The Company has various license agreements related to technology used in its research and development activities. The license agreements may include up-front payments, option fees, ongoing maintenance fees, sublicense fees, royalty-based payments, milestone payments, success-based payments, and other payments. Option fees, when applicable, are recognized when exercised, maintenance fees, sublicense fees, and other payments are recorded as incurred based on the estimated amounts due or that will ultimately be paid. Contingent payments that are not required to be accounted for as a derivative are recognized as incurred. As the success-based payments due under the Company’s license arrangements are derivatives, the change in the fair value of the success-based payments are recognized in a separate line item in the statement of operations and comprehensive loss, as discussed further below. The total contingent obligations and non-royalty sublicense fees included in research and development expenses in the statement of operations and comprehensive loss were $3.2 million, $43.5 million, and $2.7 million for the years ended December 31, 2024, 2023, and 2022, respectively.

The value attributable to sublicenses and the related sublicense fees due under the Company’s license agreements may require estimates and other judgments related to contractual requirements, which creates uncertainty over the ultimate amount that would be paid under these arrangements. Contractual amounts due are accrued and if a contingency exists related to the interpretation of the amounts due under the license agreement, the Company recognizes a liability for the amount that is probable and estimable. When no amount within the range of potential payments is a better estimate than any other amount, however, the minimum amount in the range is accrued.

In June 2017, the Company entered into the Harvard License Agreement for certain base editing technology pursuant to which the Company received an exclusive, worldwide, sublicensable, royalty-bearing license under specified patent rights to develop and commercialize licensed products and a nonexclusive, worldwide, sublicensable, royalty-bearing license under certain patent rights to research and develop licensed products. The Company agreed to use commercially reasonable efforts to develop licensed products in accordance with the development plan, to introduce any licensed products that gain regulatory approval into the commercial market, to market licensed products that have gained regulatory approval following such introduction into the market, and to make licensed products that have gained regulatory approval reasonably available to the public. The license term extends until the later of the expiration of (i) the last to expire licensed patent covering a licensed product, (ii) the period of exclusivity associated with a licensed product or (iii) a certain period after the first commercial sale of a licensed product, unless terminated earlier by either party under certain provisions.

Partial consideration for the rights granted under the Harvard License Agreement include success payments, which are further described below.

Success Payments – Under the Harvard License Agreement, Harvard is entitled to receive success payments, in cash or shares of Company stock, determined based upon the achievement of specified multiples of the initial weighted average value of the Company’s Series A Preferred at specified valuation dates. The success payments range from $5.0 million to a maximum of $105.0 million and have valuation multiples that range from 5 times to 40 times the initial weighted average value of the Series A Preferred. Subsequent to the Company’s February 2020 IPO, the amount of success payments is based on the market value of the Company's common stock.

The Company is required to make success payments to Harvard during a period of time, or the Harvard Success Payment Period, which has been determined to be the later of (1) the ninth anniversary of the Harvard License Agreement or (2) the earlier of (a) the twelfth anniversary of the Harvard License Agreement and (b) the third anniversary of the first date on which a licensed product receives regulatory approval in the United States. During the Harvard Success Payment Period, the Company will perform a calculation of any amounts owed to Harvard on each rolling 90-day period, commencing one year after the Company’s IPO.

In May 2021, the first success payment measurement occurred and amounts due to Harvard were calculated to be $15.0 million. The Company elected to make the payment in shares of the Company’s common stock and issued 174,825 shares of the Company’s common stock to settle this liability on June 10, 2021. The Company may owe Harvard success payments of up to an additional $90.0 million.

The following table summarizes the Company’s success payment liability for Harvard (in thousands):


	December 31, 2024		December 31, 2023
Harvard success payment liability	$	3,900	$	5,200

The following table summarizes the expense resulting from the change in the fair value of the success payment liability for Harvard (in thousands):


	Years Ended December 31,
	2024			2023			2022
Change in fair value of Harvard success payment liability	$	(1,300	)	$	(3,800	)	$	(12,000	)

Other Payments – The Company agreed to pay Harvard an annual license maintenance fee ranging from low-to-mid five figures to low six figures, depending on the calendar year. The Company is responsible for the payment of certain patent prosecution and maintenance costs incurred by Harvard related to licensed patents. To the extent achieved, the Company is obligated to pay up to an aggregate of $75.9 million in product development and regulatory approval milestones, or Harvard Product Milestones. If the Company completes a change of control during the term of the Harvard License Agreement, then certain of the milestone payments would be increased. To the extent there are sales of a licensed product, the Company is required to pay low single digit royalties on net sales. The Company is entitled to certain reductions and offsets on these royalties with respect to a licensed product in a given country. If the Company sublicenses its rights to develop or commercialize a licensed product under the Harvard License Agreement to a third party and the Company receives non-royalty sublicense income, then Harvard is entitled to a percentage of such consideration, ranging from the high single digits to low double digits depending on the date in which such sublicense agreement is executed and the stage of development of the Company’s licensed products at such time.

