Archer Aviation Inc. (ACHR)

Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations

The following discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations should be read in conjunction with our consolidated financial statements and related accompanying notes included elsewhere in this Annual Report. Refer to Item 7. Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations located in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023, filed on February 29, 2024, for a comparison of our results of operations for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022. The following discussion includes forward-looking statements, which are based on our current expectations and beliefs concerning future developments and the potential effects of such developments on us. There can be no assurance that future developments affecting us will be those that we have anticipated. See the section titled “Special Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements” in this Annual Report. Our actual results could differ materially from such forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause or contribute to those differences include, but are not limited to, those set forth in Part I, Item 1A, “Risk Factors” in this Annual Report.

Overview

Headquartered in Silicon Valley, California, Archer is developing the technologies and aircraft to power the future of advanced aviation. We plan to provide customers with advanced aircraft and related technologies and services in the United States and internationally in both the commercial and defense sectors. We unveiled our first planned production aircraft, an eVTOL aircraft, Midnight, in November 2022. In December 2024, we launched Archer Defense, entering into a strategic partnership with Anduril to jointly develop a next-generation aircraft for defense applications. In December 2024, we completed construction of our high-volume aircraft manufacturing facility, ARC, located in Covington, Georgia. We plan to start our initial production of aircraft at this facility in the first half of 2025 and ramp our production there to support our commercialization efforts. We are first and foremost working to commercialize our Midnight aircraft which is intended to be used in air taxi operations in and around major cities around the world. To do so, we are working with aviation authorities, countries, cities, and strategic partners in select locations globally to obtain certification of our Midnight aircraft and build out UAM networks that will utilize our Midnight aircraft in their operations. Our goal is to begin early commercial operations with our Midnight aircraft in Abu Dhabi in the UAE and ramp our operations from there. In parallel, we plan to continue to advance the development of our aircraft for Archer Defense, as well as other technologies to support the future of advanced aviation.

Our Planned Lines of Business

By maintaining an innovative and disciplined approach to new product and service development, manufacturing, and commercialization we believe that we can deliver advanced aviation technologies and solutions that can service a broad range of industries and applications. We intend to operate in the following areas:

•Commercial: This is planned to consist of the sale of our commercial aircraft (“Archer Direct”), such as Midnight, to aircraft operators as well as technologies and services related thereto, including, commercial launch (i.e., certification, testing, training, demonstration, market survey and early trial operations), and maintenance and repair. In addition, we plan to provide direct-to-consumer aerial ride share services utilizing our aircraft and potentially others in select metropolitan areas around the world with consumers being able to book rides via an app-based platform (“Archer UAM”).

•Defense: This is planned to consist of the sale of next-generation aircraft and related technologies for defense applications. Our initial product is intended to be a hybrid-propulsion VTOL aircraft that we are jointly developing with Anduril. We have also been partnering with the DoD since 2021 on a series of projects through the USAF AFWERX program with the goal of helping the AFWERX Agility Prime program assess the transformational potential of the vertical flight market and eVTOL technologies for DoD purposes. We continue to advance this partnership and deliver under the related contracts we have entered into with the USAF, which include the delivery of our Midnight aircraft to the USAF, the sharing of additional flight test data and certification related test reports, pilot training, and the development of maintenance and repair operations.

To date, we have not generated significant revenue from either of these planned areas. We will use our cash and cash equivalents for the foreseeable future as we continue to develop our aircraft and technologies and services related thereto, manufacturing operations and work to commercialize our aircraft. The amount and timing of any future capital requirements will depend on many factors, including the pace and results of the design and development of our aircraft and manufacturing operations, as well as our progress in obtaining necessary aircraft certifications and other government approvals to begin commercial operations. For example, any significant delays in obtaining such certifications and other government approvals may require us to raise additional capital above our existing cash on hand and delay our generation of significant revenues.

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Our Aircraft

Our Midnight aircraft is designed around our proprietary 12-tilt-6 distributed electric propulsion platform. Midnight is the evolution of our demonstrator aircraft, Maker, which we developed and used to validate its aircraft configuration and key enabling technologies. Midnight is designed to carry four passengers plus a pilot, bring an enhanced level of safety and deliver on a reduced level of noise as compared to traditional helicopters. Our Midnight aircraft is built around key advanced aviation technologies we have developed, including what we believe to be cutting-edge electric propulsion and flight control systems. We have paired those with systems and components sourced from leading aerospace suppliers many of which are already being used on certified aircraft today, with the goal of reducing Midnight’s certification risk, as well as its development timelines and costs. The aircraft is purpose-built for its intended use case of air taxi operations in major cities across the globe, with its range and payload being optimized around back-to-back short distance trips of around 20-miles, with minimal charging time between trips. Our approach to designing Midnight focuses on combining high function and high emotion, with the goal of inspiring passengers to want to experience it, similar to the feeling that was evoked during the Golden Age of aviation in the 1950s.

We continue to work to optimize our Midnight aircraft design for both manufacturing and certification. The development of an eVTOL aircraft that meets our business requirements demands significant design and development efforts on all facets of the aircraft. We believe that by bringing together a mix of talent with eVTOL, traditional commercial aerospace, as well as electric propulsion backgrounds, we have built a team that enables us to move through the design, development, and certification of our eVTOL aircraft, thus helping us to achieve our end goal of bringing to market our eVTOL aircraft as efficiently as possible. We continue to work to certify Midnight with certain aviation authorities around the globe so that it can be used in our planned commercial operations as soon as possible.

Our aircraft under development for Archer Defense is planned to be a hybrid-propulsion, Midnight-like VTOL aircraft with both a low thermal and acoustic signature purpose built for next generation defense use cases. We are jointly developing this aircraft with Anduril. Our goal is to bring together our ability to rapidly develop advanced VTOL aircraft using existing commercial parts and supply chains and Anduril's deep expertise in artificial intelligence, missionization, and systems integration, to accelerate the speed to market for critical hybrid VTOL aircraft capabilities at a fraction of the cost of more traditional alternatives. To support this effort, we intend to invest in the development of our hybrid-propulsion platform, as well as in critical capabilities like the manufacturing of composites and battery cells needed for this aircraft and also potentially on our commercial aircraft.

Components of Results of Operations

Revenue

We are still working to design, develop, certify, and bring up manufacturing of our aircraft and thus have not generated revenue from any of our planned lines of business. We do not expect to begin generating significant revenues until we are able to complete the design, development, certification, and manufacturing bring up of our aircraft and development of related technologies and services.

Operating Expenses

Research and Development

Research and development activities represent a significant part of our business. Our research and development efforts focus on the design and development of our eVTOL aircraft, including certain of the systems that are used in it. As part of those activities, we continue to work closely with the Federal Aviation Administration (“FAA”) towards our goal of achieving certification of our eVTOL aircraft on an efficient timeline. Research and development expenses consist primarily of personnel-related costs (including salaries, bonuses, benefits, and stock-based compensation) for employees focused on research and development activities, costs associated with developing and building prototype aircraft, associated facilities costs, and depreciation. We expect research and development expenses to increase significantly as we progress towards the certification and manufacturing of our eVTOL aircraft.

We cannot determine with certainty the timing, duration or the costs necessary to complete the design, development, certification, and manufacturing bring up of our eVTOL aircraft due to the inherently unpredictable nature of our research and development activities. Development timelines, the probability of success, and development costs may differ materially from expectations.

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General and Administrative

General and administrative expenses consist primarily of personnel-related costs (including salaries, bonuses, benefits, and stock-based compensation) for employees associated with administrative services such as finance, legal, human resources, information technology, associated facilities costs, depreciation, and technology and dispute resolution agreements expense. We expect our general and administrative expenses to increase as we hire additional personnel and consultants to support our operations and comply with applicable regulations.

Other Warrant Expense

Other warrant expense consists entirely of non-cash expense related to the vesting of warrants issued in conjunction with the execution of the United Purchase Agreement and the Warrant to Purchase Shares Agreement with United Airlines Inc. (“United”).

Other Income (Expense), Net

Other income (expense), net consists of miscellaneous income and expense items, including the change in fair value of our warrant liabilities.

Interest Income, Net

Interest income, net primarily consists of interest income from our cash and cash equivalents and short-term investments in marketable securities, net of interest on notes payable.

Results of Operations

The following table sets forth our consolidated statements of operations for the periods indicated:

(1) Includes stock-based compensation expense as follows:

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Comparison of the Year Ended December 31, 2024 and 2023

Research and Development

Research and development expenses increased by $81.3 million, or 29.4%, for the year ended December 31, 2024, compared to the year ended December 31, 2023, as we invested in people and materials to advance our technology development. The increase was primarily due to an increase of $42.4 million in personnel-related expenses due to a significant increase in our workforce from the prior year, an increase of $20.1 million in stock-based compensation expenses, and an increase of $17.4 million in costs related to professional services and tools and materials to support our increased research and development activities. The remainder of the increase was made up of other incidental items.

General and Administrative

General and administrative expenses decreased by $16.4 million, or 9.7%, for the year ended December 31, 2024, compared to the year ended December 31, 2023. The decrease was primarily due to a decrease of $58.3 million in the charge for the warrant issued to Wisk Aero LLC, to purchase up to 13,176,895 shares of our Class A common stock with an exercise price of $0.01 per share (the “Wisk Warrant”), and a decrease of $14.7 million in professional service expenses mainly due to legal fees and expenses. The decrease was partially offset by a reversal of previously recognized stock-based compensation expense of $59.1 million associated with the forfeiture of the unvested portion of the restricted stock units (“RSUs”) granted to our founders pursuant to the terms and conditions of the Business Combination Agreement immediately prior to closing (the “Founder Grant”) issued to the Company’s former co-CEO. See Note 7 - Commitments and Contingencies and Note 9 - Stock-Based Compensation to our consolidated financial statements for further details on our commitments and contingencies and stock-based compensation, respectively. The remainder of the decrease was made up of other incidental items.

Other Warrant Expense

Other warrant expense decreased by $2.1 million, or 100.0%, for the year ended December 31, 2024, compared to the year ended December 31, 2023. The decrease was primarily due to the vesting of United warrants associated with specific milestones during the year ended December 31, 2023. The warrants associated with the specific milestones fully vested in the first quarter of 2023. See Note 9 - Stock-Based Compensation to our consolidated financial statements for further details on our warrants.

Other Income (Expense), Net

Other income (expense), net decreased by $21.9 million, or 81.4%, for the year ended December 31, 2024, compared to the year ended December 31, 2023. The decrease was primarily due to changes in fair value of our warrant liabilities. See Note 3 - Summary of Significant Accounting Policies to our consolidated financial statements for further details.

Interest Income, Net

Interest income, net increased by $5.5 million, or 33.5%, for the year ended December 31, 2024, compared to the year ended December 31, 2023. The increase was primarily due to interest income from our cash and cash equivalents.

Liquidity and Capital Resources

As of December 31, 2024, our principal sources of liquidity were cash and cash equivalents of $834.5 million. We have incurred net losses since our inception and to date have not generated any revenues. We expect to incur additional losses and higher operating expenses for the foreseeable future. We believe that our existing cash and cash equivalents will be sufficient for at least the next 12 months to meet our requirements and plans for cash, including meeting our working capital requirements and capital expenditure requirements.

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On October 5, 2023, we entered into a credit agreement (the “Credit Agreement”) with Synovus Bank, as administrative agent and lender, and the additional lenders (the “Lenders”) from time to time. We may request the Lenders to provide multiple delayed term loan advances (together, the “Loan”) in an aggregate principal amount of up to $65.0 million for the construction and development of our manufacturing facility in Covington, Georgia. The Loan under the Credit Agreement shall accrue interest from and including the date the applicable advance is made but excluding the repayment date at a rate of the secured overnight financing rate (“SOFR”), plus 2.0% subject to a SOFR floor of 0.0%. We are required to make interest-only payments for 36 months on the Loan starting on November 14, 2023, followed by monthly interest and principal payments for the remaining maturity, with any outstanding principal, interest and other then outstanding indebtedness due at maturity. The Credit Agreement matures on the earlier of October 5, 2033 or the date on which the outstanding Loan has been declared or automatically becomes due and payable pursuant to the terms of the Credit Agreement. Our obligations under the Credit Agreement are jointly and severally guaranteed by our current and future wholly-owned domestic subsidiaries, and are secured by cash, general intangibles, instruments, securities, financial assets, security entitlements and other property maintained in a money market account at Synovus Bank. As of December 31, 2024, we had drawn down $65.0 million of the Loan.

