EX-10.18





 Exhibit 10.18 

ARTERIS INC. 
 NON-EMPLOYEE DIRECTOR COMPENSATION PROGRAM 
 This Arteris Inc. (the “Company”) Non-Employee Director Compensation Program (this “Program”) has been adopted under the Company’s 2021 Incentive Award Plan (the “Plan”) and shall be effective
upon the date of the effectiveness of the registration statement on Form S-1 filed by the Company with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission that registers existing capital stock of the Company for
resale (the “IPO”). Capitalized terms not otherwise defined herein shall have the meaning ascribed in the Plan. 
 Cash
Compensation 
 Effective upon the IPO, annual retainers will be paid in the following amounts to
Non-Employee Directors: 
 Board Service 

 

					
	 Non-Employee Director:
	  	$	50,000	 

 Additional Board Service 
  

					
	 Lead Independent Director:
	  	$	25,000	 

 Additional Committee Service 
  

									
	 	  	Chair	 	  	Non-Chair	 
	 Audit Committee Member
	  	$	20,000	 	  	$	10,000	 
	 Compensation Committee Member
	  	$	15,000	 	  	$	7,500	 
	 Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee Member
	  	$	10,000	 	  	$	5,000	 

 All annual retainers will be paid in cash quarterly in arrears promptly following the end of the applicable calendar quarter,
but in no event more than 30 days after the end of such quarter. If a Non-Employee Director does not serve as a Non-Employee Director, or in the applicable positions
described above, for an entire calendar quarter, the retainer paid to such Non-Employee Director shall be prorated for the portion of such calendar quarter actually served as a
Non-Employee Director, or in such position, as applicable. 
 Election to Receive Restricted Stock Units
(“RSUs”) In Lieu of Annual Retainers 
  

			
	General:	  	 The Board or the Compensation Committee may, in its discretion, provide Non-Employee Directors with
the opportunity to elect to convert all or a portion of their annual retainers into awards of RSUs (“Retainer RSU Awards”) granted under the Plan or any other applicable Company equity incentive plan then-maintained by the
Company, with each such Retainer RSU Award covering a number of shares of Common 















			
		  	 Stock calculated by dividing (i) the amount of the annual retainer that would have otherwise been paid to such Non-Employee Director on the applicable grant date by (ii) the average per share closing trading price of the Common Stock over the most recent 30 trading days as of the grant date (such election, a
“Retainer RSU Election”).
  
 Each Retainer RSU Award
automatically will be granted on the fifth day of the month immediately following the end of the quarter for which the corresponding portion of the annual retainer was earned. Each Retainer RSU Award will be fully vested on the grant
date.

		
	Election Method:	  	 Each Retainer RSU Election must be submitted to the Company in the form and manner specified by the Board or its Compensation Committee (the
“Compensation Committee”). An individual who fails to make a timely Retainer RSU Election shall not receive a Retainer RSU Award and instead shall receive the applicable annual retainer in cash. Retainer RSU Elections must
comply with the following timing requirements:
  

•  Initial Election. Each individual who first becomes a
Non-Employee Director may make a Retainer RSU Election with respect to annual retainer payments scheduled to be paid in the same calendar year as such individual first becomes a
Non-Employee Director (the “Initial Retainer RSU Election”). The Initial Retainer RSU Election must be submitted to the Company on or before the date that the individual first becomes a
Non-Employee Director (the “Initial Election Deadline”), and the Initial Retainer RSU Election shall become final and irrevocable as of the Initial Election Deadline.

 
 •  Annual Election. No
later than December 31 of each calendar year, or such earlier deadline as may be established by the Board or the Compensation Committee, in its discretion (the “Annual Election Deadline”), each individual who is a Non-Employee Director as of immediately before the Annual Election Deadline may make a Retainer RSU Election with respect to the annual retainer relating to services to be performed in the following calendar year
(the “Annual Retainer RSU Election”). The Annual Retainer RSU Election must be submitted to the Company on or before the applicable Annual Election Deadline and shall become effective and irrevocable as of the Annual Election
Deadline.














 Equity Compensation 
  


			
	Initial RSU Award:	  	 Unless otherwise approved by the Board prior to commencement of services of an applicable
Non-Employee Director following the IPO, each Non-Employee Director who is initially elected or appointed to serve on the Board after the IPO shall be granted an award
of RSUs under the Plan or any other applicable Company equity incentive plan then-maintained by the Company covering a number of shares of Common Stock calculated by dividing (i) $300,000 by (ii) the average per share closing trading price of
the Common Stock over the most recent 30 trading days as of the grant date (the “Initial RSU Award”).
  

The Initial RSU Award will be automatically granted on the date on which such Non-Employee Director commences service
on the Board, and will vest as to one-third of the shares subject thereto on each anniversary of the applicable grant date such that the shares subject to the Initial RSU Award are fully vested on the third
anniversary of the grant date, subject to the Non-Employee Director continuing in service on the Board through each such vesting date.

		
	Annual RSU Award:	  	 Each Non-Employee Director who (i) has been serving on the Board as of each annual meeting of
the Company’s stockholders after the IPO (each, an “Annual Meeting”) for at least four months prior to the Annual Meeting and (ii) will continue to serve as a Non-Employee
Director immediately following such meeting, shall be granted an award of RSUs under the Plan or any other applicable Company equity incentive plan then-maintained by the Company covering a number of shares of Common Stock calculated by dividing (i)
$150,000 (or $200,000 if the Non-Employee Director is a Lead Independent Director) by (ii) the average per share closing trading price of the Common Stock over the most recent 30 trading days as of the
grant date (the “Annual RSU Award”).
  
