for generating revenue. Like AM/FM radio, podcasting is ripe for disruption by third parties that bring new and expanded revenue models to the industry.

Additionally, we believe podcasting is still in its infancy and because of that, opportunities exist to improve the overall media creation and consumption experience for podcasters and listeners alike, and that these improvements can create new channels of revenue for content creators. By leveraging more than seven years of experience delivering synchronized digital content feeds for radio stations through their mobile apps and web players, the Company believes that basic podcasting audio, as a generic form of audio media, can be enhanced to provide a better content experience for listeners while providing a more robust platform on which podcasters as content creators can more effectively monetize their work.

Software Products and Services

The faidr App

The faidr App is our flagship product and is expected to generate the majority of the Company’s future revenue.

How the faidr App Works

A faidr subscriber will select a specific streaming radio station to record and be able to listen to the recording of that station in a customized manner. The App will record the station in real time and its AI algorithm will identify the beginning and end of audio content segments including music and commercials. When the recorded station is played back by the App subscriber, faidr will identify the audio content segments the user chooses not to consume and automatically switch the audio playback of the recording to a different piece of audio content. For example, if a consumer chooses not to listen to commercials during the playback of their recording of a station, the faidr App will automatically cover the commercial segments with other content such as additional music.

The Company is developing strategies and content relationships to access additional content sources to cover commercials and respond to skips across many content segments in addition to music and commercials, such as sports, news, talk and weather. As the audio content ecosystem continues to expand, the Company believes faidr will represent an attractive distribution platform for content providers. There is no guarantee the audio content ecosystem will continue to expand along its current trajectory or that the Company will be able to secure access to content in an economically advantageous manner, both of which would negatively impact the user experience within faidr. The Company has not yet secured the rights from content providers to place any audio content into the platform in an on-demand use case.

Users of faidr can also access any podcast that’s publicly available as well as exclusive programming, music stations and Music Casts, through faidrRadio.

The faidr App is built on a proprietary artificial intelligence platform developed and owned by the Company and subject to one issued patent and additional patent applications that are pending.

Copyright Law

To secure the rights to stream music and other content through the faidr app, the Company may enter into license agreements with copyright owners of sound recordings and musical works or their authorized agents. In June 2021, the Company filed a Notice of Use of Sound Recordings Under Statutory License in accordance with 37 CFR § 370.2, which authorized the Company to make noninteractive digital audio transmissions and reproductions of certain sound recordings pursuant to the statutory licenses set forth in 17 U.S.C. §§ 112 and 114. The Company is also in the process of obtaining licenses with the performing rights organizations (“PROs”) in the United States, which negotiate blanket licenses with copyright users for the public performance of compositions in their repertory, collect royalties under such licenses, and distribute those royalties to copyright owners.

The faidr App’s architecture presents a built-in digital audio recorder (“DAR”) that will allow consumers to record third-party transmissions made available through the faidr App. The Company believes such consumer-initiated recordings are authorized as non-infringing, fair use time shifting by consumers pursuant to the Supreme Court’s decision inSony Corp. of America v. Universal City Studios, Inc., 464 U.S. 417 (1984). The Supreme Court also ruled that the manufacturers of home video recording devices were not liable for reproductions made by consumers where the devices had substantial non-infringing uses. faidr’s DAR is analogous to the Betamax television recorders found non-infringing in the Universal City Studios decision. With the faidr’s DAR, users can select radio stations to record. Users can also control their listening experience by deciding whether they will listen to commercials or other programming categories selected by the user. The Company believes giving users the ability to avoid commercials is protected, non-infringing activity.

If a court were to hold that one or more functionalities offered by the faidr App resulted in the violation of protected rights of third parties, the Company could be subject to liability for infringement, the damages for which could be material.