In November 2023, we filed a shelf registration statement on Form S-3 with the SEC and a related prospectus supplement pursuant to which we may, from time to time, sell shares of our Class A common stock, having an aggregate value of up to $70.0 million, pursuant to a Controlled Equity OfferingSM Sales Agreement (the “Sales Agreement”) with the placement agent (the “First ATM Program”). The First ATM Program was fully utilized in May 2024. During the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, we sold 10,275,033 and 3,109,097 shares of Class A common stock, respectively, under the First ATM Program, for net proceeds of $48.1 million and $19.5 million, respectively.

In May 2024, we filed a shelf registration statement on Form S-3 with the SEC that permits the offering of an aggregate of up to $95.0 million of shares of our Class A common stock or preferred stock, debt securities, warrants, and units (the “2024 Shelf Registration Statement”), including a prospectus for the sale under the Sales Agreement of shares of our Class A common stock, having an aggregate value of up to $70.0 million (the “Second ATM Program”). The Second ATM Program was fully utilized in November 2024. During the year ended December 31, 2024, we sold 20,644,100 shares of Class A common stock under the Second ATM Program for net proceeds of $68.0 million.

In November 2024, we filed a shelf registration statement on Form S-3ASR with the SEC and a related prospectus for the sale under the Sales Agreement of shares of our Class A common stock, having an aggregate value of up to $70.0 million (the “Third ATM Program”, and together with the First ATM Program and the Second ATM Program, the “ATM Program”). During the year ended December 31, 2024, we sold 2,052,484 shares of Class A common stock under the Third ATM Program for net proceeds of $21.7 million. As of December 31, 2024, we had $47.5 million remaining eligible for sales under the Third ATM Program.

We pay the placement agent a commission rate of up to 3.0% of the gross proceeds from any shares of Class A common stock sold through the Sales Agreement.

On June 27, 2024, pursuant to the Forward Purchase Agreement, dated as of January 3, 2023, by and between us and Stellantis N.V. (“Stellantis Forward Purchase Agreement”), we elected to draw down the $55.0 million remaining available under the Stellantis Forward Purchase Agreement associated with Milestone 3 (as defined in the Stellantis Forward Purchase Agreement). In accordance therewith, on July 1, 2024, we issued 17,401,153 shares of Class A common stock to Stellantis N.V. (“Stellantis”) for gross proceeds of approximately $55.0 million.

On August 8, 2024, we entered into subscription agreements with certain investors providing for the private placement of our Class A common stock at a purchase price of $3.35 per share (the “First 2024 PIPE Financing”), pursuant to the exemption from registration contained in Section 4(a)(2) of the Securities Act. A portion of the First 2024 PIPE Financing closed on August 12, 2024 for 49,283,582 shares of our Class A common stock for net proceeds of approximately $158.0 million, after deducting offering costs. The remaining portion of the First 2024 PIPE Financing covering an aggregate of 2,982,089 shares of our Class A common stock was issued and sold to Stellantis for gross proceeds of approximately $10.0 million on January 6, 2025.

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On December 11, 2024, we entered into subscription agreements with certain investors providing for the private placement of our Class A common stock at a purchase price of $6.65 per share (the “Second 2024 PIPE Financing”, and together with the First 2024 PIPE Financing, the “2024 PIPE Financings”), pursuant to the exemption from registration contained in Section 4(a)(2) of the Securities Act. A portion of the Second 2024 PIPE Financing closed on December 13, 2024 for 63,909,776 shares of our Class A common stock for net proceeds of approximately $407.7 million, after deducting offering costs. The remaining portion of the Second 2024 PIPE Financing covering an aggregate of 751,879 shares of our Class A common stock to be issued and sold to Stellantis for anticipated gross proceeds of approximately $5.0 million is subject to the satisfaction of certain closing conditions, including approval by our stockholders.

In the long term, our ability to support our working capital and capital expenditure requirements will depend on many factors, including:

•the level of research and development expenses we incur as we continue to develop our eVTOL aircraft and other products and services to be provided in our planned business lines;

•capital expenditures needed to bring up our aircraft manufacturing capabilities, including for both the build out of our manufacturing facilities, component purchases necessary to build our aircraft and support the development of our airline operations;

•general and administrative expenses as we scale our operations; and

•sales, marketing and distribution expenses as we build, brand and market our business lines, products and services.

Until such time as we can generate significant revenue from our business operations, we expect to finance our cash needs primarily through existing cash on hand, pre-delivery payments, equity financing and debt financing.

The following includes our short-term and long-term material cash requirements from known contractual obligations as of December 31, 2024:

Notes Payable

See Note 6 - Notes Payable to our consolidated financial statements for further details on our debt.

Leases

We lease office, lab, hangar, and storage facilities in the normal course of business. Under our operating leases as noted in Note 7 - Commitments and Contingencies to our consolidated financial statements, we have current obligations of $6.1 million and long-term obligations of $14.9 million.

Cash Flows

The following table summarizes our cash flows for the periods indicated:

Cash Flows Used in Operating Activities

We continue to experience negative cash flows from operations as we are still working to design, develop, certify, and bring up manufacturing of our eVTOL aircraft and thus have not generated any revenues from any of our planned lines of business. Our cash flows from operating activities are significantly affected by our cash investments to support the growth of our research and development activities related to our eVTOL aircraft, as well as the general and administrative functions necessary to support those activities and operations as a publicly traded company. Our operating cash flows are also impacted by the working capital requirements to support growth and fluctuations in personnel-related expenditures, accounts payable, accrued interest and other current liabilities, and other current assets.

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Net cash used in operating activities during the year ended December 31, 2024 was $368.6 million, resulting from a net loss of $536.8 million, adjusted for non-cash items consisting primarily of $108.8 million in stock-based compensation, a gain of $49.5 million due to a change in fair value of our warrant liabilities, $11.7 million in depreciation, amortization and other, $8.1 million of research and development warrant expenses related to the warrants issued to Stellantis (see Note 9 - Stock-Based Compensation to our consolidated financial statements for further details), and a $5.6 million non-cash charge for the Wisk Warrant. The net cash used in changes in our net operating assets and liabilities was $17.2 million.

Net cash used in operating activities during the year ended December 31, 2023 was $271.6 million, resulting from a net loss of $457.9 million, adjusted for non-cash items consisting primarily of a $70.3 million non-cash charge comprised of a $26.3 million non-cash charge associated with the initial vested tranche of shares underlying the Wisk Warrant and a $44.0 million non-cash charge for the unvested portion of the Wisk Warrant, relating to the Technology and Dispute Resolution Agreements (see Note 7 - Commitments and Contingencies to our consolidated financial statements for further details), $45.2 million in stock-based compensation which includes the reversal of $59.1 million of stock-based compensation expense related to the forfeiture of one of the Founder Grants, a loss of $32.9 million due to a change in fair value of our warrant liabilities, and $17.5 million of research and development warrant expense related to the warrants issued to Stellantis (see Note 9 - Stock-Based Compensation to our consolidated financial statements for further details). The net cash provided by changes in our net operating assets and liabilities of $13.2 million was primarily related to a $9.2 million increase in accounts payable due to timing of payments.

Cash Flows Provided by (Used in) Investing Activities

Net cash used in investing activities during the year ended December 31, 2024 was $82.0 million, driven by purchases of property and equipment within the period.

Net cash provided by investing activities during the year ended December 31, 2023 was $420.7 million, driven by proceeds from maturities of short-term investments of $465.0 million, offset by purchases of property and equipment of $44.3 million within the period.

Cash Flows Provided by Financing Activities

Net cash provided by financing activities during the year ended December 31, 2024 was $820.4 million, driven by gross proceeds from the 2024 PIPE Financings of $590.1 million, proceeds from the total aggregate number of shares issued under the ATM Program of $138.3 million, proceeds from issuance of debt of $57.5 million, and proceeds from issuance of Class A common stock to Stellantis with an aggregate value of $55.0 million, partially offset by payments of offering costs in connection with the 2024 PIPE Financings for $24.3 million.

Net cash provided by financing activities during the year ended December 31, 2023 was $250.1 million, driven by gross proceeds from the subscription agreements with certain investors in August 2023 providing for the private placement of our Class A common stock pursuant to the exemption from registration contained in Section 4(a)(2) of the Securities Act of $145.0 million, proceeds from the issuance of Class A common stock to Stellantis with an aggregate value of $95.0 million, and proceeds from shares issued under the ATM Program of $20.7 million, partially offset by the repayment of term loans to Silicon Valley Bank, a division of First-Citizens Bank & Trust Company, for $10.0 million.

Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates

Our consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States. The preparation of these consolidated financial statements requires us to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets, liabilities, and expenses, and related disclosures. We base our estimates on historical experience and on various other assumptions that we believe are reasonable under the circumstances. We evaluate our estimates and assumptions on an ongoing basis. Actual results may differ from these estimates. To the extent that there are material differences between these estimates and our actual results, our future financial statements will be affected.

The SEC has defined a company’s critical accounting policies as the ones that are most important to the portrayal of the company’s financial condition and results of operations, and which require the company to make its most difficult and subjective judgements, often as a result of the need to make estimates of matters that are inherently uncertain.

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We believe that the following critical accounting policies involve a greater degree of judgment or complexity than our other accounting policies. Accordingly, these are the policies we believe are the most critical to a full understanding and evaluation of our consolidated financial statements. For additional information, refer to Note 3 - Summary of Significant Accounting Policies to our consolidated financial statements.

Stock-Based Compensation

We account for stock-based compensation awards granted to employees and non-employees by recording compensation expense based on each award’s grant date estimated fair value over the vesting period, in accordance with ASC 718, Compensation — Stock Compensation. We estimate the fair value of RSUs based on the fair value of our common stock on the date of grant.

The fair value of RSUs that vest based on service conditions is determined based on the value of the underlying common stock at the date of grant. The Founder Grants vest when either a market condition or performance condition is satisfied. We determined the fair value of the performance award by utilizing the trading price on September 16, 2021. When the applicable performance milestone is deemed probable of being achieved, we will recognize compensation expense for the portion earned to date over the requisite period. For the market condition award, we estimated the fair value using a Monte Carlo simulation model. We recognize compensation expense for the market award on a straight-line basis over the derived service period. Determining the fair value for the market condition award under this model requires subjective assumptions, including the expected volatility of the price of our common stock. If the applicable performance condition is not probable of being achieved, compensation cost for the value of the award incorporating the market condition is recognized, so long as the requisite service is provided. If the performance milestone becomes probable of being achieved, the full fair value of the award will be recognized, and any remaining expense for the market award will be cancelled.

Income Taxes

We are subject to income taxes in the United States and other jurisdictions. Our income tax provision consists of an estimate of federal, state and foreign income taxes based on enacted federal, state and foreign tax rates, as adjusted for allowable credits, deductions, uncertain tax positions, changes in the valuation of our deferred tax assets and liabilities, and changes in tax laws.

We recognize tax benefits from uncertain tax positions only if we believe that it is more-likely-than-not that the tax position will be sustained on examination by the taxing authorities based on the technical merits of the position. Although we believe that we have adequately reserved for our uncertain tax positions, we can provide no assurance that the final tax outcome of these matters will not be materially different. We make adjustments to these reserves when facts and circumstances change, such as the closing of issues under audit or expiration of statute of limitation, changes in or interpretations of tax law. To the extent that the final tax outcome of these matters is different than the amounts recorded, such differences may affect the provision for income taxes in the period in which such determination is made and could have a material impact on our financial condition and results of operations.

Significant judgment is applied when assessing the need for valuation allowances and includes the evaluation of historical income (loss) adjusted for the effects of non-recurring items. Areas of estimation include consideration of future taxable income. We have placed a full valuation allowance against our federal and state deferred tax assets since the recovery of the assets is uncertain. Should a change in circumstances lead to a change in judgment about the utilization of deferred tax assets in future years, the adjustment related to valuation allowances would be reported as an increase to income.

