LAHAINA, Hawaii (AP) — Tyrese Hunter scored 17 of his 26 points after halftime to lead Memphis to a 99-97 overtime win against two-time defending national champion and second-ranked UConn on Monday in the first round of the Maui Invitational . Hunter shot 7 of 10 from 3-point range for the Tigers (5-0), who were 12 of 22 from beyond at the arc as a team. PJ Haggerty had 22 points and five assists, Colby Rogers had 19 points and Dain Dainja scored 14. Tarris Reed Jr. had 22 points and 11 rebounds off the bench for the Huskies (4-1). Alex Karaban had 19 points and six assists, and Jaylin Stewart scored 16. Memphis led by as many as 13 with about four minutes left in regulation, but UConn chipped away and eventually tied it on Solo Ball’s 3-pointer with 1.2 seconds remaining. Memphis: The Tigers ranked second nationally in field goal percentage going into the game and shot it at a 54.7% clip. UConn: The Huskies saw their string of 17 consecutive wins dating back to February come to an end. The teams were tied at 92 with less than a minute remaining in overtime when UConn coach Dan Hurley was assessed a technical foul for his displeasure with an over-the-back call against Liam McNeeley. PJ Carter hit four straight free throws — two for the tech and the other pair for the personal foul — to give Memphis a 96-92 lead with 40.3 seconds to play. UConn had three players foul out. Memphis attempted 40 free throws and made 29 of them. Memphis will play the winner of Colorado-Michigan State on Tuesday in the second round of the invitational. UConn will play the loser of that game in the consolation bracket. Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here . AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball .The highly anticipated Peaky Blinders film “won’t be the end” of the popular gangster series, creator Steven Knight has said. Oscar-winner Cillian Murphy is reprising his role as Birmingham gangster Tommy Shelby for the film, which is set following the events of the original BBC drama which ran for six series from 2013 to 2022. Following the film wrapping production, Knight has revealed that it will be around a year before the project is released. Speaking to Times Radio about a future release date, Knight said: “It’s a bit too soon for that, but you know, you can sort of work out that it will be about a year.” Asked if there are any more plans for Peaky Blinders beyond the film, he replied: “It’s interesting you should ask that question because the film is coming out and that won’t be the end.” The screenwriter was questioned if that meant fans could expect more series in the future, but he refused to provide more details. The film is believed to be titled The Immortal Man and has been teased to involve new conflicts for the Shelby family set during the Second World War. THAT'S A WRAP. The Peaky Blinders film has completed production. 📸: Robert Viglasky pic.twitter.com/VImZlFWZdQ — Netflix (@netflix) December 19, 2024 Saltburn and The Banshees Of Inisherin star Barry Keoghan will join fellow Irish actor Murphy in the new film. Earlier this month a photo was shared by Netflix of the pair looking jubilant while wearing flat caps and suits as the streamer confirmed filming had wrapped on the project. Other returning cast members include British actors Stephen Graham as union organiser Hayden Stagg and Sophie Rundle as Ada Shelby, while Dune actress Rebecca Ferguson and Pulp Fiction actor Tim Roth have also joined the project. Tom Harper, who previously directed episodes in the first season in 2013, will return to helm the film. Knight previously told Netflix’s Tudum site: “It will be an explosive chapter in the Peaky Blinders story. No holds barred. Full-on Peaky Blinders at war.” When the series came to an end in 2022 after nine years, Tommy appeared to put his criminal past behind him. Across the six series, the show tackled the rise of fascism, Irish republican politics and communist activities throughout the period after the First World War – along with Tommy’s ambitions in politics. Knight later created a stage adaptation of the show for a limited-run production, titled The Redemption Of Thomas Shelby, which featured performances from Rambert’s dancers and a soundtrack from a live on-stage band. We do not moderate comments, but we expect readers to adhere to certain rules in the interests of open and accountable debate.
NoneEddie Howe wants even more from in-form Newcastle striker Alexander Isak. The 25-year-old Sweden international took his goal tally for the season to 12 in the 3-0 Boxing Day win over Aston Villa at St James’ Park, 10 of them in his last 10 Premier League games, after a challenging start to the new campaign. Isak managed 25 goals in a black and white shirt last season to further justify the club record £63million the club paid to bring him to Tyneside from Real Sociedad during the summer of 2022, but as delighted as he is with his big-money signing, head coach Howe is confident there is even more to come. Murph 🔗 Alex Isak Different game. Same link up. 