 The Annual RSU Award
will be automatically granted on the date of the applicable Annual Meeting, and will vest in full on the earlier of (i) the first anniversary of the grant date and (ii) immediately before the Annual Meeting following the grant date,
subject to the Non-Employee Director continuing in service on the Board through such vesting date.















			
	IPO RSU Award:	  	 Each Non-Employee Director who (i) has been serving on the Board as of the IPO and
(ii) will continue to serve as a Non-Employee Director immediately following the IPO, shall be granted an award of RSUs under the Plan covering a number of shares of Common Stock calculated by dividing
(i) $87,500 (or $116,666.67 if the Non-Employee Director is a Lead Independent Director) by (ii) the initial public offering price of a Share as set forth in the Company’s final prospectus relating
to its IPO filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “IPO RSU Award”).
  

The IPO RSU Award will be automatically granted on the Public Trading Date (as defined in the Plan), and will vest in full on the earlier of (i) the first
anniversary of the grant date and (ii) immediately before the Annual Meeting following the grant date, subject to the Non-Employee Director continuing in service on the Board through such vesting
date.


 No portion of an Initial RSU Award, Annual RSU Award or IPO RSU Award which is unvested at the time of a Non-Employee Director’s termination of service on the Board shall become vested and exercisable thereafter. 

Directors who are Employees who subsequently terminate their employment with the Company and any Subsidiary and remain a Director will not receive an Initial
RSU Award, but to the extent that they are otherwise eligible, will be eligible to receive, after termination from employment with the Company and any Subsidiary, Annual RSU Awards as described above. 

Election to Defer Issuance 
  

			
	General:	  	The Board or the Compensation Committee may, in its discretion, provide each Non-Employee Director with the opportunity to defer the issuance of the shares underlying RSUs granted under this
Program, including Retainer RSU Awards, Initial RSU Awards and Annual RSU Awards, that would otherwise be issued to the Non-Employee Director in connection with the vesting or grant of the RSUs until the
earliest of a fixed date properly elected by the Non-Employee Director, the Non-Employee Director’s Termination of Service or a Change in Control. Any such deferral
election (“Deferral Election”) shall be subject to such rules, conditions and procedures as shall be determined by the Board or the Compensation Committee, in its sole discretion, which rules, conditions and procedures shall
at all times comply with the requirements of Section 409A of the Code, unless otherwise specifically determined by the Board or the Compensation Committee. If an individual elects to defer the delivery of the shares underlying RSUs granted
under this Program, settlement of the deferred RSUs shall be made in accordance with the terms of the Deferral Election.














			
	Election Method:	  	 Each Deferral Election must be submitted to the Company in the form and manner specified by the Board or its Compensation Committee. Deferral
Elections must comply with the following timing requirements:
  

•  Initial Deferral Election. Each individual who first becomes a Non-Employee Director may make a Deferral Election with respect to the Non-Employee Director’s Initial RSU Award and Retainer RSU Awards to be paid in the same calendar
year as such individual first becomes a Non-Employee Director (the “Initial Deferral Election”). The Initial Deferral Election must be submitted to the Company on or before the Initial
Election Deadline, and the Initial Deferral Election shall become final and irrevocable as of the Initial Election Deadline.
  

•  Annual Deferral Election. No later than the Annual Election Deadline, each individual who
is a Non-Employee Director as of immediately before the Annual Election Deadline may make a Deferral Election with respect to the Annual RSU Award and Retainer RSU Awards to be granted in the following
calendar year (the “Annual Deferral Election”). The Annual Deferral Election must be submitted to the Company on or before the applicable Annual Election Deadline and shall become final and irrevocable for the subsequent
calendar year as of the applicable Annual Election Deadline.


 Death and Disability 

Upon a Non-Employee Director’s Termination of Service (as defined in the Plan) as a result of such Non-Employee Directors death or Disability (as defined in the Plan), all outstanding equity awards granted under the Plan and any other equity incentive plan maintained by the Company that are held by a Non-Employee Director shall become fully vested and/or exercisable effective as of immediately prior to such Termination of Service, irrespective of any other provisions of the
Non-Employee Director’s Award Agreement. 
 Change in Control 

Upon a Change in Control of the Company, all outstanding equity awards granted under the Plan and any other equity incentive plan maintained by the Company
that are held by a Non-Employee Director shall become fully vested and/or exercisable effective as of immediately prior to the closing of such Change in Control, irrespective of any other provisions of the Non-Employee Director’s Award Agreement. 












 Reimbursements 

The Company shall reimburse each Non-Employee Director for all reasonable, documented,
out-of-pocket travel and other business expenses incurred by such Non-Employee Director in the performance of such
director’s duties to the Company in accordance with the Company’s applicable expense reimbursement policies and procedures as in effect from time to time. 

Miscellaneous 
 The other provisions of the Plan
shall apply to the RSUs granted automatically under this Program, except to the extent such other provisions are inconsistent with this Program. All applicable terms of the Plan apply to this Program as if fully set forth herein, and all grants of
RSUs hereby are subject in all respects to the terms of the Plan. The grant of RSUs under this Program shall be made solely by and subject to the terms set forth in an Award Agreement in a form to be approved by the Board and duly executed by an
executive officer of the Company. 
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