Company: SERV
Filing Date: 2025-03-06
Form Type: 10-K
Source: 0001832483-25-000010
Chunk: 50

Company: Serve Robotics Inc. /DE/
Filing Date: 2025-03-06
Form: 10-K
Item: Item 1
Chunk 50
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 are generally allowed to operate on most sidewalks by default. Over twenty states and a number of cities have put in place legal frameworks to explicitly permit the use of delivery robots. The instances of cities welcoming delivery robots far exceed the few examples in which their operations were banned. This positive regulatory momentum for delivery robots may be due to a number of factors:

•Robots Inherently Safer: Cars carry over 1,000 times more kinetic energy than robots. As a result of having much lower kinetic energy, robots do not pose the same risk for injury or fatality that cars do. Meanwhile, cars injure and kill thousands of pedestrians and cyclists each year. Removing unnecessary car trips can make cities safer for pedestrians and cyclists.

•Robots Reduce Emissions: Many cities have established targets for reducing carbon emissions, and robots can help advance their environmental initiatives.

•Robots Reduce Congestion: Deliveries often originate in high traffic regions where restaurants and shops tend to be located. As a result, removing delivery car traffic can reduce congestion and parking issues in cities.

•Robots Reduce Delivery Cost for Local Merchants: Recently, a number of cities have implemented restrictions on how much delivery platforms can charge restaurants for their services. Robots can offer a cheaper alternative to help local restaurants and merchants reduce their delivery costs.

We are subject to various federal, state and local laws and regulations that govern aspects of our business operations. While costs associated with compliance with laws and regulations have increased as the number and scope of regulations have increased, the total costs incurred have not had, and are not expected to have, a material effect on our capital expenditures, results of operations or competitive position. See “Risk Factors” in Item 1A for discussion of risks relating to federal, state, local and international laws and regulations applicable to our business.

Intellectual Property

Our success and ability to compete are significantly dependent on our core technology and intellectual property. We currently have 18 active patent matters in various jurisdictions: China (1 patent), the United States (12 patents), and Canada (5 patents).

We have thus far been granted 11 of the 18 patents for which we have applied — 6 in the United States, 4 in Canada and 1 in China. Our granted patents will expire between May 2029 and June 2039, assuming that all maintenance fees are paid, no portion of the patent has been terminally disclaimed and the patent has not been invalidated. In certain jurisdictions, and in certain circumstances, patent terms can be extended or shortened.