💪 pic.twitter.com/OMhZf7dtKZ — Newcastle United (@NUFC) December 27, 2024 Asked where the former AIK Solna frontman currently ranks in world football, he said: “My biggest thing with Alex is I am evaluating his game on a daily and weekly basis and I just want to try to push him for more. “Everyone else can say where he is in the pecking order of world football. His game is in a good place at the moment. “My job is to not sit back and appreciate that, my job is to try and find areas he can improve, push him towards that and never stop pushing him. He has all the ingredients in there. Football never stops evolving and changing and he has to evolve with it. “There is a lot more to come from him. Our job is to help him deliver that. “Of course the main responsibility is for Alex to keep his focus, ignore the plaudits and keep helping the team, not be selfish. It is about Newcastle and he plays his part.” It is no coincidence that Newcastle have prospered as Isak has rediscovered his best form, and they will head for Manchester United – where they have won only once in the top flight since 1972 – on Monday evening looking for a fifth successive win in all competitions. He has scored in each of the last five league games having grown into the mantle of the Magpies’ main man, a role performed with such distinction in the past by the likes of Jackie Milburn, Malcolm Macdonald and Alan Shearer, and he has done so with the minimum of fuss. Asked about his character, Howe said: “He is calm, cool – he is what you see on the pitch. “He doesn’t get overly emotional, which for a striker is a great quality because that coolness you see and calmness in front of goal is part of his personality, part of what he is. He seems to have an extra half a second when other players don’t. “With Alex, the beauty of his attitude is that he wants to improve. We give him information and he is responsive. He is not a closed shop. “He is in no way thinking he has arrived at a certain place. He knows he has to keep adding to his game. The challenge is great for him to keep scoring freely as he is now.”
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In July, Asvatha Babu and her husband set off for Bengaluru from Chennai to attend a wedding. Instead of taking their usual hatchback, owing to the amount of luggage they were carrying, they took an SUV, with their child seated in the back. The Chennai-Bengaluru expressway is partially operational, and there was a diversion on the way. Relying on Google Maps, the couple took a detour that would briefly take them into Andhra Pradesh. This was a common enough route to take — through Ranipet and Chittoor — for journeys terminating in North Bengaluru, while routes to the heart of the city usually rely on the highway network within Tamil Nadu itself. In a few minutes though, Babu found herself on a “dirt road in the middle of nowhere with trees all around and basically no streetlights”. Two cars behind her were similarly stranded, a few kilometres from the Kunjanur Rainforest. Fortunately, there was enough daylight — and company — to backtrack and exit back north, and reach the Bengaluru-Tirupati highway, putting them back on track. But the detour had cost them precious hours, and by the time they reached the venue, the festivities had wound down. Others have not been so lucky. Over the past year, numerous incidents have come to light where drivers navigating using Google Maps have found themselves similarly stranded, at odd hours. Early in December, a couple traveling from Bihar to Goa found themselves stranded in the Bhimgad Wildlife Sanctuary, and had to be rescued in the dead of night by Belagavi police. In the Budaun district of Uttar Pradesh in November, three people in a car died after taking an incomplete bridge amid dense fog and plunging off its edge into a river. There too, the Google Maps navigation had led the unsuspecting driver through a route that did not exist. In August, a car in Kerala’s Wayanad overturned into a stream following a walkway — suggested by Google Maps as a road — leading to three injuries. Google Maps’s turn-by-turn navigation is massively popular around the world. In India alone, the tech giant said last December, 2.5 billion kilometres of navigation were requested by users per day. Google amasses map data from Indian cities and highways through a combination of commercial third-party sellers and user contributions. Roads, pedestrian walkways, expressways, buildings — these are all labelled by lane count, direction, permissible vehicle classes, and speed limits. Thanks to its massive user base and real-time data from these phones, Google is able to also use real-time data to provide travel duration estimates, and suggest alternate routes to avoid congestion. But the real world does not always operate or change in ways that are immediately flagged by Google’s systems. For instance, when some of the northernmost stations of the yellow line of the Delhi Metro were shut this month (December), Google briefly misinterpreted the outage to mean that the entire yellow line was not functioning and provided much longer transit directions through buses and other metro lines that extended travel time, sometimes by over an hour. For experienced commuters heading to work in the national capital, this may not have been a problem. But data lapses in remote areas and highways can have more far-reaching consequences. Traffic advocacy group SaveLIFE Foundation’s founder Piyush Tiwari placed the responsibility of traffic incidents like the one in Budaun squarely on local authorities. “The current news cycle about the involvement of GPS in the particular crash appears to be entirely based on an unscientific analysis of the crash, and hearsay, mostly in social media,” he said in an emailed statement. “Prima facie, it appears from the crash images as published in the media that the crash site was an unsafe, unguarded and