Company: IPGP
Filing Date: 2025-02-20
Form Type: 10-K
Source: 0001111928-25-000023
Chunk: 81

Company: IPG PHOTONICS CORP
Filing Date: 2025-02-20
Form: 10-K
Item: Item 1A
Chunk 81
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We are highly dependent on the significant experience and specialized expertise of our senior management and scientific staff.  The unavailability or loss of one or more of these key employees or our failure to attract other highly skilled personnel necessary to compete successfully could harm our business and results of operations.

Our future success is substantially dependent on the continued service and performance of our executive officers. Although the board engages in executive succession planning, our inability to effectively and immediately transition knowledge or responsibilities to successors in the event of an unexpected absence or departure could harm our business and disrupt our operations. We also rely on our highly trained team of scientists, many of whom have numerous years of experience and specialized expertise in optical fibers, semiconductors and optical component technology, and other key engineering, sales, marketing, manufacturing and support personnel, any of whom may depart for a variety of reasons, which could harm our business. Competition for qualified personnel in our industry is intense, particularly for physicists, software engineers and other technical staff. If we fail to attract, integrate and retain the necessary personnel, it could delay the development or introduction of new products, negatively impact our ability to market, sell or support our products, and significantly harm our business.

Risks Relating to Intellectual Property, Litigation, Information Systems and Regulations

We are subject to litigation alleging that we infringe third-party intellectual property rights. Intellectual property claims could result in costly litigation and harm our business.

There has been significant litigation involving intellectual property rights in many technology-based industries, including our own. We face risks and uncertainties in connection with such litigation, including the risk that patents issued to others may harm our ability to do business; that there could be existing patents of which we are unaware that could be pertinent to our business; and that it is not possible for us to know whether there are patent applications pending that our products might infringe upon. Moreover, the frequency with which new patents are granted and the diversity of jurisdictions in which they are granted make it impractical and expensive for us to monitor all patents that may be relevant to our business.

From time to time, we have been notified of allegations and claims that we may be infringing patents or intellectual property rights owned by third parties. We have defended against several patent infringement claims in the past and we engage in patent office opposition proceedings internationally for patents owned by others. In December 2024, affiliates of Trumpf SE & Co. KG filed two different patent lawsuits in two different Unified Patent Courts located in Germany against IPG Laser GmbH & Co. KG, our German subsidiary