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NETSOL Technologies Reports Fiscal Third Quarter 2022 Financial Results

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2 years ago

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Total net revenues up 7.4% to $14.8 million in Q3 FY 2022

Annual recurring revenue (SaaS and Support) increased to a $26.2 million run rate

CALABASAS, Calif., May 12, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — NETSOL Technologies, Inc. (Nasdaq: NTWK), a global business services and enterprise application solutions provider, reported results for the fiscal third quarter ended March 31, 2022.

Fiscal Third Quarter 2022 and Recent Operational Highlights

  • Subscription (SaaS and Cloud) and support quarterly revenues increased 16% to $6.6 million.
  • NETSOL’s U.S. based mobility startup Otoz expanded its digital automotive retail platform MINI Anywhere® for BMW® Group Financial Services in the U.S. for its key brand MINI®. MINI Anywhere is now live with 17 MINI dealerships, including 70%+ of the California MINI dealerships and 75% of all Pennsylvania dealerships. The Company now has dealerships enrolled in California, Florida, Texas, New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. Long term, the solution has the potential to be rolled out to over 100 MINI dealerships across all 50 states.
  • Successfully completed key activities related to GAC China contract with deliveries expected in May and July 2022.
  • Completed required workshops for Ascent 2.0 implementation for Motorcycle Group US with development of enhancements underway for three major modules: POS, CTA, and CMS.

Fiscal Third Quarter 2022 Financial Results

Total net revenues for the third quarter of fiscal 2022 were $14.8 million, compared with $13.8 million in the prior year period. The increase in total net revenues was primarily driven by increases in subscription and support revenues of $0.9 million and services revenue of $0.6 million, slightly offset by a decrease in license fees of $0.5 million.

  • Total license fees were $1.6 million, compared with $2.1 million in the prior year period.
  • Total subscription (SaaS and Cloud) and support revenues were $6.6 million, compared with $5.7 million in the prior year period.
  • Total services revenues were $6.6 million, compared with $6.0 million in the prior year period.

Gross profit for the third quarter of fiscal 2022 was $5.8 million (or 39% of net revenues), compared to $6.4 million (or 47% of net revenues) in the third quarter of fiscal 2021. The decrease in gross profit was primarily due to an increase in cost of sales of $1.6 million driven by increases in salaries and consulting costs of $1.4 million.

Operating expenses for the third quarter of fiscal 2022 were $6.4 million (or 43% of sales), compared to $6.0 million (or 43% of sales) for the third quarter of fiscal 2021. The increase in operating expenses was primarily due to increases in selling and marketing expenses, offset by a decrease in general and administrative expenses.

GAAP net loss attributable to NETSOL for the third quarter of fiscal 2022 totaled $0.3 million or $0.02 per diluted share, compared with GAAP net loss of $0.6 million or $0.05 per diluted share in the third quarter of fiscal 2021.

Non-GAAP adjusted EBITDA for the third quarter of fiscal 2022 totaled $0.4 million or $0.03 per diluted share, compared with non-GAAP adjusted EBITDA of $0.2 or $0.02 per diluted share in the third quarter of fiscal 2021 (see note regarding “Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures,” below for further discussion of this non-GAAP measure).

At March 31, 2022, cash and cash equivalents were $30.6 million, a decrease from $33.7 million at June 30, 2021.

Management Commentary

“We remain on-track to deliver on our fiscal 2022 guidance,” said NETSOL Co-Founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Najeeb Ghauri. “We previously forecasted 10% top-line growth and 20% growth in our recurring revenues. I am pleased to report that for the nine months ended March 31, 2022, our team has delivered top-line growth of 10.5% and increased our annual recurring revenues by nearly 34%. Our pipeline and mix of opportunities remain robust, particularly in our European and North American growth markets, giving us confidence in our ability to drive additional contract signings over the coming months. Additionally, we are now seeing accelerated adoption of our Otoz Digital Retail Platform, one of our more venture-focused operations, as it continues to expand through its MINI Anywhere partnership. We were just entering our second state at the end of the last quarter, and now we are serving customers in six states with the platform. Our vision of pushing the boundaries for new ownership and payment models is quickly becoming a reality as we continue to support our customers where they are today and where they want to go in the future, building value for our shareholders in the process.”

