Seeing Machines secures new automotive programme

8th Nov 2023 10:29

(Sharecast News) - Driver monitoring technology specialist Seeing Machines has secured a new automotive programme award, announced on Wednesday, as it also released its quarterly key performance indicators (KPIs) for the September quarter.

The AIM-traded firm said it was selected to deliver an additional automotive programme for an existing European automotive manufacturer, resulting in an initial lifetime value of $15m.

Production for the programme was set to start in 2026, focusing on adhering to industry safety regulations.

The company said the award underscored confidence in its interior sensing technology, as it marked the 16th engagement with 10 individual OEM customers, bringing the cumulative initial lifetime value of all OEM programmes to $336m.

Regarding performance indicators for the September quarter, Seeing Machines reported a notable 98% year-on-year uptick in automotive production volumes.

The total number of vehicles equipped with Seeing Machines' technology had surged 134% over the last year, reaching 1,308,314 units.

However, quarter-on-quarter growth in production volumes moderated, with a 5% increase during the first quarter, partly due to seasonal factors, echoing trends observed in the same period last fiscal year.

Furthermore, Seeing Machines recorded a steady rise in monitored Guardian connections, which were ahead 30% over the past year, reaching 54,140 units.

That excluded around 480 units sold in the first quarter as part of Australia's transition from 3G to 4G networks, facilitating upgrades from the first to second generation of Guardian.

"We welcome our 16th automotive program award with our existing tier-one and OEM customers," said chief executive officer Paul McGlone.

"This expanded business opportunity extends our incumbency with this particular OEM, giving us increased confidence for extensions across more vehicle lines within their portfolio.

"As a leading supplier of mission-critical transport safety systems, being trusted is of paramount importance and while this individual award is reasonably modest in size, it further validates our proven technology and I am confident we will see more business from this OEM customer."

McGlone added that the company's quarterly KPIs provided transparency across the core metrics within its business and thus exposed it to seasonal trends, especially in the automotive space.

"That considered, we are pleased to see growth close to our expected 100% year-on-year run rate in automotive royalties, with over 1.3 million cars on the road containing our safety technology and double-digit growth in our aftermarket business.

"We are benefitting from the compelling structural drivers in our industry as new transport safety laws mandating the use of driver monitoring technology fast approach."

At 1013 GMT, shares in Seeing Machines were up 0.7% at 5.76p.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.