Company: CERO
Filing Date: 2025-04-15
Form Type: 10-K
Source: 0001213900-25-032134
Chunk: 1618

Company: CERO THERAPEUTICS HOLDINGS, INC.
Filing Date: 2025-04-15
Form: 10-K
Item: Item 1A
Chunk 1618
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 we may develop. Competitive products and product
candidates may make any product we develop obsolete or noncompetitive before we recover the expense of developing and commercializing
such product. Such competitors could also recruit our employees, which could negatively impact our level of expertise and our ability
to execute our business plan.

These competitors also compete
with us in recruiting and retaining qualified scientific and management personnel and establishing clinical study sites and patient registration
for clinical studies, as well as in acquiring technologies complementary to, or necessary for, our programs. Smaller or early-stage companies
may also prove to be significant competitors, particularly through collaborative arrangements with large and established companies.

Our commercial opportunity
could be reduced or eliminated if our competitors develop and commercialize products that are safer, more effective, have fewer or less
severe side effects, are more convenient or are less expensive or better reimbursed than any products that we may commercialize. Our competitors
also may obtain FDA, EMA or other regulatory approval for their products more rapidly than we may obtain approval for ours, which could
result in our competitors establishing a strong market position for either the product or a specific indication before we are able to
enter the market.

We are highly dependent on our key personnel,
including individuals with expertise in cell therapy development and manufacturing, and if we are not successful in attracting and retaining
highly qualified personnel, we may not be able to successfully implement our business strategy.

Our ability to compete in the highly competitive biotechnology and
pharmaceutical industries depends upon our ability to attract and retain highly qualified managerial, scientific and medical personnel.
We are highly dependent on the expertise of our management, scientific and medical personnel, including our chief executive officer (“Chief
Executive Officer”), Chris Ehrlich, our chief development officer (“Chief Development Officer”), Kristen Pierce, our
chief financial officer (“Chief Financial Officer”), Andrew “Al” Kucharchuk and the head of our scientific advisory
board, Lawrence Corey. The loss of the services of any of our executive officers, other key employees, and other scientific and medical
advisors, and our inability to find suitable replacements could result in delays in product development and harm our business.

We conduct substantially
all of our operations at our facilities in the South San Francisco area. The San Francisco Bay Area region is headquarters to many other
biopharmaceutical companies and many academic and research institutions. Competition for skilled personnel in our market is intense and
may limit our ability to hire and retain highly qualified personnel on acceptable terms or at all