On the other hand, he just put in over half a mil of his own cash, so that’s certainly enough heat for one Christmas sauna!
The only thing I’m wondering about is the cost structure—could it be trimmed, or what does it even consist of? Personnel costs are over €100k/annum/head; I suppose salaries are at that level in this industry, but other OPEX is another €8M per annum. What does it consist of, considering the company’s product is “intangible,” so in principle, you only need some computing capacity (or a lot) and office space?
Still hoping for another announcement since the CEO spoke about potentially two deals before the end of the year; whichever way this one came through, one was rumored to be via Siemens Healthineers. It gave the share price a nice initial boost, but I’m more anxious to see if I’m on the list of the 100 largest shareholders in the upcoming update—the share issue shuffled the deck a bit.
It might be worth noting that, at least in light of Aiforia’s press release, the latest US order is for scientific research use, rather than routine clinical use with large patient datasets. A good reference for sure, but it might not have extraordinary significance for Aiforia’s cash flow.
“FDA clearance is essential in the United States for medical devices, including AI-powered diagnostic solutions, to be sold and used in clinical settings. Without it, the devices or software may only be available for research or other non-clinical purposes.”
Inderes’ extensive report: “In the United States, the customer can also self-validate an AI model they have developed for clinical use (referred to in the US by the
term LDT, Lab Developed Test). In these cases, Aiforia
sells its software for research purposes and the customer
handles the validation for clinical use themselves. In this
way, Aiforia can offer its software to clinical customers without FDA
approval even in the United States, such as in the Mayo Clinic customer relationship won
at the end of 2021. In our assessment, ready-made FDA-
approved products would nonetheless be necessary for broader market formation
in the United States.”
A major US cancer research institute would obviously be a big reference, whether it’s Dana-Farber or something similar. Especially if they can achieve commercial AI model cooperation, like with Mayo.
Aiforia states that spatial biology is precisely at the center. So, not just what cells, but where they are spatially located. Immune cells, for example, can have different functions in different parts of a cancerous tumor and its environment.
Well yeah, the horseman from the car dealer family seems to have been the largest participant in the offering with a block of 500,000 shares. Personally, this doesn’t convince me all that much.