Recent Accounting Pronouncements

See Note 3 - Summary of Significant Accounting Policies to our consolidated financial statements for a discussion about accounting pronouncements recently adopted and recently issued and not yet adopted.

Credit Risk

Financial instruments, which subject us to concentrations of credit risk, consist primarily of cash and cash equivalents. Our cash and cash equivalents are held at several long-standing financial institutions located in the United States. At times, cash account balances with any one financial institution may exceed Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation insurance limits ($250 thousand per depositor per institution). We have not experienced any losses due to these excess deposits and believe this risk is not significant. We have established guidelines regarding diversification of our investments and their maturities that are designed to preserve principal and achieve liquidity requirements. We review these guidelines and modify them as necessary based on updated liquidity needs and changes in our operations and financial position.

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Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations

The following discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations should be read in conjunction with our consolidated financial statements and related accompanying notes included elsewhere in this Annual Report. Refer to Item 7. Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations located in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022, filed on March 15, 2023, for a comparison of our results of operations for the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021. In addition to historical consolidated financial information, the following discussion includes forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are based on our current expectations and beliefs concerning future developments and their potential effects on us. There can be no assurance that future developments affecting us will be those that we have anticipated. See the section titled “Special Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements” in this Annual Report. Our actual results could differ materially from such forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause or contribute to those differences include, but are not limited to, those set forth in Part I, Item 1A, “Risk Factors” in this Annual Report.

Overview

We are designing and developing eVTOL aircraft for use in UAM networks. Our mission is to unlock the skies, freeing everyone to reimagine how they move and spend time. Our eVTOL aircraft are designed to be safe, sustainable, and quiet. Our production aircraft, Midnight, which we unveiled in November of 2022, is designed around our proprietary 12-tilt-6 aircraft configuration. This means that it has 12 propellers attached to 6 booms on a fixed wing with all 12 propellers providing vertical lift during take-off and landing, and the forward 6 propellers tilting forward to cruise position to provide propulsion during forward flight with the wing providing aerodynamic lift like a conventional airplane.

Midnight is designed to carry 4 passengers plus a pilot optimized for back-to-back short distance trips of around 20-miles, with minimal charging time between trips. We are working to certify Midnight with the FAA so that we can then enter into commercial service as soon as possible. In August 2023, we received the Special Airworthiness Certificate from the FAA for our first Midnight aircraft and began its flight testing program in October 2023.

Midnight is the evolution of our demonstrator eVTOL aircraft, Maker, which through its flight test program has helped validate our proprietary 12-tilt-6 aircraft configuration and certain key enabling technologies. The design of Midnight marries what we believe to be cutting-edge electric propulsion technology with state-of-the-art aircraft systems to deliver the key attributes of our eVTOL aircraft:

•Safety. High redundancy and simplified propulsion systems make for a significantly safer aircraft compared to a helicopter. Midnight has no single critical point of failure, meaning that should any single component fail, the aircraft can still safely complete its flight.

•Low noise. With its intended cruising altitude at approximately 2,000 feet, the design of Midnight is such that the noise that reaches the ground is expected to measure around 45 A-weighted decibels, approximately 100 times quieter than that of a helicopter. During forward flight, the aircraft’s tilt propellers spin on axes that are aligned with the oncoming air flow, rather than edge-wise to the flow, as is the case with traditional helicopters - further decreasing noise levels. Since Archer’s aircraft is spinning 12 small propellers rather than one large rotor, it can also spin them at significantly lower tip speeds, resulting in much lower noise levels.

•Sustainable. Midnight is all electric, resulting in zero operating emissions. Archer is committed to sourcing renewable energy wherever possible to power its aircraft. Archer’s design and engineering teams are working to integrate materials into this aircraft that have their own unique sustainability stories.

We continue to work to optimize our eVTOL aircraft design for both manufacturing and certification. The development of an eVTOL aircraft that meets our business requirements demands significant design and development efforts on all facets of the aircraft. We believe that by bringing together a mix of talent with eVTOL, traditional commercial aerospace, as well as electric propulsion backgrounds, we have built a team that enables us to move through the design, development, and certification of our eVTOL aircraft with the FAA in an efficient manner, thus allowing us to achieve our end goal of bringing to market our eVTOL aircraft as efficiently as possible.

Our Planned Lines of Business

Upon receipt of all necessary FAA certifications and any other government approvals necessary for us to manufacture and operate our aircraft, we intend to operate two complementary lines of business: Archer UAM and Archer Direct.

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Archer UAM

We plan to operate our own UAM ecosystem initially in select major cities. Our UAM ecosystem will operate using our eVTOL aircraft, which is currently in development. Consumers will be able to book rides directly through our service through an app-based platform. We project that the cost to manufacture and operate our eVTOL aircraft will be such that it will be able to enter the UAM ride-sharing market at a price point that is competitive with ground-based ride sharing services today. We will continue to evaluate our go-to-market strategy based on, among other things, estimated demand, readiness of the required infrastructure, and our ability to scale of our aircraft fleet.

Archer Direct

We also plan to selectively sell our aircraft to third parties. We have entered into the United Purchase Agreement for the conditional purchase of up to $1.0 billion worth of aircraft, with an option for another $500.0 million worth of aircraft. In August 2023, we entered into two new contracts with the U.S. Air Force, worth up to $142.0 million, which includes the purchase of aircraft, as well as the sharing of additional flight test data certification related reports, pilot training, and the development of maintenance and repair operations.

As we get closer to commercialization, we will look to determine the right mix of selling our aircraft versus using them as part of our UAM ecosystem based on, among other factors, our capital needs, our manufacturing volumes, our ability to ramp Archer UAM operations, and the purchase demand from our Archer Direct customers.

To date, we have not generated revenue from either of these planned categories, as we continue to design, develop, and seek the governmental approvals necessary for our eVTOL aircraft to enter into service. We will use our cash and cash equivalents for the foreseeable future to continue to fund our efforts to bring our eVTOL aircraft to market. The amount and timing of any future capital requirements will depend on many factors, including the pace and results of the design and development of our aircraft and manufacturing operations, as well as our progress in obtaining necessary FAA certifications and other government approvals. For example, any significant delays in obtaining such FAA certifications and other government approvals will likely require us to raise additional capital above our existing cash on hand and delay our generation of revenues.

Components of Results of Operations

Revenue

We are still working to design, develop, certify, and bring up manufacturing of our eVTOL aircraft and thus have not generated any revenues from either of our planned lines of business. We do not expect to begin generating significant revenues until we are able to complete the design, development, certification, and manufacturing bring up of our eVTOL aircraft.

Operating Expenses

Research and Development

Research and development activities represent a significant part of our business. Our research and development efforts focus on the design and development of our eVTOL aircraft, including certain of the systems that are used in it. As part of those activities, we continue to work closely with the FAA towards our goal of achieving certification of our eVTOL aircraft on an efficient timeline. Research and development expenses consist primarily of personnel-related costs (including salaries, bonuses, benefits, and stock-based compensation) for employees focused on research and development activities, costs associated with developing and building prototype aircraft, associated facilities costs, and depreciation. We expect research and development expenses to increase significantly as we progress towards the certification and manufacturing of our eVTOL aircraft.

We cannot determine with certainty the timing, duration or the costs necessary to complete the design, development, certification, and manufacturing bring up of our eVTOL aircraft due to the inherently unpredictable nature of our research and development activities. Development timelines, the probability of success, and development costs may differ materially from expectations.

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General and Administrative

General and administrative expenses consist primarily of personnel-related costs (including salaries, bonuses, benefits, and stock-based compensation) for employees associated with administrative services such as finance, legal, human resources, information technology, associated facilities costs, depreciation, and non-cash technology and dispute resolution agreements expense. We expect our general and administrative expenses to increase as we hire additional personnel and consultants to support our operations and comply with applicable regulations, including the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and other SEC rules and regulations.

Other Warrant Expense

Other warrant expense consists entirely of non-cash expense related to the vesting of warrants issued in conjunction with the execution of the United Purchase Agreement and the Warrant to Purchase Shares Agreement (the “United Warrant Agreement”) with United.

Other (Expense) Income, Net

Other (expense) income, net consists of miscellaneous income and expense items, including the change in fair value of our warrant liabilities.

Interest Income (Expense), Net

Interest income (expense), net primarily consists of interest income from our cash and cash equivalents and short-term investments in marketable securities, net of interest on notes payable.

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Results of Operations

The following table sets forth our consolidated statements of operations for the periods indicated:

NM=Not Meaningful.

(1) Includes stock-based compensation expense as follows:

Comparison of the Year Ended December 31, 2023 and 2022

Research and Development

Research and development expenses increased by $104.9 million, or 61%, for the year ended December 31, 2023, compared to the year ended December 31, 2022, as we invested in people and materials to advance our technology development. The increase was primarily due to an increase of $40.9 million in costs related to professional services and tools and materials to support our increased research and development activities, an increase of $38.1 million in personnel-related expenses due to a significant increase in our workforce from the prior year, and an increase of $14.7 million in warrant expenses related to the warrants issued to Stellantis in connection with the manufacturing and collaboration agreement between us and Stellantis. See Note 10 - Stock-Based Compensation to our consolidated financial statements for further details on our warrants. The remainder of the increase was made up of other incidental items.

General and Administrative

General and administrative expenses increased by $3.3 million, or 2%, for the year ended December 31, 2023, compared to the year ended December 31, 2022. The increase was primarily due to a $70.3 million non-cash charge comprised of a $26.3 million non-cash charge associated with the Initial Vested Share Tranche and a $44.0 million non-cash charge for the unvested portion of the Warrant that is contingent and may never be realized, relating to a series of agreements between us, Boeing and Wisk on August 10, 2023, providing for, among other things, certain investments and warrant issuances, as well as an autonomous flight technology agreement and the resolution of certain federal and state court litigation between the parties (the “Technology and Dispute Resolution Agreements”). The increase was partially offset by a reversal of previously recognized stock-based compensation expense of $59.1 million associated with the forfeiture of the unvested portion of the restricted stock units (“RSUs”) granted to our founders pursuant to the terms and conditions of the Business Combination Agreement immediately prior to closing (the “Founder Grant”) issued to the Company’s co-founder and former co-CEO. See Note 8 - Commitments and Contingencies and Note 10 - Stock-Based Compensation to our consolidated financial statements

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for further details on our commitments and contingencies and stock-based compensation, respectively. The remainder of the offset was made up of other incidental items.

Other Warrant Expense

Other warrant expense decreased by $8.7 million, or 81%, for the year ended December 31, 2023, compared to the year ended December 31, 2022. The decrease was primarily due to the vesting of United warrants associated with specific milestones during the year ended December 31, 2022. The warrants associated with the specific milestones fully vested in the first quarter of 2023. See Note 10 - Stock-Based Compensation to our consolidated financial statements for further details on our warrants.

Other (Expense) Income, Net

Other (expense) income, net decreased by $54.7 million for the year ended December 31, 2023, compared to the year ended December 31, 2022. The decrease was primarily due to changes in fair value of our warrant liabilities. See Note 3 - Summary of Significant Accounting Policies to our consolidated financial statements for further details.

Interest Income (Expense), Net

Interest income (expense), net increased by $14.1 million for the year ended December 31, 2023, compared to the year ended December 31, 2022. The increase was primarily due to interest income from our cash and cash equivalents and short-term investments in marketable securities.

Liquidity and Capital Resources

As of December 31, 2023, our principal sources of liquidity were cash and cash equivalents of $464.6 million. We have incurred net losses since our inception and to date have not generated any revenues. We expect to incur additional losses and higher operating expenses for the foreseeable future. We believe that our existing cash and cash equivalents will be sufficient for at least the next 12 months to meet our requirements and plans for cash, including meeting our working capital requirements and capital expenditure requirements.

On August 10, 2023, we entered into subscription agreements with certain investors providing for the private placement of 26,173,286 shares of our Class A common stock for net proceeds of approximately $139.0 million, after deducting offering costs.

