What the changes say
- 10x Genomics expanded risk disclosures around regulatory scrutiny of LDTs, clinical market entry, and evolving AI technologies.
- Macro and operational risks now emphasize currency volatility, geopolitical and tariff tensions with China, and customer funding uncertainty.
What changed since the prior 10-K
New
- NewRisks related to our business and industry
instruments. Additionally, revocations of the visas or legal statuses of international students could negatively impact our revenue as some affected individuals may be current or potential users or purchasers of our products
Revocations of international student visas or legal statuses could reduce demand for our instruments and products.
- NewRisks related to our business and industry
The success of our pricing strategy depends on numerous factors, many of which are outside our control. If we are unable to successfully execute our pricing strategy while maintaining our profitability, our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects may be materially and adversely affected
Delays or prioritization issues in developing new product versions could hinder our pricing strategy and financial performance.
- NewRisks related to our business and industry
If we are unable to successfully execute our strategy to enter the clinical and diagnostic markets, our business and growth prospects could be materially and adversely affected
Entering clinical and diagnostic markets exposes us to new regulatory hurdles, reimbursement uncertainties, and potential assay failure liabilities.
- NewRisks related to our business and industry
currency exposures and even if in the future we implement a program to hedge such exposures, we may not be successful in mitigating the effects of fluctuations in currency exchange rates
Currency fluctuations could increase local labor and operating costs, and future hedging programs might not mitigate these risks.
- NewRisks related to our business and industry
there can be no assurance that the usage of or our investments in such technologies will always enhance our products or services or be beneficial to our business, including our efficiency or profitability
Evolving regulations and market focus on AI technologies could create compliance uncertainties and divert investor attention from our business.
- NewRisks related to our regulatory environment and taxation
Our products could become subject to more onerous regulation by the FDA or other regulatory agencies in the future, which could increase our costs and delay or prevent commercialization of our products, thereby materially and adversely affecting our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects
Stricter FDA enforcement or reclassification of research-use-only products could increase compliance costs and delay commercialization.
- NewRisks related to our regulatory environment and taxation
Newly developed Laboratory Development Tests (LDTs) may be subject to new regulatory clearance or approval, and could result in adverse impacts to our business, financial condition, or results of operations
The FDA's LDT Rule released on April 29, 2024, may subject certain laboratory-developed tests using our products to new regulatory clearance requirements.
- NewRisks related to our intellectual property, information technology and data security
misappropriation of our patents, trademarks, data, technology and other intellectual property rights by others, and may not provide an adequate remedy if our intellectual property rights are infringed, misappropriated or otherwise violated by others
Failure by employees, suppliers, or scientific collaborators to maintain confidentiality before patent filing could jeopardize our intellectual property rights.
- NewRisks related to litigation and our intellectual property
and other third parties gaining access to the same intellectual property. Ultimately, if we are unable to obtain such licenses or make any necessary changes to our products or services, we could be forced to cease some aspect of our business operations, which could harm our business significantly
Adverse outcomes in patent infringement or trade secret litigation could force us to cease operations or pay significant legal costs.
Dropped
- DroppedRisks related to our business and industry
Our business is significantly dependent on researchers who rely heavily on government funding, including NIH grants, and any reduction in, modification of the terms of or delay in such funding could adversely affect our sales and financial performance
- DroppedRisks related to our business and industry
estimates and assumptions, including the assumption that government or other sources of funding will continue to be available to life sciences researchers at times and in amounts necessary to allow them to purchase our solutions
Dependence on government funding like NIH grants for academic customers.
- DroppedRisks related to our business and industry
again lead us, to carry higher inventory. Further, differences in purchasing patterns across our customer base could negatively impact our ability to accurately forecast demand
- DroppedRisks related to our business and industry
and the equipment we and our third-party manufacturers use to manufacture our instruments and consumables and that we use in our research and development programs would be costly to replace and could require substantial lead times to repair or replace
- DroppedRisks related to our intellectual property, information technology and data security
our ability to obtain new patents or to enforce patents that we own or that we might obtain or license in the future. An inability to obtain, enforce, and defend patents covering our proprietary technologies would materially and adversely affect our business prospects and financial condition
- DroppedRisks related to our intellectual property, information technology and data security
areas. It is possible that we will not be able to enforce our intellectual property rights against third parties that misappropriate our proprietary technology in those countries
Reworded
- 90% rewrittenRisks related to our business and industry
Undetected errors or defects in our solutions could harm our reputation and decrease market acceptance of our solutions
Removed reference to potential breach of contract claims for damages related to product errors or defects.
