Summary
SoundHound AI ended fiscal 2024 with sharp top-line growth. Fourth-quarter revenue was $34.5 million, up 101.5% from $17.1 million in the prior-year quarter. Full-year revenue reached $84.7 million, up 84.6% from $45.9 million. Management tied the increase to service subscription revenue and recent acquisitions, while product royalties declined. The company also said it works with over 30% of the top 20 quick-service restaurant brands, a customer base that includes Burger King UK, Church's Texas Chicken, Peet's Coffee, Torchy's Tacos, and Whataburger.
Profitability moved in the opposite direction. Fourth-quarter GAAP operating loss widened to $257.1 million from $12.4 million a year earlier. The full-year GAAP operating loss widened to $341.4 million from $68.6 million. GAAP net loss widened to $258.6 million in the quarter from $18.0 million, and full-year GAAP net loss widened to $350.7 million from $88.9 million. Full-year diluted EPS was $(1.04), down from $(0.40) in the prior year. Fourth-quarter operating margin was -744.2%, down from -72.3% in the prior-year quarter. The press release said the year-end stock price increase drove a higher fair value for contingent acquisition liabilities, a non-operating and non-cash item that weighed on GAAP net loss and EPS. On a non-GAAP basis, fourth-quarter adjusted EBITDA was $(16.8) million and full-year adjusted EBITDA was $(61.9) million.
Cash generation remains a problem. Full-year operating cash flow was negative $108.9 million, down from negative $68.3 million in 2023. Fourth-quarter operating cash flow was negative $33.1 million, down from negative $13.9 million in the prior-year quarter. Capital expenditures for the full year were $0.64 million, up 63.3% from $0.39 million. Deferred revenue rose to $30.7 million from $9.2 million, up 233.7%. Remaining performance obligations climbed to $83.3 million from $12.7 million, up 555.9%. The company reported no outstanding debt at December 31, 2024, after paying off its term loan and Amelia debt during the year.
Operational momentum is broadening beyond restaurants. SoundHound listed new healthcare partners Duke Health, Wellstar Health System, and Englewood Health. In automotive, it cited Lucid Motors and Togg's launch in Lancia vehicles in Europe, adding to six other live Stellantis brands. Retail customers include Torrid and multiple Planet Fitness franchise groups. The company also added one of the largest electric utilities in the United States, signed the City of Coral Springs, and works with a branch of the United States military through General Dynamics Information Technology. In telecom, it expanded in South America with Telefonica and scaled with a major European broadcaster and telecommunications provider in five countries. Financial services customers include BNP Paribas, and the company said it works with 70% of the top 10 global financial institutions. Insurance partner EXL helped scale clients such as Transamerica and Apivia Courtage, which surpassed 100 thousand calls automated in 2024. SoundHound also unveiled an in-vehicle voice commerce platform at CES 2025, partnered with Rekor for emergency vehicle technology, and said its phone ordering technology surpassed 100 million customer interactions. A company study found that 77% of regular drivers are likely to use voice generative AI capabilities in their vehicle if available.
Guidance points to another year of growth. SoundHound raised its full-year 2025 revenue outlook to a range of $157 to $177 million. The company still faces a wide GAAP loss and heavy cash use. Management expects to improve gross margins over the mid-term as it integrates SYNQ3 and Amelia, though it warned that gross margin may fluctuate with product mix and acquisition contributions. Other risks include seasonality, dependence on enterprise sales cycles, and contingent earnout obligations tied to future revenue targets and the stock price. The company also carries significant stock-based compensation and acquisition-related expenses that can obscure underlying performance.
Forecast
Reported figures
GAAP, from SEC filings| Metric | Q4 FY2024 | Q3 FY2024 | QoQ | Q4 FY2023 | YoY |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $34.5M | $25.1M | +37.7% | $17.1M | +101.5% |
| Gross profit | $13.8M | $12.2M | +13.0% | $13.2M | +4.1% |
| Gross margin | 39.9% | 48.6% | -8.7 pp | 77.2% | -37.3 pp |
| Research & development | $20.4M | $19.5M | +4.3% | $12.7M | +60.4% |
| Sales & marketing | $9.6M | $8.4M | +14.4% | $4.5M | +114.1% |
| General & administrative | $16.4M | $17.0M | -3.5% | $7.6M | +115.1% |
| Total operating expenses | $291.6M | $58.9M | +395.4% | $29.5M | +887.2% |
| Operating income (loss) | -$257.1M | -$33.8M | -661.3% | -$12.4M | -1974.3% |
| Operating margin | -744.2% | -134.6% | -609.7 pp | -72.3% | -671.9 pp |
| Net income (loss) | -$258.6M | -$21.8M | -1088.9% | -$18.0M | -1336.4% |
| Net margin | -748.6% | -86.7% | -662.0 pp | -105.0% | -643.6 pp |
| Diluted EPS | -$0.76 | -$0.06 | -$0.70 | -$0.08 | -$0.68 |
Risks
Operating cash flow was down $40.61 million, or 59.5%, to negative $108.88 million for FY2024 from negative $68.26 million for FY2023, and net loss widened to $350.68 million for FY2024. Risk factors state substantial net losses and negative operating cash flows since inception and potential need for additional capital, which may be dilutive.