Company CFO Roger Almond added: “Our subscription and support segment were a key growth driver during the quarter. As our workforce continues to return across our global footprint, we expect growth will accelerate in the quarters ahead, which will require a related increase in expenses to support our increased business activity moving forward. Our cash position remains near record levels, providing the resources to support our core business growth as well as strategic investments in high-return, long-term opportunities, such as the promising work of the Otoz Innovation Lab. With these factors in consideration, we are reiterating our full year revenue outlook of 10% topline growth and 20% subscription revenue growth throughout the balance of the year.”

Conference Call

NETSOL Technologies management will hold a conference call today (May 12, 2022) at 9:00 a.m. Eastern time (6:00 a.m. Pacific time) to discuss these financial results. A question-and-answer session will follow management’s presentation.

U.S. Dial-In: 877-407-0789
International Dial-In: 201-689-8562

Please call the conference telephone number 10 minutes prior to the start time. An operator will register your name and organization.

The conference call will be webcast live and available for replay here and via the Investor Relations section of NETSOL’s website.

For interested individuals unable to join the conference call, a dial-in replay of the call will be available until May 26, 2022 and can be accessed by dialing +1-844-512-2921 (U.S. Toll Free) or +1-412-317-6671 (International) and entering replay pin number: 13729917.

About NETSOL Technologies

NETSOL Technologies, Inc. (Nasdaq: NTWK) is a worldwide provider of IT and enterprise software solutions primarily serving the global leasing and finance industry. The Company’s suite of applications is backed by 40 years of domain expertise and supported by a committed team of more than 1300 professionals placed in eight strategically located support and delivery centers throughout the world. NFS, LeasePak, LeaseSoft or NFS Ascent® – help companies transform their Finance and Leasing operations, providing a fully automated asset-based finance solution covering the complete finance and leasing lifecycle.

About Otoz

Otoz, a division of NETSOL Technologies Inc. (Nasdaq: NTWK), provides business-to-business, white-label technology solutions for new mobility. The Otoz suite of agile and customizable mobility solutions ranges from car sharing and subscription products to AI-enabled chatbots, allowing businesses to engage consumers and facilitate the complete transaction lifecycle intelligently and digitally. Otoz technologies empower automotive companies and start-ups to launch digital retailing and new mobility models quickly and efficiently. The technology Otoz has developed is cloud-native and supported by artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML), internet of things (IoT) and blockchain. Otoz technology drives utilization, while supporting robust and efficient operations.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release may contain forward-looking statements relating to the development of the Company’s products and services and future operating results, including statements regarding the Company that are subject to certain risks and uncertainties such as the effect of disparate stay at home orders and social distancing requirements imposed internationally by COVID-19 and its resultant impact on our financials and the world economy that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected. The words “expects,” “anticipates,” variations of such words, and similar expressions, identify forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, but their absence does not mean that the statement is not forward-looking. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to certain risks, uncertainties, and assumptions that are difficult to predict. Factors that could affect the Company’s actual results include the progress and costs of the development of products and services and the timing of the market acceptance, as well as the delay in recovery or a prolonged economic downturn that effects our Company, our customers and the world economy. The subject Companies expressly disclaim any obligation or undertaking to update or revise any forward-looking statement contained herein to reflect any change in the company’s expectations with regard thereto or any change in events, conditions or circumstances upon which any statement is based.

Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures

The reconciliation of Adjusted EBITDA to net income, the most comparable financial measure based upon GAAP, as well as a further explanation of adjusted EBITDA, is included in the financial tables in Schedule 4 of this press release.

