Basis of Presentation and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies | BASIS OF PRESENTATION AND SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES Basis of presentation The consolidated financial statements have been prepared in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States, or U.S. GAAP, as defined by the Financial Accounting Standards Board, or FASB. Going Concern The Company prepared its consolidated financial statements on a going concern basis, which assumes that the Company will realize its assets and satisfy its liabilities in the normal course of business. The Company has a history of losses from operations, expects negative cash flows from its operations to continue for the foreseeable future, and expects that its net losses will continue for at least the next several years as it develops and seeks to bring to market its existing product candidates and potentially acquire, license and develop additional product candidates. These circumstances raise substantial doubt about the Company's ability to continue as a going concern. The accompanying financial statements do not include any adjustments to reflect the possible future effects on the recoverability and reclassification of assets or the amounts and classifications of liabilities that may result from the outcome of the uncertainty of the Company's ability to continue as a going concern. At December 31, 2021, the Company had an accumulated deficit of approximately $110.1 million, cash and cash equivalents of approximately $51.7 million, and working capital of approximately $39.2 million. For the year ended December 31, 2021, the Company incurred a net loss of $38.7 million and had negative cash flow from operations of approximately $28.8 million. The Company expects its primary uses of capital to be staff-related expenses, the cost of clinical trials and regulatory activities related to its product candidates, costs associated with contract manufacturing services and third-party clinical research and development services, payments due to third-party licensors upon the occurrence of commercial milestones for XACIATO and development milestones for the Company’s product candidates, legal expenses, other regulatory expenses and general overhead costs. The Company’s future funding requirements could also include significant costs related to commercialization of its product candidates, if approved, depending on the type, nature and terms of commercial collaborations the Company establishes. The Company expects its expenses, and in particular its research and development expenses, to increase significantly in 2022 compared to 2021 as the Company continues to develop and seek to bring to market its product candidates, with a focus on its product candidates that have reached the human clinical study development phase. To date, the Company has one FDA-approved product, XACIATO, which has not yet been commercially launched. The Company has not obtained any other regulatory approvals for any of its product candidates, commercialized any of its product candidates or generated any revenue. Commercial launch of XACIATO in the U.S. by the Company's licensee, Organon, is expected in the fourth quarter of 2022. Under the terms of its license agreement with Organon, the Company will receive a $10.0 million non-refundable and non-creditable payment following the effective date of the license agreement and will be entitled to receive tiered double-digit royalties based on net sales and up to $182.5 million in milestone payments as follows: $2.5 million following the first commercial sale of a licensed product in the United States; and up to $180.0 million in tiered commercial sales milestones and regulatory milestones. The Company has devoted significant resources to building its portfolio of product candidates and to research and development activities related to these product candidates. The Company or its licensees must obtain regulatory approvals to market and sell any of its product candidates in the future and to market and sell XACIATO anywhere outside the U.S. The Company will need to generate sufficient safety and efficacy data on each of its product candidates in order to apply for regulatory approvals and for such assets to be attractive assets to potential strategic collaborators to license or to acquire, and for the Company to generate revenue through license fees, royalties on net revenues and commercial milestones related to such product candidates. Based on the Company's current operating plan estimates, the Company does not have sufficient cash to satisfy its working capital needs and other liquidity requirements over at least the next 12 months from the date of issuance of the accompanying financial statements. The Company will need to raise substantial additional capital to continue to fund its operations and to successfully execute its current strategy. The Company will continue to seek to raise capital through the sale of shares of its common stock under its ATM sales agreements, however, when the Company can effect such sales and the amount of shares the Company can sell depends on a variety of factors to be determined by the Company from time to time, including, among others, market conditions, the trading price of its common stock and its determination as to the appropriate sources of funding for its operations. For the foreseeable future, the Company will evaluate and may pursue a variety of capital raising options on an on-going basis, including equity and debt financings, government or other grant funding, collaborations and strategic alliances or other similar types of arrangements, to cover its operating expenses, and the cost of any license or other