untreated bridge construction zone. The liability of the fatal crash therefore falls entirely on the road-owning agency and the bridge contractor for failing to prevent the movement of vehicles on an incomplete bridge section.” The bridge was removed from Google Maps shortly after the incident. A Google spokesperson did not comment on the individual incidents but said that the company took “user safety and information quality incredibly seriously,” and that while it strove to provide users with accurate guidance, this was a challenge, as the best route between any two places can change constantly due to things such as sudden weather changes. “Now, we’re adding two new weather-related alerts in India for low visibility areas due to fog and flooded roads,” Google announced in an October blog post. The app accepts contributions in real time from users on accidents and road closures. The Google spokesperson said that these reporting mechanisms were being simplified, and that in urban areas, the company was partnering with traffic police to get “authoritative” sources of information on traffic disruptions. How does Google obtain road data in the first place, especially for unpaved ones or pedestrian walkways? Adhavan Sivaraj, a contributor to the volunteer-run OpenStreetMap (OSM) platform, pointed to the company’s use of satellite imagery, which is common across all sorts of mapping services. OSM allows contributors to mark various road attributes, like whether one is paved, number of lanes, and so on. Google Maps restricts the level to which individual users can contribute such data to the company, and their practices are not always open to scrutiny, Mr. Sivaraj says. Using satellite imagery to add unpaved roads is also not a problem that can necessarily be detected immediately, as nearby expressways are likely always suggested as the best route. When there is a route closure, users are likely to discover the issue. A Google executive speculated — asking not to be identified — that another problem that was likely making issues worse was users selecting alternate routes while using turn-by-turn navigation, instead of following the recommended route, which is more likely to be safe and accurate. “I think there is a lot of dependency on Google, on what it’s offering apparently out of its goodwill,” Mr. Sivaraj says. “There is so much dependency on something we cannot hold accountable. There is so much belief in just one map. And that is very dangerous.” There was little way for local communities to get involved in the representation of their own surroundings, he said. Published - December 28, 2024 07:57 pm IST Copy link Email Facebook Twitter Telegram LinkedIn WhatsApp Reddit technology (general) / IT/computer sciences
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NEWARK, N.J. (AP) — Emerance Maschmeyer turned in 34 saves on 35 shots on goal and the Ottawa Charge held off the New York Sirens 3-1 on Sunday for their second win in six games. Playing their first game in 10 days, the Charge got a first-period goal from Emily Clark and Shiann Darkangelo and Kateřina Mrázová added second-period goals to build a 3-0 lead through two periods. Ottawa has scored at least three goals in all five of its meetings with New York over two seasons. Alex Carpenter earned a third-period assist to extend her scoring streak to nine straight games dating to last season. Sarah Fillier's goal moved her into a tie for the league lead with eight points in her first eight games after being drafted No. 1 by the Sirens. Ottawa's defense neutralized much of New York's speed advantage and used a strong penalty kill to take a 1-0 lead after one period after Clark tipped home a wrist shot from the point by Brianne Jenner six minutes into the game. The Charge added two goals in the first seven minutes of the second period but could not capitalize on a pair of power plays late in the period. Fillier wasted little time getting New York on the board in the third period, firing a shot past Maschmeyer 23 seconds into the period, but the keeper saved the next dozen shots, including an almost three-minute finish when the Sirens pulled goalkeeper Corinne Schroeder to gain a player advantage. New York's Jill Saulnier was activated off long-term injured reserve following an upper body injury sustained in the opening game December 1. ___ AP hockey: https://apnews.com/hub/hockey The Associated PressSANTA CLARA, Calif., Nov. 25, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Agora, Inc. API (the "Company"), a pioneer and leader in real-time engagement technology, today announced its unaudited financial results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2024. "Recently, we launched our Conversational AI SDK in collaboration with OpenAI's Realtime API to allow developers to bring voice-driven AI experiences to any app. We believe multimodal AI agents that can interact with human through natural voice will gain widespread adoption across many use cases such as customer support, education and wellness, and Agora is well positioned to become a key infrastructure provider for real-time conversational AI," said Tony Zhao, founder, chairman and CEO of Agora. "To support this vision, we recently made some structural changes, aligning our organization to fully leverage the accelerating conversational AI opportunities, and operate in a faster, leaner, and more responsive fashion. These changes will help us build the next generation real-time engagement