The Company considers all highly liquid investments with an original maturity of three months or less as cash equivalents. The Company does not have any cash equivalents at March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023. 

Customer accounts are monitored for potential credit losses based upon management’s assessment of expected collectability and the allowance for doubtful accounts is reviewed periodically to assess the adequacy of the allowance. In making this assessment, management takes into consideration any circumstances of which the Company is aware regarding a customer’s inability to meet its financial obligations to the Company, and any potential prevailing economic conditions and their impact on the Company’s customers. The Company had no allowance for doubtful accounts and $982 in allowance for doubtful accounts at March 31, 2024, and December 31, 2023, respectively.

Inventory is comprised of component parts and finished product and is valued at the lower of cost or net realizable value. The cost of substantially all the Company’s inventory is determined by the FIFO cost method. The Company evaluates the valuation of inventory and periodically adjusts the value for estimated excess based upon estimates of future demand and market conditions, and obsolete inventory based upon otherwise damaged or impaired goods. The Company had no reserves for obsolescence at March 31, 2024, and December 31, 2023.

Amounts incurred in advance of contractual performance or coverage periods are recorded as prepaid assets and recognized as expense in the period service or coverage is provided.  

As discussed under “Recently Adopted Accounting Standards” in Note 1, the Company adopted ASU 2020-06 effective January 1, 2023, which, among other things, eliminated the beneficial conversion feature model applicable to certain convertible instruments. Prior to the adoption of ASU 2020-06, a beneficial conversion feature existed on the date a convertible note is issued when the fair value of the underlying common stock to which the note is convertible into is in excess of the remaining unallocated proceeds of the note after first considering the allocation of a portion of the note proceeds to the fair value of the warrants, if related warrants have been granted. The intrinsic value of the beneficial conversion feature was recorded as a debt discount with a corresponding amount to additional paid-in capital. The debt discount was amortized to interest expense over the life of the note using the effective interest method.

The Company evaluates its financial instruments to determine if such instruments are derivatives or contain features that qualify as embedded derivatives. The classification of derivative instruments, including whether such instruments should be recorded as liabilities or as equity, is evaluated at the end of each reporting period. Derivative instrument liabilities are classified in the balance sheet as current or non-current based on whether net-cash settlement of the derivative instrument could be required within twelve months of the balance sheet date. For derivative financial instruments that are accounted for as liabilities, the derivative instruments are initially recorded at their fair values and are then re-valued at each reporting date, with changes in fair value reported in the unaudited condensed consolidated statements of operations under other income (expense). The company had no derivative instruments as of March 31, 2024.

Debt issuance costs incurred in connection with the issuance of debt are capitalized and amortized to interest expense over the term of the debt using the effective interest method. The unamortized amount is presented as a reduction of debt on the balance sheet.

Preferred shares subject to mandatory redemption (if any) are classified as liability instruments and are measured at fair value. The Company classifies conditionally redeemable preferred shares (if any), which includes preferred shares that feature redemption rights that are either within the control of the holder or subject to redemption upon the occurrence of uncertain events not solely within our control, as temporary equity. At all other times, we classify our preferred shares in stockholders’ equity.

A subsidiary of the Company has minority members representing ownership interests of 1.4% at March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023. The Company accounts for this noncontrolling interest whereby gains and losses in a subsidiary with a noncontrolling interest are allocated to the noncontrolling interest based on the ownership percentage of the noncontrolling interest, even if that allocation results in a deficit noncontrolling interest balance.

Long-lived assets and identifiable intangibles held for use are reviewed for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount may not be recoverable. If the sum of undiscounted expected future cash flows is less than the carrying amount of the asset or if changes in facts and circumstances indicate, an impairment loss is recognized and measured using the asset’s fair value. No impairment loss was recognized during the three-month periods ended March 31, 2024, and 2023, respectively.

The Company enters contracts with customers and generates revenue through various combinations of software products and services which include the sale of cloud-based software solutions, detection and data collection hardware devices, and cloud-based data reporting and analysis services. Depending on the combination of products and services detailed in the respective customer contract, the identifiable components may be highly interdependent and interrelated with each other such that each is required to provide the substance of the value of the Company’s offering and accounted for as a combined performance obligation, or the specific components may be generally distinct and accounted for as separate performance obligations. Revenue is recognized when control of these software products and/or services are transferred to the customer in an amount that reflects the consideration the Company expects to be entitled in exchange for these respective services and devices.

The Company determines revenue recognition through five steps which include (1) identification of the contract or contracts with a customer, (2) identification of individual or combined performance obligations contained in the contract, (3) determination of the transaction price detailed within the contract, (4) allocation of the transaction price to the specific performance obligations, and (5) finally, recognition of revenue as the Company’s performance obligations are satisfied according to the terms of the contract.

Contracts with a Single License/Service Performance Obligation

For contracts with a single performance obligation consisting of a license and/or data services, the entire transaction price is allocated to the single performance obligation. Where the Company provides a performance obligation as licensed software or data services, revenue is recognized upon delivery of the software or services ratably over the respective term of the contract.

Contracts for Purchase of Hardware Devices Only

Where hardware devices are sold separately by the Company, the entire transaction price is allocated to the device as an individual performance obligation and revenue recognized at a point in time when either legal title, physical possession or the risks and rewards of ownership have transferred to the customer. Generally, these requirements are satisfied at the point in time the Company ships the product, as this is when the customer obtains control of the asset under SOBR’s standard terms and conditions of the purchase.