acquisition of new product candidates or technologies. The amount and timing of the Company's capital needs have been and will continue to depend highly on many factors, including the product development programs the Company chooses to pursue, the pace and results of its clinical development efforts, and the nature and extent of expansion of its product candidate portfolio, if any. If the Company raises capital through collaborations, strategic alliances or other similar types of arrangements, it may have to relinquish, on terms that are not favorable to the Company, rights to some of its technologies or product candidates the Company would otherwise seek to develop or commercialize. There can be no assurance that capital will be available when needed or that, if available, it will be obtained on terms favorable to the Company and its stockholders. In addition, equity or debt financings may have a dilutive effect on the holdings of the Company's existing stockholders, and debt financings may subject the Company to restrictive covenants, operational restrictions and security interests in its assets. If the Company cannot raise capital when needed, on favorable terms or at all, the Company will not be able to continue development of its product candidates, will need to reevaluate its planned operations and may need to delay, scale back or eliminate some or all of its development programs, reduce expenses, file for bankruptcy, reorganize, merge with another entity, or cease operations. If the Company becomes unable to continue as a going concern, the Company may have to liquidate its assets, and might realize significantly less than the values at which they are carried on its condensed consolidated financial statements, and stockholders may lose all or part of their investment in the Company's common stock. The Company's condensed consolidated financial statements do not include any adjustments that might result from the outcome of this uncertainty. Principles of Consolidation The consolidated financial statements of the Company are stated in U.S. dollars. These consolidated financial statements include the accounts of the Company and its wholly owned subsidiaries. One wholly owned subsidiary, Daré Bioscience Australia Pty LTD, operates primarily in Australia. The financial statements of the Company’s wholly owned subsidiaries are recorded in their functional currency and translated into the reporting currency. The cumulative effect of changes in exchange rates between the foreign entity’s functional currency and the reporting currency is reported in Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss. All intercompany transactions and accounts have been eliminated in consolidation. Grant Funding The Company receives certain research and development funding through grants issued by a division of the National Institutes of Health and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, or the Foundation. Under the Foundation grant, which the Company considers to be a research and development contract under FASB Accounting Standards Codification, or ASC, Topic 730 Research and Development , the Company granted the Foundation a Humanitarian License which gives the Foundation the right to make the funded developments accessible at an affordable price to people within developing countries. The Company recognizes grant funding in the statements of operations as a reduction to research and development expense as the related costs are incurred to meet those obligations over the grant period. The Company adopted this policy in 2018. For the years ended December 31, 2021 and December 31, 2020, the Company recognized approximately $2.5 million and $3.7 million, respectively, in the statements of operations as a reduction to research and development expense. Grant funding payments received in advance of research and development expenses incurred are recorded as deferred grant funding liability in the Company's consolidated balance sheets. Use of Estimates The preparation of the consolidated financial statements requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and the disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements, and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period. Significant estimates include the fair value of stock-based compensation. Actual results could differ from those estimates and could materially affect the reported amounts of assets, liabilities and future operating results. Risks and Uncertainties The Company will require approvals from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, or FDA, or foreign regulatory agencies prior to being able to sell any products. The Company received approval from the FDA for its first product, XACIATO™, in December 2021. There can be no assurance that the Company’s current or future product candidates will receive the necessary approvals. If the Company is denied regulatory approval of its product candidates, or if approval is delayed, it may have a material adverse impact on the Company’s business, results of operations and its financial position. The Company is subject to a number of risks similar to other life science companies, including, but not limited to, risks related to the ability to license product candidates, successfully develop product candidates, successfully commercialize approved products or enter into strategic relationships with third parties who are able to successfully commercialize approved products, raise additional capital, compete with other products, and protect proprietary technology. As a result of these and other factors and the related uncertainties, there can be no assurance of the Company’s future success. Cash and Cash Equivalents The Company considers