technology for the Generative AI era and strengthen our position as the leader in real-time engagement space." Third Quarter 2024 Highlights Total revenues for the quarter were $31.6 million, a decrease of 9.8% from $35.0 million in the third quarter of 2023, which included decreased revenue from certain end-of-sale products of $2.4 million. Agora : $15.7 million for the quarter, an increase of 2.6% from $15.3 million in the third quarter of 2023. Shengwang : RMB112.9 million ($15.9 million) for the quarter, a decrease of 20.0% from RMB141.2 million ($19.7 million) in the third quarter of 2023, which included decreased revenue from certain end-of-sale products of RMB17.5 million ($2.4 million). Active Customers Agora : 1,762 as of September 30, 2024, an increase of 5.9% from 1,664 as of September 30, 2023. Shengwang : 3,641 as of September 30, 2024, a decrease of 9.7% from 4,034 as of September 30, 2023. Dollar-Based Net Retention Rate Agora : 94% for the trailing 12-month period ended September 30, 2024. Shengwang : 78% for the trailing 12-month period ended September 30, 2024. Net loss for the quarter was $24.2 million, which included expenses of $11.4 million in relation to the cancellation of certain employees' equity awards, severance expenses of $4.8 million, and losses from equity in affiliates of $4.2 million, compared to net loss of $22.5 million in the third quarter of 2023. After excluding share-based compensation expenses, acquisition related expenses, amortization expenses of acquired intangible assets and income tax related to acquired intangible assets, non-GAAP net loss for the quarter was $10.4 million, compared to the non-GAAP net loss of $15.6 million in the third quarter of 2023. Total cash, cash equivalents, bank deposits and financial products issued by banks as of September 30, 2024 was $362.6 million. Net cash used in operating activities for the quarter was $4.6 million, compared to $3.0 million in the third quarter of 2023. Free cash flow for the quarter was negative $6.0 million, compared to negative $3.2 million in the third quarter of 2023. Third Quarter 2024 Financial Results Revenues Total revenues were $31.6 million in the third quarter of 2024, a decrease of 9.8% from $35.0 million in the same period last year. Revenues of Agora were $15.7 million in the third quarter of 2024, an increase of 2.6% from $15.3 million in the same period last year, primarily due to our business expansion and usage growth in sectors such as live shopping. Revenues of Shengwang were RMB112.9 million ($15.9 million) in the third quarter of 2024, a decrease of 20.0% from RMB141.2 million ($19.7 million) in the same period last year, primarily due to a decrease in revenues of RMB 17.5 million ($2.4 million) due to the end-of-sale of certain products and reduced usage from customers in certain sectors such as social and entertainment as a result of challenging macroeconomic and regulatory environment. Cost of Revenues Cost of revenues was $10.5 million in the third quarter of 2024, a decrease of 16.4% from $12.6 million in the same period last year, primarily due to the end-of-sale of certain products and the decrease in bandwidth usage and costs, which was offset partially by severance expenses for customer support teams of $0.3 million. Gross Profit and Gross Margin Gross profit was $21.0 million in the third quarter of 2024, a decrease of 6.1% from $22.4 million in the same period last year. Gross margin was 66.7% in the third quarter of 2024, an increase of 2.7% from 64.0% in the same period last year, mainly due to the end-of-sale of certain low-margin products, which was offset partially by higher severance expenses in the third quarter of 2024. Operating Expenses Operating expenses were $45.9 million in the third quarter of 2024, an increase of 24.3% from $36.9 million in the same period last year, primarily due to the increase in restructuring and severance expenses in the third quarter of 2024, which included share-based compensation of $11.4 million as a result of the cancellation of certain employees' equity awards and immediate recognition of relevant remaining unrecognized compensation expenses, as well as severance expenses of $4.4 million. Research and development expenses were $29.3 million in the third quarter of 2024, an increase of 46.1% from $20.0 million in the same period last year, primarily due to restructuring and severance expenses in the third quarter of 2024, including share-based compensation of $9.0 million due to equity award cancellation and severance expenses of $3.6 million. Sales and marketing expenses were $6.9 million in the third quarter of 2024, a decrease of 11.9% from $7.8 million in the same period last year, primarily due to a decrease in personnel costs as the Company optimized its global workforce, which was offset partially by severance expenses of $0.7 million in the third quarter of 2024. General and administrative expenses were $9.7 million in the third quarter of 2024, an increase of 7.4% from $9.1 million in the same period last year, primarily due to restructuring and severance expenses in the third quarter of 2024, including share-based compensation of $2.4 million as a result of the equity award cancellation, which was offset partially by a decrease in personnel costs as the Company optimized its global workforce. Loss from Operations Loss from operations was $24.7 million in the third quarter of 2024, compared to $13.9 million in the same period last