- 90% rewrittenRisks related to our business and industry
We use artificial intelligence (“AI”), machine learning and automated decision-making technologies (collectively, “AI Technologies”) in our business and are making targeted investments in this area
Truncated the discussion regarding AI technologies, removing specific mentions of evolving federal and state regulatory frameworks.
- 82% rewrittenRisks related to our business and industry
If our facilities or our third-party manufacturers’ facilities become unavailable or inoperable, our research and development programs could be adversely impacted and manufacturing of our instruments and consumables could be interrupted
Removed the detailed description of specific manufacturing locations like Pleasanton, Singapore, and Taiwan, as well as specific instrument assembly roles.
- 79% rewrittenRisks related to our intellectual property, information technology and data security
Our success will depend on our ability to obtain, maintain and protect our intellectual property rights
Slightly tightened phrasing around protecting intellectual property and achieving profitability without adding new constraints.
- 79% rewrittenRisks related to our business and industry
The size of the market for our solutions may be smaller than estimated and new opportunities may not develop as quickly as we expect, or at all, limiting our ability to successfully sell our solutions
Shortened the market size estimation risk factor by removing trailing sentences detailing underlying assumptions of addressable markets.
- 74% rewrittenRisks related to our business and industry
The number of our customers has grown significantly and such growth, as well as any future growth, will put additional pressure on our customer service organization. We may be unable to hire qualified staff quickly enough or to the extent necessary to accommodate increases in demand
Removed a paragraph discussing key business metrics and reliance on third-party distributors for customer service.
- 67% rewrittenRisks related to our intellectual property, information technology and data security
Obtaining and maintaining patent protection depends on compliance with various procedural, document submission, fee payment and other requirements imposed by governmental patent agencies, and our patent protection could be reduced or eliminated for non-compliance with these requirements
Removed 'U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, or USPTO' spelling out in favor of the abbreviation 'USPTO'.
- 66% rewrittenRisks related to our business and industry
Our business in China subjects us to unique commercial, operational, competitive and regulatory risks
Updated China risk text to reflect broader 2025 trade and export control tensions instead of specific 10% and 15% tariff figures.
- 61% rewrittenRisks related to our business and industry
Our operating results have in the past fluctuated significantly and may continue to fluctuate significantly in the future, which makes our future operating results difficult to predict and could cause our operating results to fall below expectations or any guidance we may provide
- 60% rewrittenRisks related to our business and industry
Trade tariffs, import restrictions, export restrictions, Chinese regulations or other trade barriers may materially harm our business
Was: Enhanced trade tariffs, import restrictions, export restrictions, Chinese regulations or other trade barriers may materially harm our business
- 59% rewrittenRisks related to litigation and our intellectual property
We may become a party to intellectual property litigation or administrative proceedings that could be expensive, time-consuming, unsuccessful, and could interfere with our ability to develop, manufacture and commercialize our products or technologies
- 51% rewrittenRisks related to our business and industry
Our results of operations could be materially adversely affected by fluctuations in currency exchange rates
Was: Our results of operations could be materially adversely affected by fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates
- 47% rewrittenRisks related to our business and industry
The illegal distribution and sale by third parties of stolen, counterfeit or unfit versions of our products could have a negative impact on our reputation and business
- 45% rewrittenRisks related to our business and industry
Our failure to effectively manage product transitions or accurately forecast customer demand could result in excess or obsolete inventory and resulting charges
- 44% rewrittenRisks related to our intellectual property, information technology and data security
We collect, process, store, share, disclose and use personal information and other data, which subjects us to governmental regulations and other legal obligations related to privacy and security, and our actual or perceived failure to comply with such obligations could harm our business
- 39% rewrittenRisks related to our business and industry
Price reductions, discounting or future price changes may negatively impact our financial results if we are unable to achieve offsetting benefits
- 39% rewrittenRisks related to our regulatory environment and taxation
We are subject to risks related to taxation in multiple jurisdictions and changes in tax laws or regulations that are applied adversely to us or our customers may have a material adverse effect on our business, cash flow, financial condition or results of operations
- 27% rewrittenRisks related to our business and industry
Our past or future efforts to maintain and increase the effectiveness of our commercial organization may not succeed
- 23% rewrittenRisks related to our business and industry
Certain disruptions in supply of, and changes in the competitive environment for, raw materials integral to the manufacturing of our products may adversely affect our profitability
- 22% rewrittenRisks related to our business and industry
We have incurred significant losses since inception, we expect to incur losses in the future and we may not be able to generate sufficient revenue to achieve and maintain cash flows from operating activities in excess of our capital investment requirements or profitability
- 20% rewrittenRisks related to our business and industry
Our business currently depends significantly on research and development spending by research institutions, a reduction in which could limit demand for our products and materially and adversely affect our business and operating results
All 75 risk factors
Headings as the filing states them, in filing order.
