Item 3. Key Information
A. [Reserved]
B. Capitalization and indebtedness.
Not applicable.
C. Reasons for the offer and use of proceeds.
Not applicable.
D. Risk factors
You should carefully consider the risks described below, together with all of the other information in this Annual Report on Form 20-F. The risks and uncertainties described below are those significant risk factors, currently known and specific to us, that we believe are relevant to an investment in our securities. Additional risks and uncertainties not currently known to us or that we now deem immaterial may also harm us. If any of these risks materialize, our business, results of operations or financial condition could suffer, and the price of our Ordinary Shares could decline substantially.
Summary Risk Factors
Investing in our Class A ordinary shares, no par value per share, having one vote per share, or Class A Ordinary Shares, involves a high degree of risk, as fully described below. The principal factors and uncertainties that make investing in our Class A Ordinary Shares risky, include, among others:
•REE is an early stage company with a history of losses, and expects to incur significant expenses and continuing losses for the foreseeable future, and there is substantial doubt that we will have sufficient funds to satisfy our obligations for the foreseeable future and through the next 12 months from the date of this Annual Report if we are unable to obtain sufficient additional funding or do not have access to capital to finance our current business plan.
•Servicing our Convertible Notes may require a significant amount of cash, and we may not have sufficient cash flow from our business to pay our substantial debt. Additionally, we may not have the funds necessary to settle conversions of our convertible notes in cash or to repurchase the notes upon a change in control transaction, and our future debt may contain limitations on our ability to pay cash upon conversion or repurchase of the notes.
•REE’s limited operating history may make evaluation of its business and future prospects difficult, increasing the risk of investment in REE. Its business model has not been proven, and any failure to obtain significant orders for its products would have an adverse effect on its operating results, business, or reputation, resulting in substantial liabilities that may exceed its resources.
•Projections of REE’s operational or financial performance relies in large part on inherently uncertain assumptions that may not materialize, which could cause actual results to differ significantly. We also operate in an industry that is new and rapidly evolving, and our estimates are subject to significant uncertainty.
•Our significant shareholders have influence and may be able to exert substantial influence over REE, including over decisions that require the approval of shareholders, and their interests may conflict with the interests of other shareholders, which could materially adversely impact REE.
•If the market for SDVs does not develop as REE expects or develops slower than REE expects, its business prospects, financial condition, and operating results may be adversely affected.
•REE’s future sales and operations in international markets may expose it to operational, financial and regulatory risks, including unfavorable regulatory, political, tax and labor conditions, which could negatively impact us.
•Adverse conditions in the automotive industry and adverse global conditions, including macroeconomic, protectionist trade policies and tariffs, geopolitical uncertainty, and other events may negatively impact our financial results and/or operations. Our business could also be harmed by increases in costs, disruption of supply or shortage of materials.
•Our reservations include both binding orders and non-binding reservation and such non-binding reservations may not result in definitive purchase orders and/or agreements and the majority of our reservation value is dependent upon our March MOU customer. REE is also subject to others risks associated with our strategic partners.
•There is no guarantee that our potential customers will purchase our SDV products in any certain quantity or at any certain price even after we achieve design wins, and there may be significant delays between the time we achieve a design win until we realize revenue from the vehicle model.
•REE’s products are in various stages of development and there are risks with developing such products into marketable products. If and when REE resumes manufacturing, its ability to induce follow-on sales following the initial sale of vehicles to our customers depends, in part, on its ability to prove that REE’s products are to the full satisfaction of such customers and to establish and maintain confidence in REE’s business prospects among such customers.
•Our market is both highly competitive against a large number of established competitors and new market entrants, and, with respect to EV in particular, one that is viewed more cautiously overall by the target customer-base.
•REE is subject to risks associated with the anticipated timing of REE’s initial commercial production and subsequent increased commercial production. We currently do not have extensive experience servicing products.
•REE’s development of an outsourced manufacturing business model, if and when REE resumes manufacturing, may not be successful, which could harm its ability to deliver its vehicles and recognize revenue.
•With respect to manufacturing, REE depends on its suppliers, including but not limited to body manufacturers and battery providers, some of which are single or limited source suppliers, and if such suppliers fail to deliver the components of REE’s products in a timely manner or at all and at prices and in volumes acceptable to it, it could have a material adverse effect on its business, prospects and operating results.
•If and when we resume manufacturing, REE’s production plan would likely relate to producing a certain number of vehicles in the U.S. Such production plan targets will be subject to a variety of risks, including the completion of REE’s production tooling investment plan, sourcing materials and components from REE’s suppliers on its agreed upon deadlines, securing sufficient funding, and global macroeconomic conditions.
•If OEMs or technology companies are unable to maintain and increase consumer acceptance of SDV technology, our business, results of operations, and financial condition would be adversely affected and our business would likely fail.
•Pricing pressures, automotive original equipment manufacturers, or OEM, cost reduction initiatives and the ability of automotive OEMs to re-source or cancel vehicle or technology programs may result in lower than anticipated margins, or losses, which may adversely affect REE’s business.
•Our products rely on software and hardware that is highly technical, and if these systems contain errors, bugs, defects, or other vulnerabilities, or if we are unsuccessful in addressing or mitigating technical limitations in our systems, our business could be adversely affected.
•REE may become subject to product liability claims, legal and regulatory proceedings, commercial or contractual disputes,or lawsuits alleging infringement or misappropriation of intellectual property rights.
• REE is dependent on its founders Daniel Barel and Ahishay Sardes, or Founders, and its success depends, in part, on its ability to attract and recruit key employees and hire qualified employees and management. Also, REE’s management has limited experience operating a public company.
•REE is subject to various environmental laws and regulations that could impose substantial costs on its business and cause delays in building its manufacturing facilities.
•If REE is unable for any reason to meet the continued listing requirements of the Nasdaq Stock Market, or Nasdaq, such action or inaction could result in a delisting of its Class A Ordinary Shares.
•REE and its suppliers, service providers, and strategic partners are subject to cybersecurity and other risks with respect to each of their respective technology, systems, and software, which could prevent REE from effectively operating its business, or may cause harm to its business that may or may not be reparable.
•REE may incur significant costs and expenses in connection with the protection and enforcement of its intellectual property rights, including but not limited to litigation costs.
•Our dual class structure has the effect of concentrating voting power.
•Political, economic and military conditions in Israel could adversely affect REE’s supply chain, business, operations, and ability to raise capital.
Risks Related to REE’s Finances
REE is an early stage company with a history of losses, and expects to incur significant expenses and continuing losses for the foreseeable future, and there is substantial doubt that we will have sufficient funds to satisfy our obligations, including through the next 12 months from the date of this Annual Report if we are unable to obtain sufficient additional funding or do not have access to capital to finance our current business plan. As a result, REE may be unable to meet its future capital requirements, which could jeopardize its ability to continue its business operations and/or lose control of its business to a creditor.
As an early-stage growth company, REE’s ability to access capital is critical. Until REE can generate sufficient revenue to cover its operating expenses, working capital and capital expenditures, REE must raise additional capital. Since inception, REE has incurred, and REE expects it will continue to incur, losses and negative cash flow, either or both of which are significant. As of December 31, 2024, REE’s cash and cash equivalents were $72.3 million (including $18 million from our credit facility) and it has recorded a net loss of $111.8 million and $114.2 million for the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively. The report of our independent registered public accounting firm for the year ended December 31, 2024 included herein contains an explanatory paragraph indicating that there is substantial doubt that we will have sufficient funds to satisfy our obligations through the next twelve months from the date of this Annual Report. The consolidated financial statements do not include any adjustments with respect to the carrying amounts of assets and liabilities and their classification that might be necessary should the Company be unable to continue as a going concern. Our ability to continue our business, including as a going concern, is dependent on our ability to obtain the necessary financing to meet our obligations and repay our liabilities arising from the ordinary course of business operations when they become due. The outcome of these matters cannot be predicted with any certainty at this time.
REE’s ability to successfully carry out its business plan, including its production activities, is dependent upon its ability to raise sufficient additional capital. There are no assurances, however, that REE will be successful in obtaining any needed capital or an adequate level of financing needed to support its operations and business. REE may not be able to timely secure additional debt or equity financing on favorable terms, or at all. If we raise additional funds through the issuance of equity or convertible debt or other equity-linked securities, our existing shareholders could experience varying levels of dilution, depending on the circumstances, including in connection with the anti-dilution provisions under our Convertible Notes. Any debt financing or credit facilities obtained by REE in the future would likely involve restrictive covenants relating to its capital raising activities and other financial and operational matters, which may make it more difficult for REE to obtain additional capital, to pursue business opportunities, and which can result in harsh consequences in the event of a default, such as a potential lender taking over control of our business or our business assets. Towards the end of 2024,
we entered into a detailed non-binding term sheet for a $15 million credit facility with a large bank in Israel, which needs to be converted into a binding agreement. To-date, we have been negotiating definitive documents for such credit facility, however we do not believe that we will sign a definitive agreement by the expiration date of the term sheet.. If we are unable to obtain adequate financing or financing on terms satisfactory to us and in the amounts needed when we require them, we will not be able to implement our business plan and will need to delay, scale back, or abandon some or all of our production and business operations and/or wind down or restructure our business and/or seek protection from creditors.
Additionally, any inability to fund our business could cause our customers, suppliers, strategic partners, or other third parties to decrease the amount of business they do with us or terminate their relationship with us, or we could go into default on our outstanding Convertible Notes, or have our credit facility revoked, which, in turn, would permit our creditors to enforce remedies against us, including by taking control of our business, and cause us to consider reducing, discontinuing, or selling operations or seeking protection from creditors, and further raise substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern. Any of the foregoing could materially and adversely harm REE’s business, financial condition and results of operations, including by adversely affecting our ability to implement our business plan, which could cause us to discontinue our operations and/or seek protection from creditors.
The inclusion of a “going concern” explanatory paragraph in the auditor's report may only heighten these concerns about our financial viability and may discourage existing or new customers, suppliers, strategic partners, and other third parties from maintaining or entering into business relationships with us on terms that we find acceptable or at all, including by demanding the posting of additional standby letters of credit or surety bonds before engaging in business with us. We may also have difficulty in retaining and attracting employees as a result of these concerns.
In addition to the above, the working capital funding necessary to operate a new company, inclusive of SDV and EV products, is significant, and other similar companies have tried and failed over the last several years with billions of investment capital. While REE expects to benefit from its management’s experience, the technology it has developed to date, and the advantages offered by its UK Integration Center, REE does not expect to be profitable in the near term as REE invests in its business and REE cannot assure you that we will ever achieve or be able to maintain profitability in the future. We further cannot assure you that we will ever build capacity and/or ramp up our operations. Because we incur the costs and expenses from these efforts and other efforts before we receive any incremental revenue with respect thereto, if any, our losses in future periods will be significant. In addition, these efforts have been and may continue to be more expensive than we currently anticipate and these efforts may not result in sufficient revenue if customers do not purchase our products in sufficient volume, which would further increase our losses. Failure to become profitable may materially and adversely affect the value of your investment. If REE ever achieves profitability, it will be dependent upon the successful development and commercial introduction and acceptance of its products, , which may not occur. See “Liquidity and Capital Resources” in Item 5.B. “Operating and Financial Review and Prospects”, below for a further discussion of our liquidity and the conditions that raise substantial doubt regarding our ability to continue as a going concern.
Servicing our Convertible Notes may require a significant amount of cash, and we may not have sufficient cash flow from our business to pay our substantial debt.
As of December 31, 2024, $8.5 million in aggregate principal amount of our Convertible Notes was outstanding. Our ability to make scheduled payments of the principal of, to pay interest on or to refinance our Convertible Notes or any future indebtedness we may incur depends on our future performance, which is subject to economic, financial, competitive and other factors beyond our control. Our business has not and may not in the future generate cash flow from operations sufficient to service our Convertible Notes and make necessary capital expenditures, or repay our outstanding indebtedness. If we are unable to generate cash flow, we may be required to adopt one or more alternatives, such as winding down or restructuring our business, selling assets, restructuring our Convertible Notes or obtaining additional equity capital on terms that may be onerous or highly dilutive. Our ability to refinance our Convertible Notes will depend, among other factors, on the capital markets and our financial condition at such time. We may not be able to engage in any of these activities or engage in these activities on desirable terms, which could result in a default on our Convertible Note obligations. In the event of the occurrence of any of the above, it would likely qualify as an event of default under our Convertible Notes, unless otherwise waived by the holders thereof, consistent with the terms of such Convertible Notes, and thereby trigger the acceleration of a payment in an amount equal to one hundred thirty percent (130%) of the outstanding principal amount plus the accrued interest thereof on the date on which the first event of default occurred, together with all costs, including, without limitation, legal fees and expenses, of collection. There can be no assurance by REE that we have sufficient capital to make such a payment in the event that it should become due.
In addition, such Convertible Notes contain a full ratchet anti-dilution protection for any offering by us of our Class A Ordinary Shares (other than certain excluded issuances) at a price (as determined in accordance with the terms of the Convertible Notes) that is less than the then current conversion price following the issuance date. This in turn may limit our
ability to engage in equity financings. Moreover, upon the occurrence of the ratchet, the conversion price of the Convertible Notes will be automatically reduced to a price that is less than the then convert conversion price of the notes. Any future adjustments to the conversion price of the Convertible Notes may have a negative impact on the trading price of our Class A Ordinary Shares.
We may not have the funds necessary to settle conversions of our Convertible Notes in cash or to repurchase the notes upon a change in control transaction, and our future debt may contain limitations on our ability to pay cash upon conversion or repurchase of the notes.
Holders of our Convertible Notes have the right to require us to repurchase all or any portion of their notes upon the occurrence of a change of control transaction as defined in those notes at a repurchase price equal to an amount equal to the then outstanding principal amount (together with all accrued and unpaid interest, liquidated damages and any other amounts that may become due under the Convertible Note as at the date of such election), or to request a conversion into Class A Ordinary Shares for the full amount of the then outstanding principal amount (together with all accrued and unpaid interest, liquidated damages and/or any other amounts that may become due under the Convertible Notes as at the date of such election). In addition, upon conversion of the Convertible Notes, unless we elect to deliver solely shares to settle such conversion (other than paying cash in lieu of delivering any fractional share), we will be required to make cash payments in respect of the Convertible Notes being converted. We may not have enough available cash or be able to obtain financing at the time we are required to make repurchases or conversions of these Convertible Notes. In addition, our ability to repurchase our Convertible Notes, or to pay cash upon conversions of such notes may be limited by law, by regulatory authority or by agreements governing our future indebtedness. Our failure to repurchase our Convertible Notes at a time when the repurchase is required or to pay any cash payable on future conversions of such notes as required would constitute a default. Such failure could also lead to a default under agreements governing our existing or future indebtedness. If the repayment of the related indebtedness were to be accelerated after any applicable notice or grace periods, we may not have sufficient funds to repay the indebtedness, repurchase such Convertible Notes or make cash payments upon conversions of such notes.
Moreover, in the event the conditional conversion feature of our Convertible Notes is triggered, holders of such notes will be entitled to convert such notes at any time during specified periods at their option. If one or more holders elect to convert such notes, unless we elect to satisfy our conversion obligation by delivering solely our Class A Ordinary Shares we would be required to settle a portion or all of our conversion obligation through the payment of cash, which could adversely affect our liquidity. In addition, even if holders do not elect to convert such notes, we could be required under applicable accounting rules to reclassify all or a portion of the outstanding principal of such notes as a current rather than long-term liability, which would result in a material reduction of our net working capital.
Financial results may vary significantly from period to period due to fluctuations in REE’s operating costs and other factors, which may or may not be foreseeable.
REE expects its period-to-period financial results to vary based on its operating costs, which REE anticipates will fluctuate as the pace at which it continues to develop and produce new products and increase production capacity. Additionally, REE’s revenues from period to period may fluctuate as it develops and introduces new products or introduces existing products to new markets for the first time. As a result of these factors, REE believes that quarter-to-quarter comparisons of its financial results, especially in the short term, are not necessarily meaningful and that these comparisons cannot be relied upon as indicators of future performance. Moreover, REE’s financial results may not meet expectations of equity research analysts, ratings agencies or investors, who may be focused only on quarterly financial results. If any of this occurs, the trading price of our Class A Ordinary Shares could fall substantially, either suddenly or over time.
REE may not be able to accurately estimate demand for its products, which could result in a variety of inefficiencies in its business and hinder its ability to generate revenue. If REE fails to accurately predict its manufacturing requirements, it could incur additional costs, experience delays, or result in our inability to implement our business plan and the need to discontinue our operations, restructure our business, and/or seek protection from creditors.
It is difficult to predict REE’s future revenues and appropriately budget for its expenses, and REE may have limited insight into trends that may emerge and affect its business. REE is required to provide forecasts of its demand to its suppliers several months or years prior to the scheduled delivery of products to its customers. Currently, there is no historical basis for making judgments on the demand for REE’s products or its ability to develop, produce, and deliver products, or REE’s profitability in the future. If REE overestimates its requirements, its suppliers may have excess inventory, which indirectly would increase REE’s costs. If REE underestimates its requirements, its suppliers may have inadequate inventory, which
could interrupt manufacturing of its products and result in delays in shipments and revenues. In addition, lead times for materials and components that REE’s suppliers order may vary significantly and depend on factors such as the specific supplier, contract terms and demand for each component at a given time. If REE fails to order sufficient quantities of product components in a timely manner, the delivery of products to its potential customer base could be delayed, which would harm REE’s business, financial condition and operating results.
REE will need to improve its operational and financial systems to support its expected growth, increasingly complex business arrangements and rules governing revenue and expense recognition and any inability to do so will adversely affect REE’s billing and reporting.
To manage the expected growth of its operations and increasing complexity, REE will need to improve its operational and financial systems, procedures, and controls and continue to increase systems automation to reduce reliance on manual operations. Any inability to do so may affect REE’s billing and reporting. REE’s current and planned systems, procedures and controls may not be adequate to support its complex arrangements and the rules governing revenue and expense recognition for its future operations and expected growth. Delays or problems associated with any improvement or expansion of REE’s operational and financial systems and controls could adversely affect REE’s relationships with its potential customer base, cause harm to its reputation and brand and could also result in errors in its financial and other reporting.
REE’s insurance strategy may not be adequate to protect it from all business risks and losses.
In the ordinary course of business, REE may become subject to claims resulting from employment disputes, property, casualty, products liability, accidents, acts of God, cyber liability, and other claims similar to other companies with our risk profile that are normal and customary in the market and in our industry. In connection therewith, REE uses commercially reasonable efforts to protect itself and its activities against such losses and risks and in such amounts as are prudent and customary in the businesses in which it and its subsidiaries are engaged. In connection therewith, REE has obtained insurance policies covering commercial general liability, workers’ compensation and directors’ and officers’ insurance policies. Such insurance policies are subject to various deductibles, policy limits, and exclusions that may impact our ability to have coverage for a specific risk. Additionally, if and when REE resumes the delivery of its vehicles to the public, it would plan to maintain an appropriate level of insurance coverage that is proportionate to the number of vehicles sold. Despite such efforts, REE may not successfully strike the appropriate balance of sufficient insurance coverage to address the specific risk and/or loss, and in some cases, REE may not be insured against certain types of claims. Additionally, the policies that REE does have may include significant deductibles, and REE cannot be certain that its insurance coverage will be sufficient to cover all future claims against REE. A loss that is not covered by insurance and/or exceeds policy limits may require REE to pay substantial amounts, which could adversely affect REE’s financial condition and operating results. Further, insurance coverage may not continue to be available to us, or, if available, may be at a significantly higher cost, based on insurance market conditions, our specific industry, and/or a change in our risk profile.
The successful assertion of one or more large claims against REE that exceeds its available insurance coverage, or results in changes to its insurance policies (including premium increases or the imposition of large deductible or co-insurance requirements), could have an adverse effect on its business. In addition, REE cannot be sure that its existing insurance coverage will continue to be available on acceptable terms or that REE’s insurers will not deny coverage for future claims.
Risks Related to REE’s Business
REE’s limited operating history may make evaluation of its business and future prospects difficult, increasing the risk of investment in REE.
REE faces risks and challenges as an early stage company with a limited operating history. REE has a limited operating history in the automotive technology industry on which investors can base an evaluation of its business, operating results and prospects. Since REE is in the early stages of commercializing its SDV technological products, it is difficult to predict REE’s future revenues, if any, and expenses, and REE has limited insight into trends that may emerge and affect its business. There is no assurance that customers and potential customers will purchase REE’s products in volumes sufficient to achieve profitability. Market conditions, many of which are beyond REE’s control and subject to change could impact demand for REE’s products and ultimately REE’s success. These include general economic conditions, the availability and terms of financing, civil discourse throughout the globe, effects and impact of climate change and global warming, regulatory requirements and incentives, competition and the pace and extent of vehicle electrification. Therefore, there can be no assurance at this time that REE will be able to implement its business plan, generate revenues, operate profitably or
will have adequate working capital to meet its obligations (i) as they become due, (ii) upon the occurrence of an acceleration of our obligations to repay indebtedness even if we make all principal and interest payments when due if we breach certain covenants or warranties, or (iii) upon the early termination of any agreement with a supplier or strategic partner. Any of the following would have an adverse impact on our business, financial condition, and ability to continue as a business.
REE’s business model, strategy, and primary business may be subject to change from time-to-time due to, among other reasons, circumstances relating to our products, production, customers, financial condition, customers, the automotive industry, technology industry, macroeconomic and geopolitical conditions, and/or the market.
REE’s business model, strategy, and/or primary business may be subject to change from time-to-time due to, among other reasons, circumstances relating to our products, production, customers, financial condition, the automotive industry, technology industry, macroeconomic and geopolitical conditions, and/or the market. In the event of such change, we may enter into a business that we have limited or no experience in, and our customers, suppliers, strategic partners, and/or other third parties may decrease the amount of business they do with us and/or terminate their relationship with us, or have our credit facility revoked, which, in turn, would permit our creditors to enforce remedies against us, including by taking control of our business, and cause us to consider reducing, discontinuing, or selling operations or seeking protection from creditors. In the event of such terminations, we may have to pay significant termination fees in connection with the termination of our agreements. Additionally, such a change in business would likely qualify as an event of default under our Convertible Notes, unless otherwise waived by the holders consistent with the terms of the notes, and thereby trigger the acceleration of a payment in an amount equal to one hundred thirty percent (130%) of the outstanding principal amount plus the accrued interest thereof on the date on which the first event of default occurred, together with all costs, including, without limitation, legal fees and expenses, of collection.
