Company Interview / Ai-Media CEO says future growth is not lost in translation

Key bullet points:

Annual recurring revenue up 80% to $30 million Shift to AI-native, hardware-as-a-service model and shutdown of legacy services EU Accessibility Act driving captioning demand, especially in government sector Targeted expansion in EMEA and APAC markets beyond North America Full-year recurring revenue growth guidance lifted to 50%

AI-Media Technologies (ASX:AIM) is experiencing a rapid scale-up in its annual recurring revenue, with an 80% increase to $30 million in the first half of the year. CEO Tony Abrahams points to this growth as a key indicator of the company’s strategic shift, despite a 6% drop in total half-year revenue and negative EBITDA. The company has upgraded its full-year annual recurring revenue growth guidance from 35% to 50%, signalling increased confidence in its new business model, even as it withdraws longer-term earnings forecasts due to rapid AI sector evolution.

Abrahams highlights the transformation to an AI-native business, including the complete shutdown of legacy services and a 40% decline in hardware revenue, both seen as intentional steps positioning AI-Media Technologies for future expansion. The upcoming launch of AI-powered encoders on a hardware-as-a-service basis is expected to address customer needs for flexibility and lower upfront costs, aiming to refresh 1,500 of the 8,000 existing encoders in the first year.

Growth opportunities are identified across regions, with expansion beyond the Americas and increasing market share in government and enterprise. Demand is buoyed by regulatory changes, such as the EU Accessibility Act, and enterprise needs for multilingual, precise transcription services, particularly among Fortune 500 companies.