Mastering capital markets and harnessing the power of artificial intelligence. And then also a real key focus for us here are individuals who have adeptly guided NASDAQ-listed companies. And as for the chairperson position following Dr. Kuo’s anticipated departure of the Board is still in the process of deciding that. But we absolutely will keep our stakeholders informed as soon as a decision is reached.
Operator: Thank you, Jennifer. His next question reads. Can you provide more color or info on the sales order for future fee-for-service stat $4.65 million that you mentioned on the 4Q earnings report. Is that a quarterly annual or longer-term figure or a combination of all three?
Barry Duplantis: Yes. Thank you. I’ll answer this one again. So the reference was to the total sales orders for the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2023. So sales orders are a recurring topic of discussion. And just to reiterate their significance, these represent future financial projections derived from agreements with clients during that specific time period. IPA then recognizes revenue from these sales orders as the work progresses on the associated project typically spending a 10 to 12-month period. It’s essential that we emphasize that these are projections. And while they are our most reliable forecasting metric, the actual revenue generated by a program can vary up or down from the initial sales orders dependent upon the program’s performance and then obviously, ongoing sales efforts within a program.
So I also noted earlier, too, that the figures for sales orders do not encompass our IPA Europe Utrecht site as its workflow doesn’t necessitate that financial step.
Operator: Thank you, Barry. Robert’s last question reads. Can you provide more detail on the R&D expense number relating to internal R&D efforts versus collaboration type programs?
Brad McConn: Yes, sure. So I could take that one. When we think about our R&D spend, we have really two primary areas of expenditures and that can be on projects in Talem, which can be either purely internal or done with a partner. And then the other main area of focus is on the advancement of our fee-for-service offering. And so as the stage of those Talem assets has progressed and we’re kind of through the heavy research and development portion of the project, we’ve gained significantly reduced R&D spend there. And as such, our R&D spend today and certainly, probably over the last couple of quarters is weighted much more towards the advancement of our fee-for-service offerings.
Operator: Thank you, Brad. Those are all the questions from Robert. We have some questions from Will McHale from Ingalls & Snyder, and his first question reads, what is the opportunity to convert traditional wet lab CRO work to BioStrand in silico work? And how does that change the economics for IPA?
Barry Duplantis: I’ll answer this one again. So as mentioned earlier in the Q&A, BioStrand allows us to tackle biological problems that haven’t been successfully addressed in the wet lab, this has been the central point of discussion with our partners in terms of the antibody discovery aspects of our service offerings. So we view these opportunities as additive to traditional wet lab work rather than a replacement, at least for the foreseeable future. That being said, it is worth highlighting the dedicated efforts of Ilse and team in driving the seamless integration of wet lab and in silico applications. This is particularly well done in the context of antibody characterization and risk mitigation. This effort will enhance the attractiveness and the strategy between both approaches and creates a compelling solution for our partners.
Operator: Thank you, Barry. Will’s next question reads, what is the long-term vision for data management platform? How does that fit with the CRO business?
Barry Duplantis: Once again, I’ll tackle this one. Priority in the technical development at BioStrand has been put on the analytical capabilities for antibody discovery and development. But this has not prevented us from also making progress in the development of the data management platform itself. So it’s a crucial element that reinforces the synergy between our AI capabilities and the wet lab by streamlining our own data integration and processing. Moreover, this platform, we can not only offer to clients data management and organization capabilities but also analytical tools. Clients who engage with our platform will automatically immerse themselves in our ecosystem, experience the advantages it brings while also gaining access to a suite of SaaS tools available on the platform.
This presents us with multiple opportunities for cross-selling and upselling, thereby enhancing our revenue potential. Moreover, it enables us to represent results in a secure and private environment, ensuring the utmost confidentiality for our clients. Additionally, it facilitates multiple presentation options that support an easy and interactive user experience, enhancing our client’s engagement and satisfaction.
Operator: Thank you, Barry. Will’s last question reads, could you provide any updates on Talem out-licensing?
Ilse Roodink: Yes, shall I take this question. This is Ilse. Yes as Brett already indicated, the bulk of our research and development and the efforts related to the assets Yes. They are considered largely complete, and we are looking into the out licensing of options happily. We have compiled comprehensive data packages for each, and our team is active to be in the process of seeking suitable licensing opportunities. Maybe it’s worth note here that Talem has engaged, an interested party regarding one of the three priority programs, which we mentioned in the last earnings call. And for this program, we are currently in the process of conducting a final verification assay.
Operator: Thank you, Ilse, and thank you to all who were able to join us today. I will now turn the call back over to Dr. Bath for any concluding remarks.
Jennifer Bath: Wonderful. Thank you, Julianne. As we wrap up today’s earnings call, I think one thing we’d like to do is just really reflect on the transformative journey and ImmunoPrecise Antibodies than what we’re embarking on here. The challenges of the past quarters have not deterred us. And instead, they’ve paved the way for a new era of growth and transformation. Our vision is sharpening. Our strategies are undergoing continuous refinement and our team continues to expand in strength and diversity. With the induction of esteemed professionals like Chris Buyse, Barry Springer and Dirk Witters to our Board, this underscores our unwavering commitment to excellence. We anticipate sharing insights into our evolving strategy and vision, which are currently in the process of being honed with our shareholders in due course following the AGM.