Such change, among others, can also result in the sale of a significant amount of our Class A Ordinary Shares by our investors, which would significantly increase the volatility of our Class A Ordinary Shares. Such sales may, among other consequences, significantly decrease our share price, including to below $1.00, which could lead to the delisting of our Class A Ordinary Shares from Nasdaq, harming the liquidity of our shares and the ability for share capital appreciation. Any of the foregoing would materially and adversely harm REE’s business, financial condition and results of operations, and would likely prevent us from implementing any business plan, leading us to discontinue our operations, restructure our business, and/or seek protection from creditors. In addition, in the event of any change in our business plan or primary business, it would impact our business projections and/or assumptions as further described in our risk factor titled “Projections of REE’s operational or financial performance relies in large part on inherently uncertain assumptions that may not materialize, which could cause actual results to differ significantly”, including our expected gross profits from our anticipated newer activities compared to our prior activities, and we may not at all be successful in such new activities. If any of this were to occur, it would damage our reputation, and negatively affect our operating results and likely result in the failure of our business.
Projections of REE’s operational or financial performance relies in large part on inherently uncertain assumptions that may not materialize, which could cause actual results to differ significantly.
Any forecasts provided by REE represent management’s estimate of future performance at the time they are made. These forecasts are based on numerous assumptions and subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties, including assumptions about projected operating expense, the level of demand for REE’s products, the performance of REE’s products, the projected bill of materials for REE’s products and the bill of materials breakeven, each if and when REE resumes the manufacturing of its P7 vehicles, EBITDA positive assumptions, the projected gross margin achievable upon sale of REE’s products, the development and commercialization of REE’s products, potential market and sector opportunities, the production capacity of REE’s UK Integration Center and any future Integration Centers, if and when REE resumes manufacturing, the selection and purchase of REE’s products by customers and by segment, and growth in the various markets that REE is targeting. These assumptions represent REE’s best estimates but may prove inaccurate and there can be no assurance that the actual results will be in line with REE’s expectations. In addition, whether actual operating and financial results and business development will be consistent with REE’s expectations and assumptions as reflected in forecasts depends on a number of factors, many of which are beyond REE’s control, including, but not limited to:
•the extent to which projections of operating expenses will reflect the actual operating expenses and sale of REE products in the future;
•the extent to which REE can actualize the value proposition of REE products including, but not limited to, cost efficiencies related to its business model with limited capital expenditure requirements and projected total cost of ownership, and, if and when REE resumes the manufacturing of its vehicles,the availability of mission-specific vehicles that maximize cabin and storage space on a smaller overall footprint;
•beyond our first Integration Center in Coventry, UK, or the UK Integration Center, and contract manufacturing by Roush Industries, there is no guarantee that REE will be able to successfully outsource additional manufacturing and utilize future Integration Centers for the assembly of REE products, if and when REE resumes manufacturing its vehicles;
•the extent to which growth of e-mobility markets and continued shift in consumer preference will conform with projections;
•although REE is focusing on Class 4 through 5 platform models for the P7 EV platform, REE’s ability to validate, verify and test other REE products compatible with the Class 1 through Class 6 platform, which the failure to do so with respect to any class would reduce REE’s projected total addressable market;
•if and when REE resumes manufacturing its vehicles, the extent to which REE’s projected bill of materials conform with the actual bill of materials upon start of production, deviation from which could negatively impact the projected total cost of ownership or projected gross margin;
•supply chain disruptions and shortages of raw materials, parts, components and systems used in our production process, including relating to our SoC;
•if and when REE returns to manufacturing its vehicles, the projected total cost of ownership is based upon a number of projected factors based on management expectations, the deviation from which could negatively impact the actual total cost of ownership offered to potential customers;
•partnerships with upfitters to build finished SDVs, if and when REE resumes manufacturing its vehicles; and
•whether REE can obtain sufficient capital to sustain and grow its business.
In addition to these risks, other unknown or unpredictable factors could also adversely affect REE’s financial or operating performance. In the event that actual results materially differ from REE’s projected financial information or if REE adjusts its projections in future periods, REE’s share price could be materially adversely affected.
REE may not succeed in controlling the costs associated with its operations and we may therefore not be able to implement our business plan and may need to discontinue our operations, restructure our business, and/or seek protection from creditors.
The manufacturing of vehicles will require significant capital to develop and grow its business and to produce and scale the production of vehicles,including maintaining its supply chain, developing and assembling REE products, ramping up the production and assembly of REE products, building future Integration Centers, maintaining the current UK Integration Center and developing REE’s intellectual property portfolio and brand. REE has incurred, and expects to continue to incur, significant expenses that have and will impact its profitability, including research and development expenses, sales and distribution expenses as REE builds its brand and markets its products, and general and administrative expenses as it scales its operations. REE’s ability to become profitable in the future will not only depend on its ability to successfully sell its products, but also to control its costs. If REE is unable to accomplish any of the following then we may not be able to achieve profitable operations: efficiently design, source parts, assemble, sell and distribute its products. Moreover, because various items in our supply chain are, and may continue to be, subject to tariffs, we have experienced significant increases in our vehicle production. As a result, we have had to delay our vehicle production and expect such tariffs (including the surrounding uncertainty therefrom) to continue to significantly impact our business, operations, and vehicle production goals. If we return to production of our vehicles and are unable to pass the costs of such tariffs on to our customer/end-user base or otherwise mitigate such costs, or if demand for our vehicles decreases due to the higher cost, our results of operations and overall financial performance could be materially adversely affected. Moreover, on September 15, 2024, we entered into a Supply Chain Management Services Agreement with Samvardhana Motherson International Limited, or Motherson, which among other items, includes services to optimize our supply chain for cost efficiencies, supplier development and management, part development cost management, contract and purchase order management, and supply chain management. Motherson’s inability to optimize and manage our supply chain may result in operational inefficiencies and higher costs (including with respect to sourcing parts) across our supply chain, which would impact our ability to achieve profitability. Additionally, since entering into the above agreement, Motherson has assumed managerial responsibility over a significant number of our suppliers. In the event that Motherson is unable to continue to provide these services, we would need to manage and communicate with these suppliers ourselves. Doing so would likely add time, cost, and create resource constraints, including the reallocation of our employees from other efforts within our business, which could strain our current resources and/or create significant interruptions and inefficiencies within our supply chain. Such circumstances would likely have a material adverse affect on our operations and business.
In addition, over 2023 and 2024, we took steps to lower our expenses. Specifically, in 2023 we undertook a targeted reduction in headcount of approximately 11% of the Company’s workforce. Additionally, in 2024, we sought to more closely align our employee headcount with our business plan, resulting in an approximately 16% reduction over the course of the year. REE expects to take additional steps to lower its expenses, including additional reductions in force over the next several months. Reductions in force, in particular, may yield unintended consequences and costs, including additional attrition beyond the amount of force reduction, distraction to our employees, reduced employee morale and adverse effects on our reputation as an employer. Such reductions in force may also make it more difficult for us to hire new employees in the future and may limit the anticipated benefits from the reduction in force. Additionally, if we are unsuccessful in generating orders for our products or are unable to raise additional capital, we may need to further reduce our expenses.
If the market for SDVs does not develop as REE expects or develops slower than REE expects, its business prospects, financial condition, and operating results may be adversely affected.
REE’s growth depends upon the adoption of SDVs by OEMs, delivery and logistic fleets, dealers, e-commerce retailers, new mobility players, MaaS, providers and autonomous drive companies, its ability to sell products that meet their needs and, if and when REE resumes manufacturing, on REE’s ability to produce and assemble its vehicles. The entry of SDV products into the market is a relatively new development and is characterized by rapidly changing technologies and evolving government regulation, industry standards and customer views of the merits of using SDVs in their businesses. As part of REE’s sales efforts, REE must demonstrate to OEMs, delivery and logistic fleets, dealers, e-commerce retailers, new mobility players, MaaS providers and autonomous drive companies the savings during the life of the vehicle and, if and when REE resumes manufacturing, the lower total cost of ownership, or TCO, of vehicles built on the REE’s technology.
With respect to its vehicles, if and when we resume manufacturing, REE believes that OEMs, delivery and logistic fleets, dealers, e-commerce retailers, new mobility players, MaaS providers and autonomous drive companies consider many factors when deciding whether to purchase REE’s products (or EVs generally) over vehicles powered by internal combustion engines, particularly diesel-fueled or natural gas-fueled vehicles. REE believes these factors include:
•the difference in the initial purchase prices of EVs with comparable vehicles powered by internal combustion engines, both including and excluding the effect of government and other subsidies and incentives designed to promote the purchase of EVs;
•the TCO of the vehicle over its expected life, which includes the initial purchase price and ongoing operating and maintenance costs;
•the availability and terms of financing options for purchases of vehicles and, for EVs, financing options for battery or fuel cell systems;
•the availability of tax and other governmental incentives to purchase and operate EVs and future regulations requiring increased use of nonpolluting vehicles;
•government regulations and economic incentives promoting fuel efficiency and alternate forms of energy;
•fuel prices, including volatility in the cost of diesel or a prolonged period of low gasoline and natural gas costs that could decrease incentives to transition to EVs;
•the cost and availability of other alternatives to diesel fueled vehicles, such as vehicles powered by natural gas;
•corporate sustainability initiatives;
•EV quality, performance and safety (particularly with respect to lithium-ion battery packs or fuel cells);
•the quality and availability of service for the vehicle, including the availability of replacement parts;
•the limited range over which EVs may be driven on a single charge;
•increased competition with other companies also developing zero-emission electric and autonomous vehicles;
•access to charging stations and related infrastructure costs, and standardization of EV charging systems;
•electric grid capacity and reliability; and
•macroeconomic factors.
If, in weighing these factors, OEMs, delivery and logistic fleets, dealers, new mobility players, MaaS providers and autonomous drive companies determine that there is not a compelling business justification for purchasing EVs, particularly those built on products by REE, then the market for EVs may not develop as REE expects or may develop
more slowly than REE expects, which would adversely affect REE’s business, prospects, financial condition and operating results.
In addition, the reduction, elimination or selective application of tax and other governmental incentives and subsidies resulting from policy changes (including any related impacts from actions by the Trump Administration with respect to EV), or the reduced need for such subsidies and incentives due to the perceived success of the EV, fiscal tightening or other reasons may result in the diminished competitiveness of the EV industry generally or EVs built on the REE products in particular, which could in turn adversely affect REE’s business, prospects, financial condition and operating results.
Further, REE cannot assure that the current governmental incentives and subsidies available for purchasers of EVs will remain available. More specifically, recent executive orders by the Trump Administration indicate reversals from the Biden Administration’s policy directives as it relates to clean energy and EVs. This policy shift may reduce governmental incentives and subsidies for EVs, which may impact customer demand and our future growth prospects. Moreover, the actions by the Trump Administration may face legal challenges that could delay or alter their implementation, and create uncertainty. Any new policies that are in contrast to the policies of the Biden Administration introduce uncertainty into the current regulatory environment, which may affect our business, prospects, financial condition, results of operations, and cash flows.
Adverse conditions in the automotive industry could have adverse effects on REE’s results of operations.
REE’s business is directly affected by and significantly dependent on business cycles and other factors affecting the global automobile industry. Automotive production and sales are highly cyclical and depend on general economic conditions and other factors, including consumer spending and preferences, changes in interest rates and credit availability, tariffs and trade wars, consumer confidence, fuel costs, fuel availability, environmental impact, governmental incentives and regulatory requirements and political volatility, especially in energy-producing countries and growth markets. In addition, automotive production and sales may be affected by REE’s current and potential customers’, suppliers’, dealers’ and strategic partners’ ability to continue operating in response to challenging economic conditions and in response to regulatory requirements and other factors. Specific to the electric vehicle segment in the automotive industry, challenges may arise due to a variety of factors, including an increase in the costs of certain components or parts of electric vehicles, caused by supply chain disruptions and shortages of raw materials, U.S. tariffs (including but not limited to with respect to China-sourced lithium-ion batteries), market participants over-promising and under-delivering on their production capabilities and the slow deployment and resulting availability of charging networks for electric vehicles. Any significant adverse change in any of these factors may result in a reduction in automotive sales and production by REE’s current and potential customers, suppliers, dealers and strategic partners and could have a material adverse effect on REE’s business, results of operations and financial condition. Additionally, REE’s expenses, including its cost of production, have risen, and may continue to rise, in response to tariffs, which have, and may continue to have, an adverse affect on REE’s business, results of operations and financial condition.
REE’s future sales and operations in international markets may expose it to operational, financial and regulatory risks, including but not limited to unfavorable regulatory, political, tax and labor conditions which could negatively impact the business.
REE faces risks associated with its international operations, including potentially unfavorable regulatory, political, tax and labor conditions, which could adversely affect its business, financial condition, and operating results. REE currently operates or has subsidiaries in Israel, the U.S., the UK, Germany, and Japan has been taking reservations for its products in the U.S. and Canada and has been marketing certain products to customers in certain EU countries, Japan, and India. These operations, subsidiaries, and/or sales are subject to the legal, political, regulatory and social requirements and economic conditions in these jurisdictions, as applicable. Additionally, as part of its growth strategy, REE intends to expand its manufacturing partnerships, assembly facilities and sales activity internationally to markets outside of North America. However, such expansion would require REE to make significant expenditures, which may include the hiring of local employees and establishing facilities, in advance of generating any revenue. REE is subject to a number of risks associated with international business activities that may increase its costs, impact its ability to sell its products and require significant management attention. These risks include:
•conforming REE’s products to various international regulatory, safety, emissions, certification and homologation requirements where its products are marketed or sold;
•challenges related to the development, construction and operation of current and future Integration Centers;
•difficulties related to maintenance and ability to produce REE’s products in REE’s UK Integration Center;
•difficulty in staffing and managing foreign operations;
•difficulties securing customers in new jurisdictions;
•exposure to foreign government taxes, regulations and permit requirements, including foreign taxes that REE may not be able to offset against taxes imposed upon it in Israel, and foreign tax and other laws limiting REE’s ability to repatriate funds to Israel;
•restrictions on the distribution of earnings, dividends, or capital from foreign jurisdictions to Israel;
•exposure to fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates and interest rates, including risks related to any interest rate swap or other hedging activities REE may undertake;
•disruptions in global or regional supply chains and international shipping;
•exposure to tariffs, trade restrictions, duties, or other governmental measures, including those that may be imposed by Israel or other foreign governments, or in response to changing trade policies, such as U.S. tariffs on imports from specified countries;
•compliance with differing and potentially more stringent labor laws and employment regulations outside of Israel;
•changing diplomatic, trade, and geopolitical relationships that may adversely impact REE’s ability to operate or sell in certain markets;
•political instability, war, natural disasters, or terrorism in key markets; and
•macroeconomic volatility or weakness in foreign markets, which could reduce demand for REE’s products.
If REE fails to successfully manage these risks, its business, prospects, operating results and financial condition could be materially and adversely affected.
Adverse global conditions, including macroeconomic, protectionist trade policies and tariffs, geopolitical uncertainty, and other events may negatively impact our financial results.
Global conditions, dislocations in the financial markets, or inflation could adversely impact our business. In addition, the global macroeconomic environment has been and may continue to be negatively affected by, among other things, instability in global economic markets, increased trade tariffs and trade disputes, rising inflation, instability in the global credit markets, banks and financial institutions entering receivership or becoming insolvent, supply chain weaknesses, instability in the geopolitical environment and increasing tensions, including between China and Taiwan and between the U.S. and Iran, and other political tensions, and foreign governmental debt concerns. Such challenges have caused, and may continue to cause, uncertainty and instability in local economies and in global financial markets, which may adversely affect our business. For example, the trade policies of the Trump Administration differ from those of the Biden administration and have led, and likely will continue to lead, to the renegotiation and/or termination of certain existing bilateral or multi-lateral trade agreements. In addition, tariffs have been, and will likely continue to be, imposed by the Trump Administration, and additional trade restrictions could be implemented on a broad range of products, geographic regions, or raw materials. The Trump Administration has also issued an executive order to review U.S. trade policies, practices, and agreements to address trade deficits and other economic security matters, including assessing whether the imposition of new or increased tariffs or other measures is required. Following such executive order, on April 2, 2025, the Trump Administration issued another executive order that imposed a minimum of 10% tariff on imports from all U.S. trading partners, including the UK, with increased tariff amounts for specific countries described in the executive order, including 24% on imports from Japan, 84% on imports from China, and 17% on imports from Israel. Following such executive order, the Trump Administration raised the tariffs on China to around 125% while suspending country-specific reciprocal tariffs for all countries for a period to allow for negotiations. Subsequent to such executive orders, the Trump Administration announced a trade deal with the UK and a postponement of the application of certain tariff amounts on China. Tariffs and trade wars, or the threat thereof, between the U.S. and countries such as China, Canada, Mexico, the UK, the EU and other countries has disrupted global supply chains, raised our supply costs, and has adversely affected our ability to execute key elements of our strategy. This can also impede the transition to electric vehicles and/or delay the implementation of economic competitiveness policies. More specifically, we purchase various battery types for our products from certain suppliers based in China, which is more subject to risks associated with international trade conflicts between the U.S. and China, particularly with respect to tariffs and export and import controls and laws. In addition, we manufacture our REEcorner in the UK.
Because various items in our supply chain are, and may continue to be, subject to tariffs, we have experienced significant cost increases with respect to our vehicle production, which we believe were unexpected, unforeseeable, and unpreventable. As a result, we have had to delay our vehicle production and expect such tariffs (including the surrounding uncertainty therefrom) to continue to significantly impact our business, operations, and vehicle production goals. If we
return to production of our vehicles and are unable to pass the costs of such tariffs on to our customer/end-user base or otherwise mitigate such costs, or if demand for our vehicles decreases due to the higher cost, our results of operations and overall financial performance could be materially adversely affected.
Moreover, although REE does not operate in Russia and Ukraine, and there are no plans to launch in either market in the near future,the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine creates geopolitical uncertainty, increased sanctions, and other potential impacts on the global economic environment and may impact customer behavior and disrupt the manufacturing, delivery and overall supply chain or our ability to commercialize REE’s products, which could make it difficult for REE to forecast its financial results. The uncertainty surrounding these conditions and the current, and potentially expanded, scope of international sanctions against Russia may cause unanticipated changes in customers behavior and may impact operations of our suppliers. Sanctions have also created supply constraints and driven inflation that has impacted, and may continue to impact, REE’s operations and could create or exacerbate risks facing REE’s business.
While REE’s “Tier 1” supplier contracts prohibit certain items sourced from sanctioned countries including Russia, vehicle production is a complex process, with thousands of components sourced from all over the world. There can be no assurance, therefore, that there will not be some components sourced from suppliers subject to sanctions compliance with respect to Russia nor that the resulting disruption to the supply chain due to such sanctions will not have an adverse impact on REE’s business and results of operations.
In the event geopolitical tensions deteriorate further or fail to abate, additional governmental sanctions may be enacted that could adversely impact the global economy, banking and monetary systems, markets, and the operations of REE and its suppliers.
In addition, REE may not be able to access a portion of its existing cash, cash equivalents and investments due to market conditions. If other banks and financial institutions enter receivership or become insolvent in the future in response to financial conditions affecting the banking system and financial markets, REE’s ability to access its existing cash, cash equivalents and investments may be threatened and could have a material adverse effect on its business and financial condition.
If and when we resume manufacturing, we may have difficulty successfully resuming our production.
Due to what we believe to be unforeseen and unpreventable circumstances surrounding U.S. tariffs and trade policy, among other factors, we have delayed the manufacturing our vehicle products. If and when we resume manufacturing, we may have difficulty maintaining our current suppliers and contract manufacturer, finding replacement suppliers or contract manufacturers, and/or maintaining customer interest in our products, among other items. If we are unable to successfully resume such production under those circumstances, it would have an adverse impact on our business, financial condition, and ability to continue as a business.
Risks Related to REE’s Strategy
REE’s business model has not been proven and any failure to obtain significant orders for its products would adversely affect our operating results, business, or reputation, resulting in substantial liabilities that may exceed its resources.
REE’s business model is unique because REE can market and sell our products individually, such as our P7 lineup, or as a full or partial “Powered by REE™” or other technology solution . This approach depends in large part on REE’s ability to demonstrate that its products, including its X-By-Wire technology, is road-tested and road-ready and that it is certified for public roads under applicable regulatory standards to OEMs and to maintain existing agreements or enter into definitive agreements that formalize its relationship with customers, suppliers, Authorized Dealers and strategic partners, as well as retaining and growing customer orders following trials of initial test fleets, if and when such deliveries are made. Investors should be aware of the difficulties normally encountered by a new player in the SDV and EV industry, many of which are beyond REE’s control, including substantial risks and expenses in the course of establishing or entering new markets, organizing operations and undertaking marketing activities. The likelihood of REE’s success must be considered in light of these risks, expenses, complications, delays and the competitive environment in which REE operates. In addition, if and when REE resumes manufacturing in the future, its plan to outsource manufacturing to suppliers and strategic partners and to utilize its current and future Integration Centers for the assembly of REE products is a novel business strategy and REE cannot guarantee that the strategy will be successful or profitable, or that it will successfully control its costs through this structure, REE may be unable to generate sufficient revenues, raise additional capital or operate profitably or to meet projected gross margins, EBITDA and cash flows. REE will continue to encounter risks and difficulties frequently experienced by companies in the early stages of commercialization, including, if applicable, scaling up REE’s infrastructure, commercialization and headcount, and may encounter unforeseen expenses, difficulties or delays in connection with its growth. In addition, REE expects to continue to sustain substantial operating expenses without
generating sufficient revenues to cover expenditures. Any investment in REE is therefore highly speculative and could result in the loss of an investor’s entire investment.