Podcast Platform

Auddia’s Podcast Platform, which includes the previously developed and commercially trialed Vodacast mobile app, is an interactive differentiated podcasting capability the Company has built that allows podcasters to give their audiences an interactive audio experience. Podcast listeners are able to see video and other digital content that correlates with the podcast audio and is presented to the listener as a digital feed. All content presented in the digital feed can be synched to the podcast audio content. This allows podcast listeners to visually experience, interact with, and eventually comment on audio content in podcasts.

Much of the technology we use in this platform to create the feed of digital content synchronized to the audio content of the podcast is based on the core functionality and product concepts the Company has used historically to provide synchronized digital feeds to over 580 radio stations.

The digital feed introduces a new revenue stream to podcasters, such as synchronized digital advertising while providing end users a new digital content channel that compliments the core audio of the podcast.

All of the content and functionality that is made available within the Podcast Platform, through the Vodacast mobile app, is currently being added to the faidr app, diversifying the podcast offering of faidr and bringing that app up to parity with the major, competing apps like iHeart Radio, TuneIn and Audacy. In addition, new ad-skipping features are also being added to faidr in 2024 which demonstrates the company’s differentiation in the podcasting arena, for both podcasters and consumers.

Business Model and Customer Acquisition Strategy for faidr

The Company has an eight-year plus history of working closely with the broadcast radio industry in the United States to help the industry adapt to both digital advertising and digital media technologies.

The Company announced several broadcast radio partnerships during 2021 in which we performed commercial trials within these markets. Based on the initial results from our commercial trials, the Company believes consumers are drawn to an interruption-free radio experience. We executed a full launch in February 2022 that initially included approximately 4,000 radio stations on the faidr App. The Company has continued to add stations to the faidr App which now presents more than 6,200 AM/FM streams.

Radio stations owned by broadcasters will be economically incentivized to promote faidr to their listeners. We intend to leverage subscription revenue to compensate participating radio broadcasters for promotional support and their increased music streaming fees. We believe that if participating broadcasters can generate increased revenue from their content, they can decrease their on-air advertising load while increasing the price paid for each commercial, as the commercial is more likely to be heard by consumers in a less cluttered advertising environment. In addition, we intend to offer tiered subscriptions to the faidr App where lower priced subscriptions allow a lower level of functionality and control. We believe that our history and existing relationships with broadcast radio will drive customer acquisition for the faidr App.

Our business model is based on creating a pool of subscription revenue across all streaming stations and other content providers utilizing the faidr platform. This subscription pool, excluding direct subscriber acquisition costs and increased music streaming fees, is expected to be shared with radio stations and other content providers, such as podcasters whose episodes are available ad-free, based either on the time each listener spends listening or the amount of plays on faidr. We believe this business model will result in broadcasters and podcasters promoting the listening of their content within faidr, similar to how radio stations are currently using airtime to promote the listening of their stations on Alexa and other smart speaker systems.

Our major podcast differentiators once implemented in faidr, will be marketed to podcasters and podcasting companies with business-to-business strategies that focus on communicating the value proposition and monetization opportunity. The potential to earn new, incremental revenue on the faidr platform, in addition to the other key value propositions of the platform, is expected to organically drive podcasters to promote the platform directly to their listeners. Direct-to-consumer marketing will be done independently by the Company and, in some cases, in partnership with podcasters who leverage their audio content programs to promote to their established audiences. As is the case with other proven marketing strategies, we intend to have our partners benefit from a participative revenue share through faidr podcasting.

Our Legacy Interactive Radio Platform

From 2014 through 2020, the Company was successful in deploying our legacy platform across 580 major radio stations and 1.6 million monthly active users. Although this represents a meaningful user base, it is a small fraction of the listening audience represented by the 580 stations on the Company’s legacy platform. We believe the two main reasons radio was not able to drive more users to the platform are that the number of consumers willing to download an individual radio station app is small and that to appeal to a greater digital audience the core listening experience of radio needs to incorporate a premium offering that includes skips, on-demand content and a commercial-free option.

