Stock-Based Compensation | 12. Stock-Based Compensation Stock Options In October 2017, the board of directors approved the 2017 Stock Option and Incentive Plan (the “2017 Stock Plan”) which became effective in November 2017 , upon the closing of the Company’s IPO. The 2017 Stock Plan will expire in October 2027 . Under the 2017 Stock Plan, the Company may grant incentive stock options, non-statutory stock options, restricted stock awards, RSUs and other stock-based awards. The Company’s 2014 Stock Incentive Plan (the “2014 Stock Plan”) terminated in November 2017 effective upon the completion of the Company’s IPO. No additional options will be granted under the 2014 Stock Plan. At December 31, 2023 , there were 571,095 options outstanding under the 2014 Stock Plan. At December 31, 2023 , there were 7,402,457 shares of the Company’s common stock authorized for issuance under the 2017 Stock Plan, including 366,823 options that have been forfeited from the 2014 Stock Plan. At December 31, 2023 , there were 3,067,473 options available for issuance under the 2017 Stock Plan and 3,926,481 options outstanding and 368,411 RSUs outstanding. On February 1, 2023, the Board of Directors of the Company adopted the 2023 Employment Inducement Award Plan (the "Inducement Plan") and, subject to the adjustment provisions of the Inducement Plan, reserved 500,000 shares of the Company’s common stock for issuance pursuant to equity awards granted under the Inducement Plan. At December 31, 2023, there were 316,250 options available for issuance under the Inducement Plan, and 183,750 options outstanding. Awards granted under the 2017 Stock Plan and the Inducement Plan have a term of ten years . Vesting of awards under the 2017 Stock Plan and the Inducement Plan is determined by the compensation committee of the board of directors but is generally over one to four-year terms. The fair value of options at date of grant was estimated using the Black-Scholes option-pricing model with the following assumptions: 2022 2023 Risk-free interest rate 1.67 %— 4.18 % 3.40 %— 4.67 % Expected dividend yield 0 % 0 % Expected life 5.5 — 6.7 years 5.5 — 7.0 years Expected volatility 70 %— 84 % 77 %— 85 % Weighted-average grant date $ 3.18 $ 5.26 Due to the lack of a public market for the trading of the Company’s common stock prior to its initial public offering and the lack of company-specific historical volatility, volatility was estimated using historical volatilities of similar companies. The expected life of the awards is estimated based on the simplified method, which calculates the expected life based upon the midpoint of the term of the award and the vesting period. The Company uses the simplified method because it does not have sufficient option exercise data to provide a reasonable basis upon which to estimate the expected term. The Company has no history of paying dividends nor does management expect to pay dividends over the contractual terms of these options. The risk-free interest rates are based on the United States Treasury yield curve in effect at the time of grant, with maturities approximating the expected life of the stock options. The following table summarizes information about stock option activity during 2022 and 2023 (in thousands, except share and per share data): NUMBER OF WEIGHTED- WEIGHTED- AGGREGATE Outstanding, December 31, 2021 2,662,752 $ 6.26 Granted 1,455,594 4.86 Exercised ( 11,756 ) 3.71 Forfeited ( 98,413 ) 6.73 Outstanding, December 31, 2022 4,008,177 5.76 Granted 1,004,632 7.38 Exercised ( 100,322 ) 4.94 Forfeited ( 231,161 ) 6.44 Outstanding, December 31, 2023 4,681,326 $ 6.09 7.02 $ 4,216 Vested and exercisable, December 31, 2023 2,784,463 $ 5.87 5.93 $ 3,110 Vested and expected to vest, December 31, 2023 4,295,457 $ 6.09 6.87 $ 3,960 The following table summarizes information about RSU activity during 2022 and 2023: RSUs AVERAGE GRANT DATE FAIR VALUE (IN DOLLARS PER SHARE) RSUs outstanding, December 31, 2021 42,250 $ 3.25 Granted — — Vested ( 42,250 ) 3.25 Forfeited — — RSUs outstanding, December 31, 2022 — — Granted 387,950 6.04 Vested — — Forfeited ( 19,539 ) 6.03 RSUs outstanding, December 31, 2023 368,411 $ 6.03 The number of RSUs vested includes shares of common stock withheld on behalf of employees to satisfy the minimum statutory tax withholding requirements. During 2022 and 2023 , the Company received $ 44,000 and $ 354,000 , respectively, upon exercise of stock options. The intrinsic value of the options exercised in 2022 and 2023 was $ 17,000 and $ 244,000 , respectively. 24,343 options were exercised on December 29, 2023 and the shares settled on January 2, 2024. Cash received on January 2, 2024 related to this exercise totaled $ 141,000 . This share issuance will be recognized on the Company's Condensed Consolidated Statements of Stockholders' Equity for the quarter ending March 31, 2024. Unrecognized compensation expense related to unvested options as of December 31, 2023 was $ 5.1 million and will be recognized over the remaining vesting periods of the underlying awards. The weighted-average period over which such compensation is expected to be recognized is 2.3 years. Unrecognized compensation expense related to unvested RSUs as of December 31, 2023 was $ 1.2 million and will be recognized over the remaining vesting periods of the underlying awards. The weighted-average period over which such compensation is expected to be recognized is 3.1 years. During the three months ended June 30, 2023, as part of a severance arrangement, the Company extended the exercise period to six months for 111,532 vested options, with a weighted exercise price of $ 6.25 , and recorded incremental stock-based compensation of $ 87,000 . Employee Stock Purchase Plan In October 2017, the board of directors approved the 2017 Employee Stock Purchase Plan (“the ESPP”) which became effective in November 2017, upon the closing of the Company’s IPO. As part of the ESPP, eligible employees may acquire an ownership interest in the Company by purchasing common stock, at a discount, through payroll deductions. Eligible employees who elected to participate were able to participate in the ESPP beginning September 1, 2021. During 2022 and 2023 , 45,938 and 90,125 shares of common stock were issued under the ESPP, respectively. As of December 31, 2023, there were 1,257,566 shares of common stock available for issuance under the ESPP. The Company recorded stock-based compensation expense in the following expense categories of its accompanying consolidated statements of operations and comprehensive loss for employees, directors and non-employees during the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2023 as follows (in thousands): 2022 2023 Research and development $ 1,050 $ 1,446 Selling, general and administrative 1,788 3,410 Total $ 2,838 $ 4,856 |