Our reservations include both binding orders and non-binding reservation and such non-binding reservations may not result in definitive purchase orders and/or agreements and the majority of our reservation value is dependent upon our March MOU customer.
Our reservations include both binding and non-binding reservations. For example, on March 18, 2025, we announced our entry into an MOU with a global technology company developing and marketing new mobility solutions for passenger and freight transport, or March MOU. In accordance with the terms of the March MOU, the parties intend to sign a strategic collaboration agreement by year-end 2025 which could potentially generate $770 million revenue over the next five years. In addition to the potential revenues from the MOU reservations, we currently have an additional $137 million in reservations, which includes reservations for production that extends beyond 2025. Thus, as of the date of this Annual Report, we have approximately 30 customers in various industries representing approximately 6,200 reservations valued at approximately $908 million, out of which $770 million is attributable to our March MOU. There can be no guarantee that any such strategic collaborations, customers or strategic partners will transition from reservations to binding agreements and/or binding orders or become long-term commitments and the failure to do so would have a material adverse effect on REE’s business, prospects, financial results and results of operations. If we are unsuccessful in converting our March MOU into a binding agreement and/or binding order, it would significantly reduce our reservation value. In addition, any event of bankruptcy, insolvency, or general downturn in the business of the March MOU customer or in its respective industry more generally, will significantly reduce our reservation value, which could have an adverse impact our business, results of operations, reputation, and long term prospects with respect to the viability of our business.
In addition, while we intend to sell our SDV products to customers, including OEMs, such relationships do not necessarily produce long-terms contracts with definitive agreement for purchases. Instead, executed written agreements with these customers typically provide that we will provide our SDV products to such customers pursuant to standard purchase orders under our general terms and conditions, pursuant to which they are generally not obligated to purchase our solutions in any certain quantity or at any certain price. For the foreseeable future, if we are successful in converting our March MOU into a definitive agreement, our business, results of operations, and financial condition will likely primarily depend on this single customer.
In the future, our customers may decide not to purchase our products, may purchase fewer of our SDV products than they did in the past, or may alter their purchasing patterns, and OEMs may discontinue incorporation of our products in their vehicle models, including as a result of a transition to in-house solutions or solutions provided by our competitors, or their individual or aggregate production levels may decline due to a number of factors, including supply chain challenges and macroeconomic conditions. Further, the amount of revenue attributable to any single customer, or our customer concentration generally, may fluctuate in any given period. The loss of one or more customers, a reduction in sales to any customer, the discontinued or decreased incorporation of our products by any OEM, or our inability to attract new customers and OEMs would significantly negatively impact our revenue and adversely affect our business, results of operations, and financial condition and would likely result in our company requiring to seek protection from creditors as part of a bankruptcy proceeding.
There is no guarantee that our potential customers will purchase our SDV products in any certain quantity or at any certain price even after we achieve design wins, and there may be significant delays between the time we achieve a design win until we realize revenue from the vehicle model.
Achieving design wins is not a guarantee of revenue, and our sales may not correlate with the achievement of additional design wins. In particular, contracts with OEM customers typically do not require them to purchase products in any certain quantity or at any certain price, and any potential sales could be less than forecasted if a vehicle model for which we achieve a design win is unsuccessful, including for reasons unrelated to our products, if an OEM decides to discontinue or reduce production of a vehicle model or of the use of our products in a vehicle model, or if we face downward pricing pressure.
Moreover, pricing estimates are made at the time of a request for quotation by an OEM, so that worsening market or other conditions between the time of a request for quotation and an order for our SDV products may require us to sell our products for a lower price than we initially expected. We may attempt to have OEMs commit to certain volumes on a quarterly or shorter basis, however there is no guarantee that OEMs will enter into definitive agreements in the first place and in particular, agreements that contain such conditions. We may also face pricing pressures from OEMs as a result of their restructuring, consolidation, and cost-cutting initiatives or as a result of increased competition. In addition, there may be step-downs in pricing over periods of production as volumes ramp up. If we are unable to generate sufficient cost savings or introduce products at higher price points to offset price reductions, then our business, results of operations, and financial condition would be adversely affected.
Furthermore, our products are technologically complex, incorporate many technological complexities, and are typically subject to significant testing, and OEMs generally must make significant commitments of resources to test and validate our
products before including them in any particular vehicle model. The integration cycles of our products with an OEM can take several years after a design win, depending on the OEM and how efficiently we can integrate our SDV products into their systems and vehicles. These integration cycles therefore may result in our investment of resources prior to realizing any revenue from a vehicle model, except with respect to NRE. An OEM may choose to cancel production of the vehicle model for which we achieved the design win or cancel or postpone the vehicle model. Our SDV products, in particular, control an entire vehicle’s functions including engine, transmission, safety, steering, navigation, acceleration, and braking and therefore must be integrated effectively with the vehicle developed by the OEM and we may be unable to achieve the requisite level of interoperability in a vehicle model for our SDV products to be implemented even after a design win.
In connection with our design wins, we would further expect to receive preliminary estimates from OEMs of their anticipated production volumes for the models relating to those design wins. Those estimates may be revised significantly by the OEMs, potentially multiple times, and may not be representative of future production volumes associated with those design wins, which could be significantly higher or lower than estimated. Furthermore, long development cycles or vehicle model cancellations or postponements would adversely affect our business, results of operations, and financial condition.
The success of our SDV products will depend on their effective deployment and operation by third parties.
The success of our SDV products will depend on our customers and partners, effectively deploying and operating our products in the future, and their failure to do so may result from factors outside our control. As part of our go-to-market strategy, we expect to market our SDV products to OEMs and technology companies. Even if we are successful in entering into definitive agreements with such customers, such third parties may terminate our partnerships with them, including as a result of a change in its internal development strategy. Any failures by third parties to effectively deploy and operate our SDV products, or the termination of our relationships with any such third parties, would adversely affect our business, results of operations, and financial condition.
If and when REE resume manufacturing, REE’s ability to induce follow-on sales following the initial sale of vehicles to our customers depends, in part, on its ability to prove that REE’s products are to the full satisfaction of such customers and to establish and maintain confidence in REE’s business prospects among such customers and others within its industry.
REE has received initial orders for both the P7-C and P7-S. If and when REE resumes manufacturing, such orders present an opportunity for potentially receiving additional follow-on orders in the future that could be more meaningful and impactful from a financial perspective. Customers, suppliers, dealers and strategic partners may be less likely to purchase REE’s products if it does not timely deliver products in accordance with the technical specifications or if the customers do not believe that REE’s business will succeed or that its operations, including providing such partners with maintenance and service through qualified supplier support operations, which has yet to be established, for many years. Similarly, suppliers and other third parties will be less likely to invest time and resources in developing business relationships with REE if they are not convinced that its business will succeed. Accordingly, to build, maintain and grow its business, REE must establish and maintain confidence among customers, dealers, suppliers, analysts and other parties with respect to its ability to execute, its liquidity and business prospects. Maintaining such confidence may be particularly difficult as a result of many factors, including REE’s limited operating history, others’ unfamiliarity with its products, uncertainty regarding the future of electric vehicles (including recent bankruptcies or restructurings by Nikola Corp., Arrival S.à r.l, Fisker Inc., and Lion Electric Inc., which make the EV market in general, and REE in particular, appear more speculative and less of a solidified alternative to ICE vehicles) any delays in scaling production, delivery and service operations to meet demand, competition and REE’s production and sales performance compared with market expectations. Many of these factors are largely outside of REE’s control, and negative perceptions about REE’s business prospects, would likely harm its ability to receive follow-on orders. In addition, a significant number of new electric vehicle companies have recently entered the automotive industry, which is an industry that has historically had significant barriers to entry and a high rate of failure. If these new entrants or other manufacturers of electric vehicles go out of business, such as those described above, produce vehicles that do not perform as expected or otherwise fail to meet expectations, such failures may have the effect of increasing scrutiny of others in the industry, including REE, and further challenging customer, dealer, supplier and analyst confidence in REE’s business prospects.
REE may not succeed in establishing, maintaining and strengthening the “Powered by REETM” brand and/or technology products, which could materially and adversely affect customer acceptance of its SDV products, thus negatively impacting its business, prospects and projected revenue.
REE market its products, including its X-by-Wire technology, as both an individual product and as a partial or full vehicle solution. The “Powered by REETM” approach reflects REE’s mission to become the cornerstone upon which mobility players can build their mission-specific vehicle needs with the goal of completing rather than competing with other market participants. REE’s business and prospects are heavily dependent on its ability to develop, maintain and strengthen the “Powered by REETM” brand and SDV technology products and the REE brand generally. If REE does not continue to establish, maintain and strengthen its brand and/or its SDV technology products, it may lose the opportunity to build a
critical mass of customers. Promoting and positioning its brand and its technology products will likely depend significantly on REE’s ability to provide high quality products and engage with its potential customers as intended, and REE has limited experience in these areas. In addition, REE’s ability to develop, maintain and strengthen the “Powered by REETM” brand and technology products and the REE brand generally will depend heavily on the success of its customer development and branding efforts. REE’s novel technology and design may not align with existing or potential consumer preferences and consumers may be reluctant to acquire a vehicle built upon a new and unproven SDV platform and/or EV platform. In addition, REE could be subject to adverse publicity related to REE’s potential customers who build vehicles on REE’s Powered by REE and/or REE’s SDV technology whether or not such publicity relates to such potential customers’ “Powered by REETM” vehicles. Any negative publicity, whether true or not, could quickly proliferate and harm consumer perceptions and confidence in the “Powered by REETM” brand and/or REE’s technology product and the REE brand generally. If REE does not develop and maintain a strong brand and/or technology products, its business, prospects, financial condition and operating results will be materially and adversely impacted.
REE is subject to risks associated with strategic partners.
REE’s existing agreements and REE’s ability to engage with definitive agreements with current and potential suppliers, dealer or strategic partners are and will be subject to a number of risks with respect to operations that are outside REE’s control, any of which may materially and adversely affect REE’s business and prospects. REE could experience delays to the extent its current and potential suppliers, dealers or strategic partners do not continue doing business with REE (including as a result of our delay in manufacturing), meet agreed upon timelines, achieve operational efficiencies, experience capacity constraints or otherwise are unable to deliver components or manufacture products as expected. For example, REE and Motherson entered into a Supply Chain Management Services Agreement where Motherson agreed to provide services relating to development, management, and optimization of our supply chain, along with supplier development and management, part development cost management, contract and purchase order management, supply chain management including logistics, compliance and regulatory adherence, crises and risk management, resource planning, and information and technology system integration. Motherson’s inability to optimize and manage our supply chain may result in operational inefficiencies and higher costs (including with respect to sourcing parts) across our supply chain which would impact our operations, business, and financial condition. Additionally, since entering into the above agreement, Motherson has assumed managerial responsibility over a significant number of our suppliers. In the event that Motherson is unable to continue to provide these services, we would need to manage and communicate with these suppliers ourselves. Doing so would likely add time, cost, and create resource constraints, including the reallocation of our employees from other efforts within our business, which could strain our current resources and/or create significant interruptions and inefficiencies within our supply chain. Such circumstances would likely have a material adverse affect on our operations and business.
There is also risk of disputes with current and potential suppliers, dealers and strategic partners, and REE could be affected by adverse publicity related to its current and potential suppliers, dealers or strategic partners whether or not such publicity is related to their collaboration with REE. REE’s ability to successfully build a premium brand could also be adversely affected by perceptions about the quality of REE’s suppliers, dealers or strategic partner’s products or other products manufactured by the same suppliers or strategic partners. In addition, although REE intends to be involved in material decisions in the supply chain and manufacturing process, given that REE also will rely on its current and potential suppliers, dealers and strategic partners to meet its quality standards, there can be no assurance that REE will be able to maintain high quality standards for its products. Furthermore, REE will also be exposed to risk associated with sharing its proprietary information with any such third party.
If and when REE resumes manufacturing, REE will operate in a market that is both highly competitive against a large number of both established competitors and new market entrants, and, with respect to EV in particular, one that is viewed more cautiously overall by the target customer-base.
Both the automobile industry generally, and the EV segment in particular, are highly competitive, and REE competes for sales with both internal combustion engine, or ICE, vehicles and EVs. Many of REE’s current and potential competitors have significantly greater financial, technical, manufacturing, marketing and other resources than REE does and may be able to devote greater resources to the design, development, manufacturing, distribution, promotion, sale and support of their products. On the one hand, REE has observed and continues to expect competition for EVs to continue due to present demand continuing globalization, and consolidation in the worldwide automotive industry. Factors affecting competition include product quality and features, innovation and development time, pricing, reliability, safety, fuel economy, customer service, and financing terms. On the other hand, there have been several EV competitors that have recently declared bankruptcy or are engaging in restructuring, such as Nikola Corp., Arrival S.à r.l, Fisker Inc., and Lion Electric Inc., which
makes the EV market in general, and REE in particular, appear more speculative and less of a solidified alternative to ICE vehicles. As a result, potential customers have been and may continue to be more cautious when considering the purchase of REE’s products, including with respect to transitioning their fleets from ICE to our software-defined vehicles.
Lower demand and/or heavy competition for that demand may lead to lower vehicle unit sales and increased unsold inventory, which may result in downward price pressure and adversely affect REE’s business, financial condition, operating results, and prospects.
REE operates in a market that is highly competitive against other technology companies and OEMs seeking to create their own in-house SDV technology solutions.
The drive by wire and software defined vehicle market are highly competitive, and we expect they will become even more competitive in the future. Our future success will depend on, among other things, our ability to continue developing superior advanced technology to remain competitive with our existing and any new competitors. Competition is based on, among other things, cost efficiency, reliability, the ability to develop and deploy increasingly complex technologies that provide for vehicle, passenger, and pedestrian safety in compliance with existing and future regulations, the ability to gather or access large validation datasets in order to train the required software and to continuously harvest new data in real-time, the ability to cost-effectively deploy hardware, the ability to integrate technologies and hardware with overall vehicle design and production, adoption by OEMs, and the ability to develop and maintain strategic relationships with other participants in the automotive industry.
A growing number of established and new technology companies and automobile manufacturers have entered, or will enter our target market. Some of our competitors have significantly greater or better-established resources than we do to devote to the design, development, manufacturing, distribution, promotion, sale, and support of their SDV technology. Automakers who seek to develop their own in-house solutions may also become indirect competitors. Some OEMs that may incorporate our products may decide to design in-house solutions to replace our SDV products that they currently implement. In addition, other Tier 1 suppliers may be developing or may in the future develop competing solutions. Additional competitors that could emerge include large technology companies that are resource rich and able to deploy such resources to compete, as well as companies that are able to develop products that may not require the datasets upon which our technologies currently rely while still achieving the same effectiveness of algorithms. Such competition could enter into agreements with the customers that we intend to target and if we fail to win OEM design competitions, then our business, results of operations, and financial condition would be adversely affected and our business would likely fail.
REE may not be able to compete successfully in the market as a result of rapid changes in software-defined technology and/or EV technology and the entrance of new and existing, larger manufacturers into both the software-defined vehicle and EV space.
REE’s products are being designed for use with, and depend upon, existing vehicle technology. As new companies and larger, existing vehicle manufacturers enter both the SDV and EV space, REE may lose any technological advantage it may have had in the marketplace and suffer a decline in its position in the market. As technologies change, REE plans to upgrade or adapt its products to continue to provide products with the latest technology. However, REE’s products may become obsolete or REE’s research and development efforts may not be sufficient to adapt to changes in or to create the necessary technology to effectively compete. As a result, REE’s potential inability to adapt and develop the necessary technology may harm REE’s competitive position.
Information about us posted to social media platforms may be inaccurate or adverse to our interests, each of which may harm our business, financial condition and results of operations.
There has been a recent marked increase in the use of social media platforms and similar channels that provide individuals with access to a broad audience of consumers and other interested persons. The availability and impact of information on social media platforms is virtually immediate and many social media platforms publish user-generated content without filters or independent verification as to the accuracy of the content posted. Consumers can and do use social media platforms to post information that is critical about businesses and products. Even isolated incidents involving us or our products could erode the trust and confidence of consumers and damage our brand image and reputation and could lead to the loss of goodwill with consumers and strategic partners, especially if such incidents result in adverse publicity, governmental investigations, product recalls, or litigation. Information posted about us may be adverse to our interests and may harm our business, financial condition and results of operations, even if it is inaccurate. Further, disclosure of our non-public information by our employees or others, whether intentional or unintentional, through social media could lead to unfavorable publicity, regulatory inquiries, or loss of informational value.
Risks Related to Development and Production of REE’s Products
REE’s products are in various stages of development and there are risks associated with developing such products into marketable products.
REE’s products are in various stages development. In order to reach the delivery stage REE’s products remain subject to further design, validation, verification and testing, as well as product homologation. There is no guarantee that REE will be successful in reaching the delivery stage on the projected timeline, or at all. The establishment of the UK Engineering Center alongside REE’s first UK Integration Center at our Coventry, UK campus coupled with the continued partnership at the MIRA Technology Park has provided REE with a proving ground for physical testing and validation of REE products. However, there can be no guarantee that the testing of REE’s products will proceed according to schedule or that the REE products will withstand rigorous additional testing. The development of REE’s products is and may be subject to risks including, but not limited to, risks associated with:
•REE’s ability to complete the final product design process on time, if at all;
•the ability for REE’s products to withstand rigorous testing and validation, including as set by external assessors over time;
•the ability of REE’s products to meet existing or future automotive industry standards; and
•the ability of X-by-Wire Control technology to achieve widespread market acceptance.
REE is subject to risks associated with the anticipated timing of REE’s initial commercial production and subsequent increased commercial production.
REE expects to delay the production of its vehicles. This will likely create instability in our supply chain, including delays to and from suppliers, contract termination or threats thereof, prolonged litigation in connection thereto, while potentially creating a backlog of parts, components, and already assembled vehicles that need to be stored at our cost for an unknown period of time. It may likewise cause our customers, strategic partners, or other third parties to decrease the amount of business they do with us or terminate their relationship with us, including from Authorized Dealers that have already placed initial orders for our P7 products. Such delay may further cause potential customers, including OEMs, to reconsider entering into agreements with us, including where they believe that we may no longer be a reliable partner or financial sound partner. Any of the foregoing could materially and adversely harm REE’s business, financial condition and results of operations, including by adversely affecting our ability to implement our business plan, which could cause us to discontinue our operations, restructure, and/or seek protection from creditors.
If and when REE resumes manufacturing, it does not know whether its suppliers or strategic partners will be able to develop efficient, automated, low-cost production capabilities and processes and reliable sources of component supply, that will enable REE to meet the quality, price, engineering, design and production standards, as well as the production volumes, required to successfully deliver REE’s products on an anticipated timeframe, or at all. Even if REE and its suppliers and strategic partners are successful in developing the initial production processes, developing future high volume production capability, and reliably sourcing the component supply, REE does not know whether it will be able to do so in a manner that avoids significant delays and cost overruns, including those that result from factors beyond its control such as problems with suppliers and strategic partners or dealing with force majeure events (which include tariffs from the Trump Administration and retaliatory measures by its trading partners), or that meets its products commercialization schedules or that satisfies the requirements of its potential customer base. Any failure to develop such production processes and capabilities within REE’s projected costs and timelines could have a material adverse effect on its business, prospects, financial condition and operating results.
If and when REE resumes manufacturing, REE’s development of an outsourced manufacturing business model may not be successful, which could harm its ability to deliver products and recognize revenue.
If and when REE resumes manufacturing, its vehicle business would depend on its ability to develop, manufacture and assemble its products. REE has outsourced the manufacturing of its products in collaboration with a contract manufacturer (i.e., Roush Industries), strategic partner (i.e., Motherson), and strategic suppliers. If and when REE resumes manufacturing, REE plans to assemble its products at REE’s current and future Integration Centers. If REE is unable to negotiate and finalize all of its agreements with suppliers and/or strategic partners and have sufficient working capital to support its expected production, including any future initial deliveries, it will not be able to produce any products and will not be able to generate any revenue in connection therewith, or the products may become more expensive to deliver with a higher bill of materials, which would have a material adverse effect on its business, prospects, operating results and
financial condition. In addition, the utilization of future Integration Centers for the assembly of REE products is an untested business strategy and there is no guarantee that the strategy will be successful or profitable.
Additionally, if and when REE resumes manufacturing,if REE’s suppliers and strategic partners were to experience delays, disruptions, capacity constraints or quality control problems in their manufacturing operations, product shipments could be delayed or rejected or REE’s potential customers and dealers could consequently elect to change product demand. These disruptions would negatively impact REE’s revenues, competitive position and reputation. In addition, REE’s suppliers and strategic partners may rely on certain state tax incentives that may be subject to change or eliminated in the future (including as a result of policy changes under the Trump Administration), which could result in additional costs and delays in production. Further, if REE is unable to successfully manage its relationship with its suppliers and strategic partners, the quality and availability of its products may be harmed. REE’s suppliers, dealers and strategic partners could, under some circumstances, decline to accept new purchase orders from or otherwise reduce their business with REE. If REE’s suppliers and strategic partners stopped manufacturing REE’s products for any reason or reduced manufacturing capacity, REE may be unable to replace the lost manufacturing capacity on a timely and comparatively cost-effective basis, which would adversely impact its operations.
REE’s reliance on its suppliers and strategic partners, as well as the establishment and operation of REE’s current and future Integration Centers, exposes it to a number of risks that are outside its control, including:
•the manufacture of certain components that will require significant costs related to non-recurring engineering and tooling costs incurred by REE’s suppliers and strategic partners the extent of which is currently unknown;
•its inability to control manufacturing yield and unexpected increases in manufacturing costs;
•interruptions in shipments if a suppliers or strategic partners are unable to complete production in a timely manner;
•its inability to control quality of finished products;
•its inability to control delivery schedules;
•its inability to control production levels and to meet minimum volume commitments to REE’s potential customer base;
•its inability to maintain adequate manufacturing capacity;
•its inability to secure adequate volumes of acceptable components at suitable prices or in a timely manner;
•its inability to establish new Integration Centers at the projected cost of $15 million to $30 million (based on whether such Integration Center is only producing REEcorners™ or is also producing the REEplatformTM) per Integration Center or due to lack of market demands;
•inability to accurately assemble products within specified design tolerances;
•delays by REE in delivering final component designs to its suppliers and strategic partners;
•its inability to implement a sufficient number of future Integration Centers in order to meet demand for REE products in time;
•inability to effectively manage a global network of Integration Centers; and
•other delays, backlog in manufacturing and research and development of new models, and cost overruns.