Risks related to our business and industry
- 01Our operating results have in the past fluctuated significantly and may continue to fluctuate significantly in the future, which makes our future operating results difficult to predict and could cause our operating results to fall below expectations or any guidance we may provide61% rewritten
- 02instruments. Additionally, revocations of the visas or legal statuses of international students could negatively impact our revenue as some affected individuals may be current or potential users or purchasers of our productsNew
- 03Our industry is highly competitive. If we fail to compete effectively, our business and operating results will suffer
- 04In addition, other competitors are in the process of developing novel technologies which may lead to products that rival or replace our products. We expect new competitors to continue to emerge and the intensity of competition with both new and existing competitors to continue to increase
- 05Price reductions, discounting or future price changes may negatively impact our financial results if we are unable to achieve offsetting benefits39% rewritten
- 06The success of our pricing strategy depends on numerous factors, many of which are outside our control. If we are unable to successfully execute our pricing strategy while maintaining our profitability, our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects may be materially and adversely affectedNew
- 07Our failure to effectively manage product transitions or accurately forecast customer demand could result in excess or obsolete inventory and resulting charges45% rewritten
- 08Our business currently depends significantly on research and development spending by research institutions, a reduction in which could limit demand for our products and materially and adversely affect our business and operating results20% rewritten
- 09If we are unable to successfully execute our strategy to enter the clinical and diagnostic markets, our business and growth prospects could be materially and adversely affectedNew
- 10Trade tariffs, import restrictions, export restrictions, Chinese regulations or other trade barriers may materially harm our business60% rewritten
- 11Our future success is dependent upon our ability to increase penetration in our existing customer segments
- 12Our past or future efforts to maintain and increase the effectiveness of our commercial organization may not succeed27% rewritten
- 13The size of the market for our solutions may be smaller than estimated and new opportunities may not develop as quickly as we expect, or at all, limiting our ability to successfully sell our solutions79% rewritten
- 14We have incurred significant losses since inception, we expect to incur losses in the future and we may not be able to generate sufficient revenue to achieve and maintain cash flows from operating activities in excess of our capital investment requirements or profitability22% rewritten
- 15Our products generate large-scale complex data which requires advanced analytics to interpret
- 16We may be unable to consistently manufacture our instruments and consumables to the necessary specifications or in quantities necessary to meet demand at an acceptable cost or at an acceptable performance level
- 17An inability to manufacture products and components that consistently meet specifications, in necessary quantities and at commercially acceptable costs will have a negative impact and may have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations
- 18Undetected errors or defects in our solutions could harm our reputation and decrease market acceptance of our solutions90% rewritten
- 19We are significantly dependent upon revenue generated from the sale of our Chromium solutions, and in particular our Universal Gene Expression and Flex solutions
- 20Doing business internationally creates operational and financial risks for our business
- 21Our business in China subjects us to unique commercial, operational, competitive and regulatory risks66% rewritten
- 22We and our customers are dependent on single source and sole source suppliers for some of the equipment, components and materials used in our products and in conjunction with our products and the loss of any of these suppliers could harm our business
- 23Certain disruptions in supply of, and changes in the competitive environment for, raw materials integral to the manufacturing of our products may adversely affect our profitability23% rewritten
- 24Our limited operating history and fluctuations in revenue make it difficult to evaluate our future prospects and the risks and challenges we may encounter
- 25If we do not sustain or successfully manage our growth and anticipated growth, our business and prospects will be harmed
- 26If our existing and new products or new versions of existing products fail to achieve and sustain sufficient scientific acceptance, we will not generate expected revenue and our prospects may be harmed
- 27Our results of operations could be materially adversely affected by fluctuations in currency exchange rates51% rewritten
- 28currency exposures and even if in the future we implement a program to hedge such exposures, we may not be successful in mitigating the effects of fluctuations in currency exchange ratesNew