On June 23, 2023, we issued 6,337,039 shares of Class A common stock to Stellantis at a price of $3.94506 per share in connection with the first milestone under the Stellantis Forward Purchase Agreement and received approximately $25.0 million in gross proceeds. On August 10, 2023, Stellantis waived certain conditions provided for in the Stellantis Forward Purchase Agreement relating to our actual achievement pursuant to Milestone 2 (as defined in the Stellantis Forward Purchase Agreement). In connection with this, we submitted an election notice to draw down upon the $70.0 million applicable to Milestone 2, which equals 12,313,234 shares of our Class A common stock. On October 16, 2023, we issued 12,313,234 shares of our Class A common stock to Stellantis, at a price per share of $5.68, for gross proceeds of approximately $70.0 million.

On October 5, 2023, we entered into the Credit Agreement with Synovus Bank, as administrative agent and lender, and the additional lenders (the “Lenders”) from time to time. We may request the Lenders to provide multiple delayed term loan advances (together, the “Loan”) in an aggregate principal amount of up to $65.0 million for the construction and development of our manufacturing facility in Covington, Georgia. The Loan under the Credit Agreement shall accrue interest from and including the date the applicable advance is made but excluding the repayment date at a rate of the secured overnight financing rate (“SOFR”), plus 2.00% subject to a SOFR floor of 0.00%. We are required to make interest-only payments for 36 months on the Loan starting on November 14, 2023, followed by monthly interest and principal payments for the remaining maturity, with any outstanding principal, interest and other then outstanding indebtedness due at maturity. The Credit Agreement matures on the earlier of October 5, 2033 or the date on which the outstanding Loan has been declared or automatically becomes due and payable pursuant to the terms of the Credit Agreement. Our obligations under the Credit Agreement are jointly and severally guaranteed by our current and future wholly-owned domestic subsidiaries, and are secured by cash, general intangibles, instruments, securities, financial assets, security entitlements and other property maintained in a money market account at Synovus Bank.

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In November 2023, we filed a shelf registration statement on Form S-3 (the “Shelf Registration Statement”), which became effective in November 2023. The Shelf Registration Statement permits the offering of up to $70.0 million aggregate dollar amount of shares of our Class A common stock or preferred stock, debt securities, warrants to purchase our Class A common stock, preferred stock or debt securities, subscription rights to purchase our Class A common stock, preferred stock or debt securities and/or units consisting of some or all of these securities, in one or more offerings and in any combination. In connection with the Shelf Registration Statement, we entered into an Open Market Sales AgreementSM (the “Sales Agreement”), with Cantor Fitzgerald & Co., as the sales agent, pursuant to which we may offer and sell shares of our Class A common stock having an aggregate offering amount of up to $70.0 million. The $70.0 million of Class A common stock that may be issued and sold pursuant to the Sales Agreement is included in the $70.0 million of securities that may be issued and sold pursuant to the Shelf Registration Statement. We will pay Cantor Fitzgerald & Co. a commission rate of up to 3.0% of the gross proceeds from the sale of any shares of Class A common stock pursuant to the Sales Agreement. As of December 31, 2023, we had $49.3 million remaining under the Sales Agreement.

In the long term, our ability to support our working capital and capital expenditure requirements will depend on many factors, including:

•the level of research and development expenses we incur as we continue to develop our eVTOL aircraft;

•capital expenditures needed to bring up our aircraft manufacturing capabilities, including for both the build out of our manufacturing facilities and component purchases necessary to build our aircraft;

•general and administrative expenses as we scale our operations; and

•sales, marketing and distribution expenses as we build, brand and market our eVTOL aircraft and UAM network.

Until such time as we can generate significant revenue from our business operations, we expect to finance our cash needs primarily through existing cash on hand, pre-delivery payments, equity financing and debt financing.

The following includes our short-term and long-term material cash requirements from known contractual obligations as of December 31, 2023:

Notes Payable

See Note 7 - Notes Payable to our consolidated financial statements for further details on our debt.

Leases

We lease office, lab, hangar, and storage facilities in the normal course of business. Under our operating leases as noted in Note 8 - Commitments and Contingencies to our consolidated financial statements, we have current obligations of $5.5 million and long-term obligations of $18.5 million.

Cash Flows

The following table summarizes our cash flows for the periods indicated:

Cash Flows Used in Operating Activities

We continue to experience negative cash flows from operations as we are still working to design, develop, certify, and bring up manufacturing of our eVTOL aircraft and thus have not generated any revenues from either of our planned lines of business. Our cash flows from operating activities are significantly affected by our cash investments to support the growth of our research and development activities related to our eVTOL aircraft, as well as the general and administrative functions

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necessary to support those activities and operations as a publicly traded company. Our operating cash flows are also impacted by the working capital requirements to support growth and fluctuations in personnel-related expenditures, accounts payable, accrued interest and other current liabilities, and other current assets.

Net cash used in operating activities during the year ended December 31, 2023 was $271.6 million, resulting from a net loss of $457.9 million, adjusted for non-cash items consisting primarily of a $70.3 million non-cash charge comprised of a $26.3 million non-cash charge associated with the Initial Vested Share Tranche and a $44.0 million non-cash charge for the unvested portion of the Warrant that is contingent and may never be realized, relating to the Technology and Dispute Resolution Agreements, $45.2 million in stock-based compensation which includes the reversal of $59.1 million of stock-based compensation expense related to the forfeiture of one of the Founder Grants, a loss of $32.9 million due to a change in fair value of our warrant liabilities, and $17.5 million of research and development warrant expense related to the warrants issued to Stellantis (see Note 10 - Stock-Based Compensation to our consolidated financial statements). The net cash provided by changes in our net operating assets and liabilities of $13.2 million was primarily related to a $9.2 million increase in accounts payable due to timing of payments.

Net cash used in operating activities during the year ended December 31, 2022 was $200.4 million, resulting from a net loss of $317.3 million, adjusted for non-cash items consisting primarily of $102.8 million in stock-based compensation primarily related to the Founder Grants and $10.8 million in other warrant expense related to the United warrants (see Note 10 - Stock-Based Compensation), partially offset by a gain of $22.9 million primarily due to the change in fair value of our warrant liabilities. The net cash related to changes in our net operating assets and liabilities of $19.2 million was primarily related to a $15.6 million increase in accrued expenses and other current liabilities mainly due to legal fees and expenses and a $10.1 million increase in other long-term liabilities mainly due to the $10.0 million pre-delivery payment from United (see Note 10 - Stock-Based Compensation), partially offset by a $3.4 million increase in operating lease right-of-use assets and lease liabilities, net driven by lease payments and a $2.2 million increase in prepaid expenses primarily due to prepaid research and development-related expenses.

Cash Flows Provided by (Used in) Investing Activities

Net cash provided by investing activities during the year ended December 31, 2023 was $420.7 million, driven by proceeds from maturities of short-term investments of $465.0 million, offset by purchases of property and equipment of $44.3 million within the period.

Net cash used in investing activities during the year ended December 31, 2022 was $464.3 million, driven by purchases of short-term investments of $487.4 million and purchases of property and equipment of $6.9 million, offset by proceeds from maturities of short-term investments of $30.0 million.

Cash Flows Provided by (Used in) Financing Activities

Net cash provided by financing activities during the year ended December 31, 2023 was $250.1 million, driven by gross proceeds from the PIPE financing of $145.0 million, proceeds from the issuance of common stock to Stellantis of $95.0 million, and proceeds from shares issued under an at-the-market offering of $20.7 million, partially offset by the repayment of term loans to Silicon Valley Bank, a division of First-Citizens Bank, for $10.0 million.

Net cash used in financing activities during the year ended December 31, 2022 was $9.9 million, consisting primarily of the repayment of debt for $10.0 million.

Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates

Our consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States. The preparation of these consolidated financial statements requires us to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets, liabilities, and expenses, and related disclosures. We base our estimates on historical experience and on various other assumptions that we believe are reasonable under the circumstances. We evaluate our estimates and assumptions on an ongoing basis. Actual results may differ from these estimates. To the extent that there are material differences between these estimates and our actual results, our future financial statements will be affected.

The SEC has defined a company’s critical accounting policies as the ones that are most important to the portrayal of the company’s financial condition and results of operations, and which require the company to make its most difficult and subjective judgements, often as a result of the need to make estimates of matters that are inherently uncertain.

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We believe that the following critical accounting policies involve a greater degree of judgment or complexity than our other accounting policies. Accordingly, these are the policies we believe are the most critical to a full understanding and evaluation of our consolidated financial statements. For additional information, refer to Note 3 - Summary of Significant Accounting Policies to our consolidated financial statements.

Common Stock Valuation

Prior to the Business Combination, there was no public market for our common stock, and our board of directors determined the fair value of our common stock by taking into account input from management and independent third-party valuation analyses. The determinations of the fair value of our common stock were made using methodologies, approaches, and assumptions consistent with the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants Accounting and Valuation Guide: Valuation of Privately-Held-Company Equity Securities Issued as Compensation. In valuing our common stock, we determined the equity value of our business using a combination of the market and income approach valuation methods. The total enterprise value was then allocated to our various share classes using a hybrid approach consisting of the option pricing model (“OPM”) and probability-weighted expected return method (“PWERM”). The OPM considers preferred stockholders’ liquidation preferences, participation rights, dividend policy, and conversion rights to determine how proceeds from a liquidity event shall be distributed among the various ownership classes at a future date, whereas the PWERM estimates the fair market value of the common stock based on an analysis of future values for various potential liquidity outcomes. Since there was no active market for our common stock, we also applied a discount for lack of marketability for both OPM and PWERM scenarios. Application of these approaches and methods involves the use of estimates, judgments, and assumptions, such as future revenue, expenses and cash flows, selections of comparable companies, probabilities and timing of exit events, and other factors. The fair value of our common stock, utilizing the above methodology prior to the closing of the Business Combination, was used to determine the fair value of the United warrants, and was a key input in the estimation of the fair value of our stock options (as discussed below).

Since the closing of the Business Combination in September 2021, the fair value of our common stock is based on the closing price of our Class A common stock, as quoted on the NYSE, on the date of grant.

Stock-Based Compensation

We account for stock-based compensation awards granted to employees and non-employees by recording compensation expense based on each award’s grant date estimated fair value over the vesting period, in accordance with ASC 718, Compensation — Stock Compensation. We estimate the fair value of RSUs based on the fair value of our common stock on the date of grant. We estimate the fair value of stock options using the Black-Scholes option-pricing model. Determining the fair value of stock options under this model requires highly subjective assumptions, including the fair value of the underlying common stock, risk-free interest rate, expected term of the award, expected volatility of the price of our common stock, and expected dividend yield of our common stock. These estimates involve inherent uncertainties and the application of management’s judgment. If we had made different assumptions, our stock-based compensation expense could have been materially different. We have not issued any stock options since the closing of the Business Combination.

The fair value of RSUs that vest based on service conditions is determined based on the value of the underlying common stock at the date of grant. The Founder Grants vest when either a market condition or performance condition is satisfied. We determined the fair value of the performance award by utilizing the trading price on the Closing Date. When the applicable performance milestone is deemed probable of being achieved, we will recognize compensation expense for the portion earned to date over the requisite period. For the market condition award, we estimated the fair value using a Monte Carlo simulation model. We recognize compensation expense for the market award on a straight-line basis over the derived service period. Determining the fair value for the market condition award under this model requires subjective assumptions, including the expected volatility of the price of our common stock. If the applicable performance condition is not probable of being achieved, compensation cost for the value of the award incorporating the market condition is recognized, so long as the requisite service is provided. If the performance milestone becomes probable of being achieved, the full fair value of the award will be recognized, and any remaining expense for the market award will be cancelled.

Income Taxes

We are subject to income taxes in the United States and other jurisdictions. Our income tax provision consists of an estimate of federal, state and foreign income taxes based on enacted federal, state and foreign tax rates, as adjusted for allowable credits, deductions, uncertain tax positions, changes in the valuation of our deferred tax assets and liabilities, and changes in tax laws.

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We recognize tax benefits from uncertain tax positions only if we believe that it is more-likely-than-not that the tax position will be sustained on examination by the taxing authorities based on the technical merits of the position. Although we believe that we have adequately reserved for our uncertain tax positions, we can provide no assurance that the final tax outcome of these matters will not be materially different. We make adjustments to these reserves when facts and circumstances change, such as the closing of issues under audit or expiration of statute of limitation, changes in or interpretations of tax law. To the extent that the final tax outcome of these matters is different than the amounts recorded, such differences may affect the provision for income taxes in the period in which such determination is made and could have a material impact on our financial condition and results of operations.