REE’s ability to manufacture a products of sufficient quality and appeal to its current and potential customer base on schedule and on a large scale is unproven, and the business plan is still evolving. REE may be required to introduce new products models and enhanced versions of existing models. To date, REE has limited experience, as a company, manufacturing, marketing and selling its products and therefore cannot assure you that it will be able to meet customer expectations. Any failure to develop such manufacturing processes and capabilities within REE’s projected costs and timelines would have a material adverse effect on its business, prospects, operating results and financial condition and could result in our inability to implement our business plan, which would result in the failure of our business and/or the restructuring of our business.
REE does not currently have any plans to establish manufacturing facilities of its own, and therefore the failure to establish long-term agreements with suppliers and strategic partners, coupled with sufficient working capital, would significantly hinder REE’s ability to manufacture its products. In addition, the manufacturing facilities of REE’s potential and strategic
partners may be harmed or rendered inoperable by natural or man-made disasters, including earthquakes, flooding, fire and power outages, or by health epidemics, which may render it difficult or impossible for REE to manufacture its products for some period of time. The inability to manufacture REE’s products or the backlog that could develop if the manufacturing facilities of its suppliers and strategic partners are inoperable for even a short period of time, including due to delays caused by our working capital needs, may result in the loss of customers, potential customers, harm REE’s reputation, and/or result in the failure of our business and the need to seek protection from our creditors and/or the restructuring of our business.
With respect to vehicle manufacturing, REE is utilizes its UK Engineering Center and REE’s UK Integration Center in Coventry, UK for the design, validation, verification, testing and homologation of its products.
In 2022, REE built its first UK Integration Center and highly automated launch factory in Coventry, UK. The new UK Integration Center and the existing UK Engineering Center, which are strategically located next to each other, are intended to expedite REE’s strategic plans to meet anticipated global demand. The UK Engineering Center is spearheading REE product design, validation, verification and testing, as well as product homologation and/or certification. REE also has access to world-class test facilities and a proving ground for physical testing and validation of the REE products at the UK Integration Center and the UK Engineering Center. The UK Integration Center, alongside the UK Engineering Center, and the facilities available therein, are integral to REE’s ability to develop its products. Any loss of access or disputes related to the UK Integration Center or the UK Engineering Center have the potential to adversely impact REE’s ability to develop its products on time to meet commercialization timeline, or at all.
REE’s utilization of its UK Integration Center and the UK Engineering Center are and will be subject to risks, including with respect to:
•REE’s ability to maintain arrangements on reasonable terms with third parties for the provision of testing facilities and testing services with respect to REE products;
•REE’s ability to attract, recruit, hire, retain and train a sufficient number of skilled employees to effectively staff the UK Integration Center and the UK Engineering Center; and
•REE’s reliance on outside contractors for the provision of certain services and associated risks related to monitoring and protecting IP, contractual disputes and certain inherent cybersecurity risks.
The testing facilities may be harmed or rendered inoperable by natural or man-made disasters, including earthquakes, flooding, fire and power outages, or by health epidemics, which may render it difficult or impossible for REE to validate, verify and test REE products for some period of time. The inability to validate, verify and test REE products or the resulting delay to REE’s commercialization schedule if the testing facilities are inoperable for even a short period of time may result in the loss of potential customers or harm REE’s reputation.
If and when REE resumes manufacturing its vehicles, such products will make use of lithium-ion battery cells, which can be dangerous in certain circumstances, including but not limited to the possibility that such cells may catch fire or vent smoke and flame.
If and when REE resumes manufacturing, the fuel source for REE’s vehicles will likely make use of lithium-ion cells. On rare occasions, lithium-ion cells can rapidly release the energy they contain by venting smoke and flames in a manner that can ignite nearby materials as well as other lithium-ion cells. While REE has taken measures to enhance the safety of its designs, a field or testing failure of its products could occur in the future, including due to a high-speed crash, which could subject REE to lawsuits, product recalls, redesign efforts, or even meritless claims, all of which would be time-consuming and expensive and could harm our brand image. Also, negative public perceptions regarding the suitability of lithium-ion cells for automotive applications or any future incident involving lithium-ion cells such as a vehicle or other fire, even if such incident does not involve REE’s products, could seriously harm its business and reputation.
In addition, REE’s suppliers and strategic partners are expected to store a significant number of lithium-ion cells at their facilities. Any mishandling of battery cells may cause disruption to the operation of such facilities. A safety issue or fire related to the cells could disrupt operations or cause manufacturing delays. Such damage or injury could lead to adverse publicity and potentially a safety recall. Moreover, any failure of a competitor’s EV or energy storage product may cause indirect adverse publicity for REE and its products. Such adverse publicity could negatively affect REE’s brand and harm its business, prospects, financial condition and operating results.
The efficiency of battery usage in EVs declines over time, which may negatively impact potential customers’ decisions with regards to purchasing REE’s vehicles, if and when REE resumes manufacturing such products.
The cells used in EV battery modules degrade slowly over time, influenced primarily by the age of the cells and the total energy throughput over the life of the EV. This cell degradation results in a corresponding reduction in the vehicle’s range. REE anticipates that the range of its products will decline over time as the batteries deteriorate. Other factors such as usage, time and stress patterns may also impact the battery’s ability to hold a charge, which would decrease REE’s vehicles range before needing to recharge, if and when REE resumes manufacturing such products. Such battery deterioration and the related decrease in range may negatively influence potential customer decisions, which would negatively affect REE’s operating results and financial condition.
If OEMs or technology companies are unable to maintain and increase consumer acceptance of SDV technology, our business, results of operations, and financial condition would be adversely affected and our business would likely fail.
Our business success and future operating results will depend on the ability of OEMs and technology companies to obtain consumer acceptance for drive-by-wire vehicles. There is no assurance that either can achieve these objectives. Market acceptance of drive-by-wire depends upon many factors, including regulatory requirements, evolving safety standards, costs, and driver preferences. Market acceptance of drive-by-wire may also be adversely affected by safety incidents involving drive-by-wire products, even if the incidents do not involve our specific SDV technology. We cannot be sure that drive-by-wire will achieve market acceptance on a timeline that is consistent with our expectations or development and production plans. Market acceptance of our drive-by-wire also depends on the ability of market participants to resolve technical challenges for increasingly complex drive-by-wire technology in a timely and cost-effective manner. Consumers will also need to be made aware of the advantages of our drive-by-wire, such as the advantages of our offerings compared to competing technologies, including current vehicle control methods. If consumer acceptance of drive-by-wire technology does not increase, our business, results of operations, and financial condition would be adversely affected and our business would likely fail.
We operate in an industry that is new and rapidly evolving, and our estimates are subject to significant uncertainty.
We are pursuing opportunities in markets that are undergoing rapid changes, including technological and regulatory changes, and it is difficult to predict the timing and size of the opportunities. For example, SDV technology and drive-by-wire require complex technology and are subject to uncertainties with respect to, among other things, the rate of consumer acceptance and the impact of current or future regulations. Because these systems depend on inputs from many companies, commercialization of our SDV products could be delayed or impaired on account of certain technological components of our or others not being ready to be deployed in vehicles. Regulatory, safety or reliability developments, many of which are outside of our control, could also cause delays or otherwise impair commercial adoption of these new technologies, which will adversely affect our growth. While we have achieved FMVSS certification on our P7-C vehicle, we cannot provide any guarantee that such certification could be extended to vehicles incorporating our drive-by-wire product.
We expect to make certain estimates and forecasts concerning our industry and of our current and anticipated future products based on industry publications and reports or other publicly available information as well as our internal estimates and expectations. These estimates and forecasts will involve a number of assumptions and limitations, and are subject to significant uncertainty, and you are cautioned not to give them undue weight as they may be incorrect or flawed in assumptions. Industry surveys and publications generally state that the information contained therein has been obtained from sources believed to be reliable, but there can be no assurance as to the accuracy and completeness of the included information. We do not expect to independently verify such third-party sources. Similarly, we expect that any internal estimates and forecasts would be based on a variety of assumptions, including assumptions regarding market acceptance of SDV technology in general, and drive-by-wire in particular, and the manner in which this new and rapidly evolving market will develop. While we expect any such assumptions and the data underlying our estimates and forecasts to be reasonable, these assumptions and estimates may not be correct and the conditions supporting our assumptions or estimates may change at any time, thereby reducing the predictive accuracy of these underlying factors. As a result, our expected estimates and forecasts may prove to be incorrect. If third-party or internally generated data prove to be inaccurate or we make errors in our assumptions based on that data, the expected margins or addressable market, among other items, for our SDV products may be smaller than we estimate or fail entirely to come to fruition, our future growth opportunities and sales growth may be smaller than we may estimate and/or may never come to fruition, and our business, results of operations and financial condition would be significantly adversely affected.
Our future financial performance will depend on our ability to make timely investments in the correct market opportunities. If one or more of these markets experience a shift in customer or prospective customer demand, then our SDV products may not compete as effectively, if at all, and they may not be incorporated into vehicles. Given the evolving nature of the markets in which we operate, it is difficult to predict OEM or technology company demand for any of our SDV products or the future growth of the markets in which we operate. Even if the market for drive-by-wire grows substantially, there is no guarantee that demand for our SDV products will correlate with that growth, including if we fail to effectively pursue such opportunities. There is also no guarantee that our business will be successful simply because of what we will estimate to be the expected market for our SDV products. If demand does not develop or if we cannot accurately forecast customer
demand, then the size of our markets, inventory requirements or our future business, results of operations, and financial condition would be adversely affected and our business would likely fail.
Risks Related to REE’s Suppliers
With respect to manufacturing, REE depends on its suppliers, including but not limited to body manufacturers and battery providers, some of which are single or limited source suppliers, and if such suppliers fail to deliver the components of REE’s products in a timely manner or at all and at prices and in volumes acceptable to it, it could have a material adverse effect on its business, prospects and operating results.
With respect to manufacturing, REE relies on suppliers and strategic partners for the provision and development of many of the components and materials used in its products. While REE plans to obtain components from multiple suppliers and strategic partners whenever possible, certain components used in its products are purchased by REE from single suppliers with respect to each particular component. REE’s suppliers and strategic partners may not be able to meet their product specifications and performance characteristics, which would impact REE’s ability to achieve its product specifications and performance characteristics as well. Additionally, REE’s suppliers and strategic partners may be unable to obtain required certifications for their products for which REE plans to use or provide warranties that are necessary for REE’s solutions. If our suppliers fail to deliver the components and materials used in our products in a timely manner or if its suppliers decide to create or supply a competing product, REE’s business could be adversely affected. REE has less negotiating leverage with suppliers than larger and more established automobile manufacturers and may not be able to obtain favorable pricing and other terms. While REE believes that it may be able to establish alternate supply relationships and can obtain or engineer replacement components for its single source components, REE may be unable to do so in the short term, or at all, at prices or quality levels that are favorable to REE, which could have a material adverse effect on its business, prospects, financial condition and operating results.
REE expects to purchase various types of equipment, raw materials and manufactured component parts from its suppliers or strategic partners. If these suppliers or strategic partners experience substantial financial difficulties, cease operations, or otherwise face business disruptions, REE may be required to provide substantial financial support to ensure supply continuity or would have to take other measures to ensure components and materials remain available. Any disruption could affect REE’s ability to deliver products and could increase REE’s costs and negatively affect its liquidity and financial performance.
REE’s business could be harmed by increases in costs, disruption of supply or shortage of materials, in particular for lithium-ion battery cells.
REE and its suppliers may experience increases in the cost of or a sustained interruption in the supply or shortage of commodities, raw materials and other inputs used by REE and its suppliers in their businesses and products, such as steel, lithium-ion battery cells and semiconductors, which could adversely affect REE’s future profitability or REE’s ability to timely execute its business plan. The prices for these materials fluctuate and the available supply of these materials may be unstable, depending on market conditions, fluctuations in global demand, including as a result of increased production of EVs by REE’s competitors, geopolitical risk, including tariffs by certain countries, and other economic and political factors. Additionally, if our suppliers do not accurately forecast and effectively allocate production or if they are not willing to allocate sufficient production to us, or face other challenges such as insolvency, it may reduce our access to components and require us to search for new suppliers. The unavailability of any component or supplier could result in production delays, idle assembly facilities, product design changes and loss of access to important technology and tools for producing and supporting our products, as well as impact our ability to fulfill our obligations under customer contracts. Any such increase, supply interruption or shortage could materially and negatively impact REE’s business, prospects, financial condition and operating results.
If and when we resume manufacturing, REE’s production plan would likely relate to producing a certain number of vehicles in the U.S. Such production plan targets will be subject to a variety of risks, including the completion of REE’s production tooling investment plan, sourcing materials and components from REE’s suppliers on its agreed upon deadlines, securing sufficient funding, and global macroeconomic conditions.
If and when we resume manufacturing, REE’s business plan would likely relate to producing a certain number of vehicles in the U.S. However, such production plan would rely on our ability to complete our production tooling investment plan, securing materials from REE’s suppliers on its agreed upon deadlines and securing sufficient funding primarily for
working capital purposes. If REE is unable to complete its production tooling investment plan, if its suppliers face delays in delivering materials to REE from its expected timelines, or other delays occur, REE may not meet its production plan timing. In addition, REE’s production plan relies on its ability to finance the required working capital needs by raising sufficient funds, and therefore if we are unable to secure sufficient funding, we may not meet any of our production targets. Not meeting these production targets could materially and negatively impact REE’s business, prospects, financial condition and operating results and may cause us to wind down our business, restructure our business, and/or seek protection from creditors.
Risks Related to REE’s Future Sales
We invest significant effort and money seeking customer, including OEM, selection of our products and there can be no assurance that these efforts will result in the selection of our products, including for use in production models. If we fail to enter obtain a purchase order or achieve a design win after incurring substantial expenditures in these efforts, our future business, results of operations, and financial condition would be significantly adversely affected and likely result in us having to wind down and/or restructure our business and/or seek creditor protection.
We invest significant effort and money from the time of our initial contact with an OEM, to the time when an OEM, can choose our products and/or technology to be incorporated into one or more specific vehicle models to be produced by the OEM. This selection process is known as a “design win”. We could expend significant resources pursuing, but fail to achieve, a design win. After a design win, it is typically difficult for a product or technology that did not receive the design win to displace the winner until the OEM issues a new request for quotation because an OEM will generally not change complex technology already integrated in its systems until a vehicle model is revamped. In addition, the firm with the winning design may have an advantage with the OEM going forward because of the established relationship between the winning firm and the OEM, which would make it more difficult for that firm’s competitors to win the designs for other production models. If we fail to win a significant number of OEM design competitions in the future, then our business, results of operations, and financial condition would be adversely affected and our business would likely fail.
Similarly, with respect to other target customers, many of these potential customers are dealers and large multinational corporations with substantial negotiating power relative to it and, in some instances, may have internal solutions that are competitive to REE’s products. These large, multinational corporations also have significant development resources that may allow them to acquire or develop independently, or in partnership with others, competitive technologies. Meeting the technical requirements and obtaining purchase orders from any of these companies will require a substantial investment of REE’s time and resources. REE cannot assure you that such efforts will result in definitive purchase orders from these or other companies or that it will generate meaningful revenue from the sales of its products to these types of customers. If REE’s products are not selected by these customers or if these corporations develop or acquire competitive technology in lieu of our products, it will have an adverse effect on REE’s business, its prospects and results of operations may be adversely affected.
Discontinuation, lack of commercial success, or loss of business with respect to a particular product model for which REE is a significant supplier could reduce REE’s sales and adversely affect its profitability.
If REE is able to secure design wins and its products are included in OEM or technology company vehicles, it expects to enter into supply agreements with the relevant customers. Market practice dictates that these supply agreements typically require REE to supply a customer’s requirements for a particular vehicle model or product. These contracts can have short terms and/or can be subject to renegotiation, sometimes as frequently as annually, all of which may affect product pricing, and may be terminated by REE’s potential customers at any time. Therefore, even if REE is successful in obtaining design wins and the systems into which its products are integrated are commercialized, the discontinuation of, the loss of business with respect to, or a lack of commercial success of a particular vehicle model for which REE is a significant supplier could mean that the expected sales of REE’s products will not materialize, which may materially and adversely affecting its business.
Pricing pressures, automotive OEM cost reduction initiatives and the ability of automotive OEMs to re-source or cancel vehicle or technology programs may result in lower than anticipated margins, or losses, which may adversely affect REE’s business.
Cost-cutting initiatives adopted by REE’s customer base often result in increased downward pressure on pricing. REE expects that its future agreements with automotive OEMs may require step-downs in pricing over the term of the agreement or, if commercialized, over the period of production. In addition, REE’s automotive OEM customers are expected to
reserve the right to terminate their supply contracts for convenience, which enhances their ability to obtain price reductions. Automotive OEMs also possess significant leverage over their suppliers, including REE, because the automotive component supply industry is highly competitive, serves a limited number of customers and has a high fixed cost base. Accordingly, REE expects to be subject to substantial continuing pressure from automotive OEMs, Tier 1 suppliers as well as dealers to reduce the price of its products. It is possible that pricing pressures beyond REE’s expectations could intensify as automotive OEMs pursue restructuring, consolidation and cost-cutting initiatives. If REE is unable to generate sufficient cost savings in the future to offset price reductions, its gross margin and profitability would be adversely affected.
If and when REE resumes manufacturing, the average selling prices of REE’s products could decrease rapidly over the life of the products, which may negatively affect REE’s revenue and gross margin.
If and when REE resumes manufacturing, REE expects the average selling prices of its products generally to decline as its customer base seeks to commercialize EVs built on the REE products at prices low enough to achieve market acceptance. In order to sell products that have a falling average unit selling price and maintain margins at the same time, REE would need to continually reduce products and manufacturing costs. To manage manufacturing costs, REE must engineer the most cost-effective design for its products. In addition, REE will continuously promote initiatives to reduce labor cost, improve worker efficiency, reduce the cost of materials, use fewer materials and further lower overall product costs by carefully managing component prices, inventory and shipping cost. REE also needs to continually introduce new products with higher sales prices and gross margin in order to maintain its overall gross margin. If REE is unable to manage the cost of older products or successfully introduce new products with higher gross margin, its revenue and overall gross margin would likely decline.
The automotive industry and our technology are rapidly evolving and may be subject to unforeseen changes. Developments in alternative technologies may adversely affect the demand for our electric vehicles.
While our vehicles may be adaptable from battery cells to certain alternative technologies as an energy source, we may be unable to keep up with, or be compatible with, technological changes, including alternatives to electricity as an energy source and, as a result, our competitiveness may suffer. Specifically, developments in alternative technologies, such as advanced diesel, ethanol, fuel cells, or compressed natural gas, or improvements in the fuel economy of an internal combustion engine, may materially and adversely affect our business and prospects in ways we do not currently anticipate. Any failure by us to successfully react to changes in alternative technologies could materially harm our competitive position and growth prospects. Similarly, in the event that certain alternative technologies are developed that are incompatible with our vehicles as an energy source, it could materially harm our competitive position and growth prospects.
Risks Related to REE’s Quality
REE’s products rely on software and hardware that is highly technical, and if these systems contain errors, bugs, defects, or vulnerabilities, or if REE is unsuccessful in addressing or mitigating technical limitations in its systems, REE’s business could be adversely affected and it may result in a decrease in the demand for REE’s products and harm our reputation.
REE’s products rely on software and hardware that is highly technical and complex that will require modification and updates over the life of the products. In addition, REE’s products depend on the ability of such software and hardware to store, retrieve, process and manage large amounts of data. REE’s software and hardware may contain, errors, bugs, inadequate, inaccurate, biased or otherwise flawed data or algorithms used to train certain proprietary software, security vulnerabilities or other errors, failures, or other issues of not functioning in accordance with their specifications or as expected, or other vulnerabilities, and REE’s systems are subject to certain technical limitations that may compromise REE’s ability to meet its objectives. Some errors, bugs or vulnerabilities inherently may be difficult to detect and may only be discovered after the code has been released for external or internal use, including as commercialized and deployed by customers. Errors, bugs, vulnerabilities, design defects or technical limitations may be found within REE’s software and hardware. Although REE attempts to remedy any issues it observes in its products as effectively and rapidly as possible, such efforts may not be timely, may hamper production or may not be to the satisfaction of REE’s potential customer base. Additionally, if REE is able to deploy updates to the software addressing certain issues and REE’s over-the-air update procedures fail to properly update the software, REE’s customer base would then be responsible for installing such updates to the software at designated service centers and their software will be subject to these vulnerabilities until they do so. If REE is unable to prevent or effectively remedy errors, bugs, vulnerabilities or defects in its software and hardware, REE may suffer damage to its reputation, loss of customers, loss of revenue or liability for damages, any of which could
adversely affect REE’s business and financial results. More specifically, publicity regarding claims involving our technology can also have an adverse effect on our reputation and the reputation for SDV technology and X-by-Wire product, which could decrease consumer demand for vehicles incorporating these technologies. Further, enhanced publicity surrounding such claims may also increase the regulatory scrutiny of our products, which could have a material adverse effect on our ability to complete our business plans.
REE may become subject to product liability claims, relating to, among other things, actual or alleged defects in our products, or if our products actually or allegedly fail to perform as expected,which could harm its financial condition and liquidity if it is not able to successfully defend or insure against such claims.