- 29We depend on our key personnel and other highly qualified personnel, and if we are unable to recruit, train, retain and ensure the health and safety of our personnel, we may not achieve our goals
- 30If our facilities or our third-party manufacturers’ facilities become unavailable or inoperable, our research and development programs could be adversely impacted and manufacturing of our instruments and consumables could be interrupted82% rewritten
- 31We rely exclusively on commercial carriers to transport our products, including perishable consumables, to our customers in a timely and cost-efficient manner and if delivery of our products is disrupted, our business will be harmed
- 32Costs or other factors related to our facilities and real estate could adversely impact our business
- 33If we fail to offer high-quality customer service, our business and reputation could suffer
- 34The number of our customers has grown significantly and such growth, as well as any future growth, will put additional pressure on our customer service organization. We may be unable to hire qualified staff quickly enough or to the extent necessary to accommodate increases in demand74% rewritten
- 35Investments and acquisitions could disrupt our business, cause dilution to our stockholders and otherwise harm our business
- 36Seasonality may cause fluctuations in our revenue and results of operations
- 37Our reliance on distributors for sales of our products in certain geographies outside of the United States could limit or prevent us from selling our products and impact our revenue
- 38Uncertain economic or social conditions may adversely impact demand for our products or cause our customers, vendors and suppliers to suffer financial hardship, which could adversely impact our business
- 39Inflationary pressures, and changes in foreign currency exchange rates, interest rates and market value of our investments, including marketable securities, could have a significant effect on results
- 40We use artificial intelligence (“AI”), machine learning and automated decision-making technologies (collectively, “AI Technologies”) in our business and are making targeted investments in this area90% rewritten
- 41there can be no assurance that the usage of or our investments in such technologies will always enhance our products or services or be beneficial to our business, including our efficiency or profitabilityNew
- 42If we fail to maintain an effective system of disclosure controls and internal control over financial reporting, our ability to produce timely and accurate financial statements or comply with applicable regulations could be impaired
- 43The illegal distribution and sale by third parties of stolen, counterfeit or unfit versions of our products could have a negative impact on our reputation and business47% rewritten
- 44The investment of marketable securities is subject to risks which may cause losses and affect the liquidity of these investments
- 45Indebtedness may impair our financial and operating flexibility
Risks related to our regulatory environment and taxation
- 46Our products could become subject to more onerous regulation by the FDA or other regulatory agencies in the future, which could increase our costs and delay or prevent commercialization of our products, thereby materially and adversely affecting our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospectsNew
- 47Newly developed Laboratory Development Tests (LDTs) may be subject to new regulatory clearance or approval, and could result in adverse impacts to our business, financial condition, or results of operationsNew
- 48We are subject to risks related to taxation in multiple jurisdictions and changes in tax laws or regulations that are applied adversely to us or our customers may have a material adverse effect on our business, cash flow, financial condition or results of operations39% rewritten
- 49Our ability to use net operating losses to offset future taxable income may be subject to certain limitations
- 50Ethical, legal, privacy and social concerns or governmental restrictions surrounding the use of the genomic and multiomic information and gene editing could reduce demand for our products
Risks related to our intellectual property, information technology and data security
- 51Our success will depend on our ability to obtain, maintain and protect our intellectual property rights79% rewritten
- 52misappropriation of our patents, trademarks, data, technology and other intellectual property rights by others, and may not provide an adequate remedy if our intellectual property rights are infringed, misappropriated or otherwise violated by othersNew
- 53If we cannot successfully enforce our intellectual property rights, the commercial value of our products and technologies will be adversely affected and our competitive position may be harmed
- 54We may be subject to claims challenging the inventorship or ownership of our patents and other intellectual property rights
- 55We depend on certain intellectual property rights that are licensed to us. We may be unsuccessful in licensing or acquiring intellectual property rights from third parties that may be necessary to develop, manufacture and/or commercialize our current and/or future products or technologies
