Annual report pursuant to Section 13 and 15(d)

Stock-Based Compensation

v3.24.0.1
Stock-Based Compensation
12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2023
Share-Based Payment Arrangement [Abstract]  
Stock-Based Compensation Stock-based Compensation
Equity Compensation Plans
In November 2016, the Company’s Board of Directors adopted the 2016 Stock Option and Grant Plan (“2016 Plan”) under which officers, employees, directors, consultants and other key persons of the Company or its affiliates may be granted incentive stock options, nonstatutory stock options, stock appreciation rights, restricted stock and restricted stock units. On August 10, 2021, the Company’s Board of Directors amended the 2016 Plan to provide that no new awards could be granted under the 2016 Plan.
Under the 2016 Plan, stock options were generally granted with an exercise price equal to the estimated fair value of the Company’s common stock, as determined by the Company’s Board of Directors on the date of grant. Options generally have contractual terms of ten years.
Outstanding options generally vest over six years, contain a one year cliff, are exercisable immediately and, upon early exercise, are subject to repurchase by the Company at the original exercise price. If an ISO is granted to an optionee who, at the time of grant, owns more than 10% of the voting power of all classes of capital stock, the term of the ISO is five years. Options issued under the 2016 Plan must be priced at no less than the fair value of the shares on the date of the grant provided, however, that the exercise price of an option granted to a 10% stockholder is not less than 110% of the fair value of the shares on the date of grant. The Board of Directors determines the exercisability provisions of a stock option agreement at its sole discretion.
The fair value of the RSU’s granted under the 2016 Plan was determined by the Company’s Board of Directors on the date of grant. Generally, RSUs have six years vesting period and contractual terms of ten years.
On August 10, 2021, the Company adopted the 2021 Equity Incentive Plan (“2021 Plan”). Under the 2021 Plan, the Company can grant incentive stock options, nonstatutory stock options, stock appreciation rights, restricted stock, restricted stock units and performance awards to employees, directors and consultants. The number of shares available for issuance under the 2021 Plan will be increased on the first day of each fiscal year, beginning on January 1, 2022, in an amount equal to the lesser of (i) a number of shares equal to four percent (4%) of the total number of shares of all classes of common stock of the Company outstanding on the last day of the immediately preceding fiscal year, or (ii) such number of shares determined by the Company’s Board of Directors. On December 31, 2023, the number of shares available for issuance under 2021 Plan was 80,671,660. On January 1, 2024, the number of shares available for issuance under 2021 plan increased by 27,930,481 shares.
Stock Options Activity
The summary of stock option activity for the year ended December 31, 2023 is as follows:
Stock Option Activity Number of
Options
Weighted-
Average
Exercise
Price Per
Share
Weighted-
Average
Remaining
Contractual
Term
(in years)
Aggregate
Intrinsic
Value
(in thousands)
Balances—December 31, 2022 17,093,447  $ 0.68  6.97 $ 45,689 
Additional shares authorized    
Options canceled and forfeited (555,855) $ 0.65   
Repurchases —     
Options granted —   
Options exercised (2,963,007) $ 0.57   
Balances—December 31, 2023 13,574,585  $ 0.70  6.15 $ 80,736 
Vested and expected to vest 13,574,585  $ 0.70  6.15 $ 80,736 
Shares exercisable (vested and unvested) 7,928,025  $ 0.57  6.00 $ 48,210 
The weighted-average grant date fair value of options granted in the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021 was nil, nil and $9.16, respectively. The total intrinsic value of options exercised was $15.2 million, $12.0 million and $20.1 million respectively, during the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021.

Restricted Stock Units
A summary of RSU activity for the year ended December 31, 2023 is as follows: (in thousands, except per share data):
Number of Shares Weighted-Average Grant Date Fair Value Per
Share
Aggregate Intrinsic Value (in thousands)
Balances—December 31, 2022 28,537,127  $ 5.75  $ 95,599 
Granted 16,542,324  $ 6.67   
Vested (11,696,228) $ 5.18 
Forfeited (2,306,524) $ 6.26 
Balances—December 31, 2023 31,076,699  $ 6.41  $ 206,660 
The total fair value of RSUs vested for the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021 was $60.6 million, $36.0 million and $0.2 million, respectively.
On December 16, 2021, the Company’s Board of Directors approved a performance-based bonus program under which RSUs were awarded in connection with the achievement of specified goals to be achieved in 2022 (“2022 Bonus Plan”). The RSUs awarded under 2022 Bonus Plan vested on January 1, 2023 and are included in Restricted Stock Units activity for the year ended December 31, 2023.
On February 27, 2023, the Company’s Compensation Committee of the Board of Directors ("Compensation Committee") approved a performance-based bonus program under which RSUs will be awarded in connection with the achievement of specified goals in 2023 ("2023 Bonus Plan"). The RSU awards will be granted when the achievement of each goal is approved by the Compensation Committee in 2023, and the RSUs will vest in equal installments in each of January, February, March and April 2024 provided the employee or consultant continues to be a service provider through the relevant vesting dates. The target bonus opportunity is equal to 30% of the employee’s base salary as of the applicable grant date, with stretch bonus goals that are one-third higher than the target amounts unless otherwise established by the Compensation Committee.
In accordance with ASC 718 Compensation - Stock Compensation, awards under 2023 Bonus Plan and 2022 Bonus Plan are classified as a liability until such time that the respective milestones are met, at which point the liability is reclassified to equity. If it is determined that the milestone cannot be met, the liability will be reversed.
In June 2023, the Compensation Committee approved long-term incentive performance-based RSU awards ("LTI Awards") to certain employees of the Company. The LTI Awards vest in a single installment on June 21, 2026, provided that (i) certain performance conditions are met on or prior to that date and (ii) the employee continues to be a service provider through the vesting date.
The Company considers the probability of achieving each of the performance goals at the end of each reporting period and recognizes expense over the requisite service period when achievement of the goal is determined to be probable, and adjusts the expense if the probability of achieving the goal later changes.
The Company recorded stock-based compensation expense of $31.3 million for the year ended December 31, 2023, in relation to 2023 Bonus Plan and LTI awards. The Company recorded stock-based compensation expense of $18.0 million for the year ended December 31, 2022, in relation to the 2022 Bonus Plan.