REE may become subject to product liability claims, even those without merit, which could harm its business reputation, prospects, operating results, and financial condition. Alleged or actual defects in any of our products could result in adverse publicity for us, warranty claims, litigation against us, legal expenses and damages, our customers never being able to commercialize technology incorporating our products, negative publicity for our customers, and other consequences. Errors, defects, and/or security vulnerabilities could result in serious injury to, or death of, the end users of vehicles incorporating our products, or those in the surrounding area, including as a result of traffic accidents and collisions. If that is the case, we could by subject to litigation and would incur significant additional development costs and product recall, repair, or replacement costs. If any of our products are or are alleged to be defective, we may be required to participate in a recall involving such product(s). The automobile industry experiences significant product liability claims and REE faces inherent risk of exposure to claims in the event its products and/or technology do not perform as expected or malfunction in a manner that causes personal injury or death Similarly, as a technology provider related to, among other things, preventing traffic collisions and other accidents through our SDV technology and proprietary software, we could be subject to litigation for traffic collisions or other accidents, even if our products or their features or the failure thereof did not cause any particular traffic collision or accident. This may also be the case where an accident occurs involving one of our SDV products, which are built autonomous ready, where autonomous features installed by another company were engaged, particularly because such autonomous features are the subject of significant public attention, especially in light of NHTSA’s Standing General Order (as amended on April 24, 2025) requiring reports regarding certain crashes involving vehicles with advanced driver assistance systems, which includes motor vehicle and equipment manufacturers of which REE may be included under. REE’s risks in this area are particularly pronounced given it has limited field experience with its products. While we may use disclaimers, limitations of liability, and similar provisions in our agreements, there is no assurance that any or all of these provisions will prove to be effective barriers to product liability claims with respect to our products. Moreover, a product liability claim could generate substantial negative publicity about REE’s products and business and inhibit or prevent commercialization of other future product, which would have a material adverse effect on REE’s brand, business, prospects and operating results. To the extent that REE has insurance coverage, it might not be sufficient to cover all potential product liability claims. Product liability, warranty, and recall costs, whether in excess of REE’s coverage, or outside of REE’s coverage, would have an adverse effect on our business, results of operations, and financial condition. In addition, product liability claims present the risk of protracted litigation, legal fees, and diversion of management’s attention from the operation of our business, even if our defense of these claims is ultimately successful. Our insurers may also discontinue our insurance coverage or be unable or unwilling to pay a claim. REE may also not be able to secure additional product liability insurance coverage on commercially acceptable terms or at reasonable costs when needed, particularly if it does face liability for its products and is forced to make a claim under its policy. A successful product liability claim against REE could require REE to pay a substantial monetary award, which could have a material impact on our financial condition, operations, and business and could result in our business needing to seek protection from our creditors, wind down, or restructure.
REE does not currently have extensive experience servicing its products. If REE is unable to address the service requirement of its potential customer and dealer base, its business may be materially adversely affected.
REE plans to work with strategic partners to provide predictive maintenance scheduling through smart service and maintenance artificial intelligence, or AI, in combination with over-the-air updates that seek to ensure maintenance is not performed on a standard schedule, but rather before a part will fail, which is expected to offer significant savings for unnecessary part replacements and drastically reduce downtime. There is no guarantee that REE will be successful in developing the necessary technology to actualize predictive maintenance scheduling. In addition, servicing of REE SDV technology products may primarily be carried out through third parties, including OEM appointed service centers. Although such third parties may have experience in servicing other products, they will initially have limited experience in servicing REE SDV products. There can be no assurance that REE will adequately address the service requirements of its potential customer and/or dealer base (if and when it manufacturers vehicles) to their satisfaction, or that REE and such third parties will have sufficient resources to meet these service requirements in a timely manner as the volume of products REE delivers increases. In addition, with respect to its vehicle products specifically, if and when manufactured, if REE is unable to roll out and establish a widespread service network that complies with applicable laws, user satisfaction could be
adversely affected, which in turn could materially and adversely affect REE’s reputation, sales, results of operations, and prospects.
REE may be subject to risks associated with autonomous driving and SDV technology, including but not limited to technical malfunctions, regulatory obstacles, and/or product liability.
REE’s products are being designed to be compatible with autonomous control. Autonomous driving technologies are subject to risks, including market acceptance, which depends upon many factors, including regulatory requirements, evolving safety standards, costs, and driver preferences, and there have been accidents and fatalities associated with such technologies. The safety of such technologies depends in part on users, as well as other drivers on the roadways, who may not be accustomed to using or adapting to such technologies. We cannot be sure that autonomous driving will achieve market acceptance. To the extent accidents associated with REE’s products that are used with autonomous controls occur, REE could be subject to liability, negative publicity, government scrutiny and further regulation. Any of the foregoing could materially and adversely affect REE’s results of operations, financial condition and growth prospects.
Autonomous driving technology is also subject to considerable regulatory uncertainty as the law evolves to catch up with the rapidly evolving nature of the technology itself, all of which are beyond REE’s control. Currently, there are no Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards that relate to the performance of autonomous technology and no widely accepted uniform standards to certify autonomous technology and its commercial use on public roads. However, NHTSA has established recommended guidelines, including its Standing General Order (as amended on April 24, 2025) requiring reports regarding certain crashes involving vehicles with advanced driver assistance systems. and proposed a regulation for autonomous vehicles. Certain states have legal restrictions on such vehicles, and many other states are considering them. Autonomous driving laws and regulations are expected to continue to evolve in numerous states in the U.S., which increases the likelihood of a patchwork of complex or conflicting regulations or may delay products or restrict autonomous features and availability, which could adversely affect our business. Autonomous products that may be integrated into REE products also may not achieve the requisite level of autonomous compatibility required for certification and rollout to consumers or satisfy changing regulatory requirements, which could require REE to redesign, modify and/or update its products in order to be compatible with autonomous products.
Risks Related to REE’s Employees
REE is dependent on its founders Daniel Barel and Ahishay Sardes.
REE is dependent on the services of Daniel Barel, co-founder, director and Chief Executive Officer, and Ahishay Sardes, its co-founder, director and Chief Technology Officer. Mr. Barel and Mr. Sardes are significant influences and drivers of REE’s business plan, product development, and technology. Without either of these two officers, we may not have the ability to execute our business plan and/or identify and pursue new opportunities and products. The loss of either could significantly delay or prevent the achievement of our development and strategic objectives. Since REE’s initial public listing in July 2021, neither Mr. Barel or Mr. Sardes have received a compensation package with respect to the services that each provides to the Company, aside from annual grants of Class A Ordinary Shares received in connection with service on our board of directors. If either Mr. Barel or Mr. Sardes were to discontinue his service to REE for any reason, including due to a lack of compensation for services rendered to REE, or if the reputation of Mr. Barel or Mr. Sardes is adversely impacted by personal actions or omissions or other events within or outside either’s control, it would have a significant material adverse effect on our business, product development, and technology.
REE’s success depends, in part, on its ability to attract and recruit key employees and hire qualified employees and management.
REE’s success depends, in part, on its ability to retain its key personnel. The unexpected loss of or failure to retain one or more of its key employees could affect its business. REE’s success also depends, in part, on its continuing ability to identify, hire, attract, train and develop other highly qualified personnel. Because REE’s products are based on different technology than traditional internal combustion engine vehicles, including through the use of proprietary software driving control, individuals with sufficient training in technology, engineering, coding, or EVs (if applicable) may not be available, and as a result, REE will need to expend significant time and expense training the employees it hires. Competition for individuals with experience designing, manufacturing and/or servicing this technology and vehicles incorporating this technology, including EVs or their related technology, parts and products is intense, and REE may not be able to attract, integrate, train, motivate or retain additional highly qualified personnel in the future. In addition, sustained declines in our share price or lower share performance relative to competitors could negatively impact REE’s appeal as an employer, harm employee morale, increase employee turnover and/or reduce the retention value of REE’s share-based compensation. The
failure to attract, integrate, train, motivate and retain these additional employees could materially adversely harm its business and prospects.
REE’s business may be adversely impacted by the labor and union activities of its own employees, as well of those of any of its potential affiliates, business partners, suppliers, or otherwise related entities.
Although none of REE’s employees are currently represented by a labor union, it is common throughout the automobile industry for many employees to belong to a union, which can result in higher employee costs and increased risk of work stoppages. REE may also directly and indirectly depend upon other companies with unionized work forces, such as parts suppliers, trucking and freight companies, shipping yards, and docks, and work stoppages or strikes organized by such unions could have a material adverse impact on REE’s business, financial condition or operating results.
Risks Related to Litigation & Regulation
REE’s financial and operational projections with respect to its P7 lineup rely in part on existing and future regulations and incentive programs supporting EV adoption.
There has been growth in the adoption of environmentally driven regulations and incentive programs with low and zero emission targets with the automotive industry being among the most impacted industries. Such measures encourage local and national governments to implement various forms of rebates and credits for the purchase of an EV. In addition, regulations in certain cities, states and countries are also encouraging a shift away from — or in some cases banning entirely — fossil fuel-powered vehicles, with many of the earliest of these regulations targeted at buses, trucks and delivery vehicles. REE’s financial and operational projections with respect to our P7 lineup include the continued growth in existing and similar regulations and incentive programs to accelerate the adoption of EV technology into the wider market. There is no guarantee that such regulations and incentive programs will be successful in encouraging adoption of EV technology. Additionally, any unavailability, reduction, or elimination of government and economic incentives and credits because of policy changes, or the reduced need for such incentives and credits due to the perceived success of EVs, policy shifts, or other reasons, may result in the diminished competitiveness of the alternative fuel and EV industry generally or our vehicles (if and when we resume manufacturing them), software and services in particular. Additionally, federal, state, and local laws may impose additional barriers to EV adoption, including additional costs. Any of the foregoing could materially and adversely affect the growth of the alternative fuel automobile markets and our business, prospects, financial condition, results of operations, and cash flows. For example, on January 20, 2025, President Donald Trump signed an executive order titled “Unleashing American Energy” that paused certain disbursements of funds appropriated through the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 and the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which may have direct implications on the policies and regulations that impact the automotive and transportation industries. This order seeks to rescind waivers granted by the Environmental Protection Agency, or EPA, for California's zero emission vehicle regulations with a focus on eliminating any “electric vehicle mandates” and terminating “state emission waivers that function to limit sales of gasoline-powered vehicles”, and modifying and/or eliminating specified GHG standards. Consequently, the availability of certain tax credits or other government incentives and our ability and that of our customers and competitors to benefit from these credits and incentives remain uncertain at this time. Moreover, the development of an alternative fuel besides electricity that results in low or no emissions may shift the focus of such regulations and incentive programs away from EV technology. If new regulations and/or such tax credits and/or other incentives are negatively impacted, decreased, and/or discontinued, the growth of the EV market generally, including our software-defined P7 vehicles specifically (if and when they are manufactured), and REE’s business, prospects, financial condition and operating results could be materially and adversely affected.
REE may encounter obstacles outside of its control that slow the adoption of its technology in the market, including but not limited to regulatory requirements or infrastructure limitations.
While REE’s products are subject to substantial regulation under federal, state and local laws, REE believes that its products are in compliance with all current applicable laws. Continued compliance with these regulations could be burdensome, time consuming, and expensive. However, to the extent the laws change, new laws are introduced, or if REE introduces new products in the future, some or all of its products may not continue to comply with applicable international, federal, state or local laws, and require change.
REE’s products are subject to environmental and safety federal and state regulations, including regulations promulgated by the EPA, the National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration and various state agencies, and certification required for
each new model year in some cases. The risks, delays, and expenses incurred in connection with these compliance activities and with obtaining approval can be substantial.
In addition, REE’s P7 products involve a novel design and new technology, including locating critical vehicle components (steering, braking, suspension, powertrain and control) into the area between the chassis and the wheel and X-by-Wire control technology, which, excluding the U.S., may not meet existing safety standards or require modification in order to comply with various regulatory requirements. In particular, X-by-Wire technology in general has not received significant regulatory attention globally (excluding in the U.S.). More specifically, in 2023, we achieved EPA approval in the U.S. for our P7-C electric trucks. In January 2024, we announced that we became the first OEM to certify a commercial truck controlled fully by-wire to the FMVSS standards. In addition, subsequent to year-end, we achieved CARB certification. Despite our successful U.S. approvals and/or certifications, there is no guarantee that a vehicle incorporating REE’s X-by-Wire technology will receive regulatory approval including in the U.S. or internationally, and there is no guarantee that REE’s X-by-Wire control technology will comply with any relevant regulations that are put in place in the future. Compliance with regulatory requirements is expensive, at times requiring the replacement, enhancement or modification of equipment, facilities or operations. There can be no assurance that REE will be able to profit with respect to each of its product sales when offsetting any increased costs of complying with future regulatory requirements.
REE is subject to various environmental laws and regulations that could impose substantial costs on its business and cause delays in building its manufacturing facilities.
REE’s operations are and will be subject to international, federal, state and local environmental laws and regulations, including laws relating to the use, handling, storage, disposal of and human exposure to hazardous materials. Environmental and health and safety laws and regulations can be complex, and REE has limited experience complying with them. Moreover, REE expects that it will be affected by future amendments to such laws or other new environmental and health and safety laws and regulations, including their respective enforcement or the enforcement policy associated therewith, which may require REE to change its operations, potentially resulting in a material adverse effect on its business, prospects, financial condition and operating results. These laws can give rise to liability for administrative oversight costs, cleanup costs, property damage, bodily injury, fines and penalties. Capital and operating expenses needed to comply with environmental laws and regulations can be significant, and violations may result in substantial fines and penalties, third-party damages, suspension of production or a cessation of REE’s operations.
Contamination at properties REE will own or operate, REE formerly owned or operated or to which hazardous substances were sent by REE, may result in liability for REE under environmental laws and regulations, including, but not limited to, the U.S. Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act, which can impose liability for the full amount of remediation-related costs without regard to fault, for the investigation and cleanup of contaminated soil and ground water, for building contamination and impacts to human health and for damages to natural resources. The costs of complying with environmental laws and regulations and any claims concerning noncompliance, or liability with respect to contamination in the future, could have a material adverse effect on REE’s financial condition or operating results.
In addition, we are subject to certain requirements and voluntary expectations regarding environmental social, and governance, or ESG, matters from various governmental and self-regulatory organizations, including the Securities and Exchange Commission, or the SEC, and Nasdaq. Recent regulatory developments include the SEC's new climate-related disclosure rule (Final Rule 33-11275), currently stayed pending litigation, and California's Climate Corporate Data Accountability Act (SB-253) requiring disclosure of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. These regulations, along with voluntary ESG initiatives we may undertake in response to stakeholder expectations, could result in increased expenses and management attention. The collection, measurement, and reporting of ESG information, including GHG emissions data, can also be costly and complex, particularly given the lack of harmonized reporting standards across jurisdictions. Any failure to meet regulatory requirements or stakeholder expectations, whether mandatory or voluntary, could impact our reputation, relationships with stakeholders, and access to capital markets.
We may also be affected by market responses to climate change and broader ESG considerations, including efforts to reduce GHG emissions. Compliance with varying requirements across jurisdictions adds operational complexity and potential costs. The accuracy, adequacy, and completeness of our ESG disclosures, whether required by regulation or voluntarily provided, present operational, reputational, financial, and legal risks.
REE and its suppliers and strategic partners are or may be subject to substantial regulation and unfavorable changes to, or failure by REE or its suppliers and strategic partners to comply with any such regulations could substantially harm REE’s business and operating results.
REE’s products, and the sale of motor vehicles including EVs in general, are subject to substantial regulation under international, federal, state, and local laws. REE expects to incur significant costs in complying with these regulations. Regulations related to the EV industry and alternative energy are currently evolving and REE faces risks associated with changes to these regulations.
To the extent the laws change, REE’s products may not comply with applicable international, federal, state or local laws, which would have an adverse effect on its business. Compliance with changing regulations including the enforcement policy associated therewith, could be burdensome, time consuming, and expensive. To the extent compliance with new regulations is cost prohibitive, REE’s business, prospects, financial condition and operating results would be adversely affected.
Internationally, there may be laws in jurisdictions REE has not yet entered or laws it is unaware of in jurisdictions it has entered that may restrict its sales or other business practices. Even for those jurisdictions REE has analyzed, the laws in this area can be complex, difficult to interpret and may change over time. Continued regulatory limitations and other obstacles interfering with REE’s ability to sell products could have a negative and material impact on its business, prospects, financial condition and results of operations.
REE may become involved in legal and regulatory proceedings and commercial or contractual disputes, which could have an adverse effect on its profitability and consolidated financial position.
REE may be, from time to time, involved in litigation, regulatory proceedings and commercial or contractual disputes that may be significant. These matters may include, without limitation, disputes with REE’s suppliers and strategic partners and its customer and dealer base, intellectual property claims, shareholder litigation, government investigations, class action lawsuits, personal injury claims, environmental issues, customs and VAT disputes and employment and tax issues. Such contract disputes with suppliers may result from our delay of manufacturing with respect to our performance of contract obligations. Such dispute may result in protracted litigation. In addition, REE could face in the future a variety of labor and employment claims against it, which could include but is not limited to general discrimination, wage and hour, privacy, ERISA or disability claims. In such matters, government agencies or private parties may seek to recover from REE very large, indeterminate amounts in penalties or monetary damages (including, in some cases, treble or punitive damages) or seek to limit REE’s operations in some way. These types of lawsuits could require significant management time and attention or could involve substantial legal liability, adverse regulatory outcomes, and/or substantial expenses to defend. Often these cases raise complex factual and legal issues and create risks and uncertainties. For example, in December 2022, a lawsuit was filed alleging that REE and its U.S. based subsidiaries stole certain trade secrets and requested, inter alia, monetary damages in an amount of no less than $2.6 billion and exemplary damages in the amount of no less than $5.2 billion. For more information, see “Item 8: Financial Information—Legal Proceedings”. On August 26, 2024, the U.S. District Court W.D. Texas, Austin Division, or the District Court issued an order adopting the recommendation of the Report and Recommendation of U.S. Magistrate Judge Susan Hightower, granting REE’s motion to dismiss for forum non conveniens and ordering the clerk of the court to close the case. On September 26, 2024, the OSR Group filed a Notice of Appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, appealing the District Judge’s adoption of the Report and dismissal of the case for forum non conveniens. The appeal is currently pending and there is no definitive timetable for a final ruling. This lawsuit, if ultimately successful, would have a material adverse impact on REE’s operating results and consolidated financial position.
If we encounter contractual disputes or dispute of other natures with our suppliers, strategic partners and other third parties, our business, financial condition and results of operations may be adversely affected.
We deal with and enter into contracts with our suppliers, strategic partners and other third parties in our ordinary course of business. If we encounter contractual disputes with our suppliers, strategic partners and other third parties or other claims by such parties, our business, financial condition and results of operations may be adversely affected. The contractual terms between us and our suppliers, business partners or other third parties vary depending on various factors, including our business needs, among others. The terms of such contracts are generally negotiated on a case-by-case basis and are commercially reasonable at the time they are entered into. From time to time, there may be contractual disputes between us and suppliers, strategic partners or other third parties relating to our business.
We may face challenges in enforcing these contracts, particularly in circumstances where there are differing interpretations of applicable law and contract terms. Enforcement of such contract matters can be time-consuming, divert management and employee attention and resources, cause us to incur significant expenses or liability and/or require us to change our
business practices. Because of the potential risks, expenses, and uncertainties of litigation, we may, from time to time, settle disputes, even where we believe that we have meritorious claims or defenses. Because litigation is inherently unpredictable, we cannot assure you that the results of any of these actions will not have a material adverse effect on our operations, business, results of operations and/or financial condition.
Any such disputes may not only be costly and time-consuming to solve, but may also harm our reputation, subject us to contractual liabilities or significant settlement amounts, or otherwise adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
REE is subject to U.S. and foreign anti-corruption and anti-money laundering laws and regulations. As a result, REE may face criminal liability and other serious consequences for violations of such laws, which could harm its business.
REE is or will be subject to anti-corruption, anti-bribery, anti-money laundering, financial and economic sanctions and similar laws and regulations in various jurisdictions in which it conducts or in the future may conduct activities, including the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, or FCPA, the U.K. Bribery Act 2010, and other anti-corruption laws and regulations. The FCPA and the U.K. Bribery Act 2010 prohibit REE and its officers, directors, employees and business partners acting on its behalf, including agents, from corruptly offering, promising, authorizing or providing anything of value to a “foreign official” for the purposes of influencing official decisions or obtaining or retaining business or otherwise obtaining favorable treatment. The FCPA also requires companies to make and keep books, records and accounts that accurately reflect transactions and dispositions of assets and to maintain a system of adequate internal accounting controls. The U.K. Bribery Act also prohibits non-governmental “commercial” bribery and soliciting or accepting bribes. A violation of these laws or regulations could adversely affect REE’s business, results of operations, financial condition and reputation. REE’s policies and procedures designed to ensure compliance with these regulations may not be sufficient and its directors, officers, employees, representatives, consultants, agents, and business partners could engage in improper conduct for which it may be held responsible.
Non-compliance with anti-corruption, anti-bribery, anti-money laundering or financial and economic sanctions laws could subject REE to whistleblower complaints, adverse media coverage, investigations, and severe administrative, civil and criminal sanctions, collateral consequences, remedial measures and legal expenses, all of which could materially and adversely affect REE’s business, results of operations, financial condition and reputation. In addition, changes in economic sanctions laws in the future could adversely impact REE’s business and investments in its shares.
The intended tax effects of REE’s corporate structure and intercompany arrangements depend on the application of the tax laws of various jurisdictions and on how REE operates its business.
REE is incorporated in and a tax resident in Israel. REE currently has subsidiaries in the UK, Germany, the U.S. and Japan. If REE succeeds in growing its business, REE expects to conduct increased operations through its subsidiaries in various countries and tax jurisdictions, in part through intercompany service agreements between REE and its subsidiaries. In that case, REE’s corporate structure and intercompany transactions, including the manner in which REE develops and uses its intellectual property, will be organized so that REE can achieve its business objectives in a tax-efficient manner and in compliance with applicable transfer pricing rules and regulations. If two or more affiliated companies are located in different countries or tax jurisdictions, the tax laws and regulations of each country generally will require that transfer prices be the same as those between unrelated companies dealing at arm’s length and that appropriate documentation be maintained to support the transfer prices. While REE believes that it operates in compliance with applicable transfer pricing laws and intends to continue to do so, its transfer pricing procedures are not binding on applicable taxing authorities.
