DUOS TECHNOLOGIES GROUP, INC. [DUOT] Filings

As filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on April 12, 2024.

Registration No. 333-

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

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FORM S-1

REGISTRATION STATEMENT UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933

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DUOS TECHNOLOGIES GROUP, INC.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

7660 Centurion Parkway, Suite 100

Jacksonville, Florida 33256

(904) 652-1637

(Address and telephone number of registrant’s principal executive offices)

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Andrew W. Murphy

Chief Financial Officer

Duos Technologies Group, Inc.

7660 Centurion Parkway, Suite 100

Jacksonville, Florida 33256

(904) 652-1637

(Name, address. including zip code, and telephone number,
including area code, of agent for service)

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Copies to:

Approximate date of commencement of proposed sale to the public: As soon as practicable after this Registration Statement becomes effective.

If any of the securities being registered on this Form are to be offered on a delayed or continuous basis pursuant to Rule 415 under the Securities Act of 1933, check the following box. þ

If this Form is filed to register additional securities for an offering pursuant to Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act of 1933, please check the following box and list the Securities Act registration statement number of the earlier effective registration statement for the same offering. ¨

If this Form is a post-effective amendment filed pursuant to Rule 462(c) under the Securities Act of 1933, check the following box and list the Securities Act registration statement number of the earlier effective registration statement for the same offering. ¨

If this Form is a post-effective amendment filed pursuant to Rule 462(d) under the Securities Act of 1933, check the following box and list the Securities Act registration statement number of the earlier effective registration statement for the same offering. ¨

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, a smaller reporting company, or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company,” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 7(a)(2)(B) of the Securities Act. ¨

THE REGISTRANT HEREBY AMENDS THIS REGISTRATION STATEMENT ON SUCH DATE OR DATES AS MAY BE NECESSARY TO DELAY ITS EFFECTIVE DATE UNTIL THE REGISTRANT SHALL FILE A FURTHER AMENDMENT WHICH SPECIFICALLY STATES THAT THIS REGISTRATION STATEMENT SHALL THEREAFTER BECOME EFFECTIVE IN ACCORDANCE WITH SECTION 8(a) OF THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933, AS AMENDED, OR UNTIL THE REGISTRATION STATEMENT SHALL BECOME EFFECTIVE ON SUCH DATE AS THE SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION, ACTING PURSUANT TO SUCH SECTION 8(a), MAY DETERMINE.

The information in this prospectus is not complete and may be changed. The selling stockholders may not sell these securities until the registration statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) is effective. This prospectus is not an offer to sell securities, and we are not soliciting offers to buy these securities, in any jurisdiction where the offer or sale is not permitted.

DUOS TECHNOLOGIES GROUP, INC.

998,337 Shares of Common Stock Offered by Selling Stockholders

This prospectus relates to the offering and resale by the Selling Stockholders identified herein of up to 998,337 shares of common stock, par value $0.001 per share (the “Common Stock”), of Duos Technologies Group, Inc. (the “Company”) issuable upon the conversion of a total of 870 shares of Series D Convertible Preferred Stock, par value $0.001 per share (the “Series D Preferred Stock”), and 2,125 shares of Series E Convertible Preferred Stock, par value $0.001 per share (the “Series E Preferred Stock”). In a private placement we sold to the Selling Stockholders (i) 500 shares of Series D Preferred Stock and 2,125 shares of Series E Preferred Stock on March 22, 2024, (ii) 120 shares of Series D Preferred Stock on March 28 2024, and (iii) 250 shares of Series D Preferred Stock on April 3, 2024.

The Selling Stockholders may from time to time sell, transfer, or otherwise dispose of any or all of the securities in a number of different ways and at varying prices. See “Plan of Distribution” beginning on page 22 of this prospectus for more information.

We are not selling any shares of Common Stock in this offering, and we will not receive any proceeds from the sale of shares by the Selling Stockholders.

Our Common Stock is currently quoted on the Nasdaq Capital Market under the symbol “DUOT.” On April 9, 2024, the closing price as reported on the Nasdaq Capital Market was $3.10 per share. This price will fluctuate based on the demand for our Common Stock.

The Selling Stockholders may offer all or part of the shares for resale from time to time through public or private transactions, at either prevailing market prices or at privately negotiated prices.