Significant judgment is applied when assessing the need for valuation allowances and includes the evaluation of historical income (loss) adjusted for the effects of non-recurring items. Areas of estimation include consideration of future taxable income. We have placed a full valuation allowance against our federal and state deferred tax assets since the recovery of the assets is uncertain. Should a change in circumstances lead to a change in judgment about the utilization of deferred tax assets in future years, the adjustment related to valuation allowances would be reported as an increase to income.

Recent Accounting Pronouncements

See Note 3 - Summary of Significant Accounting Policies to our consolidated financial statements for a discussion about accounting pronouncements recently adopted and recently issued and not yet adopted.

Credit Risk

Financial instruments, which subject us to concentrations of credit risk, consist primarily of cash, cash equivalents, and short-term investments. Our cash and cash equivalents are held at several long-standing financial institutions located in the United States. At times, cash account balances with any one financial institution may exceed Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation insurance limits ($250 thousand per depositor per institution). We have not experienced any losses due to these excess deposits and believe this risk is not significant. Our short-term investments consisted of high quality, investment grade marketable securities and were held at a major financial institution located in the United States. We have established guidelines regarding diversification of our investments and their maturities that are designed to preserve principal and achieve liquidity requirements. We review these guidelines and modify them as necessary based on updated liquidity needs and changes in our operations and financial position.

Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations

The following discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations should be read in conjunction with our consolidated financial statements and related accompanying notes included elsewhere in this Annual Report. In addition to historical consolidated financial information, the following discussion includes forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are based on our current expectations and beliefs concerning future developments and their potential effects on us. There can be no assurance that future developments affecting us will be those that we have anticipated. See the section titled “Special Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements” in this Annual Report. Our actual results could differ materially from such forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause or contribute to those differences include, but are not limited to, those set forth in Part I, Item 1A, “Risk Factors” in this Annual Report.

Overview

We are designing and developing eVTOL aircraft for use in UAM networks. Our mission is to unlock the skies, freeing everyone to reimagine how they move and spend time. Our eVTOL aircraft are designed to be safe, sustainable, and quiet. Our production aircraft, Midnight, which we unveiled in November of 2022, is designed around our proprietary 12-tilt-6 aircraft configuration. This means that it has 12 propellers attached to 6 booms on a fixed wing with all 12 propellers providing vertical lift during take-off and landing and the forward 6 propellers tilting forward to cruise position to provide propulsion during forward flight with the wing providing aerodynamic lift like a conventional airplane.

Midnight is designed to carry 4 passengers plus a pilot up to 100 miles at speeds up to 150 miles per hour, but is optimized for back-to-back short distance trips of around 20-miles, with a charging time of approximately 10 minutes between trips. We are working to certify Midnight with the FAA in late 2024 so that we can then enter into commercial service in 2025.

Midnight is the evolution of our demonstrator eVTOL aircraft, Maker, which through its flight test program has helped validate our proprietary 12-tilt-6 aircraft configuration and certain key enabling technologies. The design of Midnight marries what we believe to be cutting-edge electric propulsion technology with state-of-the-art aircraft systems to deliver the key attributes of our eVTOL aircraft:

•Safety. High redundancy and simplified propulsion systems make for a significantly safer aircraft compared to a helicopter. Midnight has no single critical point of failure, meaning that should any single component fail, the aircraft can still safely complete its flight.

•Low noise. With its intended cruising altitude at approximately 2,000 feet, the design of Midnight is such that the noise that reaches the ground is expected to measure around 45 A-weighted decibels, approximately 100 times quieter than that of a helicopter. During forward flight, the aircraft’s tilt propellers spin on axes that are aligned with the oncoming air flow, rather than edge-wise to the flow, as is the case with traditional helicopters - further decreasing noise levels. Since Archer’s aircraft is spinning 12 small propellers rather than one large rotor, it can also spin them at significantly lower tip speeds, resulting in much lower noise levels.

•Sustainable. Midnight is all electric, resulting in zero operating emissions. Archer is committed to sourcing renewable energy wherever possible to power its aircraft. Archer’s design and engineering teams have worked to integrate materials into this aircraft that have their own unique sustainability stories. For example, Midnight’s seats are constructed out of “flax” fiber, a natural plant which requires very little irrigation and is highly absorbent of CO2. In addition, Archer’s design uses fabric made from recycled contents like plastic bottles.

We continue to work to optimize our eVTOL aircraft design for both manufacturing and certification. The development of an eVTOL aircraft that meets our business requirements demands significant design and development efforts on all facets of the aircraft. We believe that by bringing together a mix of talent with eVTOL, traditional commercial aerospace, as well as electric propulsion backgrounds, we have built a team that enables us to move through the design, development, and certification of our eVTOL aircraft with the FAA in an efficient manner, thus allowing us to achieve our end goal of bringing to market our eVTOL aircraft as efficiently as possible.

Our Planned Lines of Business

Upon receipt of all necessary FAA certifications and any other government approvals necessary for us to manufacture and operate our aircraft, we intend to operate two complementary lines of business. Our core focus is Archer UAM with our secondary focus being Archer Direct.

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Archer UAM

We plan to operate our own UAM ecosystem initially in select major U.S. cities. Our UAM ecosystem will operate using our eVTOL aircraft, which is currently in development. We project that the cost to manufacture and operate our eVTOL aircraft will be such that it will be able to enter the UAM ride-sharing market at a price point that is competitive with ground-based ride sharing services today. We will continue to evaluate our go-to-market strategy based on, among other things, estimated demand, readiness of the required infrastructure, and our ability to scale of our aircraft fleet.

Archer Direct

We also plan to selectively sell a certain amount of our eVTOL aircraft to third parties. We have entered into the United Purchase Agreement for the conditional purchase of up to $1 billion worth of aircraft, with an option for another $500.0 million worth of aircraft.

As we get closer to commercialization, we will look to determine the right mix of selling our eVTOL aircraft versus using them as part of our UAM ecosystem based on, among other factors, our capital needs, our volume of manufacturing, our ability to ramp Archer UAM operations, and the purchase demand from our Archer Direct customers.

To date, we have not generated any revenue from either of these planned categories, as we continue to design, develop, and seek the governmental approvals necessary for our eVTOL aircraft to enter into service. We will use our cash and cash equivalents for the foreseeable future to continue to fund our efforts to bring our eVTOL aircraft to market. The amount and timing of any future capital requirements will depend on many factors, including the pace and results of the design and development of our aircraft and manufacturing operations, as well as our progress in obtaining necessary FAA certifications and other government approvals. For example, any significant delays in obtaining such FAA certifications and other government approvals will likely require us to raise additional capital above our existing cash on hand and delay our generation of revenues.

Business Combination

On September 16, 2021, (the “Closing Date”), Legacy Archer, Atlas, and Merger Sub, consummated the closing of the Business Combination Agreement, following approval at the Special Meeting. Unless otherwise specified or unless the context otherwise requires, references herein to Legacy Archer refer to Archer prior to the Business Combination and references herein to “New Archer” refer to Archer following the Business Combination.

Pursuant to the terms of the Business Combination Agreement, a business combination of Legacy Archer and Atlas was effected by the Merger. Following the consummation of the Merger on the Closing Date, the Surviving Entity changed its name from Archer Aviation Inc. to Archer Aviation Operating Corp., and Atlas changed its name from Atlas Crest Investment Corp. to Archer Aviation Inc. and it became the successor registrant with the SEC. Prior to the closing of the Business Combination, the Class A common stock and public warrants of Atlas were listed on the NYSE under the symbols “ACIC” and “ACIC WS,” respectively. New Archer Class A common stock and public warrants are currently listed on the NYSE under the symbols “ACHR” and “ACHR WS,” respectively.

Components of Results of Operations

Revenue

We are still working to design, develop, certify, and bring up manufacturing of our eVTOL aircraft and thus have not generated any revenues from either of our planned lines of business. We do not expect to begin generating significant revenues until we are able to complete the design, development, certification, and bring up of manufacturing of our eVTOL aircraft.

Operating Expenses

Research and Development

Research and development activities represent a significant part of our business. Our research and development efforts focus on the design and development of our eVTOL aircraft, including certain of the systems that are used in it. As part of those activities, we continue to work closely with the FAA towards our goal of achieving certification of our eVTOL aircraft on an efficient timeline. Research and development expenses consist of personnel-related costs (including salaries, bonuses, benefits, and stock-based compensation) for employees focused on research and development activities, costs associated with building

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prototype aircraft, other related costs, depreciation, and an allocation of general overhead. We expect research and development expenses to increase significantly as we progress towards the certification and manufacturing of our eVTOL aircraft.

We cannot determine with certainty the timing, duration or the costs necessary to complete the design, development, certification, and manufacturing bring up of our eVTOL aircraft due to the inherently unpredictable nature of our research and development activities. Development timelines, the probability of success, and development costs may differ materially from expectations.

General and Administrative

General and administrative expenses consist primarily of personnel-related costs (including salaries, bonuses, benefits, and stock-based compensation) for employees associated with administrative services such as finance, legal, human resources, information technology, other related costs, depreciation, and an allocation of our general overhead. We expect our general and administrative expenses to increase in absolute dollars as a result of operating as a publicly traded company, including expenses to comply with the rules and regulations applicable to publicly traded companies, as well as additional expenses customary for a publicly traded company, such as directors’ and officers’ liability insurance, director fees, and additional internal and external accounting and legal fees and expenses.

At this time, we are unable to estimate the costs of defending the ongoing Wisk litigation or any potential settlement or award of damages related thereto and thus, we have not established any related reserves. For a description of our material pending legal proceedings, see Note 8 - Commitments and Contingencies of the notes to the consolidated financial statements included in Part II, Item 8 of this Annual Report.

Other Warrant Expense

Other warrant expense consists entirely of non-cash expense related to the warrants issued in conjunction with the execution of the United Purchase Agreement and that certain warrant agreement, dated January 29, 2021, between the Company and United (as amended, the “United Warrant Agreement”).

Other Income, Net

Other income, net consists of miscellaneous income and expense items, including the change in fair value of our warrant liabilities.

Interest Income (Expense), Net

Interest income (expense), net primarily consists of interest income from our cash and cash equivalents and short-term investments in marketable securities, net of interest on notes payable.

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Results of Operations

The following table sets forth our consolidated statements of operations for the periods indicated:

(1) Includes stock-based compensation expense as follows:

Comparison of the Year Ended December 31, 2022 and 2021

Research and Development

Research and development expenses increased by $107.2 million, or 167%, for the year ended December 31, 2022, compared to the year ended December 31, 2021, as we invested in people and materials to advance our technology development. The increase was primarily due to an increase of $39.4 million in costs related to professional services and tools and materials to support our increased research and development activities, an increase of $37.8 million in personnel-related expenses due to a significant increase in our workforce from the prior year period, and an increase of $22.4 million in stock-based compensation expense primarily related to new restricted stock units (“RSUs”) granted since the closing of the Business Combination and 2022 quarterly bonus equity awards. See Note 10 - Stock-Based Compensation for further details on our stock-based compensation. The remainder of the increase was made up of other immaterial items.

General and Administrative

General and administrative expenses decreased by $11.6 million, or 7%, for the year ended December 31, 2022, compared to the year ended December 31, 2021. The decrease was primarily due to a decrease of $53.2 million in stock-based compensation expense related to the Founder Grants. The decrease was partially offset by an increase of $14.4 million in personnel-related expenses due to a significant increase in our workforce from the prior year period, as we invested in people and infrastructure to support our growth and maturity as a public company, an increase of $10.0 million in stock-based compensation expense primarily related to new RSUs granted since the closing of the Business Combination and 2022 quarterly bonus equity awards, an increase of $9.9 million in professional service expenses mainly due to legal fees and expenses, and an increase of $6.3 million in general and administrative expenses primarily related to the directors and officers (“D&O”) insurance. See Note 10 - Stock-Based Compensation for further details on our stock-based compensation. The remainder of the decrease was made up of other immaterial items.

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Other Warrant Expense

Other warrant expense decreased by $106.5 million, or 91%, for the year ended December 31, 2022 compared to the year ended December 31, 2021. The decrease was due to the vesting of warrants pursuant to the United Warrant Agreement in association with the achievement of specific milestones. See Note 10 - Stock-Based Compensation for further details.