Significant judgment is required in evaluating REE’s tax positions and determining its provision for income taxes. During the ordinary course of business, there are many transactions and calculations for which the ultimate tax determination is uncertain. For example, REE’s effective tax rates could be adversely affected by changes in foreign currency exchange rates or by changes in the relevant tax, accounting and other laws, regulations, principles and interpretations. In addition, its effective tax rate and the availability of any tax holidays could be adversely affected if REE does not obtain favorable tax rulings from certain taxing authorities. As REE intends to operate in various countries and taxing jurisdictions, the application of tax laws can be subject to diverging and sometimes conflicting interpretations by taxing authorities of these jurisdictions. It is not uncommon for taxing authorities in different countries to have conflicting views, for instance, with respect to, among other things, the manner in which the arm’s length standard is applied for transfer pricing purposes, or with respect to the valuation of intellectual property.
In addition, tax laws are dynamic and subject to change as new laws are passed and new interpretations of the law are issued or applied. REE continues to assess the impact of such changes in tax laws and interpretations on its business and may determine that changes to its structure, practice, tax positions or the manner in which it conducts its business are necessary in light of such changes and developments in the tax laws of the jurisdictions in which REE operates. Such changes may nevertheless be ineffective in avoiding an increase in its consolidated tax liability, which could adversely affect its financial condition, results of operations and cash flow.
If taxing authorities in any of these countries were to successfully challenge REE’s transfer prices as not reflecting arm’s length transactions, they could require REE to adjust its transfer prices and thereby reallocate its income to reflect these revised transfer prices, which could result in a higher tax liability to REE. In addition, if the country from which the income is reallocated does not agree with the reallocation, both countries could tax the same income, potentially resulting in double taxation. If taxing authorities were to allocate income to a higher tax jurisdiction, subject REE’s income to double taxation or assess interest and penalties, it would increase REE’s consolidated tax liability, which could adversely affect its financial condition, results of operations and cash flow.
Risks Related to Being a Public Company
REE’s management has limited experience operating a public company, and thus its success in such endeavors cannot be guaranteed.
REE’s executive officers have limited experience managing a publicly traded company, interacting with public company investors and complying with the complex laws pertaining to public companies in the U.S.. Their limited experience in dealing with the increasingly complex laws pertaining to public companies could require the devotion of a significant amount of their time to these activities, which will result in less time being devoted to the management and growth of the company, and could also result in increased costs due to hiring consultants to assist with compliance of public company laws, rules and regulations. REE has hired additional employees since becoming a public company has upgraded its finance and accounting systems to an enterprise system suitable for a public company, and a delay could impact its ability or prevent it from timely reporting its operating results, timely filing required reports with the SEC and complying with Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. The development and implementation of the standards and controls necessary for REE to achieve the level of accounting standards required of a public company in the U.S. may require costs greater than expected. REE may not yet have adequate personnel with the appropriate level of knowledge, experience and training in the accounting policies, practices or internal control over financial reporting required of public companies in the U.S., and it is possible that REE will be required to further expand its employee base and hire additional employees to support its operations as a public company which will increase its operating costs in future periods.
If REE is unable for any reason to meet the continued listing requirements of Nasdaq, such action or inaction could result in a delisting of the Class A Ordinary Shares.
On November 10, 2022, REE announced that it received an initial notification letter from Nasdaq’s Listing Qualifications Department notifying REE that it had 180 days to regain compliance with the minimum bid price requirement set forth in Nasdaq’s continued listing rules. Nasdaq’s continued listing rules require that listed securities maintain a minimum bid price of $1.00 per share, and that a failure to meet the minimum bid price requirement exists if the
deficiency continues for a period of 30 consecutive business days or more. On November 1, 2023, REE received a notification letter from Nasdaq Listing Qualifications staff notifying REE that it had regained compliance with the minimum bid price requirement set forth in the Nasdaq Listing Rule 5550(a)(2).
If REE fails to satisfy the continued listing requirements of Nasdaq, such as the corporate governance requirements or the minimum closing bid price requirement, Nasdaq may take steps to delist the Class A Ordinary Shares. Such a delisting would likely have a negative effect on the price of the Class A Ordinary Shares and would impair your ability to sell or purchase the Class A Ordinary Shares when you wish to do so. In the event of a delisting, REE can provide no assurance that any action taken by it to restore compliance with listing requirements would allow its Class A Ordinary Shares to become listed again.
Our significant shareholders have influence and may be able to exert substantial influence over REE, including over decisions that require the approval of shareholders, and their interests may conflict with the interests of other shareholders, which could materially adversely impact REE as a public company and our shareholders’ investment in our company.
Among other investors, M&G Investment Management Limited and its affiliates, or M&G, along with Motherson Group have reported beneficially owning significant amounts of our Class A Ordinary Shares (including through the exercise of
our Warrants or Convertible Notes in the case of M&G, subject to its 19.99% beneficial ownership blocker) in benficial ownership filings with the SEC. As a result, in addition to other investors, these shareholders and their affiliates may have influence over the management and affairs of our Company and, if they were to decide to act either alone or together with other shareholders, could have the ability to significantly influence matters submitted to our shareholders for approval, notwithstanding REE’s dual class structure, and in particular in circumstances where the holders of Class B Ordinary Shares are not aligned. For example, such shareholder(s) may encourage, cause or seek to cause REE to consider or explore extraordinary corporate transactions including a merger, reorganization or going-private transaction that could result in the de-listing or de-registration of our Class A Ordinary Shares, sales or acquisitions of assets or businesses, changes to our capitalization or dividend policy, or other material changes to our business or corporate structure. Such shareholders may also utilize rights pursuant to the provisions of the Companies Law to demand, where applicable, to call an extraordinary general meeting of shareholders at which the removal of some or all of our then-incumbent directors and the election of its nominees in their stead would be on the agenda. In this regard, M&G and Motherson have already pursued discussions with REE regarding the designation of a representative on our board of directors, culminating, in the case of Motherson, with it obtaining a representative on REE’s board of directors.
Success in obtaining a board seat gives a shareholder influence over the management and policies of REE and enables it to influence our operations for its own interests, which may be to the detriment of our other shareholders. The interests of one or more of these shareholders may not always coincide with, and in some cases may conflict with, the best interest of REE’s business and the interests of our other shareholders. These shareholders’ significant ownership in, and influence over, us may also discourage others from making an equity investment in us. In particular, this concentrated voting control limits other shareholders’ ability to influence corporate matters, including control of the composition of our board of directors and our corporate strategies. Such concentration may also make some transactions or corporate decisions more difficult or impossible without their support, or more likely with such shareholder(s)’ support.
There can be no assurances that either M&G and/or Motherson, among other investors, either alone or together with others, will not attempt one of the above-mentioned actions in a manner that our board of directors believes is not in the best interest of our shareholders. Such future actions may require us to devote significant additional resources and time that would otherwise be directed at our business and operations or may demotivate current executives and discourage other executives from joining REE. Any of the above actions could cause the price of our Class A Ordinary Shares to decline, depending on investors’ perceptions of such shareholder(s)’ actions and influence, including due to the perception that conflicts of interest may exist or arise. Any of the above actions, can also result in the transition of REE to a private company and a loss of liquidity and capital appreciation for your Class A Ordinary Shares, each of which would have a material adverse impact on the ownership of your Class A Ordinary Shares and our business and operations.
If securities and industry analysts do not publish research or reports about REE’s business or publish negative reports about its business, REE’s share price and trading volume may suffer.
The trading market for the Class A Ordinary Shares is and will be influenced by the research and reports that securities or industry analysts publish about REE or its business. REE does not have any control over such analysts and cannot provide any assurance that analysts will continue to cover REE or provide favorable coverage. If one or more of the analysts who cover REE downgrade REE’s shares or change their opinion of REE’s shares, REE’s share price would likely decline. If one or more of these analysts cease coverage of REE or fail to regularly publish reports on REE, REE could lose visibility in the financial markets, which could cause its share price or trading volume to decline.
As REE grows rapidly and expands into multiple global markets, there is a risk that it will fail to maintain an effective system of internal controls and its ability to produce timely and accurate financial statements or comply with applicable regulations could be adversely affected. REE may identify material weaknesses in its internal controls over financing reporting which it may not be able to remedy in a timely manner.
As a public company, REE operates in an increasingly demanding regulatory environment, which requires it to comply with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, or the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, the regulations of Nasdaq, the rules and regulations of the SEC, expanded disclosure requirements, accelerated reporting requirements and more complex accounting rules. Company responsibilities required by the Sarbanes-Oxley Act include establishing corporate oversight and adequate internal control over financial reporting and disclosure controls and procedures. Effective internal controls are necessary for REE to produce reliable financial reports and are important to help prevent financial fraud. Commencing with its fiscal year ended December 31, 2021, REE performed system and process evaluation and testing of its internal controls over financial reporting to allow management to report on the effectiveness of its internal controls over financial reporting in its Form 20-F filing for that year, as required by Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act.
The process of building and maintaining its accounting and financial functions and infrastructure requires significant additional professional fees, internal costs and management efforts. REE has implemented a new internal system to combine the management of its financial, accounting, human resources and other functions. However, such a system requires REE to complete many processes and procedures for the effective use of the system or to run its business using the system, which may result in substantial costs. Any disruptions or difficulties using the system could adversely affect REE’s controls and harm its business. Moreover, such disruption or difficulties could result in unanticipated costs and diversion of management’s attention. In addition, REE may discover additional weaknesses in its system of internal financial and accounting controls and procedures that could result in a material misstatement of its financial statements. REE’s internal control over financial reporting will not prevent or detect all errors and all fraud. A control system, no matter how well designed and operated, can provide only reasonable, not absolute, assurance that the control system’s objectives will be met. Because of the inherent limitations in all control systems, no evaluation of controls can provide absolute assurance that misstatements due to error or fraud will not occur or that all control issues and instances of fraud will be detected.
If REE is unable to comply with the requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act in a timely manner, or if it is unable to maintain proper and effective internal controls, REE may not be able to produce timely and accurate financial statements. If REE cannot provide reliable financial reports or prevent fraud, its business and results of operations could be harmed, investors could lose confidence in its reported financial information and REE could be subject to sanctions or investigations by Nasdaq, the SEC or other regulatory authorities.
REE has incurred and expects to continue to incur increased costs as a result of its operation as a public company, and its management will be required to devote substantial time and resources to employing compliance initiatives in order to confirm with the regulatory requirements applicable to public companies.
REE has incurred and expects to continue to incur significant legal, accounting and other expenses as a public company that it did not incur as a private company, and these expenses may increase even more after REE is no longer an emerging growth company, as defined in Section 2(a) of the Securities Act. As a public company, REE is subject to the reporting requirements of the Exchange Act, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, as well as rules adopted, and to be adopted, by the SEC and Nasdaq. REE’s management and other personnel will need to devote a substantial amount of time to these compliance initiatives. Moreover, REE expects these rules and regulations to substantially increase its legal and financial compliance costs and to make some activities more time-consuming and costly. The increased costs will increase REE’s net loss. For example, REE expects these rules and regulations to make it more difficult and more expensive for it to obtain director and officer liability insurance and it may be forced to accept reduced policy limits or incur substantially higher costs to maintain the same or similar coverage. REE cannot predict or estimate the amount or timing of additional costs it may incur to respond to these requirements. The impact of these requirements could also make it more difficult for REE to attract and retain qualified persons to serve on its board of directors, its board committees or as executive officers.
Risks Related to REE’s Information Security
In order to enter into production of its products, REE must develop complex software and technology systems in coordination with its suppliers, service providers, and strategic partners. REE can provide no guarantee that such systems will be successfully developed and/or integrated.
REE’s products use a substantial amount of third-party and in-house software codes and complex hardware to operate. The development of such advanced technologies is inherently complex, and REE coordinates with its suppliers, service providers, and strategic partners in order to reach production for its products. Defects and errors may be revealed over time and REE’s control over the performance of third-party services and systems may be limited. Thus, REE’s potential inability to develop the necessary software and technology systems may harm its competitive position.
REE may rely on suppliers, including Motherson, and strategic partners, including Roush Industries, to develop a number of emerging technologies for use in its products, including lithium-ion battery technology. Certain of these technologies are not today, and may not ever be, commercially viable. There can be no assurances that REE’s suppliers and strategic partners will be able to meet the production timing and volume requirements to support its business plan, if and when REE resumes manufacturing its vehicles. In addition, the technology may not comply with the cost, performance useful life and warranty characteristics REE anticipates in its business plan. As a result, REE’s business could be significantly impacted and REE may incur significant liabilities under warranty claims which could adversely affect its business, prospects, and results of operations.
REE is subject to stringent and changing privacy laws, regulations and standards, information security policies and contractual obligations related to data privacy and security. REE’s actual or perceived failure to comply with such obligations could harm its business. Such legal requirements are evolving, uncertain and may require improvements in, or changes to, REE’s policies and operations.
REE expects to face significant challenges with respect to information security and privacy, including the storage, transmission and sharing of confidential information. REE collects, stores, transmits and otherwise processes data from products, customers, employees and others as part of its business and operations, which may include personal data or confidential or proprietary information. REE also works with suppliers and strategic partners that collect, store and process such data on its behalf and in connection with its products.
REE has adopted strict information security policies and deployed advanced measures to implement the policies, including, among others, advanced encryption technologies, and continues to update systems and deploy additional measurers as REE grows. REE also considers the guidance provided by recognized frameworks established by the Israel National Cyber Directorate, ISO 27001, ISO 21434, ISO 9001, and other applicable industry standards to establish, implement, maintain and continually improve its information security management system. However, advances in technology, an increased level of sophistication and diversity of REE’s products and services, an increased level of expertise of hackers, new discoveries in the field of cryptography or others can still result in a compromise or breach of the measures that REE uses. If REE is unable to protect its systems, and hence the information stored in its systems, from unauthorized access, use, disclosure, disruption, modification or destruction, such problems or security breaches could cause a loss, give rise to REE’s liabilities to the owners of confidential information or even subject it to fines and penalties. In addition, complying with various laws and regulations could cause REE to incur substantial costs or require it to change its business practices, including its data practices, in a manner adverse to REE’s business.
In addition, REE will need to comply with increasingly complex and rigorous regulatory standards enacted to protect business and personal data in the U.S., Europe and elsewhere. For example, the European Union adopted the General Data Protection Regulation, or GDPR, which became effective on May 25, 2018 and the State of California adopted the California Consumer Privacy Act of 2018, or CCPA, which became effective in January 2020. Both the GDPR and the CCPA impose additional obligations on companies regarding the handling of personal data and provides certain individual privacy rights to persons whose data is stored. Compliance with existing, proposed and recently enacted laws (including implementation of the privacy and process enhancements called for under the GDPR) and regulations can be costly and may place restrictions REE’s business and the manner in which it interacts with its customers. Any failure to comply with applicable regulations could also result in regulatory enforcement actions against REE, and misuse of or failure to secure personal information could also result in violation of data privacy laws and regulations, proceedings against REE by governmental entities or others, and damage to its reputation and credibility, and could have a negative impact on revenues and profits.
Significant capital and other resources are required to protect against information security breaches or to comply with REE’s privacy policies or privacy-related legal obligations and additional significant resources may be required to alleviate problems caused by such breaches in the event that they occur. The resources required increase over time as the methods used by hackers and others engaged in online criminal activities are increasingly sophisticated and constantly evolving. For example, we have added new product security features in preparation for our platform deliveries in 2025. In addition, REE intends to log certain data about each vehicle’s use in order to provide vehicle diagnostics and servicing on its vehicles. REE’s customers and/or future customers may object to the use of this data, which may increase REE’s vehicle maintenance costs, including as a result of the need to obtain vehicle servicing at a service center rather than automatically over-the-air, or may cause more limited customer servicing due to the absence of real-time data from customer vehicles that have opted out customer vehicles, each of which can harm REE’s business prospects.
Any failure or perceived failure by REE to prevent information security breaches or to comply with privacy policies or privacy-related legal obligations, or any compromise of security that results in the unauthorized release or transfer of personally identifiable information or other customer data, could cause REE’s potential customer base to lose trust in REE and could expose REE to legal claims. Any perception by the public that online transactions or the privacy of user information are becoming increasingly unsafe or vulnerable to attacks could inhibit the growth of online retail and other online services generally and decrease demand in the last-mile and mid-market delivery markets, which may reduce the number of orders REE receives. Moreover, if a compromise of data were to occur, REE may become liable under its contracts with other parties and under applicable law for damages and incur penalties and other costs to respond to, investigate and remedy such an incident. REE’s systems, networks and physical facilities could be breached or personal information could otherwise be compromised due to employee error or malfeasance, if, for example, third parties attempt to fraudulently induce REE’s employees to disclose information or user names and/or passwords. Third parties may also
exploit vulnerabilities in, or obtain unauthorized access to, products, systems, networks and/or physical facilities utilized by REE’s service providers and vendors. There can be no assurance that any security measures that REE or its suppliers and strategic partners have implemented will be effective against current or future security threats.
The global data protection landscape is rapidly evolving, and implementation standards and enforcement practices are likely to remain uncertain for the foreseeable future. REE may not be able to monitor and react to all developments in a timely manner. For example, the CCPA establishes a privacy framework for covered businesses, including an expansive definition of personal information and data privacy rights for California residents. The CCPA includes a framework with potentially severe statutory damages and private rights of action. The CCPA requires covered businesses to provide new disclosures to California residents, provide them new ways to opt-out of certain disclosures of personal information, and allow for a new cause of action for data breaches. As REE expands its operations, the CCPA may increase REE’s compliance costs and potential liability. Some observers have noted that the CCPA could mark the beginning of a trend toward more stringent privacy legislation in the U.S. Other states have begun to propose similar laws. Compliance with any applicable privacy and data security laws and regulations is a rigorous and time-intensive process, and REE may be required to put in place additional mechanisms to comply with such laws and regulations.
REE publishes privacy policies and other documentation regarding its collection, processing, use and disclosure of personal information and/or other confidential information. Although REE endeavors to comply with its published policies and other documentation, REE may at times fail to do so or may be perceived to have failed to do so. Moreover, despite its efforts, REE may not be successful in achieving compliance if REE’s employees, contractors, service providers or vendors fail to comply with its published policies and documentation. Such failures can subject REE to potential local, state and federal action if they are found to be deceptive, unfair, or misrepresentations of its actual practices. Claims that REE has violated individuals’ privacy rights or failed to comply with data protection laws or applicable privacy notices even if REE is not found liable, could be expensive and time-consuming to defend and could result in adverse publicity that could harm its business.
REE and its suppliers, service providers, and strategic partners are subject to cybersecurity and other risks with respect to each of their respective technology, systems, and software and any material failure, weakness, interruption, cyber event, incident or breach of security in connection with the foregoing could prevent REE from effectively operating its business, or may cause harm to its business that may or may not be reparable.
While we seek to adhere to the industry's best practices by implementing security controls, including ISO 27001, and by establishing measures to manage and reduce the risks associated with engaging third-parties, including suppliers, service providers, and strategic partners, cybercrime continues to escalate. Threats posed by malware, viruses, hacking, social engineering attacks, and especially ransomware attacks are increasingly common. These threats pose significant risks and have a considerable impact. Specifically, REE is at risk for interruptions, outages and breaches of its: (a) operational systems, including business, financial, accounting, product development, data processing or production processes, owned by REE, its suppliers, service providers, and/or strategic partners; (b) facility security systems, owned by REE, its suppliers, service providers, and/or strategic partners; (c) transmission control modules or other in-product technology, owned by REE, its suppliers, service providers, and/or strategic partners; (d) the integrated software in REE’s products; or (e) customer data that REE processes, its suppliers, service providers, and/or strategic partners process on its behalf. In addition, some of our employees work remotely, which increases our cybersecurity risk, creates data accessibility concerns, and makes us more susceptible to security breaches or business disruptions. REE’s systems are vulnerable to damage or interruption from, among others, physical theft, fire, terrorist attacks, natural disasters, power loss, war, telecommunications failures (including the internet), viruses, denial or degradation of service attacks, ransomware, social engineering schemes, insider theft or misuse or other attempts to harm REE’s systems. Such interruption, outage and/or breach incidents could: materially disrupt REE’s operational systems, including planned over-the-air update capabilities; result in loss of intellectual property, trade secrets or other proprietary or competitively sensitive information; compromise certain information of employees, potential customers, suppliers, service providers, and strategic partners, or others; jeopardize the security of REE’s facilities; or affect the performance of in-product technology and the integrated software in REE’s products.
We also use and/or rely upon third-party technology, software, and systems in various contexts, including, without limitation, cloud services, single-sign on platforms, email, word processing, back-office support, payment processing, cybersecurity, and other functions. These third-party providers, as applicable, process, store, and/or transmit data of our employees, suppliers, strategic partners, and customers, and, as applicable, are otherwise used to help operate and/or monitor our technology and our business. Any incident affecting the infrastructure and/or systems of these third parties that may be caused by cyber-attacks, natural disasters, fire, flood, severe storm, earthquake, power loss, telecommunications
failures (including internet failures), terrorist or other attacks, regional epidemics or global pandemics, and other similar events beyond our control could negatively affect our business operations. There can also be no assurance that any security measures that such third-parties have implemented for their systems and, where applicable, our systems, will be effective against current and/or future security threats, or that such third parties will properly monitor both their technology and systems and, where applicable our systems, and alert us of an ongoing threat or issue, when necessary or required. For example, we are aware that one of our third party’s systems was penetrated in the past, which has not had a material impact on REE to-date.
Likewise, we cannot guarantee that the third party software and/or systems that we use will not cause outages and/or other issues across our information technology systems along with their systems. For example, one of our service provider’s software updates caused significant temporary outages to its customers’ systems resulting in significant interruptions of their business operations. REE was not materially impacted from such event to-date. Although we strive to reduce the risk associated with such third parties, our ability to monitor and control these third-parties is limited. As a result, we may fail to conduct proper due diligence, adequately monitor their compliance, fail to receive notification of a cyber event, or may fail to discover their failure to comply with these requirements. Any of the foregoing could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations, or prospects.