cash and all highly liquid investments with an original maturity of three months or less to be cash and cash equivalents. The Company’s wholly owned subsidiary, Dare MB Inc., has a $35,903 letter of credit related to the lease of real property that serves as security for future default of lease payments. The letter of credit is collateralized by cash which is unavailable for withdrawal or for usage for general obligations and is included in cash and cash equivalents on the Company's consolidated balance sheets. Concentration of Credit Risk The Company maintains cash balances at various financial institutions and such balances commonly exceed the $250,000 amount insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. The Company also maintains money market funds at various financial institutions which are not federally insured although are invested primarily in the U.S. The Company has not experienced any losses in such accounts and management believes that the Company does not have significant risk with respect to such cash and cash equivalents. Fair Value of Financial Instruments GAAP defines fair value as the price that would be received for an asset or the exit price that would be paid to transfer a liability in the principal or most advantageous market in an orderly transaction between market participants on the measurement date, and also establishes a fair value hierarchy which requires an entity to maximize the use of observable inputs, where available. The three-level hierarchy of valuation techniques established to measure fair value is defined as follows: • Level 1: inputs are unadjusted quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities. • Level 2: inputs other than Level 1 that are observable, either directly or indirectly, such as quoted prices in active markets for similar assets and liabilities, quoted prices for identical or similar assets or liabilities in markets that are not active, or other inputs that are observable or can be corroborated by observable market data for substantially the full term of assets or liabilities. • Level 3: unobservable inputs that are supported by little or no market activity and that are significant to the fair value of the assets or liabilities. The following tables present the classification within the fair value hierarchy of financial assets and liabilities that are remeasured on a recurring basis as of December 31, 2021 and December 31, 2020. There were no financial assets or liabilities that were remeasured using a quoted price in active markets for identical assets (Level 2) as of December 31, 2021 . Fair Value Measurements Level 1 Level 2 Level 3 Total Balance at December 31, 2021 Current assets: Cash equivalents (1) $ 49,666,064 $ — $ — $ 49,666,064 Balance at December 31, 2020 Current assets: Cash equivalents (1) $ 2,823,099 $ — $ — $ 2,823,099 Other non-current liabilities: Current portion of contingent consideration (2) $ — $ — $ 1,000,000 $ 1,000,000 (1) Represents cash held in money market funds. (2) Represented t he estimated fair value of the contingent consideration payable by the Company related to an acquisition completed in November 2019, and which was paid in September 2021, as described in Note 3. The following table presents a reconciliation of contingent consideration, which was measured at fair value on a recurring basis using significant unobservable inputs (Level 3): Year Ended December 31, 2021 2020 Balance at beginning of period $ 1,000,000 $ 1,000,000 Satisfaction of contingent consideration (1) (1,000,000) — Balance at end of period $ — $ 1,000,000 (1) In June 2021, the contingent consideration payable by the Company related to an acquisition completed in November 2019 became due. In September 2021, the Company issued approximately 700,000 shares of its common stock in satisfaction of the milestone payments associated with milestones achieved, as described in Note 3. Revenue Recognition The Company recognizes revenue in accordance with FASB ASC Topic 606, Revenue from Contracts with Customers , which applies to all contracts with customers, except for contracts that are within the scope of other standards, such as leases, insurance, collaboration arrangements and financial instruments. The Company recognizes revenue when it transfers promised goods or services to customers in an amount that reflects the consideration to which it expects to be entitled in exchange for those goods or services. To determine revenue recognition for contracts with customers, the Company performs the following five steps: (i) identify the contract(s) with a customer; (ii) identify the performance obligations in the contract; (iii) determine the transaction price; (iv) allocate the transaction price to the performance obligations in the contract; and (v) recognize revenue when (or as) the Company satisfies its performance obligations. At contract inception, the Company assesses the goods or services agreed upon within each contract and assesses whether each good or service is distinct, and determines those that are performance obligations. The Company then recognizes as revenue the amount of the transaction price that is allocated to the respective performance obligation when (or as) the performance obligation is satisfied. In a contract with multiple performance obligations, the Company develops estimates and assumptions that require judgment to determine the underlying stand-alone selling price for each performance obligation, which determines how the transaction price is allocated among the performance obligations. The estimation of the stand-alone selling price(s) may include estimates regarding forecasted revenues or costs, development timelines, discount rates, and probabilities of