Gain on Forgiveness of PPP Loan

Gain on Forgiveness of PPP Loan decreased by $0.9 million for the year ended December 31, 2022 compared to the year ended December 31, 2021. The decrease was due to the one-time gain recognized on the extinguishment of a Paycheck Protection Program loan and accrued interest during the year ended December 31, 2021. There was no comparable activity for the year ended December 31, 2022.

Other Income

Other income increased by $17.2 million for the year ended December 31, 2022 compared to the year ended December 31, 2021. The increase was primarily due to the change in fair value of our warrant liabilities. See Note 3 - Summary of Significant Accounting Policies for further details. In addition, there was a $4.9 million accretion and amortization income related to our short-term investments recognized during the year ended December 31, 2022.

Interest Income (Expense), Net

Interest income (expense), net increased by $3.3 million for the year ended December 31, 2022 compared to the year ended December 31, 2021, primarily due to interest income from our cash and cash equivalents and short-term investments, net of interest expense recognized for the Silicon Valley Bank term loans, which we entered into in July 2021.

Liquidity and Capital Resources

As of December 31, 2022, our principal sources of liquidity were cash and cash equivalents of $69.4 million and short-term investments in marketable securities of $461.8 million. We have incurred net losses since our inception and to date have not generated any revenues. We expect to incur additional losses and higher operating expenses for the foreseeable future. We believe that our existing cash and cash equivalents will be sufficient for at least the next 12 months to meet our requirements and plans for cash, including meeting our working capital requirements and capital expenditure requirements.

In the long term, our ability to support our working capital and capital expenditure requirements will depend on many factors, including:

•the level of research and development expenses we incur as we continue to develop our eVTOL aircraft;

•capital expenditures needed to bring up our aircraft manufacturing capabilities, including for both the build out of our manufacturing facilities and component purchases necessary to build our aircraft;

•general and administrative expenses as we scale our operations; and

•sales, marketing and distribution expenses as we build, brand and market our eVTOL aircraft and UAM network.

Until such time as we can generate significant revenue from our business operations, we expect to finance our cash needs primarily through existing cash on hand, pre-delivery payments, equity financing and debt financing.

The following includes our short-term and long-term material cash requirements from known contractual obligations as of December 31, 2022:

Note Payable

We have short-term debt obligations of $10.0 million due within the next 12 months. See Note 7 - Notes Payable to the consolidated financial statements for further detail on our debt.

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Leases

We lease office, lab, hangar, and storage facilities in the normal course of business. Under our operating leases as noted in Note 8 - Commitments and Contingencies to the consolidated financial statements, we have current obligations of $4.9 million due within the next 12 months and long-term obligations of $23.5 million.

Cash Flows

The following table summarizes our cash flows for the periods indicated:

Cash Flows Used in Operating Activities

We continue to experience negative cash flows from operations as we are still working to design, develop, certify, and bring up manufacturing of our eVTOL aircraft and thus have not generated any revenues from either of our planned lines of business. Our cash flows from operating activities are significantly affected by our cash investments to support the growth of our research and development activities related to our eVTOL aircraft, as well as the general and administrative functions necessary to support those activities and operations as a publicly traded company. Our operating cash flows are also impacted by the working capital requirements to support growth and fluctuations in personnel-related expenditures, accounts payable, accrued interest and other current liabilities, and other current assets.

Net cash used in operating activities during the year ended December 31, 2022 was $200.4 million, resulting from a net loss of $317.3 million, adjusted for non-cash items consisting primarily of $102.8 million in stock-based compensation primarily related to the Founder Grants and $10.8 million in other warrant expense related to the United warrants (see Note 10 - Stock-Based Compensation), partially offset by a gain of $22.9 million primarily due to the change in fair value of our warrant liabilities. The net cash related to changes in our net operating assets and liabilities of $19.2 million was primarily related to a $15.6 million increase in accrued expenses and other current liabilities mainly due to legal fees and expenses and a $10.1 million increase in other long-term liabilities mainly due to the $10.0 million pre-delivery payment from United (see Note 10 - Stock-Based Compensation), partially offset by a $3.4 million increase in operating lease right-of-use assets and lease liabilities, net driven by lease payments and a $2.2 million increase in prepaid expenses primarily due to prepaid research and development-related expenses.

Net cash used in operating activities during the year ended December 31, 2021was $108.4 million, resulting from a net loss of $347.8 million, adjusted for non-cash items consisting primarily of $123.6 million in stock-based compensation primarily related to the Founder Grants and $117.3 million in other warrant expense related to the United warrants. The net cash related to changes in our net operating assets and liabilities of $0.4 million was primarily related to an increase in accrued professional fees and other miscellaneous expenses offset by an increase in prepaid expenses related to the ramp up in our research and development activities and expenses related to becoming a publicly traded company.

Cash Flows Used in Investing Activities

Net cash used in investing activities during the year ended December 31, 2022 was $464.3 million, driven by purchases of short-term investments of $487.4 million and purchases of property and equipment of $6.9 million, offset by proceeds from maturities of short-term investments of $30.0 million.

Net cash used in investing activities during the year ended December 31, 2021 was $3.5 million, driven by purchases of property and equipment.

Cash Flows (Used in) Provided by Financing Activities

Net cash used in financing activities during the year ended December 31, 2022 was $9.9 million, consisting of the repayment of debt for $10.0 million, offset by $0.1 million proceeds from the exercise of stock options.

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Net cash provided by financing activities during the year ended December 31, 2021was $822.2 million, consisting primarily of $600.0 million in proceeds from the PIPE Financing, $201.8 million net proceeds from the Business Combination, and $20.0 million in proceeds from the issuance of debt.

Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates

Our consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America. The preparation of these consolidated financial statements requires us to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets, liabilities, and expenses, and related disclosures. We base our estimates on historical experience and on various other assumptions that we believe are reasonable under the circumstances. We evaluate our estimates and assumptions on an ongoing basis. Actual results may differ from these estimates. To the extent that there are material differences between these estimates and our actual results, our future financial statements will be affected.

The SEC has defined a company’s critical accounting policies as the ones that are most important to the portrayal of the company’s financial condition and results of operations, and which require the company to make its most difficult and subjective judgements, often as a result of the need to make estimates of matters that are inherently uncertain.

We believe that the following critical accounting policies involve a greater degree of judgment or complexity than our other accounting policies. Accordingly, these are the policies we believe are the most critical to a full understanding and evaluation of our consolidated financial statements. For additional information, refer to Note 3 - Summary of Significant Accounting Policies in the accompanying notes to the consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in this Annual Report.

Common Stock Valuation

Prior to the Business Combination, there was no public market for our common stock, and our board of directors determined the fair value of our common stock by taking into account input from management and independent third-party valuation analyses. The determinations of the fair value of our common stock were made using methodologies, approaches, and assumptions consistent with the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants Accounting and Valuation Guide: Valuation of Privately-Held-Company Equity Securities Issued as Compensation. In valuing our common stock, we determined the equity value of our business using a combination of the market and income approach valuation methods. The total enterprise value was then allocated to our various share classes using a hybrid approach consisting of the option pricing model (“OPM”) and probability-weighted expected return method (“PWERM”). The OPM considers preferred stockholders’ liquidation preferences, participation rights, dividend policy, and conversion rights to determine how proceeds from a liquidity event shall be distributed among the various ownership classes at a future date, whereas the PWERM estimates the fair market value of the common stock based on an analysis of future values for various potential liquidity outcomes. Since there was no active market for our common stock, we also applied a discount for lack of marketability for both OPM and PWERM scenarios. Application of these approaches and methods involves the use of estimates, judgments, and assumptions, such as future revenue, expenses and cash flows, selections of comparable companies, probabilities and timing of exit events, and other factors. The fair value of our common stock, utilizing the above methodology prior to the closing of the Business Combination, was used to determine the fair value of the United warrants, and was a key input in the estimation of the fair value of our stock options (as discussed below).

Since the closing of the Business Combination in September 2021, the fair value of our common stock is based on the closing price of our Class A common stock, as quoted on the NYSE, on the date of grant.

Stock-Based Compensation

We account for stock-based compensation awards granted to employees and non-employees by recording compensation expense based on each award’s grant date estimated fair value over the vesting period, in accordance with ASC 718, Compensation — Stock Compensation. We estimate the fair value of RSUs based on the fair value of our common stock on the date of grant. We estimate the fair value of stock options using the Black-Scholes option-pricing model. Determining the fair value of stock options under this model requires highly subjective assumptions, including the fair value of the underlying common stock, the risk-free interest rate, the expected term of the award, the expected volatility of the price of our common stock, and the expected dividend yield of our common stock. These estimates involve inherent uncertainties and the application of management’s judgment. If we had made different assumptions, our stock-based compensation expense could have been materially different. We have not issued any stock options since the closing of the Business Combination.

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The fair value of RSUs that vest based on service conditions is determined based on the value of the underlying common stock at the date of grant. The Founder Grants vest when either a market condition or performance condition is satisfied. We determined the fair value of the performance award by utilizing the trading price on the Closing Date. When the applicable performance milestone is deemed probable of being achieved, we will recognize compensation expense for the portion earned to date over the requisite period. For the market condition award, we estimated the fair value using a Monte Carlo simulation model. We recognize compensation expense for the market award on a straight-line basis over the derived service period. Determining the fair value for the market condition award under this model requires subjective assumptions, including the expected volatility of the price of our common stock. If the applicable performance condition is not probable of being achieved, compensation cost for the value of the award incorporating the market condition is recognized, so long as the requisite service is provided. If the performance milestone becomes probable of being achieved, the full fair value of the award will be recognized, and any remaining expense for the market award will be cancelled.

Income Taxes

We are subject to income taxes in the United States. Our income tax provision consists of an estimate of federal and state income taxes based on enacted federal and state tax rates, as adjusted for allowable credits, deductions, uncertain tax positions, changes in the valuation of our deferred tax assets and liabilities, and changes in tax laws.

We recognize tax benefits from uncertain tax positions only if we believe that it is more-likely-than-not that the tax position will be sustained on examination by the taxing authorities based on the technical merits of the position. Although we believe that we have adequately reserved for our uncertain tax positions, we can provide no assurance that the final tax outcome of these matters will not be materially different. We make adjustments to these reserves when facts and circumstances change, such as the closing of issues under audit or expiration of statute of limitation, changes in or interpretations of tax law. To the extent that the final tax outcome of these matters is different than the amounts recorded, such differences may affect the provision for income taxes in the period in which such determination is made and could have a material impact on our financial condition and results of operations.

Significant judgment is applied when assessing the need for valuation allowances and includes the evaluation of historical income (loss) adjusted for the effects of non-recurring items. Areas of estimation include consideration of future taxable income. We have placed a full valuation allowance against its federal and state deferred tax assets since the recovery of the assets is uncertain. Should a change in circumstances lead to a change in judgment about the utilization of deferred tax assets in future years, the adjustment related to valuation allowances would be reported as an increase to income.

Recent Accounting Pronouncements

See Note 3 - Summary of Significant Accounting Policies to the consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in this Annual Report for a discussion about accounting pronouncements recently adopted and recently issued and not yet adopted.

Credit Risk

Financial instruments, which subjects us to concentrations of credit risk, consist primarily of cash, cash equivalents, and short-term investments. Our cash and cash equivalents are held at major financial institutions located in the United States of America. At times, cash account balances with any one financial institution may exceed Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation insurance limits ($250 thousand per depositor per institution). Management believes the financial institutions that hold our cash and cash equivalents are financially sound and, accordingly, minimal credit risk exists with respect to cash and cash equivalents. Our short-term investments consist of high quality, investment grade marketable securities and are held at a major financial institution located in the United States. We have established guidelines regarding diversification of our investments and their maturities that are designed to preserve principal and achieve liquidity requirements. We review these guidelines and modify them as necessary based on updated liquidity needs and changes in our operations and financial position.