The annual maintenance fees are recorded as an expense on an annual basis based on the stated amount for the applicable year. Annual patent costs are expensed as incurred. Upon determination that a Harvard Product Milestone is probable to occur, the amount due will be recorded as research and development expense. The Company will monitor the Harvard Product Milestone payments for this arrangement on an ongoing basis.

To the extent products are commercialized under the Harvard License Agreement, the Company will accrue royalty expense and sublicense nonroyalty payments, as applicable, for the amount it is obligated to pay, with adjustments as sales are made.

In May 2018, the Broad License Agreement was entered into with Broad Institute for certain RNA base editing technology including an RNA editor platform. Under the Broad License Agreement, Broad Institute granted exclusive and non-exclusive worldwide, sublicensable, royalty-bearing licenses under specified patent rights to develop and commercialize licensed product and a nonexclusive, worldwide, sublicensable, royalty-bearing license under certain patent rights to research and develop licensed products. Under the agreement the Company shall use commercially reasonable efforts to develop licensed products in accordance with the development plan, to introduce any licensed products that gain regulatory approval into the commercial market, to market licensed products that have gained regulatory approval following such introduction into the market, and to make licensed products that have gained regulatory approval reasonably available to the public. The license term extends until the later of the expiration of (i) the last to expire licensed patent covering a licensed product, (ii) the period of regulatory exclusivity associated with a licensed product or (iii) a certain period after the first commercial sale of a licensed product unless terminated earlier by either party under certain provisions.

Additional consideration under the Broad License Agreement included Success Payments, which are further described below.

Success Payments – Under the Broad License Agreement, Broad Institute is entitled to receive success payments, in cash or shares of Company common stock, determined based upon the achievement of specified multiples of the initial weighted average value of the Series A Preferred at specified valuation dates. The success payments range from $5.0 million to a maximum of $105.0 million and have valuation multiples that range from 5 times to 40 times the initial weighted average value of the Series A Preferred. Subsequent to the February 2020 IPO, the amount of success payments is based on the market value of the Company’s common stock. The Company is required to make success payments to Broad Institute during a period of time, or the Broad Success Payment Period, which has been determined to be the earliest of (1) the twelfth anniversary of the Broad License Agreement or (2) the third anniversary of the first date on which a licensed product receives regulatory approval in the United States. During the Broad Success Payment Period, the Company will perform a calculation of any amounts owed to Broad Institute on each rolling 90-day period, commencing one year after the Company’s IPO.

In May 2021, the first success payment measurement occurred and amounts due to Broad Institute were calculated to be $15.0 million. The Company elected to make the payment in shares of the Company’s common stock and issued 174,825 shares of the Company’s common stock to settle this liability on June 10, 2021. The Company may owe Broad Institute success payments of up to an additional $90.0 million. As of December 31, 2024, no success payments were due to Broad Institute.

The following table summarizes the Company’s success payment liability for Broad Institute (in thousands):


	December 31,
	2024		2023
Broad Institute success payment liability	$	4,500	$	5,600

The following table summarizes the expense resulting from the change in the fair value of the success payment liability for Broad Institute (in thousands):


	Years Ended December 31,
	2024			2023			2022
Change in fair value of Broad Institute success payment liability	$	(1,100	)	$	(3,700	)	$	(11,900	)

Other Payments – The Company agreed to pay Broad Institute an annual license maintenance fee ranging from low-to-mid five figures to low six figures, depending on the particular calendar year. The Company is responsible for the payment of certain patent prosecution and maintenance costs incurred by Broad Institute related to licensed patents. To the extent achieved, the Company is obligated to pay up to an aggregate of $75.9 million in product development and regulatory approval milestones, or Broad Product Milestones. If the Company completes a change of control during the term of the Broad License Agreement, then certain of the milestone payments would be increased. To the extent there are commercial sales of a licensed product, the Company is required to pay low single digit royalties on net sales. The Company is entitled to certain reductions and offsets on these royalties with respect to a licensed product in a given country. If the Company sublicenses its rights to develop or commercialize a licensed product under the Broad License Agreement to a third party and the Company receives non-royalty sublicense income, then Broad Institute is entitled to a percentage of such consideration, ranging from the high single digits to low double digits depending on the date in which such sublicense agreement is executed and the stage of development of the Company’s licensed products at such time.