Investor Relations Contact:

Dave Gentry
RedChip Companies
407-491-4498
[email protected]

NETSOL Technologies, Inc. and Subsidiaries
Schedule 1: Consolidated Balance Sheets

      As of   As of
  ASSETS
 March 31, 2022   June 30, 2021
Current assets:      
  Cash and cash equivalents $ 30,573,312     $ 33,705,154  
  Accounts receivable, net of allowance of $208,547 and $166,231   7,054,468       4,184,096  
  Accounts receivable – related party, net of allowance of $1,373,099 and $1,373,099   –       –  
  Revenues in excess of billings, net of allowance of $84,209 and $136,976   14,610,725       14,680,131  
  Revenues in excess of billings – related party, net of allowance of $8,163 and $8,163   –       –  
  Other current assets, net of allowance of $1,243,633 and $1,243,633   2,864,742       3,009,393  
    Total current assets   55,103,247       55,578,774  
Revenues in excess of billings, net – long term   993,862       957,603  
Convertible note receivable – related party, net of allowance of $4,250,000 and $4,250,000   –       –  
Property and equipment, net   10,114,458       12,091,812  
Right of use of assets – operating leases   1,238,713       1,345,869  
Long term investment   2,893,700       3,155,852  
Other assets   37,583       55,127  
Intangible assets, net   2,178,128       3,904,656  
Goodwill     9,516,568       9,516,568  
    Total assets $ 82,076,259     $ 86,606,261  
                   
  LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY      
Current liabilities:
              
  Accounts payable and accrued expenses $ 6,317,127     $ 6,696,035  
  Current portion of loans and obligations under finance leases   9,622,669       11,366,171  
  Current portion of operating lease obligations   706,684       857,729  
  Unearned revenue   6,948,669       4,556,626  
    Total current liabilities   23,595,149       23,476,561  
Loans and obligations under finance leases; less current maturities   127,899       699,841  
Operating lease obligations; less current maturities   570,871       564,257  
    Total liabilities   24,293,919       24,740,659  
Commitments and contingencies
              
Stockholders’ equity:      
  Preferred stock, $.01 par value; 500,000 shares authorized;   –       –  
  Common stock, $.01 par value; 14,500,000 shares authorized;              
    12,191,570 shares issued and 11,252,539 outstanding as of March 31, 2022 and              
    12,181,585 shares issued and 11,265,064 outstanding as of June 30, 2021   121,916       121,816  
  Additional paid-in-capital   129,084,786       129,018,826  
  Treasury stock (at cost, 939,031 shares and 916,521 shares              
  as of March 31, 2022 and June 30, 2021, respectively)   (3,920,856 )     (3,820,750 )
  Accumulated deficit   (37,484,998 )     (38,801,282 )
  Other comprehensive loss   (36,740,406 )     (31,868,481 )
    Total NetSol stockholders’ equity   51,060,442       54,650,129  
  Non-controlling interest   6,721,898       7,215,473  
    Total stockholders’ equity   57,782,340       61,865,602  
    Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity $ 82,076,259     $ 86,606,261  
                   

NETSOL Technologies, Inc. and Subsidiaries
Schedule 2: Consolidated Statement of Operations

      For the Three Months   For the Nine Months
      Ended March 31,   Ended March 31,
       2022     2021     2022     2021 
Net Revenues:              
  License fees $ 1,620,827     $ 2,120,963     $ 3,586,874     $ 4,710,942  
  Subscription and support   6,554,540       5,674,776       22,159,798       16,571,441  
  Services   6,634,459       5,988,257       17,956,877       18,270,451  
    Total net revenues   14,809,826       13,783,996       43,703,549       39,552,834  
                   