Emerging Growth Company and Smaller Reporting Company Status

Section 107(b) of the JOBS Act provides that an emerging growth company can take advantage of an extended transition period for complying with new or revised accounting standards. Thus, an emerging growth company can delay the adoption of certain accounting standards until those standards would otherwise apply to private companies. Atlas initially elected, and now we have elected, to take advantage of the extended transition period to comply with new or revised accounting standards and to adopt certain of the reduced disclosure requirements available to emerging growth companies. As a result of the accounting standards election, we are not subject to the same implementation timeline for new or revised accounting standards as other public companies that are not emerging growth companies which may make comparison of our financials to those of other public companies more difficult.

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We have also elected to take advantage of some of the reduced regulatory and reporting requirements of emerging growth companies pursuant to the JOBS Act so long as we qualify as an emerging growth company, including, but not limited to, not being required to comply with the auditor attestation requirements of Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and exemptions from the requirements of holding non-binding advisory votes on executive compensation and golden parachute payments.

Additionally, we are a “smaller reporting company” as defined in Item 10(f)(1) of Regulation S-K. Smaller reporting companies may take advantage of certain reduced disclosure obligations, including, among other things, providing only two years of audited financial statements. We will remain a smaller reporting company until the last day of the fiscal year in which (1) the market value of our shares of common stock held by non-affiliates equals or exceeds $250 million as of the end of that year’s second fiscal quarter, and (2) our annual revenues equaled or exceeded $100 million during such completed fiscal year or the market value of our shares of common stock held by non-affiliates equals or exceeds $700 million as of the end of that year’s second fiscal quarter.

Item 7. Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations

The following discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations should be read in conjunction with our consolidated financial statements and related accompanying notes included elsewhere in this Annual Report. In addition to historical consolidated financial information, the following discussion includes forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are based on our current expectations and beliefs concerning future developments and their potential effects on us. There can be no assurance that future developments affecting us will be those that we have anticipated. See the section titled “Special Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements” in this Annual Report. Our actual results could differ materially from such forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause or contribute to those differences include, but are not limited to, those set forth in Part I, Item 1A, “Risk Factors” in this Annual Report.

Overview

Our mission is to advance the benefits of sustainable air mobility. Our goal is to move people throughout the world’s cities in a quick, safe, sustainable, and cost-effective manner. To accomplish this goal, we are designing and developing an eVTOL aircraft for use in future UAM networks.

Our eVTOL aircraft will be fully electric and will emit zero emissions during operations. The goal of our eVTOL aircraft design is to maximize safety while minimizing operating costs and noise. We look to accomplish that goal through the use of a distributed electric propulsion system with inherent redundancy and far fewer parts than a typical internal combustion propulsion system found in similarly sized aircraft or rotorcraft today. The reduced number of parts not only translates into fewer critical parts on the aircraft from a safety perspective, but will also significantly reduce the maintenance requirements versus internal combustion propulsion systems found in similarly sized aircraft and rotorcraft today.

We have optimized our eVTOL aircraft design for both manufacturing and certification by using advancements in key enabling technologies such as high-energy batteries, high-performance electric motors, an advanced fly-by-wire flight control system, and a lightweight and efficient aircraft structure.

The development of an eVTOL aircraft that meets our business requirements demands significant design and development efforts on all facets of the aircraft. We believe that by bringing together a mix of talent with both eVTOL and traditional commercial aerospace backgrounds we are building a team that will allow us to move through the design, development, and certification of our eVTOL aircraft with the FAA in an efficient manner, thus allowing us to achieve our end goal of bringing to market our eVTOL aircraft.

Our Planned Lines of Business

Upon receipt of all necessary FAA certifications and any other government approvals necessary for us to manufacture and operate our aircraft, we intend to operate two complementary lines of business. Our core focus is Archer UAM with our secondary focus being Archer Direct.

Archer UAM

We plan to operate our own UAM ecosystem initially in select major U.S. cities, such as Los Angeles and Miami. Our UAM ecosystem will operate using our eVTOL aircraft, which is currently in development. We project that the cost to manufacture and operate our eVTOL aircraft will be such that it will be able to enter the UAM ride-sharing market at a price point that is competitive with ground-based ride sharing services today. We will continue to evaluate our go-to-market strategy based on, among other things, estimated demand, readiness of the required infrastructure, and the scale of our UAM aircraft fleet.

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Archer Direct

We also plan to selectively sell a certain amount of our eVTOL aircraft to third parties. We have entered into a Purchase Agreement with United for the conditional purchase of up to $1 billion worth of aircraft, with an option for another $500.0 million worth of aircraft. We will look to determine the right mix of selling our eVTOL aircraft versus using them as part of our UAM ecosystem based on, among other factors, our capital needs, our volume of manufacturing, our ability to ramp Archer UAM operations, and the purchase demand from our Archer Direct customers.

To date, we have not generated any revenue from either of these planned categories, as we continue to design, develop, and seek the governmental approvals necessary to operate our eVTOL aircraft and Archer UAM. We will use the net proceeds from the Business Combination for the foreseeable future to continue to fund our efforts to bring our eVTOL aircraft to market. The amount and timing of any future capital requirements will depend on many factors, including the pace and results of the design and development of our aircraft and manufacturing operations, as well as our progress in obtaining necessary FAA certifications and other government approvals. For example, any significant delays in obtaining such FAA certifications and other government approvals will likely require us to raise additional capital above our existing cash on hand and delay our generation of revenues.

Business Combination

On the Closing Date, Legacy Archer, Atlas, and Merger Sub, consummated the closing of the Business Combination Agreement, following approval at the Special Meeting. Unless otherwise specified or unless the context otherwise requires, references herein to Legacy Archer refer to Archer prior to the Business Combination and references herein to “New Archer” refer to Archer following the Business Combination.

Pursuant to the terms of the Business Combination Agreement, a business combination of Legacy Archer and Atlas was effected by the Merger. Following the consummation of the Merger on the Closing Date, the Surviving Entity changed its name from Archer Aviation Inc. to Archer Aviation Operating Corp., and Atlas changed its name from Atlas Crest Investment Corp. to Archer Aviation Inc. and it became the successor registrant with the SEC. Prior to the closing of the Business Combination, the Class A common stock and public warrants of Atlas were listed on the NYSE under the symbols “ACIC” and “ACIC WS,” respectively. New Archer Class A common stock and public warrants are currently listed on the NYSE under the symbols “ACHR” and “ACHR WS,” respectively.

Additionally, in connection with the PIPE Financing, certain investors had agreed to subscribe for and purchase an aggregate of up to $600.0 million of Class A common stock of the combined company. The PIPE Financing was consummated substantially concurrent with the closing of the Merger.

The Business Combination generated gross cash proceeds of $857.6 million, including $600.0 million proceeds from the PIPE Financing. Total direct and incremental transaction costs aggregated $81.8 million, of which $10.9 million were expensed as part of the Business Combination, $55.8 million were recorded to APIC as equity issuance costs, and the remaining $15.1 million was settled through the issuance of shares of New Archer Class A common stock.

The Merger was accounted for as a reverse recapitalization in accordance with U.S. GAAP. Under this method of accounting, Atlas was treated as the “acquired” company for financial reporting purposes. Accordingly, the financial statements of Archer represent the continuation of the financial statements of Legacy Archer, with the Merger reflected as the equivalent of Archer issuing common stock for the net assets of Atlas, accompanied by a recapitalization. The net assets of Atlas were recognized as of the Closing at historical cost, with no goodwill or other intangible assets recorded. Operations prior to the Merger are those of Legacy Archer and Legacy Archer’s operations are the only ongoing operations of Archer.

Impact of COVID-19

In March 2020, the World Health Organization declared the outbreak of COVID-19 a global pandemic. The rapid spread of COVID-19 caused volatility and disruption in financial markets and prompted governments and businesses to take unprecedented measures such as travel restrictions, quarantines, shelter-in-place orders, and business shutdowns. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic continues to evolve due to, among other reasons, the emergence of additional variants or strains of COVID-19. As such, the full magnitude of the pandemic’s effect on our financial condition, liquidity, and future results of operations is uncertain. Management continues to actively monitor our financial condition, liquidity, operations, suppliers, industry, and workforce, but currently does not anticipate any material impairments as a result of COVID-19 and will continue to evaluate the impact of COVID-19 on an ongoing basis. See Part I, Item 1A, “Risk Factors” in this Annual Report for more information.

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Components of Results of Operations

Revenue

We are still working to design, develop, certify, and bring up manufacturing of our eVTOL aircraft and thus have not generated any revenues from either of our planned lines of business. We do not expect to begin generating significant revenues until we are able to complete the design, development, certification, and bring up of manufacturing of our eVTOL aircraft.

Operating Expenses

Research and Development

Research and development activities represent a significant part of our business. Our research and development efforts focus on the design and development of our eVTOL aircraft, including certain of the systems that are used in it. As part of those activities, we continue to work closely with the FAA towards our goal of achieving certification of our eVTOL aircraft on an efficient timeline. Research and development expenses consist of personnel-related costs (including salaries, bonuses, benefits, and stock-based compensation) for employees focused on research and development activities, costs associated with building prototype aircraft, other related costs, depreciation, and an allocation of general overhead. We expect research and development expenses to increase significantly as we progress towards the certification and manufacturing of our eVTOL aircraft.

We cannot determine with certainty the timing, duration or the costs necessary to complete the design, development, certification, and manufacturing bring up of our eVTOL aircraft due to the inherently unpredictable nature of our research and development activities. Development timelines, the probability of success, and development costs may differ materially from expectations.

General and Administrative

General and administrative expenses consist primarily of personnel-related costs (including salaries, bonuses, benefits, and stock-based compensation) for employees associated with administrative services such as finance, legal, human resources, information technology, other related costs, depreciation, and an allocation of our general overhead. We expect our general and administrative expenses to increase in absolute dollars as a result of operating as a publicly traded company, including expenses to comply with the rules and regulations applicable to publicly traded companies, as well as additional expenses customary for a publicly traded company, such as directors’ and officers’ liability insurance, director fees, and additional internal and external accounting and legal fees and expenses.

At this time, we are unable to estimate the costs of defending the ongoing Wisk litigation or any potential settlement or award of damages related thereto and thus, we have not established any related reserves. For a description of our material pending legal proceedings, see Note 9 - Commitments and Contingencies of the notes to the consolidated financial statements included in Part II, Item 8 of this Annual Report.

Other Warrant Expense

Other warrant expense consists entirely of non-cash expense related to the vesting of warrants issued in conjunction with the execution of the Purchase Agreement and Warrant Agreement with United (the “United Warrant Agreement”).

Other Income (Expense)

Other income (expense) consists of miscellaneous income and expense items, including the change in fair value of our warrant liabilities. Interest expense primarily consists of interest on notes payable net of interest income from money market accounts.

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Results of Operations

The following table sets forth our consolidated statements of operations for the periods indicated:

(1) Includes stock-based compensation expense as follows:

Comparison of the Year Ended December 31, 2021 and 2020

Research and Development

Research and development expenses increased by $43.2 million for the year ended December 31, 2021, compared to the year ended December 31, 2020. The increase was primarily due to an increase of $25.8 million in personnel-related expenses due to significantly increasing our workforce during 2021. Warrant expense increased $7.0 million due to a manufacturing consulting agreement we entered into in July 2021 with FCA Italy S.p.A. In addition, there was an increase of $6.7 million pertaining to tools and materials to support our increased research and development activities.

General and Administrative

General and administrative expenses increased by $173.2 million for the year ended December 31, 2021, compared to the year ended December 31, 2020. This increase was primarily due to an increase of $118.1 million in stock compensation expense related to the vesting of a certain portion of restricted stock units granted to our founders immediately prior to closing of the Business Combination pursuant to the terms and conditions of the Business Combination Agreement (the “Founder Grants”). Legal fees and expenses and professional service expenses increased $33.4 million due to the Business Combination and company readiness for going public, as well as legal fees and expenses related to the Wisk litigation. Personnel-related expenses increased $14.3 million due to significantly increasing our workforce during 2021. In addition, there was an increase of $5.9 million pertaining primarily to marketing costs related to the Maker unveiling event.

Other Warrant Expense

Other warrant expense increased by $117.3 million for the year ended December 31, 2021 compared to the year ended December 31, 2020. The increase was due to $78.2 million and $39.1 million of non-cash expense recognized in the first and third quarter of 2021, respectively, related to the vesting of warrants associated with the execution of the Purchase Agreement and United Warrant Agreements, in satisfaction of specific milestones.