The annual maintenance fees are recorded as an expense on an annual basis based on the stated amount for the applicable year. Annual patent costs will be expensed as incurred. Upon determination that a Broad Product Milestone is probable to occur, the amount due will be recorded as research and development expense. The Company monitors the Broad Product Milestone payments for this arrangement on an ongoing basis.

To the extent products are commercialized under the Broad License Agreement, the Company will accrue royalty expense and sublicense nonroyalty payments, as applicable, for the amount it is obligated to pay, with adjustments as sales are made.

In May 2018, the Company entered into a license agreement, or the Editas License Agreement, with Editas Medicine, Inc., or Editas. Pursuant to the Editas License Agreement, Editas granted to the Company licenses and options to acquire licenses to certain intellectual property rights owned or controlled by Editas, for specified uses. More specifically, Editas granted to the Company a worldwide, exclusive, sublicensable, license (subject to certain exceptions and conditions) under certain intellectual property controlled by Editas for the use of base editing therapies for the treatment of any field of human diseases and conditions, subject to certain exceptions, or the Beam Field, and the licenses granted or to be granted under the Editas License Agreement, or the Editas Development and Commercialization License. Additionally, Editas granted to the Company a royalty-free, non-exclusive license under certain intellectual property owned or controlled by Editas to perform research activities in the Beam Field, or the Editas Research License. Editas provided the Company with an exclusive option to obtain an Editas Development and Commercialization License to three additional groups of intellectual property owned or controlled by Editas, on a group by group basis, during the specified option period, subject to certain exceptions. Pursuant to the Editas License Agreement, the Company will use commercially reasonable efforts to develop a product that includes the rights licensed to the Company within a specified period of time and to commercialize any such products that have received regulatory approval in certain specified countries.

Additional consideration will be due to Editas if the Company elects to exercise its option to obtain an Editas Development and Commercialization License to any of the three categories of intellectual property underlying the Editas Research License, for a fee ranging from a mid-teen million dollar amount to a low to mid-eight digit dollar amount per group, depending on the timing of the option exercise. Additionally, the Company is required to reimburse Editas for certain payments Editas may be obligated to make under existing Editas license agreements related to the intellectual property being licensed to the Company, including (i) development, regulatory and commercial milestone payments and certain sublicense income payments due as a result of the Editas License Agreement and (ii) a percentage of the annual maintenance fees and patent fees due to certain of the Editas’ licensors. In addition, to the extent any products are commercialized under an Editas Development and Commercialization License, the Company would be required to make royalty payments equivalent to the royalties that would be due from Editas to any applicable licensors of Editas related to the sales of such licensed products, plus an additional tiered low- to mid-single digit royalty, depending on whether such licensed product is covered by an Editas-owned patent.

The license rights and option rights granted by Editas to the Company are subject to the terms and conditions of the underlying license agreements that Editas is a party to and under which Editas licensed rights or option rights to the Company and the termination of such in-licenses, as applicable. Unless earlier terminated by either party pursuant to the terms of the agreement, the Editas License Agreement will continue in full force and effect and will expire on a licensed product-by licensed product and country-by-country basis upon the later of (i) the last-to-expire royalty term under any applicable institutional license to Editas and (ii) the date at which such product is no longer covered by a valid claim of a licensed Editas-owned patent in such country. The Company has the right, at its sole discretion, at any time to terminate the Editas License Agreement in its entirety or on a group-by-group of intellectual property basis, upon ninety days written notice to Editas. Upon termination of the Editas License Agreement, all rights and licenses granted by Editas to the Company (including the rights to exercise options and obtain such licenses) will immediately terminate and patents within a group of patents will no longer be deemed licensed patents. Expiration or termination of the Editas License Agreement for any reason does not release either party of any obligation or liability which had accrued, or which is attributable to a period prior to such expiration or termination.

The option exercise fees under the agreement will be recorded as research and development expense, if and when the Company exercises such options. To date, no options have been exercised. The annual maintenance fees are recorded as an expense on an annual basis based on the stated amount for the applicable year. Annual patent costs are expensed as incurred. In addition, the Company is required to make certain development, regulatory and commercial milestone payments to Editas upon the achievement of specified milestones. To the extent applicable, sublicense income payments will be accrued for the amount the Company is obligated to pay under each applicable in-license as amounts are due to Editas. Lastly, to the extent products are commercialized under the Editas License agreement, the Company will accrue royalty expense for the amount it is obligated to pay, with adjustments as sales are made.