The Company’s legacy product served the broadcast industry by providing a platform that allowed for the delivery of actionable digital ads that are synchronized with broadcast and streaming audio ads. Broadcasters offered mobile and web digital interfaces to their listeners, typically for their individual stations. Our Interactive Radio Platform provided mobile and web products that provided end users (listeners) with a visual display of everything a radio station has played in recent history (referred to as a “station feed”). In addition to displaying album art for songs played, and digital insertions for station promotions and programs (e.g., a radio station contest), the station feed also included a digital element for each audio ad that was played. These interactive, synchronized digital ads generate additional revenue for broadcasters and allow for the collection of meaningful advertising analytics which we present to broadcasters through an analytics dashboard.

The Company began phasing out the Interactive Radio Platform in 2020 and ceased operations related to all legacy deployments and services by July 1, 2020. Much of the core technology of this platform is being leveraged for re-use within faidr. Furthermore, our well-established relationships with more than a dozen broadcasters through the sales, marketing and digital services operations are being maintained as we seek to deploy the faidr App at national scale.

Intellectual Property

We rely on a combination of patents, trade secrets, non-disclosure agreements, and other intellectual property to protect the proprietary technologies that we believe are important to our business. Our success will depend in part on our ability to obtain and maintain patent and other proprietary protection for commercially important inventions and know-how, defend and enforce our patents, maintain our licenses, preserve our trade secrets, and operate without infringing valid and enforceable patents and other proprietary rights of third parties. We also rely on continuing technological innovation to develop, strengthen, and maintain our proprietary position in the field of interactive audio.

The Company holds issued patents and has patents pending in the areas of audio content monitoring, identification, distribution and presentation. The Company’s intellectual property has been used in the development of products that allow broadcasters and audio content distributors to present digital content and supplemental audio and video content along with and even synchronized with their standard audio content. These products introduce new consumer use scenarios, such as offering direct response to audio ads (such as a standard broadcast radio commercial). The products give consumers, via smartphone applications, a mechanism to identify both the content and the source of content and allow the consumer to act on what they may have heard and/or receive additional information about what they heard.

On March 12, 2019, the United States Patent and Technology Office issued a patent to the Company (titled “Method and System for Sub-Audible Signaling”) that covers an advanced “watermarking” technology to attach source-attribution information, as well as highly detailed content descriptors into an audio broadcast or stream. We believe this technology improves the state of the art by potentially increasing the amount of information that can be embedded in an audio stream or broadcast, as well as supporting the real time addition of sub-audio information. The Company does not utilize this patent technology in its current products, but the technology may be useful for future products or potential licensing to others. However, there can be no assurance that this patent or the technology underlying the patent will be utilized or licensed by the Company or, even if utilized or licensed, this patented technology will result in revenues or profits.

The most recent intellectual property to be submitted for patent application is a set of technologies that are integral to the development and operation of consumer-oriented platform that can deliver commercial free broadcast radio content. These technologies involve distributed content monitoring (*e.g.,*on the smartphones of consumers) and content identification, including the identification of the beginning and end of specific segments of content, such as a song or an ad. Combining these capabilities with time-shifting and real-time audio content replacement provides the end user with a dynamic, multi-source, commercial free audio content experience that can include the local content heard on the radio as well as any other content available form an accessible source. This intellectual property serves as the cornerstone of the Company’s new focus and allows the Company to eventually expand to provide numerous and various audio content sources on a single platform.

In June 2020 the United States Patent and Technology Office approved the first of these patent applications (titled “Seamless Integration of Radio Broadcast Audio with Streaming Audio”) that details a process that can be used to monitor, time shift and play an over the air radio broadcast. This patent will protect key Company functionality that is central to the delivery of our core offering of commercial free radio. For example, using this technology, when a commercial break is detected on the over the air broadcast, alternate content from local or streaming sources can be injected to cover the break. Additionally, a second broadcast radio station can be similarly time shifted and used as alternate content. This intellectual property gives the Company exclusive advantages when dealing with established music rights and content costs issues related to broadcast versus streaming music. This gives the Company leverage when working with both the broadcast industry and the music industry, and options to deliver services from lower cost, over the air audio content sources.

