Akoustis Announces Leadership Transition
Charlotte, NC, August 8, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -
Akoustis Technologies, Inc. (Nasdaq: AKTS) (“Akoustis” or
the “Company”), an integrated device manufacturer (IDM) of patented
bulk acoustic wave (BAW) high-band RF filters for mobile and other
wireless applications, announced today the mutually agreed
resignation of Jeffery B. Shealy as Chief Executive Officer and as
a member of the Board of Directors, effective August 6, 2024.
Kamran Cheema, the Company’s Chief Product
Officer, will serve as interim Chief Executive Officer. Mr. Cheema
has served as Chief Product Officer for the Company since 2022. He
joined Akoustis in August 2021 as VP of Engineering, bringing a
wealth of RF experience in product design, manufacturing,
technology development, program management and quality management
with over thirty years of experience in acoustic technology. Before
joining Akoustis, Mr. Cheema was the Vice President of Engineering
at Qualcomm RF360, where he was responsible for all aspects of
micro-acoustic hardware solutions for the mobile phone market. Mr.
Cheema holds a MSEE from the University of Central Florida.
“On behalf of the Board and rest of the Company,
I wanted to thank Jeff for his many years of service to the
Company,” said Arthur Geiss, co-chairman of the Board of Directors.
“We are appreciative of Jeff’s expertise and leadership throughout
his tenure as Chief Executive Officer and wish him well in his
future endeavors.”
About Akoustis Technologies, Inc.
Akoustis® (http://www.akoustis.com) is a
high-tech BAW RF filter solutions company that is pioneering
next-generation materials science and MEMS wafer manufacturing
to address the market requirements for improved RF filters ‒
targeting higher bandwidth, higher operating frequencies and higher
output power compared to legacy polycrystalline BAW
technology. The Company utilizes its proprietary and
patented XBAW® manufacturing process to produce bulk
acoustic wave RF filters for mobile and other
wireless markets, which facilitate signal acquisition and
accelerate band performance between the antenna and digital back
end. Superior performance is driven by the significant
advances of poly-crystal, single-crystal, and other high
purity piezoelectric materials and the resonator-filter process
technology which enables optimal trade-offs between critical power,
frequency and bandwidth performance specifications.
Akoustis plans to service the fast growing
multi-billion-dollar RF filter market using its integrated
device manufacturer (IDM) business model. The Company owns and
operates a 125,000 sq. ft.
ISO-9001:2015 registered commercial wafer-manufacturing
facility located in Canandaigua, NY, which includes a class 100 /
class 1000 cleanroom facility — tooled for 150 mm
diameter wafers ‒ for the design, development,
fabrication and packaging of RF filters, MEMS and other
semiconductor devices. Akoustis Technologies, Inc. is
headquartered in the Piedmont technology
corridor near Charlotte, North Carolina.
Forward-Looking Statements
This document includes “forward-looking
statements” within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities
Act, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, each
as amended, that are intended to be covered by the “safe harbor”
created by those sections. These forward-looking statements
include, but are not limited to, statements about our estimates,
expectations, beliefs, intentions, plans or strategies for the
future (including our possible future results of operations,
profitability, business strategies, competitive position, potential
growth opportunities, potential market opportunities and the
effects of competition), and the assumptions underlying such
statements. Forward-looking statements include all statements that
are not historical facts and typically are identified by use of
terms such as “may,” “might,” “would,” “will,” “should,” “could,”
“project,” “expect,” “plan,” “strategy,” “anticipate,” “attempt,”
“develop,” “help,” “believe,” “think,” “estimate,” “predict,”
“intend,” “forecast,” “seek,” “potential,” “possible,” “continue,”
“future,” and similar words (including the negative of any of the
foregoing), although some forward-looking statements are expressed
differently. Forward-looking statements are neither historical
facts nor assurances of future results, performance, events or
circumstances. Instead, these forward-looking statements are based
on management’s current beliefs, expectations and assumptions, and
are subject to risks and uncertainties. Factors that could cause
actual results to differ materially from those currently
anticipated include, without limitation, risks relating to our
limited operating history; our inability to generate revenues or
achieve profitability; the failure of our common stock to meet the
minimum requirements for continued listing on the Nasdaq Capital
Market, the impact of a pandemic or epidemic or natural disaster,
including the COVID-19 pandemic, the Russian-Ukrainian and Middle
East conflicts and other sources of volatility on our operations,
financial condition and the worldwide economy, including our
ability to access the capital markets; increases in prices for raw
materials, labor, and fuel caused by rising inflation; our
inability to obtain adequate financing and sustain our status as a
going concern; the results of our research and development
activities; our inability to achieve acceptance of our products in
the market; general economic conditions, including upturns and
downturns in the industry; existing or increased competition; our
inability to successfully scale our New York wafer fabrication
facility and related operations while maintaining quality control
and assurance and avoiding delays in output; contracting with
customers and other parties with greater bargaining power and
agreeing to terms and conditions that may adversely affect our
business; the possibility that the anticipated benefits from
business acquisitions will not be realized in full or at all or may
take longer to realize than expected; the possibility that costs or
difficulties related to the integration of acquired businesses’
operations will be greater than expected and the possibility of
disruptions to our business during integration efforts and strain
on management time and resources; risks related to doing business
in foreign countries, including rising tensions between the United
States and China; any cybersecurity breaches or other disruptions
compromising our proprietary information and exposing us to
liability; our limited number of patents; failure to obtain,
maintain, and enforce our intellectual property rights; claims of
infringement, misappropriation or misuse of third party
intellectual property, including the lawsuit filed by Qorvo, Inc.
in October 2021, that, regardless of merit, has resulted in
significant expense and a judgment against us for approximately
$38.6 million; our inability to attract and retain qualified
personnel; the outcome of current and any future litigation; our
reliance on third parties to complete certain processes in
connection with the manufacture of our products; product quality
and defects; our inability to successfully manufacture, market and
sell products based on our technologies; our ability to meet the
required specifications of customers and achieve qualification of
our products for commercial manufacturing in a timely manner; our
failure to innovate or adapt to new or emerging technologies,
including in relation to our competitors; our failure to comply
with regulatory requirements; stock volatility and illiquidity; our
failure to implement our business plans or strategies; our failure
to maintain effective internal control over financial reporting;
our failure to obtain or maintain a Trusted Foundry accreditation
or our New York fabrication facility; and shortages in supplies
needed to manufacture our products, or needed by our customers to
manufacture devices incorporating our products. These and other
risks and uncertainties are described in more detail in the Risk
Factors and Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial
Condition and Results of Operations sections of the Company’s most
recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and in subsequently filed
Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q. Considering these risks,
uncertainties and assumptions, the forward-looking statements
regarding future events and circumstances discussed in this
document may not occur, and actual results could differ materially
and adversely from those anticipated or implied in the
forward-looking statements. You should not rely upon
forward-looking statements as predictions of future events. The
forward-looking statements included in this document speak only as
of the date hereof and, except as required by law, we undertake no
obligation to update publicly or privately any forward-looking
statements, whether written or oral, for any reason after the date
of this document to conform these statements to new information,
actual results or to changes in our expectations.
Contact:
Kenneth Boller
Akoustis Technologies
Chief Financial Officer
(704) 274-3598
kboller@akoustis.com
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