year. Interest Income Interest income was $3.9 million in the third quarter of 2024, compared to $4.9 million in the same period last year, primarily due to the decrease in the average balance of cash, cash equivalents, bank deposits and financial products issued by banks and the decrease in average interest rate realized. Losses from equity in affiliates Losses from equity in affiliates were $4.2 million in the third quarter of 2024, primarily due to an impairment loss on an investment in certain private company of $4.1 million. Net Loss Net loss was $24.2 million in the third quarter of 2024, compared to $22.5 million in the same period last year. Net Loss per American Depositary Share attributable to ordinary shareholders Net loss per American Depositary Share ("ADS") 1 attributable to ordinary shareholders was $0.26 in the third quarter of 2024, compared to $0.23 in the same period last year. _____________ 1 One ADS represents four Class A ordinary shares. Share Repurchase Program During the three months ended September 30, 2024, the Company repurchased approximately 6.8 million of its Class A ordinary shares (equivalent to approximately 1.7 million ADSs) for approximately US$3.9 million under its share repurchase program, representing 1.9% of its US$200 million share repurchase program. As of September 30, 2024, the Company had repurchased approximately 129.4 million of its Class A ordinary shares (equivalent to approximately 32.3 million ADSs) for approximately US$113.7 million under its share repurchase program, representing 57% of its US$200 million share repurchase program. As of September 30, 2024, the Company had 368.3 million ordinary shares (equivalent to approximately 92.1 million ADSs) outstanding, compared to 449.8 million ordinary shares (equivalent to approximately 112.5 million ADSs) outstanding as of January 31, 2022 before the share repurchase program commenced. The current share repurchase program will expire at the end of February 2025. Executive Leadership Update Today the Company announced that Chief Security Officer Roger Hale will be leaving the Company, effective immediately. Mr. Hale has served in this role for the past 2.5 years, during which he made significant contributions to enhancing the Company's security, compliance, and data protection protocols. Mr. Hale will work closely with senior leadership to ensure a smooth transition of his responsibilities. Moving forward, Patrick Ferriter and Robbin Liu will assume responsibility for security and compliance, reflecting the Company's commitment to maintaining a strong and effective security framework. Mr. Hale will continue to provide strategic advice as an advisor to the Company. "We are grateful for Roger's dedication and expertise over the past two and a half years. His leadership has been invaluable in strengthening our security & compliance foundation," said Tony Zhao, founder, chairman and CEO of Agora. "Security and compliance remain top priorities for Agora, and we will continue to uphold the highest standards to protect our customers and stakeholders." Financial Outlook Based on currently available information, the Company expects total revenues for the fourth quarter of 2024 to be between $34 million and $36 million, compared to $31.6 million in the third quarter of 2024, and $33.3 million in the fourth quarter of 2023 if revenues from certain end-of-sale low-margin products were excluded. The Company also expects significant improvement in net income / (loss) in the fourth quarter. This outlook reflects the Company's current and preliminary views on the market and operational conditions, which are subject to change. Earnings Call The Company will host a conference call to discuss the financial results at 5 p.m. Pacific Time / 8 p.m. Eastern Time on November 25, 2024. Details for the conference call are as follows: Event title: Agora, Inc. 3Q 2024 Financial Results The call will be available at https://edge.media-server.com/mmc/p/wie28zvr Investors who want to hear the call should log on at least 15 minutes prior to the broadcast. Participants may register for the call with the link below. https://register.vevent.com/register/BIf58a0b6f500c4362b1a8c64f9fa4cea8 Please visit the Company's investor relations website at https://investor.agora.io on November 25, 2024 to view the earnings release and accompanying slides prior to the conference call. Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures The Company has provided in this press release financial information that has not been prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States ("GAAP"). The Company uses these non-GAAP financial measures internally in analyzing its financial results and believe that the use of these non-GAAP financial measures is useful to investors as an additional tool to evaluate ongoing operating results and trends and in comparing its financial results with other companies in its industry, many of which present similar non-GAAP financial measures. Besides free cash flow (as defined below), each of these non-GAAP financial measures represents the corresponding GAAP financial measure before share-based compensation expenses, acquisition related expenses, amortization expenses of acquired intangible assets, income tax related to acquired intangible assets and impairment of goodwill. The Company believes that such non-GAAP financial measures help identify underlying trends in its business that could otherwise be distorted by the effects of such