Employee Stock Purchase Plan
On August 10, 2021, the Company adopted the 2021 Employee Stock Purchase Plan (“2021 ESPP”). Under the 2021 ESPP, participating employees may be offered the option to purchase shares of the Company’s Common Stock at a purchase price which equals 85% of the fair market value of the Company’s common stock on the enrollment date or on the exercise date, whichever is lower. The number of shares of common stock available for issuance under the 2021 ESPP will be increased on the first day of each fiscal year beginning on January 1, 2022, in an amount equal to the lesser of (i) a number of shares of common stock equal to half percent (0.5%) of the total number of shares of all classes of common stock of the Company on the last day of the immediately preceding fiscal year, or (ii) such number of shares determined by the Company’s Board of Directors. On December 31, 2023, the number of shares available for issuance under 2021 ESPP was 10,906,307. On January 1, 2024, the number of shares available for issuance under 2021 ESPP increased by 3,491,310 shares. During the year ended December 31, 2023, the Company issued 1,881,109 shares under the 2021 ESPP. The stock-based compensation expense recognized for the 2021 ESPP was $3.7 million and $0.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively.
The assumptions in the Black-Scholes option-pricing models used to determine the fair value of 2021 ESPP awards granted during the year ended December 31, 2023, were as follows:
Year Ended December 31,
2023 2022
Expected volatility
58.5% - 85.1%
69.1% - 83.9%
Expected dividend yield —  % —  %
Expected term (in years)
0.5 - 1.0
0.5 - 1.0
Risk-free interest rate
4.9% - 5.4%
4.5% - 4.6%
Expected volatility - We estimate the expected volatility of our common stock on the date of grant based on the historical stock price volatility of our own common shares within the same length of period as the expected term.
Risk-free interest rate - The risk-free interest rate is based on the U.S. Treasury yield curve in effect at the time of grant for zero-coupon U.S. Treasury notes with maturities corresponding to the expected term of the awards.
Expected dividend yield - The expected dividend rate is zero as the Company currently has no history or expectation of declaring dividends on its common stock.
Expected term - The expected term represents the period these stock awards are expected to remain outstanding and is based on historical experience of similar awards, giving consideration to the contractual terms of the stock-based awards, vesting schedules, and expectations of future employee behavior.
Stock-based compensation expense
The following sets forth the total stock-based compensation expense for the Company’s stock options included in the Company’s consolidated statements of operations (in thousands):
Year Ended December 31,
2023 2022 2021
Research and development expenses $ 73,160  $ 49,713  $ 19,426 
Selling, general and administrative expenses 20,476  19,357  7,506 
Total stock-based compensation expense $ 93,636  $ 69,070  $ 26,932 
As of December 31, 2023, total unrecognized compensation cost related to stock awards was $200.0 million to be recognized over a weighted average remaining requisite service period of approximately 2.6 years.
Shares subject to repurchase
The Company allows certain option holders to exercise unvested options to purchase shares of common stock. Common shares received from such early exercises are subject to a right of repurchase at the original issuance price. The Company’s repurchase right with respect to these shares lapses as the shares vest. These awards are typically subject to a vesting period of six years. As of December 31, 2023 and 2022, 1,988,511 and 3,923,509 shares, respectively, were subject to repurchase at a weighted average price of 0.09 per share and $0.10 per share, respectively, and $0.2 million and $0.4 million, respectively, was recorded within the other non-current liabilities on the Company’s consolidated balance sheets.
In addition, upon completion of the Reverse Recapitalization 2,677,200 Series C Preferred shares which were subject to time-based vesting conditions were converted to restricted common shares. As of December 31, 2023 and 2022, the number of such shares that were subject to repurchase was 1,561,599 and 2,007,595.