The Company holds trademarks and is in the process of applying for trademarks for key products and brands. The Company holds the trademark for a product named PLAZE, which is a potential commercial-free music streaming product that is a future, strategic opportunity of the business. The Company also holds the trademark for AUDDIA which is used as both the corporate brand name as well as the name of the consumer-facing mobile application that delivers the Company’s commercial free radio service. The Company holds the trademark for faidr, which is used as the brand name for their audio Superapp.

In addition, any intellectual property litigation to which we become a party may require us to do one or more of the following:

Intellectual property litigation is typically complex, time consuming, and expensive to resolve and would divert the time and attention of our management and technical personnel. It may also result in adverse publicity, which could harm our reputation and ability to attract or retain customers. As we grow, we may experience a heightened risk of allegations of intellectual property infringement. An adverse result in any litigation claims against us could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, and results of operations.

Competition

Our audio service offerings face competition from alternative media platforms and technologies, such as broadband wireless, satellite radio, audio broadcasting by cable television systems and internet-based streaming music services, as well as consumer products, such as portable digital audio players and other mobile devices, smart phones and tablets, gaming consoles, in-home entertainment and enhanced automotive platforms. These alternative platforms and technology are offered by much larger and well-established radio-streaming applications such as iHeart Media, Audacy, and TuneIn. These technologies and alternative media platforms compete with our services for audience share and advertising revenues. There can be no assurance that we will be able to compete successfully in the audio marketplace. We are a small, relatively new company and we do not currently consider the Company to be a significant participant in its industry.

All the top-three radio streamers listed above have the same core weaknesses against faidr. First, none of them can offer complete commercial-free listening. And two, not one is willing to aggregate all the US stations within their platform due to various conflicts of interest. iHeart and Audacy are only interested in allowing users to stream the stations they own and operate, and TuneIn’s relationship with iHeart prevents it from offering Audacy stations.

However, our success is dependent upon our development of new services as well as competitive advertising spend, and there can be no assurance that we will have the resources to acquire new users at a compelling rate to out-compete those top-three platforms or to introduce new services to compete with other new technologies or services. Other companies employing new technologies or services could more successfully implement such new technologies or services or otherwise increase competition with our business.

Employees

As of December 31, 2023, we had 13 total employees, 8 of whom were engaged in full-time research and development activities and 5 of whom were engaged in general administration. The Company also works with 1 full-time contractor who supports research and development and 2 part-time contractors who support general administration activities. None of our employees is represented by any collective bargaining unit. We believe that we maintain good relations with our employees.

Health, Safety and Wellness

We believe that our employees are the summation of our successes, which is why we offer an excellent health and benefits program to our employees and their families. We offer our employees comprehensive health insurance as well as optional dental and vision coverage. Additionally, we provide our employees with paid vacation, holiday, family leave and sick leave, with numerous other benefits offered to our employees.

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, we took immediate steps to protect our employees, clients, and communities in which we operate by making changes to work locations, work protocols, and information services. We continue to maintain our commitment to ensuring our employees’ health, safety, and wellness by providing our employees the option to work in office or fully remote. Any employee who works in office must adhere to the Auddia’s policy regarding vaccination status to ensure the health and safety of our employees.

Legal Proceedings

From time to time, we may be involved in litigation relating to claims arising out of our operations in the normal course of business. We are not currently a party to any material legal proceedings, the adverse outcome of which, in our management’s opinion, individually or in the aggregate, would have a material adverse effect on the results of our operations or financial position. There are no material proceedings in which any of our directors, officers, or affiliates or any registered or beneficial stockholder of more than 5% of our common stock is an adverse party or has a material interest adverse to our interest.