share-based compensation expenses, acquisition related expenses, amortization expenses of acquired intangible assets, income tax related to acquired intangible assets and impairment of goodwill that it includes in its cost of revenues, total operating expenses and net income (loss). The Company believes that all such non-GAAP financial measures also provide useful information about its operating results, enhance the overall understanding of its past performance and future prospects and allow for greater visibility with respect to key metrics used by its management in its financial and operational decision-making. Non-GAAP financial measures are not meant to be considered in isolation or as a substitute for comparable GAAP financial measures and should be read only in conjunction with the Company's consolidated financial statements prepared in accordance with GAAP. A reconciliation of its historical non-GAAP financial measures to the most directly comparable GAAP measures has been provided in the tables captioned "Reconciliation of GAAP to Non-GAAP Measures" included at the end of this press release, and investors are encouraged to review the reconciliation. Definitions of the Company's non-GAAP financial measures included in this press release are presented below. Non-GAAP Net Income (Loss) Non-GAAP net income (loss) is defined as net income (loss) adjusted to exclude share-based compensation expenses, acquisition related expenses, amortization expenses of acquired intangible assets, income tax related to acquired intangible assets and impairment of goodwill. Free Cash Flow Free cash flow is defined as net cash provided by operating activities less purchases of property and equipment (excluding the acquisition of land use right and the payment for the headquarters project). The Company considers free cash flow to be a liquidity measure that provides useful information to management and investors regarding net cash provided by operating activities and cash used for investments in property and equipment required to maintain and grow the business. Operating Metrics The Company also uses other operating metrics included in this press release and defined below to assess the performance of its business. Active Customers An active customer at the end of any period is defined as an organization or individual developer from which the Company generated more than $100 of revenue during the preceding 12 months. Customers are counted based on unique customer account identifiers. Generally, one software application uses the same customer account identifier throughout its life cycle while one account may be used for multiple applications. Dollar-Based Net Retention Rate Dollar-Based Net Retention Rate is calculated for a trailing 12-month period by first identifying all customers in the prior 12-month period, and then calculating the quotient from dividing the revenue generated from such customers in the trailing 12-month period by the revenue generated from the same group of customers in the prior 12-month period. As the vast majority of revenue generated from Agora's customers is denominated in U.S. dollars, while the vast majority of revenue generated from Shengwang's customers is denominated in Renminbi, Dollar-Based Net Retention Rate is calculated in U.S. dollars for Agora and in Renminbi for Shengwang, which has substantially removed the impact of foreign currency translations. Shengwang excluded the revenues from certain end-of-sale products, Easemob's CEC business and K12 academic tutoring sector. The Company believes Dollar-Based Net Retention Rate facilitates operating performance comparisons on a period-to-period basis. Safe Harbor Statements This press release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended and the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements other than statements of historical or current fact included in this press release are forward-looking statements, including but not limited to statements regarding the Company's financial outlook, beliefs and expectations. Forward-looking statements include statements containing words such as "expect," "anticipate," "believe," "project," "will" and similar expressions intended to identify forward-looking statements. Among other things, the Financial Outlook in this announcement contain forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are based on the Company's current expectations and involve risks and uncertainties. The Company's actual results and the timing of events could differ materially from those anticipated in such forward-looking statements as a result of these risks and uncertainties, which include, without limitation, risks related to the growth of the RTE-PaaS market; the Company's ability to manage its growth and expand its operations; the continued impact of COVID-19 on global markets and the Company's business, operations and customers; the Company's ability to attract new developers and convert them into customers; the Company's ability to retain existing customers and expand their usage of its platform and products; the Company's ability to drive popularity of existing use cases and enable new use cases, including through quality enhancements and introduction of new products, features and functionalities; the Company's fluctuating operating results; competition; the effect of broader technological and market trends on the Company's business and prospects; general economic conditions and their impact on customer