This prospectus provides a general description of the securities being offered. You should read this prospectus and the registration statement of which it forms a part before you invest in any securities.

Investing in our securities involves a high degree of risk. See “Risk Factors” beginning on page 12 of this prospectus for a discussion of information that should be considered in connection with an investment in our securities.

Neither the Securities and Exchange Commission nor any state securities commission has approved or disapproved of these securities or determined if this prospectus is truthful or complete. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.

The date of this prospectus is April __, 2024

TABLE OF CONTENTS

This prospectus is part of a registration statement that we have filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC” or the “Commission”). By using such a registration statement, the Selling Stockholders may, from time to time, offer and sell shares of our common stock pursuant to this prospectus. It is important for you to read and consider all of our information contained in this prospectus before making any decision whether to invest in the common stock. You should also read and consider the information contained in the documents that we have incorporated by reference as described in “Where You Can Find More Information,” and “Incorporation of Certain Information by Reference” in this prospectus.

We and the Selling Stockholders have not authorized anyone to give any information or to make any representations different from that which is contained or incorporated by reference in this prospectus in connection with the offer made by this prospectus and, if given or made, such information or representations must not be relied upon as having been authorized by the Company or any Selling Stockholder. Neither the delivery of this prospectus nor any sale made hereunder and thereunder shall under any circumstances create an implication that there has been no change in the affairs of the Company since the date hereof. You should assume that information contained in this prospectus is accurate only as of the date on the front cover hereof. Our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects may have changed since that date. This prospectus does not constitute an offer or solicitation by anyone in any state in which such offer or solicitation is not authorized or in which the person making such offer or solicitation is not qualified to do so or to anyone to whom it is unlawful to make such offer or solicitation.

PROSPECTUS SUMMARY

This summary highlights selected information appearing elsewhere in this prospectus. While this summary highlights what we consider to be important information about us, you should carefully read this entire prospectus before investing in our common stock, especially the risks and other information we discuss under the headings “Risk Factors” and “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” and our consolidated financial statements and related notes beginning on page F-1. Our fiscal year end is December 31 and our fiscal years ended December 31, 2022 and 2023 are sometimes referred to herein as fiscal years 2022 and 2023, respectively. Some of the statements made in this prospectus discuss future events and developments, including our future strategy and our ability to generate revenue, income, and cash flow. These forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties which could cause actual results to differ materially from those contemplated in these forward-looking statements. See “Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements”. Unless otherwise indicated or the context requires otherwise, the words “we,” “us,” “our”, the “Company” or “our Company” or “Duos” refer to Duos Technologies Group, Inc., a Florida corporation, and our wholly owned subsidiary, Duos Technologies, Inc.

Our Corporate History

Information Systems Associates, Inc. (“ISA”) was incorporated in Florida on May 31, 1994. Our original business operations consisted of consulting services for asset management of large corporate data centers and the development and licensing of information technology (“IT”) asset management software. In late 2014, ISA entered negotiations with Duos Technologies, Inc. (“duostech™”) for the purposes of executing a merger between the two organizations (also known as a “reverse triangular merger”). Incorporated under the laws of Florida on November 30, 1990, duostech™ operated in various industry segments, specializing in the design, development and deployment of proprietary technology applications and turn-key engineered systems. This transaction was completed on April 1, 2015, whereby duostech™ became a wholly owned subsidiary of ISA. After the merger was completed, ISA changed its corporate name to Duos Technologies Group, Inc. The Company, based in Jacksonville, Florida, oversees its wholly owned subsidiary, duostech™ and employs approximately 71 people and is a technology company which designs, develops, deploys and operates intelligent technology solutions with a focus on software applications and artificial intelligence (“AI”). The Company has a strong portfolio of intellectual property. The Company’s headquarters are located at 7660 Centurion Parkway, Suite 100, Jacksonville, Florida 32256 and main telephone number is (904) 296-2807.