Cost of revenues:              
  Salaries and consultants   6,756,898       5,372,302       18,081,225       15,193,613  
  Travel   256,730       151,075       753,698       414,001  
  Depreciation and amortization   741,587       759,768       2,236,190       2,180,766  
  Other   1,220,041       1,075,403       3,712,256       2,915,122  
    Total cost of revenues   8,975,256       7,358,548       24,783,369       20,703,502  
                   
Gross profit   5,834,570       6,425,448       18,920,180       18,849,332  
                   
Operating expenses:              
  Selling and marketing   2,074,873       1,595,967       5,502,028       4,763,598  
  Depreciation and amortization   206,346       272,075       633,481       715,437  
  General and administrative   3,841,655       3,860,509       11,548,097       11,353,933  
  Research and development cost   251,001       234,678       761,621       431,086  
    Total operating expenses   6,373,875       5,963,229       18,445,227       17,264,054  
                   
Income (loss) from operations   (539,305 )     462,219       474,953       1,585,278  
                   
Other income and (expenses)              
  Gain (loss) on sale of assets   8,770       (53,012 )     (181,955 )     (127,285 )
  Interest expense   (85,916 )     (98,656 )     (277,737 )     (296,224 )
  Interest income   364,161       231,979       1,123,547       643,654  
  Gain (loss) on foreign currency exchange transactions   499,516       (1,825,349 )     2,684,680       (1,515,327 )
  Share of net loss from equity investment   (76,798 )     (80,953 )     (317,581 )     (232,488 )
  Other income   (30,296 )     521,758       (7,599 )     654,395  
    Total other income (expenses)   679,437       (1,304,233 )     3,023,355       (873,275 )
                   
Net income (loss) before income taxes   140,132       (842,014 )     3,498,308       712,003  
Income tax provision   (157,604 )     (133,156 )     (526,737 )     (642,884 )
Net income (loss)   (17,472 )     (975,170 )     2,971,571       69,119  
  Non-controlling interest   (260,998 )     351,939       (1,655,287 )     (216,900 )
Net income (loss) attributable to NetSol $ (278,470 )   $ (623,231 )   $ 1,316,284     $ (147,781 )
                   
                   
                   
Net income (loss) per share:              
  Net income (loss) per common share              
    Basic $ (0.02 )   $ (0.05 )   $ 0.12     $ (0.01 )
    Diluted $ (0.02 )   $ (0.05 )   $ 0.12     $ (0.01 )
                   
Weighted average number of shares outstanding              
    Basic   11,249,606       11,343,406       11,249,449       11,571,878  
    Diluted   11,249,606       11,343,406       11,249,449       11,571,878  
                                   


NETSOL Technologies, Inc. and Subsidiaries
Schedule 3: Consolidated Statement of Cash Flows

        For the Nine Months
        Ended March 31,
         2022     2021 
Cash flows from operating activities:      
  Net income $ 2,971,571     $ 69,119  
  Adjustments to reconcile net income to net cash      
    provided by (used in) operating activities:      
  Depreciation and amortization   2,869,671       2,896,203  
  Provision for bad debts   6,897       (280,363 )
  Share of net loss from investment under equity method   317,581       232,488  
  Loss on sale of assets   181,955       127,285  
  Stock based compensation   78,225       239,333  
  Changes in operating assets and liabilities:      
    Accounts receivable   (3,404,247 )     (777,953 )
    Revenues in excess of billing   (385,971 )     7,485,646  
    Other current assets   53,173       (791,849 )
    Accounts payable and accrued expenses   14,918       (69,021 )
    Unearned revenue   2,822,178       1,256,456  
  Net cash provided by operating activities   5,525,951       10,387,344  
             
Cash flows from investing activities:      
  Purchases of property and equipment   (1,680,856 )     (2,109,058 )
  Sales of property and equipment   321,251       131,293  
  Investment in associates   –       (155,500 )
  Net cash used in investing activities   (1,359,605 )     (2,133,265 )
             