The Company determines if an arrangement is or contains a lease at inception. Leases with an initial term of twelve months or less are considered short-term leases and are not recognized on the Company’s unaudited condensed consolidated balance sheet. Right-of-use (“ROU”) assets and liabilities are recognized on the unaudited condensed consolidated balance sheet for leases with an expected term greater than twelve months. Operating lease ROU assets represent our right to use an underlying asset over the lease term and lease liabilities represent our obligation to make lease payments arising from the lease. Operating lease ROU assets and liabilities are recognized at inception based on the present value of lease payments over the lease term. When the rate implicit in the lease is not determinable, the Company uses its estimated secured incremental borrowing rate in determining the present value of lease payments. The lease expense for fixed lease payments is recorded on a straight-line basis over the lease term and variable lease payments are included in the lease expense when the obligation for those payments is incurred. The Company has elected not to separate lease and non-lease components.

The Company uses the fair-value based method to determine compensation for all arrangements under which employees and others receive shares of stock or equity instruments (warrants, options, and restricted stock units). The fair value of each warrant and option is estimated on the date of grant using the Black-Scholes options pricing model that uses assumptions for expected volatility, expected dividends, expected term, and the risk-free interest rate. The Company has not paid dividends historically and does not expect to pay them in the future. Expected volatilities are based on weighted averages of the historical volatility of the Company’s common stock estimated over the expected term of the awards. The expected term of options granted is derived using the “simplified method” which computes expected term as the average of the sum of the vesting term plus the contract term as historically the Company had limited activity surrounding its awards. The risk-free rate is based on the U.S. Treasury yield curve in effect at the time of grant for the period of the expected term.  The grant date fair value of a restricted stock unit equals the closing price of our common stock on the trading day of the grant date.

Research and development costs are expensed as incurred. The Company incurred research and development costs as it acquired new knowledge to bring about significant improvements in the functionality, and design of its products and software.

Advertising and marketing costs are charged to operations as incurred.  Advertising and marketing costs were $52,847 and $21,301 during the three-month periods ended March 31, 2024, and 2023, respectively.    

Deferred taxes are provided on an asset and liability method whereby deferred tax assets are recognized for deductible temporary differences and operating loss carry forwards and deferred tax liabilities are recognized for taxable temporary differences. Temporary differences are the differences between the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and their tax bases. Deferred tax assets are reduced by a valuation allowance when, in the opinion of management, it is more likely than not that some portion or all of the deferred tax assets will not be realized. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are adjusted for the effects of changes in tax laws and rates on the date of enactment. The Company has not recorded any deferred tax assets or liabilities at March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023 as these have been offset by a 100% valuation allowance.

Basic loss per share is computed by dividing the net loss attributable to common stockholders by the weighted average number of shares of common stock outstanding during the period.  Diluted loss per share gives the effect to all dilutive potential common shares outstanding during the period, including stock options, restricted stock units, warrants and convertible instruments.  Diluted net loss per share excludes all potentially issuable shares if their effect is anti-dilutive.  Because the effect of the Company’s dilutive securities is anti-dilutive, diluted net loss per share is the same as basic loss per share for the periods presented.

The following table summarizes potential dilutive securities outstanding at the end of each reporting period that were excluded from the calculation of diluted net loss per share as including them would have been anti-dilutive for the three months ended March 31, 2024 and 2023:

Credit Risk – Financial instruments that potentially subject the Company to concentration of credit risk consisted primarily of cash. The Company maintains its cash at two domestic financial institutions. The Company is exposed to credit risk in the event of a default by the financial institutions to the extent that cash balances are in excess of the amount insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation of up to $250,000 per institution. The Company places its cash with high-credit quality financial institutions and are managed within established guidelines to mitigate risk. To date, the Company has not experienced any loss on its cash.

Concentration of Customers – To date, the Company’s sales have been made to a limited number of customers. Should the Company continue to conduct sales to a limited number of customers and remain highly concentrated, revenue may experience significant period to period shifts and may decline if the Company were to lose one or more of its customers, or if the Company were unable to obtain new customers.

Related parties are any entities or individuals that, through employment, ownership, or other means, possess the ability to direct or cause the direction of the management and policies of the Company.

In August 2020, the FASB issued ASU 2020-06, Debt—Debt with Conversion and Other Options (Subtopic 470-20) and Derivatives and Hedging—Contracts in Entity’s Own Equity (Subtopic 815-40): Accounting for Convertible Instruments and Contracts in an Entity’s Own Equity (“ASU 2020-06”) which simplifies the accounting for convertible instruments by eliminating the beneficial conversion and cash conversion accounting models. In addition, ASU 2020-06 removes certain settlement conditions required for equity contracts to qualify for the derivative scope exception and simplifies the diluted earnings per share calculation in certain areas. Comparative periods have not been restated and continue to be reported under the account standard in effect for those periods.

The Company early adopted ASU 2020-06 effective January 1, 2023, using the modified retrospective method whereby the cumulative effect of the change is recognized as an adjustment to the opening balance of retained earnings at the date of adoption. On January 1, 2023, the Company recorded an increase to retained earnings (accumulated deficit) of $776,569 and a decrease to additional paid-in-capital of $909,214 to fully remove the unamortized debt discount related to beneficial conversion features of $132,646.

The Company has reviewed other recently issued, but not yet effective, accounting pronouncements and does not believe the future adoptions of any such pronouncements will be expected to cause a material impact on its financial condition or the results of operations.

Certain prior period amounts have been reclassified to conform with the current period presentation. None of these reclassifications had a material impact on the unaudited consolidated financial statements.