Overview

The Company, operating under its brand name duostech, develops and deploys technology systems with focus on inspecting and evaluating moving vehicles. Its technology focus is within the Vision Technology market sector and, more specifically, the Machine Vision subsector. Machine Vision companies provide imaging-based automatic inspection and analysis for process control for industry with potential expansion into other markets. Duos has developed key technologies over the past several years in software, industry specific hardware and artificial intelligence and has demonstrated industrial strength usability of its systems supporting rail, logistics and intermodal businesses that streamline operations, improve safety and reduce costs. Our team includes engineering subject matter expertise in hardware, software, and information technology as well as industry specific applications of artificial intelligence also referred to as Expert Artificial Intelligence. We also have specific industry experts in the rail industry on staff and as consultants.

Duos is currently developing industry solutions for its target markets which will address rail, trucking, aviation and other vehicle-based processes. Duos’ initial offering, the Railcar Inspection Portal (RIP), provides both freight and transit railroad customers and select government agencies the ability to conduct fully remote railcar inspections of trains while they are moving at full speed. The RIP utilizes a variety of sophisticated optical, laser and speed sensors to scan each passing railcar to create a high-resolution image-set of the top, sides and undercarriage. These images are then processed with our edge data center using artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms to identify safety and security defects on each railcar. The algorithms are developed in conjunction with industrial application experts, in this case resident Railcar Mechanical Engineers, to provide specific guidance in the analysis (“human in the loop”). Within seconds of the railcar passing through the RIP, a detailed report is sent to the customer where they are able to take action on identified issues. This solution has the potential to transform the railroad industry immediately increasing safety, improving efficiency and reducing costs. The Company has already deployed this system with several Class 1 railroads and anticipates an increased demand from transit and other railroad customers along with selected government agencies that operate and/or manage rail traffic. The Company has deployed RIPs in Canada, Mexico and the United States and anticipates expanding this solution into Europe, Asia and the Middle East in coming years.

The Company has also developed the Automated Logistics Information System (ALIS) which automates gatehouse operations where transport trucks enter and exit large logistics and intermodal facilities. This solution incorporates a similar set of sensors, data processing and artificial intelligence to streamline the customer’s logistics transactions and tracking and can also automate the security and safety inspection if called for. The Company has already deployed this system with one large North American retailer and anticipates increased demand from other large retailers, railroad intermodal operators and select government agencies that manage logistics and border crossing points. The Company is evaluating other solutions for moving vehicles including aircraft, which could provide similar benefits in terms of safety and efficiency for required inspections as part of an operations process.

We have developed two proprietary solutions that operate our software and artificial intelligence. centraco^® is an Enterprise Information Management Software platform that consolidates data and events from multiple sources into a unified and distributive user interface. Customized to the end user’s Concept of Operations (CONOPS), it provides improved situational awareness and data visualization for operational objectives compared to traditional manual inspections. truevue360^™ is our fully integrated platform that we utilize to develop and deploy Artificial Intelligence (AI) algorithms, including Machine Learning, Computer Vision, Object Detection and Deep Neural Network-based processing for real-time applications.

These same Artificial Intelligence applications have begun to open up other opportunities for the Company to provide revenue producing solutions with potentially high market adoption.

In 2021, the Company ended support of its IT Asset Management (ITAM) solution which cataloged results for data center asset inventory and audit services. We are currently evaluating using our current operations experience within “edge data centers” (as deployed for our Railcar Inspection Portal) to drive additional revenues within other markets requiring this type of solution although no specific offering has been developed at this time.

In the last quarter of 2022, the Company elected not to renew a support contract for its Integrated Correctional Automation System (iCAS) for one customer. The Company subsequently sold its iCAS assets to a buyer during the second quarter of 2023 for $165,000 via a convertible note.

The year 2022 ushered in a new phase in the Company’s development. Although we continue to see an extension of challenges faced in past years, we also see positive changes and opportunities for our business that will be discussed in greater detail herein. They include:

duostech™

Railcar Inspection Portal (rip®)

Federal regulations require each railcar/train to be inspected for mechanical defects prior to leaving a rail yard. Founded in 1934, the Association of American Railroads (AAR) is responsible for setting the standards for the safety and productivity of the U.S./North American freight rail industry, and by extension, has established the inspection parameters for the rail industry’s rolling stock. Also known as the “Why Made” codes, the AAR established approximately 110 inspection points under its guidelines for mechanical inspections.

Under current practice, inspections are conducted manually, a very labor intensive and inefficient process that only covers a select number of inspection points and can take several hours per train. We believe our Railcar Inspection Portal has the potential to reduce this inspection to minutes while the train is moving at speed, improving safety, reducing dwell time and optimizing maintenance.

