Company: ALGN
Filing Date: 2025-02-28
Form Type: 10-K
Source: 0001097149-25-000012
Chunk: 49

Company: ALIGN TECHNOLOGY INC
Filing Date: 2025-02-28
Form: 10-K
Item: Item 1A
Chunk 49
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To stimulate product and services demand, we have a history of offering volume discounts, price reductions, and other promotions to targeted customers and consumers and releasing lower priced products. These promotional campaigns and lower-priced products have had, and may in the future have, unexpected and unintended consequences, including reduced net revenues, gross margins, operating margin and net income, ASPs and volume.

Competition in the markets for our products and services is increasing and we expect aggressive competition from existing competitors, other companies that introduce new technologies, products or services in the future, and customers who alone or with others create orthodontic appliances and solutions or other products or services that compete with us.

The dental industry is experiencing immense and rapid digital transformation. While solutions such as the Invisalign System, iTero intraoral scanners, CAD/CAM software and digital platform facilitate this transition, we face competition from companies that seek to introduce new technologies and products and companies that remain dedicated to traditional products. We may be unable to compete with these competitors or they may render our technology or products obsolete or economically 

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unattractive, particularly as competitors incorporate AI and machine learning into new or existing services and technologies that facilitate changes in doctor-patient interactions, expectations and treatment workflows. We may be unable to devote adequate financial resources to develop or acquire new AI technologies and systems in the future and sufficiently meet evolving industry trends and consumer demands.

The number and types of competitors we face are diverse and growing rapidly. The Invisalign System competes primarily against traditional wires and brackets and increasingly with clear aligners manufactured and distributed by new market entrants and existing competitors, including traditional medical device companies, laboratories, startups and, in some cases, doctors and DSOs. Our competitors also include DTC companies that provide clear aligners using a business model requiring little or no in-office care from trained and licensed doctors, and doctors and DSOs who manufacture custom aligners in their offices using 3D printing technology. Large consumer product companies may also start supplying orthodontic products. Orthodontists, GPs and DSOs have and may continue to sample competitive and alternative products and take advantage of competitive promotions and sale opportunities. 

Our iTero intraoral scanners are also facing increased competition from new and existing competitors. Our scanners compete with polyvinyl siloxane impressions and numerous new or existing intraoral scanners, as well as traditional bite wing 2D dental x-rays for detecting interproximal caries. We have and may continue to experience competition with our scanners by competitors who