technical and regulatory success. The Company evaluates each performance obligation to determine if it can be satisfied at a point in time or over time. Any change made to estimated progress towards completion of a performance obligation and, therefore, revenue recognized will be recorded as a change in estimate. In addition, variable consideration must be evaluated to determine if it is constrained and, therefore, excluded from the transaction price. License Fees. If the license to the Company’s intellectual property is determined to be distinct from the other performance obligations identified in a contract, the Company recognizes revenues from non-refundable, upfront fees allocated to the license when the license is transferred to the customer and the customer is able to use and benefit from the license. For licenses that are bundled with other promises, the Company utilizes judgment to assess the nature of the combined performance obligation to determine whether the combined performance obligation is satisfied over time or at a point in time and, if over time, the appropriate method of measuring progress for purposes of recognizing revenue from non-refundable, upfront fees. The Company evaluates the measure of progress each reporting period and, if necessary, adjusts the measure of performance and related revenue recognition. To date, the Company has not recognized any license fee revenue resulting from any of its collaborative arrangements. Royalties and Commercial Milestones. For arrangements that include sales-based royalties and milestone payments based on the level of sales, and for which the license is deemed to be the predominant item to which the royalties and milestones relate, the Company recognizes revenue at the later of (i) when the related sales occur, or (ii) when the performance obligation to which some or all of the royalty has been allocated has been satisfied (or partially satisfied). To date, the Company has not recognized any royalty revenue or any commercial milestones resulting from any of its collaborative arrangements. Bayer License. In January 2020, the Company entered into a license agreement with Bayer HealthCare LLC, or Bayer, regarding the further development and commercialization of Ovaprene in the U.S. Upon execution of the agreement, the Company received a $1.0 million upfront non-refundable license fee payment from Bayer. Bayer, in its sole discretion, has the right to make the license effective by paying the Company an additional $20.0 million. The Company concluded that there was one significant performance obligation related to the $1.0 million upfront payment: a distinct license to commercialize Ovaprene effective upon the receipt of the $20.0 million fee. The $1.0 million upfront payment will be recorded as license revenue at the earlier of (1) the point in time the Company receives the $20.0 million fee, the license is transferred to Bayer and Bayer is able to use and benefit from the license and (2) the termination of the agreement. As of December 31, 2021, neither of the foregoing had occurred. The $1.0 million payment is recorded as deferred license revenue in the Company's consolidated balance sheets at December 31, 2021 and December 31, 2020. The Company will also be entitled to receive (a) milestone payments totaling up to $310.0 million related to the commercial sales of Ovaprene, if all such milestones are achieved, (b) tiered royalties starting in the low double digits based on annual net sales of Ovaprene during a calendar year, subject to customary royalty reductions and offsets, and (c) a percentage of sublicense revenue. Potential future payments for variable consideration, such as commercial milestones, will be recognized when it is probable that, if recorded, a significant reversal will not take place. Potential future royalty payments will be recorded as revenue when the associated sales occur. (See Note 3, Strategic Agreements.) Leases The Company determines if an arrangement is a lease at inception. Operating leases are included in other non-current assets as right-of-use, or ROU, lease assets, current portion of lease liabilities, and long-term lease liabilities on the Company's consolidated balance sheets. ROU lease assets represent the Company's right to use an underlying asset for the lease term and lease obligations represent the Company's obligation to make lease payments arising from the lease. Operating ROU lease assets and obligations are recognized at the commencement date based on the present value of lease payments over the lease term. If the lease does not provide an implicit rate, the Company uses its incremental borrowing rate based on the information available at the commencement date in determining the present value of lease payments. The ROU lease asset also includes any lease payments made and excludes lease incentives. The Company's lease terms may include options to extend or terminate the lease and the related payments are only included in the lease liability when it is reasonably certain that the Company will exercise that option. Lease expense for lease payments is recognized on a straight-line basis over the lease term. (See Note 11, Leased Properties.) Segment Reporting Operating segments are identified as components of an enterprise about which separate discrete financial information is available for evaluation by the chief operating decision maker, or decision-making group, in making decisions on how to allocate resources and assess performance. Its chief operating decision maker is the chief executive officer. The Company has one operating segment, women’s health. Research and Development Costs Research and development expenses consist of expenses incurred in