Atomera Incorporated develops, commercializes, and licenses proprietary materials, processes, and technologies for the semiconductor industry in North America and the Asia Pacific. The company's lead technology is the Mears Silicon Technology, a thin film of reengineered silicon that can be applied as a transistor channel enhancement to CMOS-type transistors. Its customers include foundries, integrated device manufacturers, fabless semiconductor manufacturers, original equipment manufacturers, and electronic design automation companies. The company was formerly known as Mears Technologies, Inc. and changed its name to Atomera Incorporated in January 2016. Atomera Incorporated was incorporated in 2001 and is headquartered in Los Gatos, California.
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Here are 1-3 brief analogies to describe Atomera (ATOM):
1. Atomera is like an ARM Holdings for silicon materials, licensing fundamental technology to chip manufacturers to significantly improve their microchip performance.
2. Atomera is like a 'Gore-Tex for microchips,' providing specialized silicon material technology that makes integrated circuits faster and more energy-efficient.
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Mears Silicon Technology (MST®): A patented materials engineering platform designed to enhance the performance, power efficiency, and cost-effectiveness of semiconductor devices.
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Technology Licensing & Integration Services: Atomera licenses its MST® platform to semiconductor manufacturers and provides comprehensive support for its integration into their chip fabrication processes.
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Atomera (symbol: ATOM) primarily operates on a Business-to-Business (B2B) model, licensing its Mears Silicon Technology (MST®) to semiconductor manufacturers.
The company generally does not publicly disclose the names of its specific customers or licensees due to confidentiality agreements and competitive considerations within the semiconductor industry. Atomera's customers are typically leading global semiconductor companies, including:
- Integrated Device Manufacturers (IDMs)
- Semiconductor Foundries
- Fabless Semiconductor Companies
These companies integrate Atomera's MST into their chip designs and manufacturing processes to enhance transistor performance. While specific customer names are not disclosed, Atomera's SEC filings indicate a concentration of revenue from a limited number of customers. For example, their 2023 10-K states that revenue from their top five customers accounted for approximately 92% of their total revenue for the year ended December 31, 2023, without naming those customers.
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Scott Bibaud, President and Chief Executive Officer, Board Director
Scott Bibaud has served as President, Chief Executive Officer, and a director of Atomera since October 2015. He has over 25 years of experience in the semiconductor industry, during which he successfully built businesses that generated over $1 Billion in revenue at major semiconductor companies. Prior to Atomera, he was Senior Vice President and General Manager of Altera's Communications and Broadcast Division from June 2012 to August 2014. Before that, he served as Executive Vice President and General Manager of the Mobile Platforms Group at Broadcom, where he turned the division from significant losses to profitability in less than three years. Additionally, he was an executive-in-residence at Foundation Capital, a venture capital firm.
Frank Laurencio, Chief Financial Officer
Frank Laurencio has over 20 years of experience in senior finance positions within high-growth technology companies. He joined Atomera as Chief Financial Officer in February 2016. Mr. Laurencio previously held CFO roles at companies such as Sycomp, Orbis Global (which is now part of Infor), Bubbly (also known as Bubble Motion), and OnStor (now part of LSI/Avago). Earlier in his career, he worked as a corporate and securities attorney at Davis Polk & Wardwell and in technology investment banking at Lehman Brothers.
Robert Mears, Chief Technology Officer, Founder
Robert Mears is a recognized pioneer and leading expert in photonics and nano-scale material engineering with more than 30 years of experience. In the mid-1980s, Dr. Mears invented and first demonstrated the Erbium Doped Fiber Amplifier (EDFA). He founded Nanovis LLC, the original predecessor company to Atomera, in 2001 to leverage his insights into nano-scale material engineering.
Erwin Trautmann, Executive Vice President of Business Development, Board Director
Erwin Trautmann holds the position of Executive Vice President of Business Development and is also a Director at Atomera.
Hideki Takeuchi, Vice President of Engineering
Hideki Takeuchi has over 30 years of experience in the semiconductor industry. He joined Mears Technologies (the predecessor company to Atomera) in 2008 and became Vice President of Engineering in 2022. At Atomera, he has managed numerous customer projects and internal R&D projects. Before joining Atomera, he was a senior researcher for DRAM product development at Nippon Steel.
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Atomera (ATOM) is expected to drive future revenue growth over the next 2-3 years through several key strategies focused on the adoption and commercialization of its Mears Silicon Technology (MST).
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Transition to High-Volume Manufacturing and Royalty Revenue: A primary driver for Atomera's future revenue is the progression of its customers from initial design wins and development phases to high-volume manufacturing (HVM) and the associated royalty payments. The company views design wins as crucial steps towards implementing MST in products destined for high-volume production. This shift from upfront licensing fees to recurring, volume-based royalties is a significant inflection point for Atomera's business model.
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Increased Customer Engagements and Design Wins: Atomera continues to expand its customer engagements and secure new design wins, which are pivotal for future revenue. The company reported its best year ever for design wins in 2023, signaling growing momentum. These increasing engagements span a diverse range of applications, indicating a broadening pipeline for MST adoption.
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Expansion into New Market Segments and Applications: The company is actively broadening the applicability of its MST technology across various semiconductor markets. Atomera is seeing increased interest in MST for advanced logic, memory, power, RF, display, and even photonics applications. This strategic expansion into new and diverse market segments significantly increases Atomera's total addressable market and opens up new avenues for revenue generation.
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Deepening Foundry Engagements and Process of Record (POR) Achievements: Progress in engagements with leading foundries and establishing MST as a "Process of Record" (POR) are critical for wider adoption. Collaborating with chip manufacturers and foundries to integrate MST into existing semiconductor manufacturing processes is essential to improving chip performance and power efficiency for a broader customer base, thereby facilitating more widespread integration and accelerating revenue growth.
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Share Repurchases
Atomera has not reported any significant share repurchase programs or activities in its financial filings over the last 3-5 years.
Share Issuance
- In December 2023, Atomera entered into an At-The-Market (ATM) Sales Agreement, under which it may offer and sell shares of its common stock having an aggregate offering price of up to $25.0 million.
- As of December 31, 2023, Atomera had issued 2,642,668 shares under an ATM offering, generating net proceeds of approximately $14.1 million.
- During the year ended December 31, 2022, Atomera issued 4,204,500 shares of common stock through an At-the-Market (ATM) Offering, generating net proceeds of approximately $20.9 million.
Inbound Investments
Atomera has not reported any significant inbound investments by third-parties, such as strategic partners or private equity firms, in its financial filings over the last 3-5 years.
Outbound Investments
Atomera has not reported making any strategic investments in other companies in its financial filings over the last 3-5 years.
Capital Expenditures
- Capital expenditures were approximately $0.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2023.
- For the year ended December 31, 2022, capital expenditures amounted to approximately $0.5 million.
- Capital expenditures were approximately $0.2 million for the year ended December 31, 2021.