Our system combines high-definition image and data capture technologies with our AI-based analytics applications that are typically installed on active tracks located between two rail yards. We inspect railcars traveling through our inspection portal at speeds of up to 70 mph and report mechanical anomalies detected by our system to the inbound train yard, well ahead of the train entering the yard.

Currently, three Class 1 railroads and several transit and international railroads use our rip® technology with one of those railroads broadly deploying the technology across its network.

The Company continues to expand its detection capabilities through the development and integration of additional sensor technologies to include laser, infrared, thermal, sound and x-ray to process AI-based analytics of inspection points. Currently the Company has a high-reliability catalog of over 48 artificial intelligence algorithms which can be integrated into the RIP to enhance mechanical anomalies detections. These detections support railroads in the active maintenance and overall safety of their railcar fleet and networks.

Markets

We believe the opportunity for our Railcar Inspection Portal business is substantial and continues to be our number one priority. We are currently engaged with the RIP solution with three of seven Class 1 railroad operators with 13 systems already deployed across the North American rail network. Because of our early leadership position, we have been able to accumulate experience and intellectual property that we believe would be time-consuming and expensive for a new competitor to replicate. Furthermore, we believe we have the ability to upgrade and scale our solutions with additional technologies in the future. We believe that the current market for our technologies is substantial. At the same time, we recognize that the technology life cycle is fast and evolving. Potential competitors could move into this sector, and it is possible that some Class 1 railroads could develop their own solutions that limit our total addressable market.

In late 2022, the Company announced it will pursue a subscription platform for the RIPs. Under this new model, the Company will build, own and operate its RIP product and offer the data access for each portal to potential customers. This expansion of the RIP offering would potentially open up the addressable market to other railroads, railcar owners, and car lessors. This shift increases the pool of potential customers by lowering the entry point for the RIP and would reshape the Company’s working capital needs to invest in the construction of a RIP ahead of customer revenue inflows. The Company continues to explore this expansion on the long-term effects it may have on future cash flows.

Another market we are pursuing as our second priority is using our Automated Logistics and Information Systems solution (alis™). Potential customers include commercial retail logistics and intermodal operators, Class 1 rail intermodal operators that are moving large amounts of automobiles, and U.S. Government agencies such as the Department of Defense and the Department of Homeland Security. Today, we currently have 20 production systems in use, but we believe the greenfield opportunity here to be substantial. We have identified over 900 lanes of traffic within nearly 300 facilities as potential business opportunities in the near-term.

Currently, we are focused on the North American market, but plan to expand globally in the future with interest from Europe, Asia and the Middle East.

Patents and Trademarks

The Company holds a number of patents and trademarks for our technology solutions. We protect our intellectual property rights by relying on federal, state, and common law rights, as well as contractual restrictions. We control access to our proprietary technology by entering into confidentiality and invention assignment agreements with all of our employees and contractors, and confidentiality agreements with third parties. We also actively engage in monitoring activities with respect to infringing uses of our intellectual property by third parties.

Specific Areas of Competition

One of our primary commercial goals is to develop innovative technology solutions and target potential “greenfield” market spaces in order to maximize our business footprint and give us the ability to help define the market parameters for the future.

Other companies that participate in the visual and optical (laser) based railcar inspection systems market include Wabtec (Beena Vision), KLD Labs, WID, IEM, and Camlin Rail. Some Class 1 railroads have stated that they are developing “in-house” solutions. We believe that Duos has a significant competitive advantage in that we have multiple years of deployment experience, have access to millions of images where our RIP has performed scans with AI analysis and in-house industry expertise to train our systems and make identification of common problems more automated.

Our Automated Logistics Information System (ALIS) also represents an opportunity to expand into a mature market that we believe has a significant technology gap.  While most facilities, such as distribution centers, that process commercial trucks in and out have sophisticated software management applications for logistics control, they have most often not implemented an advanced gatehouse automation solution. Historically, this category was referred to as “Automated Gate Systems” or AGS.  The purpose of AGS technology is to streamline entry in to and exit out of facilities.  The marketplace for this was mostly seaports and intermodal transfer facilities and was relatively expensive technology to deploy. 