Cash flows from financing activities:      
  Purchase of treasury stock   (100,106 )     (2,064,800 )
  Proceeds from bank loans   312,467       2,109,572  
  Payments on finance lease obligations and loans – net   (1,045,464 )     (533,344 )
  Net cash used in financing activities   (833,103 )     (488,572 )
Effect of exchange rate changes   (6,465,085 )     2,666,800  
Net increase (decrease) in cash and cash equivalents   (3,131,842 )     10,432,307  
Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of the period   33,705,154       20,166,830  
Cash and cash equivalents at end of period $ 30,573,312     $ 30,599,137  
               

NETSOL Technologies, Inc. and Subsidiaries
Schedule 4: Reconciliation to GAAP

  For the Three
Months Ended		   For the Three
Months Ended		   For the Nine
Months Ended		   For the Nine
Months Ended
  March 31, 2022   March 31, 2021   March 31, 2022   March 31, 2021
               
Net Income (loss) attributable to NetSol $ (278,470 )   $ (623,231 )   $ 1,316,284     $ (147,781 )
Non-controlling interest   260,998       (351,939 )     1,655,287       216,900  
Income taxes   157,604       133,156       526,737       642,884  
Depreciation and amortization   947,933       1,031,843       2,869,671       2,896,203  
Interest expense   85,916       98,656       277,737       296,224  
Interest (income)   (364,161 )     (231,979 )     (1,123,547 )     (643,654 )
EBITDA $ 809,820     $ 56,506     $ 5,522,169     $ 3,260,776  
Add back:              
Non-cash stock-based compensation   49,933       74,169       78,225       239,333  
Adjusted EBITDA, gross $ 859,753     $ 130,675     $ 5,600,394     $ 3,500,109  
Less non-controlling interest (a)   (500,805 )     66,659       (2,382,721 )     (1,074,038 )
Adjusted EBITDA, net $ 358,948     $ 197,334     $ 3,217,673     $ 2,426,071  
               
               
Weighted Average number of shares outstanding                              
Basic   11,249,606       11,343,406       11,249,449       11,571,878  
Diluted   11,249,606       11,343,406       11,249,449       11,571,878  
                               
Basic adjusted EBITDA $ 0.03     $ 0.02     $ 0.29     $ 0.21  
Diluted adjusted EBITDA $ 0.03     $ 0.02     $ 0.29     $ 0.21  
                               
                               
(a)The reconciliation of adjusted EBITDA of non-controlling interest                              
to net income attributable to non-controlling interest is as follows                              
                               
Net Income (loss) attributable to non-controlling interest $ 260,998     $ (351,939 )   $ 1,655,287     $ 216,900  
Income Taxes   45,427       34,867       159,854       127,749  
Depreciation and amortization   279,055       283,716       840,508       812,816  
Interest expense   25,764       29,585       81,846       89,929  
Interest (income)   (117,417 )     (71,440 )     (362,146 )     (204,604 )
EBITDA $ 493,827     $ (75,211 )   $ 2,375,349     $ 1,042,790  
Add back:                              
Non-cash stock-based compensation   6,978       8,552       7,372       31,248  
Adjusted EBITDA of non-controlling interest $ 500,805     $ (66,659 )   $ 2,382,721     $ 1,074,038  

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Artificial Intelligence

Forum Systems Releases GenAI Productivity-Risk Framework and two Fine-tuned Models for Enterprise Customers

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35 mins ago

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May 13, 2024

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Announcing a framework to balance productivity and risk for enterprise deployments of GenAI models and releasing two fine-tuned models—Mistral QS-Sentry and Llama 3 QS-Sentry—with optimized productivity-risk profiles
Gartner Data & Analytics Summit 2024, LONDON, May 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — Forum Systems, a leader in LLM and API technologies, today announced the public release of two language models fine-tuned to optimize their productivity-risk profile from the Gartner® Data & Analytics Summit 2024. The research is discussed at length in two recent articles, Framework for LLM Selection by Balancing Model Risk with Workforce Productivity and Improving Productivity-Risk Profile through LLM Fine-tuning. This groundbreaking work presents a framework for balancing productivity and risk in GenAI deployments, an urgent question among business leaders today.