MD&A attributes much of the widened operating loss to a $222.7 million non-cash change in fair value of contingent acquisition liabilities for the year ended December 31, 2024, including a $211.9 million loss related to Contingent Amelia Earnout Consideration. Risk factors state the SYNQ3 and Amelia acquisitions may not be accretive and may subject the company to integration, valuation and earnout risks.
MD&A states gross margin decreased to 49% in 2024 from 75% in 2023, primarily due to the acquisitions of Amelia and SYNQ3, including lower margin call center agent business from SYNQ3 and amortization of acquired intangible assets. Cost of revenues increased 283% in 2024.
During the year ended December 31, 2024, one customer accounted for 14% of total revenues, and accounts receivable due from one customer totaled 23% of consolidated accounts receivable at December 31, 2024. Risk factors warn that loss of any largest customer, many in automotive OEMs, could materially adversely affect operating results.
Risk factors state the Voice AI market is highly competitive and rapidly changing, with large technology companies having significantly greater financial, technical and marketing resources and the ability to bundle competing functionality at lower cost or free. If competitors incorporate AI more quickly or successfully, SoundHound may not compete effectively.
New and expanded risk disclosure addresses AI regulation, including the European Union's Artificial Intelligence Act and its risk-based governance framework. Compliance could impose additional costs, increase liability and require changes to operations.
Use and provision of generative AI exposes SoundHound to hallucinatory or inaccurate output, confidential information leakage into third-party training sets, and copyright or IP uncertainty. This could damage reputation and expose the company to legal liability.
Risk factors disclose material weaknesses in internal control over financial reporting and prior late filings, including delayed Form 10-Q for March 31, 2021 and extensions for September 30, 2023 Form 10-Q and 2023 Form 10-K. Failure to remediate could lead to material misstatements or failure to meet periodic reporting obligations.
MD&A notes enterprise sales cycles can be longer than consumer cycles, and OEM design wins involve development cycles of approximately six months to two years after a design win before revenue. Risk factors warn failure to win significant customer design competitions or renew service contracts could adversely affect operating results.
Risk factors state future success depends on skilled employees, particularly in technical areas, and competition for talent is intense. Equity award value volatility could diminish SoundHound's ability to attract or retain personnel or force it to offer more cash compensation.
Risk factors state SoundHound derived approximately 45%, 85% and 89% of revenues from customers outside the United States in 2024, 2023 and 2022. MD&A reports Americas revenue increased 655% in 2024 while Asia revenue decreased 36%, exposing results to foreign currency, tariff and geopolitical risks.
As of December 31, 2024, SoundHound had $548.4 million of U.S. federal and $208.1 million of state net operating loss carryforwards, with federal and state NOLs starting to expire in 2025 and 2028. Ownership changes under Sections 382 and 383 may limit their use.
Class B Common Stock has ten votes per share and founders owned approximately 48% of voting power as of December 31, 2024. This concentrated control may limit or preclude stockholders' ability to influence corporate matters.
MD&A states in the past approximately one third of revenue occurred in the first half of the year with the remaining two thirds in the second half, and quarter-to-quarter revenue may fluctuate due to automobile demand and other factors. This could cause results to miss expectations.
SaaS KPIs
All quarters →Non-GAAP Gross Margin
Remaining Performance Obligations (RPO)
Summary, forecast, risks and KPIs are extracted from SOUNDHOUND AI, INC.'s SEC filings for Q4 FY2024 (10-Q / 10-K and the 8-K earnings release); GAAP figures in the summary are checked against the reported XBRL data. They can contain errors; the filings are authoritative. Processed Oct 6, 2026.