- 56In addition to patent protection, we also rely on other intellectual property rights, including protection of copyright, trade secrets, know-how and/or other proprietary information that is not patentable or that we elect not to patent
- 57We may be subject to claims that we or our employees have misappropriated the intellectual property rights of a third party, including trade secrets or know-how, or are in breach of non-competition or non-solicitation agreements with our competitors
- 58Obtaining and maintaining patent protection depends on compliance with various procedural, document submission, fee payment and other requirements imposed by governmental patent agencies, and our patent protection could be reduced or eliminated for non-compliance with these requirements67% rewritten
- 59Intellectual property rights do not necessarily address all potential threats to our competitive advantage
- 60If our trademarks and trade names are not adequately protected, we may not be able to build name recognition in our markets of interest and our competitive position may be harmed
- 61Our solutions contain third-party open source software components and failure to comply with the terms of the underlying open source software licenses could restrict our ability to sell our products
- 62We collect, process, store, share, disclose and use personal information and other data, which subjects us to governmental regulations and other legal obligations related to privacy and security, and our actual or perceived failure to comply with such obligations could harm our business44% rewritten
- 63If we or our critical third-party providers experience a significant disruption in our information technology systems or breaches of data security, our business could be adversely affected
- 64We rely on on-premise, co-located and third-party data centers and platforms to host our website and other online services, as well as for research and development purposes and any interruptions of service or failures may impair and harm our business
- 65We are subject to certain manufacturing restrictions related to licensed intellectual property rights that were developed with the financial assistance of United States government grants
Risks related to litigation and our intellectual property
- 66We may become a party to intellectual property litigation or administrative proceedings that could be expensive, time-consuming, unsuccessful, and could interfere with our ability to develop, manufacture and commercialize our products or technologies59% rewritten
- 67and other third parties gaining access to the same intellectual property. Ultimately, if we are unable to obtain such licenses or make any necessary changes to our products or services, we could be forced to cease some aspect of our business operations, which could harm our business significantlyNew
- 68We are involved in lawsuits to protect, enforce or defend our patents and other intellectual property rights, which are expensive, time consuming and could ultimately be unsuccessful
Risks related to ownership of our Class A common stock
- 69Sales of a substantial number of shares of our Class A common stock by our existing stockholders could cause the price of our Class A common stock to decline
- 70The multi-class structure of our common stock has the effect of concentrating voting control with those stockholders who held our capital stock prior to the completion of our IPO, including our co-founders, and may depress the trading price of our Class A common stock
- 71Delaware law and provisions in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and amended and restated bylaws might discourage, delay or prevent a change in control of our company or changes in our management and, therefore, depress the trading price of our Class A common stock
- 72We may fail to meet our publicly announced guidance or other expectations about our business, which could cause our stock price to decline
- 73The market price of our Class A common stock may be volatile, which could result in substantial losses for investors
- 74Securities analysts may not publish favorable research or reports about our business or may publish no information at all, which could cause our stock price or trading volume to decline
- 75We have incurred and will continue to incur increased costs as a result of operating as a public company, and our management will be required to devote substantial time to compliance initiatives and corporate governance practices, including maintaining an effective system of internal controls over financial reporting
Other 10x Genomics 10-Ks
- FY2024 10-K risk factors72 risks
10x Genomics faces heavy reliance on academic customers and government funding like NIH grants. Operations suffer from significant ongoing net losses, reaching $182.6 million in 2024. The business depends heavily on manufacturing single-cell Chromium platforms and managing international supply chains.
Filed Feb 13, 2025
About this page
The headings are the filing's own. The one-line readings and the overview are automated and can be wrong: read Item 1A of the 10-K for the exact wording.