“LLMs security has its tradeoffs. More restrictive models will be safer but may hamper productivity. If enterprises aren’t measuring the productivity-risk balance of their models, they are in the dark about whether they’ve achieved an optimal tradeoff,” remarked Mamoon Yunus, CEO of Forum Systems. He continued, “classic machine learning metrics like precision and recall can serve as proxies for productivity and risk. Fine-tuning on extensive manual multi-vote labeled data, our LLMs show superior performance compared to base models.” 
The fine-tuned models—Mistral QS-Sentry and Llama 3 QS-Sentry—are based on Mistral-7B-Instruct-v0.2 and Meta-Llama-3-8B-Instruct.
In the first article, Forum Systems developed a framework for balancing risk and productivity and assessed the productivity-risk profile of Mistral and Llama 3 before fine-tuning. It found that, when asked to classify prompts as either safe or unsafe, Mistral was more precise and thus aligned with higher productivity, while Llama 3 was more restrictive and thus aligned with lower risk.
The second article analyzed the models after they were fine-tuned on a hand-curated dataset of about 20,000 prompts. The study showed that the productivity-risk profile of both models can see meaningful improvements after fine-tuning. Forum Systems has released both fine-tuned models on Hugging Face to contribute to the broader community of researchers and those working in AI governance and AI alignment, believing its framework for analyzing the trade-offs between productivity will also prove valuable to business leaders deploying safe and effective GenAI offerings.
As Gartner analyst Arun Chandrasekaran recently stated, “Generative AI (GenAI) has the potential to transform businesses across industries. Most business and technology leaders believe that the benefits of GenAI far outweigh its risks.” He recommends, “Put responsible AI at the heart of your generative efforts. Promote harmonious interaction among humans and machines with design thinking and by incorporating human feedback into GenAI applications.” Forum Systems agrees with Chandrasekaran’s analysis and recommendation. Its work in optimizing productivity-risk profiles of small models demonstrates that enterprise-class responsible AI deployments are within reach through fine-tuning.
Source: Gartner, 10 Best Practices for Scaling Generative AI Across the Enterprise, Arun Chandrasekaran, Leinar Ramos, Alberto Pietrobon, 10 January 2024.
GARTNER is a registered trademark and service mark of Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates in the U.S. and internationally and is used herein with permission. All rights reserved.
About the Gartner Data & Analytics Summit 2024 Gartner analysts will provide additional analysis on data and analytics trends at the Gartner Data & Analytics Summits, taking place March 11-13 in Orlando, FL., March 26-27 in São Paulo, April 24-25 in Mumbai, May 13-15 in London May 21-23 in Tokyo, and July 29-30 in Sydney. Follow news and updates from the conferences on X using #GartnerDA.
About Forum SystemsForum Systems is leading the Enterprise GenAI revolution. Forum’s patent-pending QuantumSim™, together with Forum Sentry, mitigate the unpredictable nature of LLMs through integration with corporate APIs, ensuring LLM output is truthful and accurate. QuantumSim™ is secure by design and ships with industry-leading guardrails, moderation, data obfuscation, and observability for LLM-enabled offerings. Used by some of the largest global companies for building intelligent business workflows, Forum’s suite of products provides unique solutions that allow enterprises to reinvent themselves with GenAI.
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Artificial Intelligence

LG CEO EMBARKS ON STRATEGIC U.S. VISIT TO ENHANCE AI INITIATIVES

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May 13, 2024

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AI as Key Driver for Future Growth and Customer Experience Innovation
SEOUL, South Korea, May 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — LG Electronics’ (LG) CEO, William Cho, has embarked on a strategic business trip to the tech-rich western United States, a hotspot for global tech titans and dynamic AI dialogues. Throughout his week-long visit, Cho will focus on key tasks such as attracting top-tier AI talent, communicating the company’s vision and strategy to global investors and attending the influential MS CEO Summit. These endeavors are integral to LG’s comprehensive strategy to accelerate the incorporation of AI into all its business sectors.