In addition, we outsource all of the infrastructure relating to our cloud solution to Amazon Web Services, or AWS, which is our sole provider of these services and hosts our platform and many of the internal programs that we use to operate our business. We rely solely upon AWS to ensure the uninterrupted operation of our cloud-based infrastructure, including in connection with our in-vehicle services and functionality. This cloud utilizes data connectivity to monitor performance and timely capture opportunities to enhance on-the-road performance and for safety and cost-saving preventative maintenance. Therefore, any significant disruption of, limitation of our access to, or other interference with our use of AWS’ cloud services would negatively impact our operations and would likely seriously harm our business. In an effort to mitigate certain risks, the cloud services we receive from AWS include design features and elements designed to prevent or minimize service disruption, including a disaster recovery service and the use of distinct server farms in separate locations for hosting our platform and services, either one of which is capable of supporting our platform and services without material interruption even in the event of a failure at the other, corresponding server farm. Nevertheless, a prolonged service disruption affecting our cloud-based solution could negatively impact our ability to conduct our operations and could damage our reputation with current and potential customers, expose us to liability, or otherwise harm our business.
Any transition of the cloud services currently provided by AWS to another cloud services provider could require significant time and expense and could disrupt or degrade our operations during such a transition. Our business relies on the availability of our cloud, and there would likely be significant interruption in our operations in the event that we are not able to access our cloud or encounter difficulties in doing so. If AWS increases pricing terms, terminates or seeks to terminate our contractual relationship, establishes more favorable relationships with our competitors, changes or interprets its terms of service or policies in a manner that is unfavorable with respect to us or fails to agree to renew our contract or enter into a new contract on terms that are acceptable to us, our business, financial condition, revenue, results of operations or cash flows may be harmed.
Moreover, there are inherent risks associated with developing, improving, expanding and updating REE’s current systems, such as the disruption of REE’s data management, procurement, production execution, finance, supply chain and sales and service processes. These risks may affect REE’s ability to manage its data and inventory, procure parts or supplies or assemble, deploy, deliver and service its products, adequately protect its intellectual property or achieve and maintain compliance with, or realize available benefits under, applicable laws, regulations and contracts. REE cannot be sure that these systems upon which it relies, including those that it relies upon from third parties, will be effectively implemented, maintained or expanded as planned. If REE does not successfully implement, maintain or expand these systems as required, its operations may be disrupted, its ability to accurately and timely report its financial results could be impaired, and deficiencies may arise in its disclosure controls and procedures, including its internal control over financial reporting, which may impact REE’s ability to certify its disclosures and financial results. Moreover, REE’s proprietary information or intellectual property could be compromised or misappropriated and its reputation may be adversely affected. If these systems do not operate as REE expects them to, REE may be required to expend significant resources to make corrections or find alternative sources for performing these functions. Any of the foregoing could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations, or prospects.
Any unauthorized control or manipulation of the information technology systems in REE’s products could result in loss of confidence in REE and its products and harm REE’s business.
REE’s X-By-Wire technology contains complex information technology systems. Such technology controls each of the various functions in our products including steering, braking, suspension, powertrain and control. REE’s hardware and software products are also outfitted with built-in data connectivity capabilities to accept and install periodic remote updates from REE, when made available, to improve or update the functionality of its products. REE has designed, implemented and tested security measures intended to prevent cybersecurity breaches or unauthorized access to its information technology networks, its technology products and their systems, and intends to implement additional security measures as necessary. However, hackers or other types of criminals may attempt to physically or through online means gain unauthorized access to such products or systems to modify, alter and use such networks, products and systems to gain control of, or to change, REE’s products’ functionality, user interface and performance characteristics, or to gain access to data stored in or generated by the products. In addition, as we plan to transition to offering product-related data, including increased vehicle connectivity and over-the-air updates, our products may increasingly be subject to cyber threats. Hackers may attempt to infiltrate, steal, corrupt, or manipulate the data that we store on our AWS cloud, which could also result in our in-vehicle systems malfunctioning when connected to such cloud or the loss of control by a driver of a vehicle in favor of such hacker and his/its commands. In particular, REE’s systems affect the control of various vehicle functions including engine, transmission, safety, steering, navigation, acceleration, and braking. We have designed, implemented, and tested security measures intended to prevent unauthorized access to these systems. However, hackers may attempt in the future to gain unauthorized access to modify, alter, and use such systems to gain control of, or to change, the functionality, user interface and performance characteristics of vehicles incorporating our technology, or to gain access to data stored in or generated by the vehicle. In addition, as we transition to offering products that involve cloud-based solutions, including over-the-air updates, such products may increasingly be subject to cyber threats. Any unauthorized access to or control of our technology, including our proprietary software, or their systems, or any unauthorized access to or loss of end user data, could result in risks to end users, including a loss of vehicle control, which we may be unable to reestablish, or failure of our systems, any of which could have material adverse effects on our business, legal claims or proceedings. Vulnerabilities could be identified in the future and REE’s remediation efforts may not be successful. Any unauthorized access to or control of REE’s products or their systems could result in personal injury and/or death along with legal claims or proceedings, including in cases where there is a loss of data. Any of the above could materially negatively affect REE’s brand and harm its business, prospects, financial condition and operating results. In addition, regardless of their veracity, reports of unauthorized access to REE’s products, their systems or data, as well as other factors that may result in the perception that REE’s products, their systems or data are capable of being “hacked,” could materially negatively affect REE’s brand and harm its business, prospects, financial condition and operating results.
Risks Related to REE’s Intellectual Property
REE may incur significant costs and expenses in connection with the protection and enforcement of its intellectual property rights, including but not limited to litigation costs.
REE relies on a combination of patents, trade secrets (including know-how), employee and third-party nondisclosure agreements, copyrights, trademarks, intellectual property licenses, and other contractual rights to establish and protect its rights in its technology. Despite REE’s efforts to protect its proprietary rights, third parties may attempt to copy or otherwise obtain and use REE’s intellectual property or seek court declarations that they do not infringe upon its intellectual property rights. Monitoring unauthorized use of REE’s intellectual property is difficult and costly, and REE has taken or will take steps in an effort to reduce misappropriation. From time to time, REE may have to resort to litigation to enforce its intellectual property rights, which could result in substantial costs and diversion of its resources.
The protection of REE’s intellectual property rights is important to its future business opportunities. However, the measures REE takes to protect its intellectual property from unauthorized use by others may not be effective for various reasons, including the following:
•as noted below, some of the patent applications REE files may not result in the issuance of patents at least in some of the applicable jurisdictions;
•the scope of REE’s patents that may subsequently be granted may not be broad enough to protect its proprietary rights;
•patents are territorial and provide rights only in jurisdictions in which patents are granted;
•REE’s issued patents may be challenged or invalidated by third parties;
•REE’s employees or business partners may breach their confidentiality, non-disclosure and non-use obligations to REE;
•third parties may independently develop technologies that are the same or similar to REE’s;
•the costs associated with enforcing patents, confidentiality and invention agreements or other intellectual property rights may make enforcement impracticable; and
•current and future competitors may circumvent or otherwise design around REE’s patents.
Patent, trademark, and trade secret laws vary significantly throughout the world. For example, a number of countries do not protect intellectual property rights to the same extent as the laws of the U.S. Failure to adequately protect REE’s intellectual property rights could result in its competitors offering similar products, potentially resulting in the loss of some of REE’s competitive advantage and a decrease in its revenue which, would adversely affect its business, prospects, financial condition and operating results.
Also, while REE has registered and applied for trademarks in an effort to protect its investment in its brand and goodwill with customers, competitors may challenge the validity of those trademarks and other brand names in which REE has invested. Such challenges can be expensive and may adversely affect REE’s ability to maintain the goodwill gained in connection with a particular trademark.
Lawsuits alleging infringement or misappropriation of intellectual property rights of third parties could be both costly and time consuming and could prevent REE from developing or commercializing its future products.
Companies, organizations, or individuals, including REE’s competitors, may hold or obtain patents, trademarks or other proprietary rights that would prevent, limit or interfere with REE’s ability to make, use, develop, sell, lease or market its products which could make it more difficult for REE to operate its business. From time to time, REE may receive communications from holders of patents or trademarks regarding their proprietary rights. Companies holding patents or other intellectual property rights may bring suits alleging infringement of such rights or otherwise assert their rights and urge REE to take licenses. For example, in December 2022, a lawsuit was filed alleging that the REE and its U.S. based subsidiaries have stolen certain trade secrets and requested, inter alia, monetary damages in an amount of no less than $2.6 billion and exemplary damages in the amount of no less than $5.2 billion. Such lawsuit was ultimately dismissed by the District Court for Forum Non Conveniens on August 26, 2024, however, on September 26, 2024, the plaintiff filed a Notice of Appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, appealing the District Judge’s adoption of the Report and dismissal of the case for forum non conveniens. For more information, see “Item 8: Financial Information—Legal Proceedings”. REE’s applications and uses of trademarks relating to its design, software or artificial intelligence technologies could be found to infringe upon existing trademark ownership and rights. In addition, if REE is determined to have infringed upon a third party’s intellectual property rights, it may be required to do one or more of the following:
•cease selling, licensing, or incorporating certain components into, or using products or offering goods or services that incorporate or use the challenged intellectual property;
•pay substantial damages;
•seek a license from the holder of the infringed intellectual property right, which license may not be available on reasonable terms, or at all;
•redesign its products or other goods or services; or
•establish and maintain alternative branding for its products and services.
In the event of a successful claim of infringement against REE and REE’s failure or inability to obtain a license to the infringed technology or other intellectual property right, REE’s business, prospects, operating results and financial condition could be materially and adversely affected. In addition, any litigation or claims, whether or not valid, could result in substantial costs, negative publicity and diversion of resources and management attention.
Patent applications submitted by REE to the relevant authorities may not result in granted patents or may require modification in order to obtain approval.
REE cannot be certain that it is the first inventor of the subject matter to which it has filed a particular patent application, or if it is the first party to file such a patent application. If another party has disclosed the same subject matter, REE may not be entitled to the protection sought by the patent application. Further, the scope of protection of issued patent claims is often difficult to determine. As a result, REE cannot be certain that the patent applications that it files will issue, or that its
issued patents will afford protection against competitors with similar technology. In addition, REE’s competitors may design around REE’s issued patents, which may adversely affect its business, prospects, financial condition or operating results.
REE cannot assure that it will be granted patents pursuant to its pending applications. Even if REE’s patent applications succeed and it is issued patents, it is still uncertain whether these patents will be contested, circumvented or invalidated in the future. In addition, the rights granted under any issued patents may not provide REE with meaningful protection or competitive advantages. The claims under any patents that issue from REE’s patent applications may not be broad enough to prevent others from developing technologies that are similar or that achieve results similar to REE’s. The intellectual property rights of others could also bar REE from licensing and exploiting any patents that issue from its pending applications. Numerous patents and pending patent applications owned by others exist in the fields in which REE has developed and are developing its technology. These patents and patent applications might have priority over REE’s patent applications and could subject its patent applications to invalidation. Finally, in addition to those who may claim priority, any of REE’s existing or pending patents may also be challenged by others on the basis that they are otherwise invalid or unenforceable.
REE may be subject to damages resulting from claims that either it or any of its employees wrongfully used or disclosed alleged trade secrets of their employees’ former employers or that they allegedly violated certain covenants, such as non-compete agreements, to which REE or its employees may have been previously or currently bound.
Many of REE’s employees were previously employed by other technology or automotive companies or their suppliers. REE may be subject to damages resulting from claims that it or these employees have inadvertently or otherwise used or disclosed trade secrets or other proprietary information of their former employers. For example, in December 2022, a lawsuit was filed alleging that the REE and its U.S. based subsidiaries have stolen certain trade secrets and requested, inter alia, monetary damages in an amount of no less than $2.6 billion and exemplary damages in the amount of no less than $5.2 billion. For more information, see “Item 8: Financial Information—Legal Proceedings”. Litigation may be necessary to defend against these claims. If REE fails in defending such claims, in addition to paying monetary damages, it may lose valuable intellectual property rights or personnel. A loss of key personnel or their work product could hamper or prevent REE’s ability to commercialize its products, which could severely harm its business. Even if REE is successful in defending against these claims, litigation could result in substantial costs and demand on management resources.
In addition to patented technology, REE relies on its unpatented proprietary technology, trade secrets, processes and knowledge.
REE relies on proprietary information (such as trade secrets, know-how and confidential information) to protect intellectual property that may not be patentable or subject to copyright, trademark, trade dress or service mark protection, or that REE believes is best protected by means that do not require public disclosure. REE generally seeks to protect this proprietary information by entering into confidentiality agreements, or consulting, services or employment agreements that contain non-disclosure and non-use provisions with its employees, consultants, contractors and third parties. However, REE may fail to enter into the necessary agreements, and even if entered into, these agreements may be breached or may otherwise fail to prevent disclosure, third-party infringement or misappropriation of its proprietary information, may be limited as to their term and may not provide an adequate remedy in the event of unauthorized disclosure or use of proprietary information. REE has limited control over the protection of trade secrets used by its suppliers and strategic partners and could lose future trade secret protection if any unauthorized disclosure of such information occurs. In addition, REE’s proprietary information may otherwise become known or be independently developed by its competitors or other third parties. To the extent that its employees, consultants, contractors, advisors and other third parties use intellectual property owned by others in their work for REE, disputes may arise as to the rights in related or resulting know-how and inventions. Costly and time-consuming litigation could be necessary to enforce and determine the scope of REE’s proprietary rights, and failure to obtain or maintain protection for its proprietary information could adversely affect its competitive business position. Furthermore, laws regarding trade secret rights in certain markets where REE operates may afford little or no protection to its trade secrets.
REE also relies on physical and electronic security measures to protect its proprietary information, but it cannot provide assurance that these security measures will not be breached or provide adequate protection for its property. There is a risk that third parties may obtain and improperly utilize REE’s proprietary information to its competitive disadvantage. REE may not be able to detect or prevent the unauthorized use of such information or take appropriate and timely steps to enforce its intellectual property rights.
The terms of funding received from the Israel Innovation Authority require us to satisfy certain conditions that may limit and/or delay our ability to engage in certain transactions and which may reduce any potential consideration received by REE in connection with such transaction(s).
REE received funding from the Israel Innovation Authority, or the IIA, to partially finance its research and development efforts in relation to its Softwheel know how and products. For clarity, REE previously operated under the name Softwheel Ltd. in connection with its original advanced in-wheel suspension technology segment. Reference to Softwheel herein is only with respect to such technology segment. Softwheel received approximately $1,215,000 under the IIA’s standard royalty-bearing programs and under the IIA’s “Incubator” program. While the Company currently has no plans to use or monetize Softwheel know-how or products, and therefore does not expect to make royalty payments to the IIA in connection thereto in the near future, it remains subject to the Israeli Encouragement of Research, Development and Technological Innovation in Industry Law, 5744-1984, the IIA’s regulations, and the terms and the conditions of IIA’s programs, or collectively the Innovation Law. Among other terms and conditions, the Innovation Law restricts the Company’s ability to transfer, in any manner, know-how funded by the IIA, without the IIA’s prior approval. Transfer of such know-how outside of Israel may be subject to certain payments to the IIA of up to six times the amount of IIA funding and interest. Approval of transfer of IIA funded know-how to another Israeli company may be granted only if the recipient assumes the obligations under the Innovation Law and may be subject to royalty payments to the IIA. In addition, any change of control in REE, and any change of ownership that would cause a non-Israeli to become an “interested party” as defined in the Innovation Law (which includes any person who holds 5% in the Company or has a right to appoint a director), requires written notice to the IIA. Such non-Israeli interested party is required to sign an undertaking on a standard form required by the IIA, to comply with the rules and regulations applicable to IIA funding programs, including the restrictions and limitations on the transfer of IIA funded know-how. These terms and conditions may limit and/or delay the Company’s ability to engage in future transactions, including transactions that could qualify as a change in control of REE or direct investment, and may reduce the potential consideration received by REE in connection with such transaction(s), including, for example, a transaction that involves the transfer of IIA funded know-how outside of Israel by any amounts that REE is required to pay to the IIA.
Risks Related to REE’s Dual Class Structure
The dual class structure of our Ordinary Shares has the effect of concentrating voting power with REE’s Founders, who serve as its Chief Executive Officer and Chief Technology Officer, which limits an investor’s ability to influence the outcome of important transactions, including a change in control.
The Class B ordinary shares, without par value, of REE, or Class B Ordinary Shares, have 10 votes per share, while shares of Class A Ordinary Shares have one vote per share. REE’s Founders, Daniel Barel and Ahishay Sardes, hold all Class B Ordinary Shares granting each of them, when combined with each of their holdings of Class A Ordinary Shares, approximately 26.6% of voting power and together approximately 53.2% of the voting power of REE as of May 7, 2025. See “Item 7A. Major shareholders”. As a result, if they act together, they will be able to control matters submitted to REE’s shareholders for approval, including the election of directors, amendments of its organizational documents and any merger, consolidation, sale of all or substantially all of its assets or other major corporate transactions (although neither Founder individually has a majority of the voting power). REE’s Founders may have interests that differ from yours and may vote in a way with which you disagree and which may be adverse to your interests. While the Class B Ordinary Shares do not have any economic rights, this concentrated control may have the effect of delaying, preventing or deterring a change in control of REE, could deprive its shareholders of an opportunity to receive a premium for their shares as part of a sale of REE, and might ultimately affect the market price of shares of Class A Ordinary Shares.
REE cannot predict the impact REE’s dual class structure may have on the stock price of Class A Ordinary Shares.
REE cannot predict whether REE’s dual class structure will result in a lower or more volatile market price of Class A Ordinary Shares or in adverse publicity or other adverse consequences. Previously, certain index providers announced restrictions on including companies with multiple-class share structures in certain of their indexes. For example, S&P Dow Jones in 2017 announced the exclusion of companies utilizing dual or multi-class capital structures from the S&P Composite 1500, comprised of the S&P 500, S&P MidCap 400 and S&P SmallCap 600. However, in April 2023, it reversed this policy and announced that companies with dual or multi-class capital structures will again be eligible for inclusion in its indices. MSCI and FTSE Russell had similar discussions surrounding the issue of dual classes as well. Due to the policy discussions of index providers, we cannot guarantee that we will not be excluded from an index due to our dual share class. In the event that REE is ineligible for inclusion in an index, mutual funds, exchange-traded funds and other investment vehicles that attempt to passively track such index would not invest in our Class A Ordinary Shares. Given the sustained flow of investment funds into passive strategies that seek to track certain indexes, exclusion from
indexes could make our Class A Ordinary Shares less attractive to other investors. In addition, certain proxy advisory firms oppose the use of multiple class structures and may publish negative commentary about our corporate governance practices or otherwise seek to cause us to change our capital structure. As a result, the market price of Class A Ordinary Shares could be adversely affected.
In addition, institutional investors and certain investment funds may also be precluded, reluctant or unwilling to invest in entities with dual class structures due to a lack of ability to meaningfully influence corporate affairs and policies through voting. Such restrictions, reluctance and unwillingness may make our Class A Ordinary Shares less attractive to investors and, as a result, the market price of our Class A Ordinary Shares could be adversely affected.
The market price of REE’s Class A Ordinary Shares has been extremely volatile and may continue to be volatile due to numerous circumstances beyond our control.
The market price of our Class A Ordinary Shares has fluctuated, and may continue to fluctuate, widely, due to many factors, some of which may be beyond our control. These factors include, without limitation:
•“short squeezes”;
•comments by securities analysts or other third parties, including blogs, articles, message boards and social and other media;
•large stockholders exiting their position in our securities or an increase or decrease in the short interest in our securities;
•actual or anticipated fluctuations in our financial and operating results;
•changes in foreign currency exchange rates;
•the commencement, enrollment or results of our planned or future clinical trials of our product candidates or those of our competitors;
•regulatory or legal developments in the United States and other countries;
•the success of competitive products or technologies;
•developments or disputes concerning patent applications, issued patents or other proprietary rights;
•the recruitment or departure of key personnel;
•litigation matters, including amounts which may or may not be recoverable pursuant to our officer and director insurance policies, regulatory actions affecting the Company and the outcome thereof;
•actual or anticipated changes in estimates as to financial results, development timelines or recommendations by securities analysts;
•disputes or other developments relating to proprietary rights, including patents, litigation matters and our ability to obtain patent protection for our technologies;
•significant lawsuits, including patent or shareholder litigation;
•variations in our financial results or those of companies that are perceived to be similar to us;
•market conditions in our market sector;
•general economic, political, and market conditions and overall fluctuations in the financial markets in the United States and abroad; and
•investors’ general perception of us and our business.
Stock markets in general and our stock price in particular have recently experienced extreme price and volume fluctuations that have often been unrelated or disproportionate to the operating performance of those companies and our Company. For example, the closing sale prices of our Class A Ordinary Shares from January 1, 2024 through December 31, 2024, ranged from a high of $11.07 per share (on December 11, 2024) to a low of $2.965 per share (on September 13, 2024). These broad market fluctuations may adversely affect the trading price of our securities. Additionally, these and other external factors have caused and may continue to cause the market price and demand for our Class A Ordinary Shares to fluctuate substantially, which may limit or prevent our shareholders from readily selling their Class A Ordinary Shares and may otherwise negatively affect the liquidity of our Class A Ordinary Shares.
In addition, if the price of our Class A Ordinary Shares continues to trade at its current level, it may imply as a negative indicator of the valuation of our intangible and/or tangible assets, which could result in an impairment for these assets.
Risks Related to REE’s Incorporation and Location in Israel
Political, economic and military conditions in Israel, including the October 2023 attack by Hamas and other terrorist organizations and Israel’s subsequent war in response, could adversely affect REE’s supply chain, business, operations, and ability to raise capital.