performing research and development activities, including compensation and benefits for full-time research and development employees, an allocation of facilities expenses, overhead expenses, manufacturing process-development and scale-up activities, fees paid to clinical and regulatory consultants, clinical trial and related clinical trial manufacturing expenses, fees paid to contract research organizations, or CROs, and investigative sites, transaction expenses incurred in connection with the expansion of the product portfolio through acquisitions and license and option agreements, milestone payments incurred or probable to be incurred for the Company's in-licensing arrangements, payments to universities under the Company’s license agreements and other outside expenses. Research and development costs are expensed as incurred. Nonrefundable advance payments, if any, for goods and services used in research and development are recognized as an expense as the related goods are delivered or services are performed. Net Loss Per Share Basic net loss attributable to common stockholders per share is calculated by dividing the net loss by the weighted average number of shares of common stock outstanding during the period without consideration of common stock equivalents. Since the Company was in a loss position for all periods presented, diluted net loss per share is the same as basic net loss per share for all periods presented as the inclusion of all potential dilutive securities would have been antidilutive. There were stock options exercisable into 4,717,602 and 2,786,591 shares of common stock outstanding at December 31, 2021 and 2020, respectively. There were warrants exercisable into 1,381,015 and 1,908,643 shares of common stock outstanding at December 31, 2021 and 2020, respectively. These securities were not included in the computation of diluted loss per share because they are antidilutive, but they could potentially dilute earnings (loss) per share in future years. Stock-Based Compensation The Company records compensation expense for all stock-based awards granted based on the fair value of the award at the time of grant. The Company uses the Black-Scholes Pricing Model to determine the fair value of each of the awards which considers factors such as expected term, volatility, risk free interest rate and dividend yield. Due to the limited history of the Company, the simplified method was utilized in order to determine the expected term of the awards. Additionally, the Company considered comparable companies in the industry which have available share price history to calculate the volatility. The Company compared U.S. Treasury Bills in determining the risk-free interest rate appropriate given the expected term. The Company has not established and has no plans to establish, a dividend policy, and the Company has not declared, and has no plans to declare dividends in the foreseeable future and thus no dividend yield was determined necessary in the calculation of fair value. Income Taxes The Company accounts for income taxes using the asset and liability method in accordance with FASB ASC 740, Income Taxes . Under this method deferred income taxes are provided to reflect the tax consequences in future years of differences between the tax basis of assets and liabilities and their financial reporting amounts based on enacted tax laws and statutory tax rates applicable to the periods in which the differences are expected to affect taxable income. Valuation allowances are established when necessary to reduce deferred tax assets to the amount expected to be realized. The Company follows the two-step approach to recognizing and measuring uncertain tax positions. The first step is to evaluate the tax position for recognition by determining if the weight of available evidence indicates it is more likely than not, that the position will be sustained on audit, including resolution of related appeals or litigation processes, if any. The second step is to measure the tax benefit as the largest amount, which is more than 50% likely of being realized upon ultimate settlement. The Company considers many factors when evaluating and estimating the Company's tax positions and tax benefits, which may require periodic adjustments. At December 31, 2021, the Company did not record any liabilities for uncertain tax positions. During each of 2021 and 2020, the Company recorded no provision for income taxes. Management evaluated the Company’s tax positions and, as of December 31, 2021, the Company had approximately $1.9 million of unrecognized benefits. The tax years 2017 to 2021 remain open to examination by federal and state taxing authorities while the statute of limitations for U.S. net operating losses generated remain open beginning in the year of utilization. Indemnification Obligations As permitted under Delaware law, the Company has entered into indemnification agreements with its officers and directors that provide that the Company will indemnify its directors and officers for certain expenses, including attorneys’ fees, judgments, fines and settlement amounts incurred by such director or officer in any action or proceeding arising out of their service as a director and/or officer. The term of the indemnification is for the officer’s or director’s lifetime. During the year ended December 31, 2021, the Company did not experience any losses related to those indemnification obligations. The Company does not expect significant claims related to these indemnification obligations, and consequently, has concluded the fair value of the obligations is not material. Accordingly, as of December 31, 2021 and 2020, no amounts have been accrued related to such indemnification provisions. |