AI as a Crucial Catalyst for Future Growth and Customer Experience Innovation
Throughout his trip, Cho aims to secure top-notch expertise in the AI field, an area that has recently surfaced as a critical turning point in the industry. He plans to leverage this as a springboard for transforming LG’s future business portfolio and revolutionizing the customer experience.
Annually, LG introduces approximately 100 million products to the market. Given a product lifespan of seven years, it’s estimated that nearly 700 million LG products are currently in use worldwide. Furthermore, the usage data gained from customers interacting with these devices exceeds 700 billion hours. Cho anticipates this enormous pool of usage data will help accelerate LG’s AI progression and the 700 million products will function not just as customer touchpoints but also as service platforms.
“AI, Cloud, and Big Data are new opportunities for LG”
Cho commenced his itinerary by hosting a tech conference in North America on the 11th in Cupertino, California. This program is aimed at drawing in top-notch talent from abroad. Key participants included LG’s AI Lab management team and executives from LG’s various businesses including Park Hyoung-sei, president of the LG Home Entertainment Company; Eun Seok-hyun, president of LG Vehicle component Solutions Company; Dr. Kim Byoung-hoon, CTO and executive vice president; Kim Weon-bum, CHO and executive vice president; and Dr. Sokwoo Rhee, head of LG’s North America Innovation Center.
LG extended invitations to about 50 AI experts currently working in large tech firms and startups in the Bay Area, as well as doctoral researchers from renowned universities in North America. The conference focused on discussions about the company’s vision, R&D strategy and the future trajectory of AI technology development.
Cho expressed, “In the face of transformative shifts such as electrification, servitization and digitalization sweeping across diverse industries, the application of AI, cloud and big data is paving the way for novel approaches and opportunities.” He further elaborated, “These emerging opportunities represent a new potential frontier for us, given our extensive accumulation of core technologies and expertise.”
He also provided detailed insights into LG’s AI vision of ‘Affectionate Intelligence’, which was unveiled earlier this year at CES 2024. Cho emphasized that “AI should fundamentally be used to care for and empathize with customers, provide tangible benefits and improve the customer experience,” a sentiment that deeply resonated with the attendees.
Following this, he announced, “LG is transcending its status from a global leader in the home appliance and consumer electronics to transform into a ‘Smart Life Solution Company’ that expands and interconnects various customer spaces and experiences.” He added, “I envision us collaborating to reinvent dreams as we undertake bold ventures, fueled by optimism for a brighter future and a better life.”
At the event, CTO Kim Byung-hoon spoke on the subjects of ‘Paradigm Shift’ and ‘LG’s Innovation Roadmap for the Future’, and vice president Han Eun-jung of AI Lab discussed ‘Daily Life with AI’. Professors from the University of Southern California and New York University were also invited to present on generative AI and robotics technology. A panel discussion on the theme of ‘Evolution of AI’ also attracted significant interest from the attendees.
Transition from a Leading Home Appliance Brand to a Smart Life Solution Company
Cho’s second agenda includes hosting a non-deal roadshow (NDR) on May 13, where he will interact with key executives from globally influential investment firms based in San Francisco. His strategy aims to depict LG’s transformation to a comprehensive ‘Smart Life Solution Company’. This transition is anchored in broadening the company’s business portfolio, which includes accelerating B2B business in areas such as EV components, HVAC, built-in appliances’ and signage solutions. The expansion of platform-based services like webOS, and venturing into new areas for LG such as robotics and EV charging, are also integral to this transformation plan.
In particular, Cho plans to highlight how LG is proactively engaging in the development and application of AI in its business operations. He aims to stress that creating tangible customer touchpoints is more crucial than merely having superior AI to provide authentic value and experience to customers.
In this regard, LG’s customer touchpoints, secured through its 700 million devices spanning diverse spaces from homes to vehicles and commercial areas, present a significant advantage that is unmatched by other global companies. LG’s goal is to realize Affectionate Intelligence in our daily lives by leveraging extensive real-time life data and expertise orchestrating devices and services to accelerate AI development using its devices as platforms.
Securing Global AI Allies and Discovering New Business Opportunities at the MS CEO Summit
Cho is also scheduled to attend the MS CEO Summit, a private, invitation-only event taking place in Seattle, where Microsoft’s headquarters is located, for three days starting from May 14. This summit serves as a platform for CEOs and representatives of globally leading companies to discuss and exchange ideas on various topics, including the economic and business environment, as well as industry trends.
LG is diligently working to establish world-class AI capabilities, guided by a ‘3B strategy’ that focuses on Building internal capabilities or Borrowing and Buying external resources. Given LG’s extensive global customer touchpoints and its possession of a vast amount of multi-faceted data and customer insights, the opportunities for future collaborations with globally influential tech companies are expected to become increasingly diverse.
About LG Electronics, Inc.
LG Electronics is a global innovator in technology and consumer electronics with a presence in almost every country and an international workforce of more than 74,000. LG’s four companies – Home Appliance & Air Solution, Home Entertainment, Vehicle component Solutions and Business Solutions – combined for global revenue of over KRW 84 trillion in 2023. LG is a leading manufacturer of consumer and commercial products ranging from TVs, home appliances, air solutions, monitors, automotive components and solutions, and its premium LG SIGNATURE and intelligent LG ThinQ brands are familiar names world over. Visit www.LGnewsroom.com for the latest news.
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Elevate Your Virtual Reality Experience with KIWI design RGB Vertical Stand, Now Available on Meta’s Website