and end-user demand; and other risks and uncertainties included elsewhere in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"), including, without limitation, the final prospectus related to the IPO filed with the SEC on June 26, 2020. You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this press release. All forward-looking statements are qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement, and the Company undertakes no obligation to revise or update any forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof. About Agora, Inc. Agora, Inc. is the Cayman Islands holding company of two independent divisions, under Agora brand and Shengwang brand, respectively, whose businesses are conducted through separate entities. Headquartered in Santa Clara, California, Agora is a pioneer and global leader in Real-Time Engagement Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS), providing developers with simple, flexible, and powerful application programming interfaces, or APIs, to embed real-time voice, video, interactive live-streaming, chat, whiteboard, and artificial intelligence capabilities into their applications. Headquartered in Shanghai, China, Shengwang is a pioneer and leading Real-Time Engagement PaaS provider in the China market. For more information on Agora, please visit: www.agora.io For more information on Shengwang, please visit: www.shengwang.cn Agora, Inc. Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets (Unaudited, in US$ thousands) As of As of September 30, December 31, 2024 2023 Assets Current assets: Cash and cash equivalents 32,118 36,894 Short-term bank deposits 161,906 86,924 Short-term financial products issued by banks 106,638 84,853 Short-term investments 3,066 7,983 Accounts receivable, net 37,381 34,668 Prepayments and other current assets 21,087 9,059 Contract assets 1,127 1,048 Total current assets 363,323 261,429 Property and equipment, net 4,238 5,365 Construction in progress for the headquarters project 35,429 17,343 Operating lease right-of-use assets 4,476 4,011 Intangible assets 741 1,274 Long-term bank deposits 20,500 143,127 Long-term financial products issued by banks 41,400 20,000 Long-term investments 41,012 43,893 Land use right, net 166,434 167,246 Other non-current assets 13,943 10,907 Total assets 691,496 674,595 Liabilities and shareholders' equity Current liabilities: Accounts payable 15,196 12,996 Advances from customers 8,155 7,765 Taxes payable 1,686 906 Current operating lease liabilities 1,924 2,447 Accrued expenses and other current liabilities 32,148 32,780 Total current liabilities 59,109 56,894 Long-term operating lease liabilities 2,429 1,726 Deferred tax liabilities 113 196 Long-term borrowings for the headquarters project 33,762 11,027 Other non-current liabilities 19,543 3 Total liabilities 114,956 69,846 Shareholders' equity: Class A ordinary shares 39 39 Class B ordinary shares 8 8 Additional paid-in-capital 1,148,502 1,138,346 Treasury shares, at cost (77,316) (79,716) Accumulated other comprehensive loss (7,907) (10,027) Accumulated deficit (486,786) (443,901) Total shareholders' equity 576,540 604,749 Total liabilities and shareholders' equity 691,496 674,595 Agora, Inc. Condensed Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Loss (Unaudited, in US$ thousands, except share and per ADS amounts) Three Month Ended Nine Month Ended September 30, September 30, 2024 2023 2024 2023 Real-time engagement service revenues 30,356 32,718 95,716 100,798 Real-time engagement on-premise solution and other revenues 1,217 2,298 3,087 4,699 Total revenues 31,573 35,016 98,803 105,497 Cost of revenues 10,524 12,594 36,304 38,693 Gross profit 21,049 22,422 62,499 66,804 Operating expenses: Research and development 29,271 20,040 65,551 61,356 Sales and marketing 6,860 7,789 19,944 26,903 General and administrative 9,741 9,070 26,349 27,100 Total operating expenses 45,872 36,899 111,844 115,359 Other operating income 134 620 914 1,515 Impairment of goodwill - - - (31,928 ) Loss from operations (24,689 ) (13,857 ) (48,431 ) (78,968 ) Exchange gain (loss) 43 20 108 (191 ) Interest income 3,924 4,850 13,244 14,006 Interest expense (86 ) - (251 ) - Investment income (loss) 839 (13,356 ) (4,033 ) (18,497 ) Losses from extinguishment of convertible note - - - (1,230 ) Other income - - - 550 Loss before income taxes (19,969 ) (22,343 ) (39,363 ) (84,330 ) Income taxes - (164 ) (149 ) (323 ) (Losses) income from equity in affiliates (4,211 ) (6 ) (3,373 ) 45 Net loss (24,180 ) (22,513 ) (42,885 ) (84,608 ) Net loss attributable to ordinary shareholders (24,180 ) (22,513 ) (42,885 ) (84,608 ) Other comprehensive loss: Foreign currency translation adjustments 3,197 1,164 2,119 (6,097 ) Gain on available-for-sale debt securities - - - 1,385 Total comprehensive loss attributable to ordinary shareholders (20,983 ) (21,349 ) (40,766 ) (89,320 ) Net loss per ADS attributable to ordinary shareholders, basic and diluted (0.26 ) (0.23 ) (0.46 ) (0.84 ) Weighted-average shares used in computing net loss per ADS attributable to ordinary shareholders, basic and diluted 371,733,050 389,359,207 372,336,342 405,036,312 Share-based compensation expenses included in: Cost of revenues 31 129 184 576 Research and development expenses 10,776 3,769 15,886 10,668 Sales and marketing expenses 241 800 838 3,705 General and administrative expenses 2,599 1,945 4,332 5,953 Agora, Inc. Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows (Unaudited, in US$ thousands) Three Month Ended Nine Month Ended September 30, September 30, 2024 2023 2024 2023 Cash flows from operating activities: Net loss (24,180 ) (22,513 ) (42,885 ) (84,608 ) Adjustments to reconcile net loss to net cash used in operating activities: Share-based compensation expenses 13,647 6,643 21,240 20,902 Allowance for current expected credit losses 2,415 1,857 7,263 5,358 Depreciation of property and equipment 788 1,558 2,726 5,680 Amortization of intangible assets 131 345 533 1,036 Amortization of land use right 856 850 2,572 2,312 Deferred tax benefit (20 ) (53 ) (82 ) (159 ) Amortization of right-of-use asset and interest on lease liabilities 687 704 2,035 2,218 Investment (income) loss (839 ) 13,356 4,033 18,497 Losses from extinguishment of convertible note - - - 1,230 Interest income on debt securities and investments - - - (105 ) Losses (income) from equity in affiliates 4,211 6 3,373 (45 ) Loss (gain) on disposal of property and equipment 1 34 16 (10 ) Impairments of goodwill - - - 31,928 Changes in assets and liabilities, net of effect of acquisition: Accounts receivable (1,627 ) (4,503 ) (9,418 ) (7,856 ) Contract assets (38 ) (86 ) (67 ) (942 ) Prepayments and other current assets 347 (659 ) (12,129 ) (1,008 ) Other non-current assets (472 ) (2,104 ) 6,668 (5,160 ) Accounts payable (2,531 ) 2,653 2,042 3,639 Advances from customers (41 ) 100 316 (559 ) Taxes payable 107 31 761 (802 ) Operating lease liabilities (677 ) (324 ) (2,319 ) (1,869 ) Deferred income 256 - 62 (160 ) Accrued expenses and other liabilities 2,357 (928 ) (5,404 ) (6,808 ) Net cash used in operating activities (4,622 ) (3,033 ) (18,664 ) (17,291 ) Cash flows from investing activities: Purchase of property and equipment (1,333 ) (206 ) (2,297 ) (656 ) Purchase of short-term bank deposits - (58,000 ) (43,100 ) (187,521 ) Purchase of short-term financial products issued by banks (50,300 ) (19,525 ) (70,391 ) (29,899 ) Purchase of short-term investments - (789 ) - (789 ) Proceeds from maturity of short-term bank deposits 37,000 86,000 111,241 434,058 Proceeds from maturity of short-term financial products issued by banks 59,482 - 69,511 8,310 Purchase of long-term bank deposits (10,500 ) - (20,500 ) (143,127 ) Purchase of long-term financial products issued by banks (32,000 ) - (41,400 ) (20,000 ) Purchase of long-term investments (562 ) - (562 ) (15 ) Purchase of land use right - - - (5,133 ) Payment for the headquarters project (10,918 ) (1,839 ) (21,895 ) (4,326 ) Cash received for business disposal - - - 5,769 Cash received from disposal of property and equipment 2 36 58 87 Cash paid for a business combination - - - (3,680 ) Cash received from disposal of long-term investments 28 - 155 - Net cash (used in) provided by investing activities (9,101 ) 5,677 (19,180 ) 53,078 Cash flows from financing activities: Proceeds from long-term borrowings for headquarters project 11,123 - 22,177 - Deposits returned for business disposal - - - (1,000 ) Proceeds from exercise of employees' share options 175 74 550 590 Deposit received in relation to headquarters project - - 19,280 - Repurchase of Class A ordinary shares (3,913 ) (12,462 ) (9,667 ) (52,829 ) Net cash provided by (used in) financing activities 7,385 (12,388 ) 32,340 (53,239 ) Effect of foreign exchange rate changes on cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash 819 53 678 (1,286 ) Net decrease in cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash (5,519 ) (9,691 ) (4,826 ) (18,738 ) Cash balance recorded in held-for sale assets at beginning of period - - - 1,488 Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash at beginning of period * 37,867 38,268 37,174 45,827 Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash at end of period ** 32,348 28,577 32,348 28,577 Supplemental disclosure of cash flow information: Income taxes paid 24 33 133 65 Cash payments included in the measurement of operating lease liabilities 677 324 2,319 1,869 Right-of-use assets obtained in exchange for operating lease obligations 1,812 - 2,325 4,088 Non-cash financing and investing activities: Proceeds receivable from exercise of employees' share options 328 25 328 25 Payables for property and equipment 33 24 33 24 Payables for construction in progress for the headquarters project 11,614 6,458 11,614 6,458 Payables for treasury shares, at cost 24 301 24 301 * includes restricted cash balance 280 280 280 154 ** includes restricted cash balance 230 280 230 280 Agora, Inc. Reconciliation of GAAP to Non-GAAP Measures (Unaudited, in US$ thousands, except share and per ADS amounts) Three Month Ended Nine Month Ended September 30, September 30, 2024 2023 2024 2023 GAAP net loss (24,180 ) (22,513 ) (42,885 ) (84,608 ) Add: Share-based compensation expenses 13,647 6,643 21,240 20,902 Acquisition related expenses - 13 - (400 ) Amortization expenses of acquired intangible assets 129 345 531 1,035 Income tax related to acquired intangible assets (20 ) (53 ) (82 ) (159 ) Impairment of goodwill - - - 31,928 Non-GAAP net loss (10,424 ) (15,565 ) (21,196 ) (31,302 ) Net cash used in operating activities (4,622 ) (3,033 ) (18,664 ) (17,291 ) Purchase of property and equipment (1,333 ) (206 ) (2,297 ) (656 ) Free Cash Flow (5,955 ) (3,239 ) (20,961 ) (17,947 ) Net cash (used in) provided by investing activities (9,101 ) 5,677 (19,180 ) 53,078 Net cash provided by (used in) financing activities 7,385 (12,388 ) 32,340 (53,239 ) © 2024 Benzinga.com. 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