Facilities

In April 2021, the Company entered a twelve-month non-cancelable operating sublease for approximately 8,600 square feet of office space, with an initial base rent of $7,150 per month with three, separate six-month renewal options, subject to fixed rate escalation increases. In November of 2022, the Company amended the sublease to reflect a new term that expired on December 14, 2023, and was not renewed by the parties. The square footage rented was reduced to approximately 2,160 square feet at the cost of $4,018 per month. As of December 31, 2023, the Company was negotiating a new office space lease and entered into a temporary month-to-month lease for $1,600 per month until negotiations were finalized. On March 25, 2024, the Company entered into a new 37-month operating lease commencing on April 1, 2024 with two separate two year renewal options. The monthly base rent for months two through 14 is $2,456, increasing to $3,070 for months 15 through 26, and ending at $3,684 for months 27 through 37. Rent expense was $61,724 and $104,223 for the years ended December 31, 2023, and 2022, respectively.

Regulatory and Certifications

We are subject to varying degrees of regulations in each of the jurisdictions in which we provide services. Local laws and regulations, and their interpretation and enforcement, differ significantly among those jurisdictions.

Data privacy has become a significant issue in the United States and in other countries. The regulatory framework for privacy issues worldwide is rapidly evolving and is likely to remain uncertain for the foreseeable future. Many federal, state and foreign government bodies and agencies have adopted or are considering adopting laws and regulations affecting or regarding the collection, use and disclosure of personal information. In the United States, these include, for example, rules and regulations promulgated under the authority of the Federal Trade Commission, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, the Family Medical Leave Act of 1993, the ACA, state breach notification laws and state privacy laws, such as the California Consumer Privacy Act of 2018 (the “CCPA”), the California Privacy Rights Act (the “CPRA”) and the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act (the “IBIPA”). Further, because some of our clients have establishments internationally, the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”) and other foreign data privacy laws may impact our processing of certain client and employee information.

We rely on a combination of copyrights, trademarks, service marks, trade secret laws and contractual restrictions to establish and protect our intellectual property rights. We also have a number of registered and unregistered trademarks and will continue to evaluate the registration of additional trademarks as appropriate. We do not have any patents or patent applications pending.

Segment Information

We operate in a single operating segment and a single reporting segment. Operating segments are defined as components of an enterprise about which separate financial information is regularly evaluated by the chief operating decision maker function (which is fulfilled by our chief executive officer) in deciding how to allocate resources and in assessing performance. Our chief executive officer allocates resources and assesses performance based upon financial information at the level. Since we operate in one operating segment, all required financial segment information is presented in the financial statements.

Corporate Information

We were originally formed as Clip Interactive, LLC in January 2012, as a limited liability company under the laws of the State of Colorado. In connection with our initial public offering (“IPO”) in February 2021, we converted into a Delaware corporation pursuant to a statutory conversion under the name Auddia Inc. Our principal executive offices are located at 1680 38 th Street, Suite 130, Boulder, CO 80301. Our main telephone number is (303) 219-9771. Our internet website is www.auddia.com and corporate website is www.auddiainc.com. The information contained in or accessible from our website is not incorporated into this Annual Report, and you should not consider it part of this Annual Report. We have included our website address in this Annual Report solely as an inactive textual reference.

We are an “emerging growth company” as defined in the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act of 2012. We will remain an emerging growth company until the earlier of: (i) the last day of the fiscal year (a) following the fifth anniversary of the completion of our IPO, (b) in which we have total annual gross revenue of at least $1.07 billion, or (c) in which we are deemed to be a large accelerated filer, which means the market value of our common stock that is held by non-affiliates exceeds $700.0 million as of the prior June 30th, and (ii) the date on which we have issued more than $1.0 billion in non-convertible debt during the prior three-year period.

Available Information

Our internet address is www.auddia.com and our investor relations website is located at investors.auddiainc.com. Our Annual Reports on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, Current Reports on Form 8-K and amendments to those reports can be found on our investor relations website, free of charge, as soon as reasonably practicable after we electronically file such material with, or furnish it to, the SEC. Information contained on our website is not incorporated by reference into this Form 10-K. The SEC maintains a public website, www.sec.gov, which includes information about and the filings of issuers that file electronically with the SEC.