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Gain on Forgiveness of PPP Loan

In June 2021, we received notification that our Paycheck Protection Program Loan (“PPP Loan”) and accrued interest were forgiven in full, resulting in a $0.9 million gain on extinguishment of the loan and interest for the year ended December 31, 2021, compared to the year ended December 31, 2020.

Other Income

Other income increased by $10.6 million for the year ended December 31, 2021 compared to the year ended December 31, 2020. The increase was primarily due to a gain of $10.4 million recorded from a change in fair value of our warrant liabilities (see Note 3 - Summary of Significant Accounting Policies).

Interest Expense

Interest expense increased by $0.8 million for the year ended December 31, 2021 compared to the year ended December 31, 2020, primarily related to interest expense recognized for the Silicon Valley Bank term loans, which we entered into in July 2021.

Liquidity and Capital Resources

As of December 31, 2021, our principal sources of liquidity were cash and cash equivalents of $746.9 million. We have incurred net losses since our inception and to date have not generated any revenues. We expect to incur additional losses and higher operating expenses for the foreseeable future. We believe that our existing cash and cash equivalents will be sufficient for at least the next 12 months to meet our requirements and plans for cash, including meeting our working capital requirements and capital expenditure requirements.

In the long term, our ability to support our working capital and capital expenditure requirements will depend on many factors, including:

•the level of research and development expenses we incur as we continue to develop our eVTOL aircraft;

•capital expenditures needed to bring up our aircraft manufacturing capabilities, including for both the build out of our manufacturing facilities and component purchases necessary to build our aircraft;

•general and administrative expenses as we scale our operations and;

•sales, marketing and distribution expenses as we build, brand and market our eVTOL aircraft and UAM network.

The following includes our short-term and long-term material cash requirements from known contractual obligations as of December 31, 2021:

Note Payable

We have short-term and long-term debt obligations of $10.0 million each. See Note 8 - Notes Payable to the consolidated financial statements for further detail on our debt.

Leases

The Company leases office, lab, hangar, and storage facilities in the normal course of business. Under our operating leases as noted in Note 9 - Commitments and Contingencies to the consolidated financial statements, we have current obligations of $4.3 million and long-term obligations of $12.0 million, which include our obligations under the new sublease we entered into on January 14, 2022.

Until such time as we can generate significant revenue from our business operations, we expect to finance our cash needs primarily through existing cash on hand.

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Cash Flows

The following table summarizes our cash flows for the periods indicated:

Cash Flows Used in Operating Activities

We continue to experience negative cash flows from operations as we are still working to design, develop, certify, and bring up manufacturing of our eVTOL aircraft and thus have not generated any revenues from either of our planned lines of business. Our cash flows from operating activities are significantly affected by our cash investments to support the growth of our research and development activities related to our eVTOL aircraft, as well as the general and administrative functions necessary to support those activities and operations as a publicly traded company. Our operating cash flows are also impacted by the working capital requirements to support growth and fluctuations in personnel-related expenditures, accounts payable, accrued interest and other current liabilities, and other current assets.

Net cash used in operating activities during the year ended December 31, 2021 was $108.4 million, resulting from a net loss of $347.8 million, adjusted for non-cash items consisting primarily of $117.3 million in other warrant expense related to the vesting of United warrants and $123.6 million in stock-based compensation primarily related to expense recognized for the Founder Grants. The net cash provided by changes in our net operating assets and liabilities of $0.4 million was primarily related to an increase in accrued professional fees and other miscellaneous expenses offset by an increase in prepaid expenses related to the ramp up in our research and development activities and expenses related to becoming a publicly traded company.

Net cash used in operating activities during the year ended December 31, 2020 was $22.8 million, resulting from a net loss of $24.8 million, adjusted for non-cash items consisting of primarily $0.3 million in non-cash interest primarily related to our convertible notes. The net cash provided by changes in our net operating assets and liabilities of $1.3 million was primarily related to a $1.6 million increase in accounts payable. The increase is related to parts and materials and outside contractors from the ramp up in our research and development activities.

Cash Flows Used in Investing Activities

Net cash used in investing activities during the year ended December 31, 2021 was $3.5 million, driven by purchases of property and equipment.

Net cash used in investing activities during the year ended December 31, 2020 was $1.9 million, driven by purchases of property and equipment and domain names.

Cash Flows Provided by Financing Activities

Net cash provided by financing activities during the year ended December 31, 2021 was $822.2 million, consisting primarily of $20.0 million in proceeds from the issuance of debt, $600.0 million in proceeds from the PIPE Financing, and $201.8 million net proceeds from the Business Combination.

Net cash provided by financing activities during the year ended December 31, 2020 was $51.2 million, consisting primarily of proceeds received from the issuance of preferred stock, net of issuance costs.

Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates

Our consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America. The preparation of these consolidated financial statements requires us to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets, liabilities, and expenses, and related disclosures. We base our estimates on historical experience and on various other assumptions that we believe are reasonable under the circumstances. We evaluate our estimates and assumptions on an ongoing basis. Actual results may differ from these

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estimates. To the extent that there are material differences between these estimates and our actual results, our future financial statements will be affected.

The SEC has defined a company’s critical accounting policies as the ones that are most important to the portrayal of the company’s financial condition and results of operations, and which require the company to make its most difficult and subjective judgements, often as a result of the need to make estimates of matters that are inherently uncertain.

We believe that the following critical accounting policies involve a greater degree of judgment or complexity than our other accounting policies. Accordingly, these are the policies we believe are the most critical to a full understanding and evaluation of our consolidated financial statements. For additional information, refer to Note 3 - Summary of Significant Accounting Policies in the accompanying notes to the consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in this Annual Report.

Common Stock Valuation

Prior to the Business Combination, there was no public market for our common stock, and our board of directors determined the fair value of our common stock by taking into account input from management and independent third-party valuation analyses. The determinations of the fair value of our common stock were made using methodologies, approaches, and assumptions consistent with the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants Accounting and Valuation Guide: Valuation of Privately-Held-Company Equity Securities Issued as Compensation. In valuing our common stock, we determined the equity value of our business using a combination of the market and income approach valuation methods. The total enterprise value was then allocated to our various share classes using a hybrid approach consisting of the option pricing model (“OPM”) and probability-weighted expected return method (“PWERM”). The OPM considers preferred stockholders’ liquidation preferences, participation rights, dividend policy, and conversion rights to determine how proceeds from a liquidity event shall be distributed among the various ownership classes at a future date, whereas the PWERM estimates the fair market value of the common stock based on an analysis of future values for various potential liquidity outcomes. Since there was no active market for our common stock, we also applied a discount for lack of marketability for both OPM and PWERM scenarios. Application of these approaches and methods involves the use of estimates, judgments, and assumptions, such as future revenue, expenses and cash flows, selections of comparable companies, probabilities and timing of exit events, and other factors. The fair value of our common stock, utilizing the above methodology prior to the closing of the Business Combination, was used to determine the fair value of the United warrants, and was a key input in in the estimation of the fair value of our stock options (as discussed below).

Since the closing of the Business Combination in September 2021, the fair value of our common stock is based on the closing price of our Class A common stock, as quoted on the NYSE, on the date of grant.

Stock-Based Compensation

We account for stock-based compensation awards granted to employees and non-employees by recording compensation expense based on each award’s grant date estimated fair value over the vesting period, in accordance with ASC 718, Compensation — Stock Compensation. We estimate the fair value of restricted stock units (“RSUs”) based on the fair value of our common stock on the date of grant. We estimate the fair value of stock options using the Black-Scholes option-pricing model. Determining the fair value of stock options under this model requires highly subjective assumptions, including the fair value of the underlying common stock, the risk-free interest rate, the expected term of the award, the expected volatility of the price of our common stock, and the expected dividend yield of our common stock. These estimates involve inherent uncertainties and the application of management’s judgment. If we had made different assumptions, our stock-based compensation expense could have been materially different. We have not issued any stock options since the closing of the Business Combination.

The fair value of RSUs that vest based on service conditions is determined based on the value of the underlying common stock at the date of grant. The Founder Grants vest when either a market condition or performance condition is satisfied. We determined the fair value of the performance award by utilizing the trading price on the Closing Date. When the applicable performance milestone is deemed probable of being achieved, we will recognize compensation expense for the portion earned to date over the requisite period. For the market condition award, we estimated the fair value using a Monte Carlo simulation model. The Company recognizes compensation expense for the market award on a straight-line basis over the derived service period. Determining the fair value for the market condition award under this model requires subjective assumptions, including the expected volatility of the price of our common stock. If the applicable performance condition is not probable of being achieved, compensation cost for the value of the award incorporating the market condition is recognized, so long as the

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requisite service is provided. If the performance milestone becomes probable of being achieved, the full fair value of the award will be recognized, and any remaining expense for the market award will be cancelled.

Income Taxes

We are subject to income taxes in the United States. Our income tax provision consists of an estimate of federal and state income taxes based on enacted federal and state tax rates, as adjusted for allowable credits, deductions, uncertain tax positions, changes in the valuation of our deferred tax assets and liabilities, and changes in tax laws.

We recognize tax benefits from uncertain tax positions only if we believe that it is more-likely-than-not that the tax position will be sustained on examination by the taxing authorities based on the technical merits of the position. Although we believe that we have adequately reserved for our uncertain tax positions, we can provide no assurance that the final tax outcome of these matters will not be materially different. We make adjustments to these reserves when facts and circumstances change, such as the closing of issues under audit or expiration of statute of limitation, changes in or interpretations of tax law. To the extent that the final tax outcome of these matters is different than the amounts recorded, such differences may affect the provision for income taxes in the period in which such determination is made and could have a material impact on our financial condition and results of operations.

Significant judgment is applied when assessing the need for valuation allowances and includes the evaluation of historical income (loss) adjusted for the effects of non-recurring items. Areas of estimation include consideration of future taxable income. We have placed a full valuation allowance against its federal and state deferred tax assets since the recovery of the assets is uncertain. Should a change in circumstances lead to a change in judgment about the utilization of deferred tax assets in future years, the adjustment related to valuation allowances would be reported as an increase to income.

Recent Accounting Pronouncements

See Note 3 - Summary of Significant Accounting Policies to the consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in this Annual Report for a discussion about accounting pronouncements recently adopted and recently issued and not yet adopted.

Credit Risk

Financial instruments, which subjects us to concentrations of credit risk, consist primarily of cash, cash equivalents, and deposits. Our cash and cash equivalents are held at major financial institutions located in the United States of America. At times, cash account balances with any one financial institution may exceed Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation insurance limits ($250 thousand per depositor per institution). Management believes the financial institutions that hold our cash and cash equivalents are financially sound and, accordingly, minimal credit risk exists with respect to cash and cash equivalents.

Emerging Growth Company and Smaller Reporting Company Status

Section 107(b) of the JOBS Act provides that an emerging growth company can take advantage of an extended transition period for complying with new or revised accounting standards. Thus, an emerging growth company can delay the adoption of certain accounting standards until those standards would otherwise apply to private companies. Atlas initially elected, and now we have elected, to take advantage of the extended transition period to comply with new or revised accounting standards and to adopt certain of the reduced disclosure requirements available to emerging growth companies. As a result of the accounting standards election, we are not subject to the same implementation timeline for new or revised accounting standards as other public companies that are not emerging growth companies which may make comparison of our financials to those of other public companies more difficult.

We have also elected to take advantage of some of the reduced regulatory and reporting requirements of emerging growth companies pursuant to the JOBS Act so long as we qualify as an emerging growth company, including, but not limited to, not being required to comply with the auditor attestation requirements of Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and exemptions from the requirements of holding non-binding advisory votes on executive compensation and golden parachute payments.

Additionally, we are a “smaller reporting company” as defined in Item 10(f)(1) of Regulation S-K. Smaller reporting companies may take advantage of certain reduced disclosure obligations, including, among other things, providing only two years of audited financial statements. We will remain a smaller reporting company until the last day of the fiscal year in which (1) the market value of our shares of common stock held by non-affiliates equals or exceeds $250 million as of the end of that year’s second fiscal quarter, and (2) our annual revenues equaled or exceeded $100 million during such completed fiscal year or the market value of our shares of common stock held by non-affiliates equals or exceeds $700 million as of the end of that year’s second fiscal quarter.

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