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May 11, 2024

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LOS ANGELES, May 11, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — Top-tier VR accessories provider KIWI design has launched its latest product, the RGB Vertical Stand. This Meta-authorized accessory, designed to deepen users’ immersion in the metaverse, is now available on the official Meta website.

“KIWI design’s commitment to pushing the boundaries of virtual reality accessories takes another leap forward with the introduction of our new products,” said Ray,the CEO of KIWI design. “We are always dedicated to bringing innovative upgrades to VR device accessories, with the goal of enriching users’ virtual reality experiences.”
The newly launched RGB Vertical Stand features a user-friendly modular design with push-in assembly, making it easy to set up and use. It is compatible with Meta Quest 3, Quest 2, and Quest Pro, ensuring widespread usability. With a magnetic USB Type-C connector, it provides an effortless way to charge and display your headset. Users can also customize their display with 16 pre-set ambient multicolor RGB light options.
With VR technology constantly evolving, users are seeking more immersive experiences. As a leading manufacturer of VR accessories, KIWI design is committed to enhancing the user experience, through unique product designs. Since its establishment in 2015, KIWI design has acquired over 100 patents and has a diverse product lineup, including head straps, facial interfaces, VR stands, charging accessories, and controller grip covers.
KIWI design has also actively participated in the Made for Meta program, which is provided by Meta to strengthen its partnerships with leading brands to deliver accessories that enhance Meta products with more choice and a richer experience for everyone. KIWI design’s participation in this program validates its high-quality design standards.
The RGB Vertical Stand for Meta Quest 3, Quest 2, and Quest Pro and another specially designed authorized charging dock for the Meta  Oculus Quest 2 are now available for purchase on both KIWI design’s website and Amazon. For more information about our brand and products, please visit our website and follow KIWI design on Facebook, Instagram, X, YouTube and TikTok.
https://www.kiwidesign.com/
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https://www.instagram.com/kiwidesignins/

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