REE is incorporated under the laws of the State of Israel, and its principal research and development facilities, including REE’s major data centers, and executive offices, where almost half of its employees are employed, are located in Israel. In addition, the majority of REE’s key employees, officers, and directors are Israeli citizens. Accordingly, political, economic and military conditions in Israel directly affect its business. In recent years, Israel has been engaged in armed conflict with terrorist organizations in the Middle East, including Hamas in the Gaza Strip, Hezbollah in southern Lebanon, and the Houthis in Yemen. For example, since October 7, 2023, Israel has been in a state of war with Hamas and other terrorist organizations in the Gaza Strip and in military conflict with Hezbollah and the Houthis. It is possible that other terrorist organizations, as well as other hostile countries, will join the hostilities and that such clashes may escalate in the future into a greater regional conflict. In addition, Israel is under current threats from Iran, including after Iran’s attacks in 2024. The fall of the Assad regime in Syria likewise created additional regional instability, including with respect to Turkey.
While our facilities have not been damaged during the current period, in the event that REE’s facilities are damaged as a result of conflict or hostilities otherwise disrupt REE’s operations in Israel, its research and development could be materially adversely affected along with REE’s ability to manage its operations and supply chain from its headquarters. For example, shelter-in-place and work-from-home measures, government-imposed restrictions on movement and travel and other precautions taken to address the ongoing conflict may temporarily disrupt REE’s management and employees’ ability to effectively perform their daily tasks. The current conflict has also led to a deterioration of certain indicators of Israel’s economic standing, including a downgrade in Israel’s credit rating by rating agencies such as by Moody’s, S&P Global, and Fitch. Any conflict involving Israel, the interruption or curtailment of trade between Israel and its trading partners, significant downturn in the economic or financial conditions in Israel, or any political instability in the region could adversely affect Israel’s economy, business conditions and/or our business operations, results of operations, and financial condition. It may also result in parties with whom we have agreements claiming that they are not obligated to perform their commitments pursuant to force majeure provisions in such agreements. This may also make it more difficult for us to raise capital, which would adversely affect REE’s operations and results of operations and the market price of our Class A Ordinary Shares.
REE’s commercial insurance does not cover losses that may occur as a result of events associated with war and terrorism. Although the Israeli government currently covers the reinstatement under the Property Tax and Compensation Fund Law, 1961, the reinstatement is limited and partial compensation value of direct damages that are caused by terrorist attacks or acts of war, REE cannot assure you that this government coverage will be maintained or that it will sufficiently cover REE’s potential damages. Any losses or damages incurred by REE could have a material adverse effect on its business.
Moreover, several countries, principally in the Middle East, still restrict doing business with Israel and Israeli companies, and additional countries may impose restrictions on doing business with Israel and Israeli companies if hostilities in Israel or political instability in the region continues or increases. Similarly, actions of certain international bodies along with activists who advocate for the boycott of Israel, have developed and may continue to foster a negative perception of Israel and/or its citizens, which may include its businesses. For example, the 2024 ruling of the International Court of Justice with respect to Israel’s actions during the current Gaza war and the International Criminal Court’s November 2024 arrest warrants for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and then-Defense Minister Yoav Gallant have enhanced anti-Israeli political efforts. The foregoing efforts by countries, activists, and international bodies, particularly if they become more widespread, may materially and adversely impact our business and/or supply chain, including if any suppliers or partners terminate or seek to terminate our commercial relationship due to such efforts.
In addition, many Israeli citizens are obligated to perform several days, and in some cases more, of annual military reserve duty each year until they reach the age of 40 (or older, for reservists who are military officers or who have certain occupations) and, in the event of a military conflict, may be called to active duty. In response to increases in terrorist activity and/or regional conflict, there have been periods of significant call-ups of military reservists, including in response to the October 7, 2023 attack and subsequent war. REE’s operations and business could be disrupted by such call-ups, particularly if such call-ups include members of REE’s management.
Political instability in Israel could also disrupt REE’s operations. Having held five general elections between 2019 and 2022, government policy is subject to regular disruptive changes. The current government of Israel had pursued changes to Israel’s judicial system in 2023, which sparked protests, and has recently renewed its efforts to effect such changes. Additionally, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is currently standing trial on corruption and it is not clear to what extent
this will affect the stability of the government. Actual or perceived political instability in Israel or any negative changes in the political environment, may individually or in the aggregate adversely affect the Israeli economy and, in turn, our business, financial condition, results of operations, growth prospects, and our ability to raise additional funds.
Investors’ rights and responsibilities of REE’s shareholders are governed by Israeli law, which may differ in some respects from the rights and responsibilities of shareholders of non-Israeli companies.
Because REE was incorporated under Israeli law, the rights and responsibilities of its shareholders are governed by its Amended and Restated Articles and Israeli law. These rights and responsibilities differ in some respects from the rights and responsibilities of shareholders of U.S. and other non-Israeli corporations. In particular, a shareholder of an Israeli company has a duty to act in good faith and in a customary manner in exercising its rights and performing its obligations towards the company and other shareholders and to refrain from abusing its power in the company, including, among other things, in voting at the general meeting of shareholders on certain matters, such as an amendment to the company’s articles of association, an increase of the company’s authorized share capital, a merger of the company and approval of related party transactions that require shareholder approval. A shareholder also has a general duty to refrain from discriminating against other shareholders. In addition, a controlling shareholder or a shareholder who knows that it possesses the power to determine the outcome of a shareholders’ vote or to appoint or prevent the appointment of an office holder in the company has a duty to act in fairness towards the company. These provisions may be interpreted to impose additional obligations and liabilities on REE’s shareholders that are not typically imposed on shareholders of U.S. corporations.
Provisions of Israeli law and REE’s Amended and Restated Articles may delay, prevent or make undesirable an acquisition of all or a significant portion of its shares or assets.
Provisions of Israeli law and REE’s Amended and Restated Articles could have the effect of delaying or preventing a change in control and may make it more difficult for a third-party to acquire REE or its shareholders to elect different individuals to REE’s board of directors, even if doing so would be considered to be beneficial by some of REE’s shareholders, and may limit the price that investors may be willing to pay in the future for the Class A Ordinary Shares. Among other things:
•Israeli corporate law regulates mergers and requires that a tender offer be effected when more than a specified percentage of shares in a company are purchased;
•Israeli corporate law requires special approvals for certain transactions involving directors, officers or significant shareholders and regulates other matters that may be relevant to these types of transactions;
•Israeli corporate law does not provide for shareholder action by written consent for public companies, thereby requiring all shareholder actions to be taken at a general meeting of shareholders;
•the Amended and Restated Articles generally require a vote of a simple majority of the voting power represented at a general meeting of shareholders in person or by proxy and voting thereon, as one class;
•the Amended and Restated Articles generally do not permit a director to be removed except by a vote of the holders of (i) so long as any Class B Ordinary Shares remain outstanding, a simple majority of the voting power represented at a general meeting of shareholders in person or by proxy and voting thereon, as one class, and (ii) if no Class B Ordinary Shares remain outstanding, a supermajority of at least sixty-five percent (65%) of the voting power represented at a general meeting of shareholders in person or by proxy and voting thereon; and
•the Amended and Restated Articles generally provide that director vacancies may be filled by REE’s board of directors.
Further, Israeli tax considerations may make potential transactions undesirable to REE or some of its shareholders whose country of residence does not have a tax treaty with Israel granting tax relief to such shareholders from Israeli tax. For example, Israeli tax law does not recognize tax-free share exchanges to the same extent as U.S. tax law. With respect to mergers, Israeli tax law allows for tax deferral in certain circumstances but makes the deferral contingent on the fulfillment of numerous conditions, including, a holding period of two years from the date of the transaction during which certain sales and dispositions of shares of the participating companies are restricted. Moreover, with respect to certain share swap transactions, the tax deferral is limited in time, and when such time expires, the tax becomes payable even if no disposition of the shares has occurred.
The tax benefits that are available to REE require it to continue to meet various conditions and may be terminated or reduced in the future, which could increase REE’s costs and taxes. REE may be eligible for certain tax benefits provided to
“Preferred Technological Enterprises” under the Israeli Law for the Encouragement of Capital Investments, 1959, referred to as the Investment Law. In order to remain eligible for the tax benefits for “Preferred Technological Enterprises” it must continue to meet certain conditions stipulated in the Investment Law and its regulations, as amended. If these tax benefits are reduced, cancelled or discontinued, REE’s Israeli taxable income from the approved enterprise would be subject to regular Israeli corporate tax rates. The current standard corporate tax rate for Israeli companies is 23%. Additionally, if REE increases its activities outside of Israel through acquisitions, for example, its expanded activities might not be eligible for inclusion in future Israeli tax benefit programs. See “Item 10.E. Taxation – Certain Material Israeli Tax Considerations.”
REE’s Amended and Restated Articles provide that unless REE consents otherwise, the competent courts of Tel Aviv, Israel shall be the sole and exclusive forum for substantially all disputes between REE and its shareholders’ under the Companies Law and the Israeli Securities Law, which could limit its shareholders ability to bring claims and proceedings against, as well as obtain favorable judicial forum for disputes with, REE, its directors, officers and other employees.
The competent courts of Tel Aviv, Israel shall be the exclusive forum for (i) any derivative action or proceeding brought on behalf of REE, (ii) any action asserting a claim of breach of fiduciary duty owed by any director, officer or other employee of REE to REE or REE’s shareholders, or (iii) any action asserting a claim arising pursuant to any provision of the Israeli Companies Law, 5759-1999, as amended, or the Companies Law, or the Israeli Securities Law, 5728-1968, as amended, or the Israeli Securities Law. This exclusive forum provision is intended to apply to claims arising under Israeli Law and would not apply to claims brought pursuant to the Securities Act or the Exchange Act or any other claim for which federal courts would have exclusive jurisdiction. Such exclusive forum provision in the Amended and Restated Articles will not relieve REE of its duties to comply with federal securities laws and the rules and regulations thereunder, and shareholders of REE will not be deemed to have waived REE’s compliance with these laws, rules and regulations. This exclusive forum provision may limit a shareholder’s ability to bring a claim in a judicial forum of its choosing for disputes with REE or its directors or other employees which may discourage lawsuits against REE, its directors, officers and employees.
REE is a foreign private issuer and, as a result, it is not subject to U.S. proxy rules and is subject to Exchange Act reporting obligations that, to some extent, are more lenient and less frequent than those of a U.S. domestic public company.
REE reports under the Exchange Act as a non-U.S. company with foreign private issuer status. Because REE qualifies as a foreign private issuer under the Exchange Act, it is exempt from certain provisions of the Exchange Act that are applicable to U.S. domestic public companies, including (1) the sections of the Exchange Act regulating the solicitation of proxies, shareholder proposals, consents or authorizations in respect of a security registered under the Exchange Act, (2) the sections of the Exchange Act requiring insiders to file public reports of their share ownership and trading activities and liability for insiders who profit from trades made in a short period of time and (3) the rules under the Exchange Act requiring the filing with the SEC of quarterly reports on Form 10-Q containing unaudited financial and other specified information, although it is subject to Israeli laws and regulations with regard to certain of these matters and intends to furnish comparable quarterly information on Form 6-K. In addition, foreign private issuers are not required to file their annual report on Form 20-F until 120 days after the end of each fiscal year, while U.S. domestic issuers that are accelerated filers are required to file their annual report on Form 10-K within 75 days after the end of each fiscal year and U.S. domestic issuers that are large accelerated filers are required to file their annual report on Form 10-K within 60 days after the end of each fiscal year. As a result of all of the above, you may not have the same protections afforded to shareholders of a company that is not a foreign private issuer.
As REE is a “foreign private issuer” and follows certain home country corporate governance practices, its shareholders may not have the same protections afforded to shareholders of companies that are subject to all Nasdaq corporate governance requirements.
As a foreign private issuer, REE is permitted to follow certain home country corporate governance practices rather than those otherwise required by Nasdaq rules, provided that it discloses the requirements it is not following and describes the equivalent home country practices it follows instead. REE relies on this “foreign private issuer exemption” with respect to the Nasdaq rules for director nomination procedures and shareholder meeting quorums. REE may in the future elect to follow home country practices with regard to other matters. As a result, its shareholders will not have the same protections afforded to shareholders of companies that are subject to all Nasdaq corporate governance requirements.
REE may lose its foreign private issuer status in the future, which could result in significant additional costs and expenses.
As discussed above, REE is a foreign private issuer, and therefore is not required to comply with all of the periodic disclosure and current reporting requirements of the Exchange Act. The determination of foreign private issuer status is made annually on the last business day of an issuer’s most recently completed second fiscal quarter, and, accordingly, the next determination will be made with respect to REE on June 30, 2025. In the future, REE would lose its foreign private issuer status if (1) more than 50% of its outstanding voting securities are owned by U.S. residents and (2) a majority of its directors or executive officers are U.S. citizens or residents, or it fails to meet additional requirements necessary to avoid loss of foreign private issuer status. If REE loses its foreign private issuer status, it will be required to file with the SEC periodic reports and registration statements on U.S. domestic issuer forms, which are more detailed and extensive than the forms available to a foreign private issuer. REE would also have to comply with U.S. federal proxy requirements, and its officers, directors and principal shareholders will become subject to the short-swing profit disclosure and recovery provisions of Section 16 of the Exchange Act. In addition, it would lose its ability to rely upon exemptions from certain corporate governance requirements under the listing rules of Nasdaq. As a U.S. listed public company that is not a foreign private issuer, REE would incur significant additional legal, accounting and other expenses that it will not incur as a foreign private issuer.
Risks Related to Ownership of the Class A Ordinary Shares
REE may issue additional Class A Ordinary Shares or other securities without shareholder approval, which would dilute existing ownership interests and may depress the market price of Class A Ordinary Shares.
REE has previously issued and may continue to issue additional Class A Ordinary Shares or other equity securities of equal or senior rank in the future in connection with, among other things, REE’s equity incentive plan, without shareholder approval, in a number of circumstances. REE’s issuance of additional Class A Ordinary Shares or other equity securities of equal or senior rank would have the following effects:
•REE’s legacy shareholders’ proportionate ownership interest in REE may decrease;
•the amount of cash available per share, including for payment of dividends in the future, may decrease;
•the relative voting strength of each previously outstanding Class A Ordinary Share may be diminished; and
•the market price of Class A Ordinary Shares may decline.
As of December 31, 2024, REE had 65,744 Class A Ordinary Shares available for future grant under the 2021 Plan and 154,284 shares available under the Employee Stock Purchase Plan. There were 3,806,089 Class A Ordinary Shares underlying outstanding options under its equity incentive plans, at a weighted average exercise price of $4.58 per share, 3,362,234 of which were vested and exercisable. Additionally, there were 1,582,803 Class A Ordinary Shares underlying outstanding RSUs under its equity incentive plan.
Future sales of large amounts of shares into the public markets may adversely affect the market price of Class A Ordinary Shares.
We have issued and sold, and may continue to issue and sell, additional Class A Ordinary Shares and/or securities convertible or exchangeable into Class A Ordinary Shares in the public markets. Such sales in the past have included our ATM program, securities offerings during 2024, and, most recently, our registered direct offerings during March 2025. As a result, a substantial number of our Class A Ordinary Shares can be sold in the public market, along with sales by investors that purchased our securities in connection thereto. For example, as further described in Item 7.A of this Annual Report, among other shareholders, M&G currently holds 19.5% of our Class A Ordinary Shares along with additional shares that it can acquire through Warrants and Convertible Notes whereas Motherson currently holds 18.5% of our Class A Ordinary Shares. These shareholders along with other shareholders of REE could sell any or all of their shares at any time on the public market or to a person who wishes to acquire control of us, including in circumstances where such shareholder(s) no longer believes in REE, its management, financial condition, and/or business plan. Sales of a substantial number of our Class A Ordinary Shares in the public markets, or the perception that such sales could occur, could depress the market price of our Class A Ordinary Shares and/or impair our ability to raise capital through the sale of additional equity securities. Such large sale amounts could likewise cause our share price to fall below the minimum bid amount on Nasdaq, which may cause us to be delisted if we are unable to reestablish compliance with the minimum bid amount.
Additionally, pursuant to the Investors’ Rights Agreement (defined below) between REE, 10X Capital Venture Acquisition Corp., or 10X, Capital and certain of REE’s shareholder, the Sponsor can demand that REE register its registrable
securities under certain circumstances and also has piggyback registration rights for these securities in connection with certain registrations of securities that REE undertakes. REE is also required to use its commercially reasonable effort to maintain the effectiveness of a registration statement under the Securities Act covering such securities and certain other securities of REE, including those held by PIPE Investors. The availability of such a significant number of securities for trading in the public market may have an adverse effect on the market price of REE’s Class A Ordinary Shares.
Risks Related to Taxation
The IRS may not agree that REE should be treated as a non-U.S. corporation for U.S. federal income tax purposes.
Although REE is incorporated and tax resident in Israel, the IRS may assert that it should be treated as a U.S. corporation for U.S. federal income tax purposes pursuant to Section 7874 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, or the Code. For U.S. federal income tax purposes, a corporation is generally considered a U.S. “domestic” corporation if it is created or organized in or under the laws of the U.S., any state thereof, or the District of Columbia. Because REE is not so created or organized (but is instead incorporated only in Israel), it would generally be classified as a foreign corporation (that is, a corporation other than a U.S. “domestic” corporation) under these rules. Section 7874 of the Code provides an exception under which a corporation created or organized only under foreign law may, in certain circumstances, be treated as a U.S. corporation for U.S. federal income tax purposes, such as when a foreign corporation acquires the shares of a U.S. corporation.
Based on the terms of the Agreement and Plan of Merger, dated as of February 3, 2021, by and among 10X Capital, REE and Merger Sub, as such agreement may be amended or otherwise modified from time to time in accordance with its terms, or Merger Agreement, and the rules for determining share ownership under Code Section 7874 and the Treasury regulations promulgated under Code Section 7874, or the Section 7874 Regulations), REE is not expected to be treated as a U.S. corporation for U.S. federal income tax purposes under Code Section 7874 after the merger of Spark Merger Sub Inc., or Merger Sub, with and into 10X Capital, with 10X Capital surviving the merger and becoming a wholly-owned subsidiary of REE, along with the other transactions contemplated by the Merger Agreement, or the Merger. However, the application of Section 7874 of the Code is complex, is subject to detailed regulations (the application of which is uncertain in various respects and would be impacted by changes in such U.S. tax laws and regulations with possible retroactive effect) and is subject to certain factual uncertainties. Accordingly, there can be no assurance that the IRS will not challenge the status of REE as a foreign corporation under Code Section 7874 or that such challenge would not be sustained by a court.
If the IRS were to successfully challenge under Code Section 7874 REE’s status as a foreign corporation for U.S. federal income tax purposes, REE and certain REE shareholders could be subject to significant adverse tax consequences, including a higher effective corporate income tax rate on REE and future withholding taxes on certain REE shareholders, depending on the application of any income tax treaty that might apply to reduce such withholding taxes. In particular, holders of Class A Ordinary Shares and/or Warrants would be treated as holders of stock and warrants of a U.S. corporation. See “Item 10.E. Taxation – Certain Material U.S. Tax Considerations – U.S. Federal Income Tax Treatment of REE” for a more detailed discussion.
U.S. Holders of Class A Ordinary Shares may suffer adverse tax consequences if REE is treated as a passive foreign investment company.
A non-U.S. corporation generally will be treated as a “passive foreign investment company,” or a PFIC, for U.S. federal income tax purposes, in any taxable year if either (1) at least 75% of its gross income for such year is passive income (such as interest, dividends, rents and royalties (other than rents or royalties derived from the active conduct of a trade or business) and gains from the disposition of assets giving rise to passive income) or (2) at least 50% of the value of its assets (based on an average of the quarterly values of the assets) during such year is attributable to assets that produce or are held for the production of passive income. Based on the current and anticipated composition of the income, assets and operations of REE and its subsidiaries, there is a significant risk that REE was a PFIC for U.S. federal income tax purposes for 2024, and REE may be a PFIC for U.S. federal income tax purposes for the current or future taxable years. This is a factual determination that depends on, among other things, the composition of REE’s income and assets, and the market value of its shares and assets, including the composition of income and assets and the market value of shares and assets of its subsidiaries, from time to time, and thus a complete determination can only be made annually after the close of each taxable year. Furthermore, the value of our gross assets is likely to be determined in part by reference to our market capitalization, which may fluctuate significantly. Thus, no assurance can be given as to whether REE will be a PFIC in the current or any future taxable year. In addition, REE’s U.S. counsel expresses no opinion with respect to REE’s PFIC status for 2024, current, or future taxable years.
If REE is a PFIC for any taxable year, a U.S. Holder of Class A Ordinary Shares and/or Warrants may be subject to adverse tax consequences and may incur certain information reporting obligations. Under the PFIC rules, unless such U.S. Holder makes an election available under the Code (which election could itself have adverse consequences for such U.S. Holder), such U.S. Holder may be subject to U.S. federal income tax at the then prevailing maximum rates on ordinary income and possibly an “interest” charge, in respect of “excess distributions” and upon any gain from the disposition of Class A Ordinary Shares and/or Warrants, as if the excess distribution or gain had been recognized ratably over such U.S. Holder’s holding period of the Class A Ordinary Shares and/or Warrants. Certain elections (including a qualified electing fund election (or a QEF election) or a mark-to-market election) that may be available to U.S. Holders of Class A Ordinary Shares to mitigate some of the adverse tax consequences resulting from PFIC treatment, however, are not available with respect to the Warrants. Additionally, there can be no assurance that REE will have timely knowledge of its status as a PFIC in the future or that REE will timely provide information that would be required in order for a U.S. Holder to make a QEF election. See “Item 10.E. Taxation – Certain Material U.S. Tax Considerations – U.S Federal Income Tax Consequences of the Ownership and Disposition of Class A Ordinary Shares and Warrants to U.S. Holders – Passive Foreign Investment Company Rules” for further discussion. U.S. Holders of Class A Ordinary Shares and/or Warrants are strongly encouraged to consult their own advisors regarding the potential application of these rules to REE and the ownership of Class A Ordinary Shares and/or Warrants.