Our Growth Strategy

Vision

The Company designs, develops, deploys and operates intelligent technology solutions for inspecting and evaluating moving objects. Its technology application focus is within the rail and intermodal markets which offers imaging-based automatic inspection and analysis for process control for industry with potential expansion into other markets.

Objectives

Organic Growth

Our organic growth strategy is to continue our focus and prioritization in the rail, logistics and intermodal market space. In this regard, the Company has made significant changes in the senior management team to include a new Chief Executive Officer, who joined the Company in September 2020 and has years of experience successfully leading start-up and turn-around companies. In addition, a key account executive from one of Duos’ competitors joined the team during late 2022 to support continued revenue growth of the business bringing significant sales experience focused around the rail market. In the third quarter of 2023, the Company also brought on a new Chief Commercial Officer bringing significant experience from the sales and operations aspects of the intermodal and power industries. In 2021, the Company also hired a new Chief Technology Officer bringing 25 years of experience in designing and delivering value driven technologies. Our new CTO has already led the team through instrumental changes to its approach to software and artificial intelligence development. The team also saw a change in CFO in late 2022 with the new CFO bringing significant experience in growth for asset-intensive businesses which aligns with the subscription format the Company will expand into.

The new leadership team’s focus is to improve operational and technical execution which will in turn enable the commercial side of the business to expand RIP and ALIS delivery into existing and new customers. Even though supply chain issues are expected to continue in 2024, the Company’s primary customers have indicated readiness to order more equipment and services based upon the Company’s current performance and the new subscription offerings expand the universe of potential customers.

Additionally, the CEO has directed that the Company make continual engineering and software upgrades to the RIP to meet anticipated Federal Railroad Association (FRA) and Association of American Railroad (AAR) standards.

Manufacturing and Assembly

The Company designs and develops technology solutions using a combination of in-house fabrication, commercial off-the-shelf technology, and outsourced manufacturing. On-site installations are performed using a combination of in-house project managers and engineers and using third-party sub-contractors as needed. Throughout the process of design, develop, deploy and operate, the Company maintains responsibility for all aspects. Our internal manufacturing operations consist primarily of materials procurement, assembly, testing and quality control by our engineers. If not manufactured internally, we use third-party manufacturing partners to produce our hardware related components and hardware products and we most often complete final assembly, testing and quality control processes for these components and products. Our manufacturing processes are based on standardization of components across product types, centralization of assembly and distribution centers, and a “build-to-order” methodology in which products generally are built only after customers have placed firm orders. For most of our hardware products, we have existing alternate sources of supply.

For 2024 and possibly beyond, we expect to face significant challenges with macro-economic impacts, specifically inflation and supply chain disruption. Although these started to be identified in late 2021, we believe they continue to manifest themselves in ways that could challenge our business growth in the future. Specifically, the ability to source key components and certain implementation services will dictate just how quickly the Company can meet desired installation deadlines. In the industries in which we operate, the time from concept to contract can be substantial. Although we are now adapting to these challenges, previous bids that have been submitted could be challenging to execute within the financial framework and execution times originally envisaged. We continue to have dialogue with our customers regarding potential price increases and implementation delays, but we may suffer some economic impacts as a result of this. Revenue recognition could be delayed as a result of these factors and profitability could be impacted due to higher costs for materials and other services. The Company will continue to monitor the situation and update shareholders as the situation unfolds.

Research and Development

The Company’s R&D and software development teams design and develop all systems and software applications with a combination of full-time in-house software engineers and outside contractors. Internal development allows us to maintain technical control over the design and development of our products. Rapid technological advances in hardware and software development, evolving standards in computer hardware and software technology, and changing customer requirements characterize the markets in which we compete. We plan to continue to dedicate significant resources to research and development efforts, including software development, to maintain and improve our current product and services offerings.

Government Regulations

The Company has worked with various agencies of the federal government for more than 10 years including the Department of Homeland Security (“DHS”). When our solutions have been deployed into these agencies, they meet specific requirements for certification, safety and security that are stipulated in requirements and contract documents. The Company is currently competing for other government related work and strictly follows the rules and regulations outlined in the Federal Acquisition Regulations.

The Company’s primary customers are all governed by regulations related to the safe and effective transportation of goods and passengers, primarily by rail, but in future scenarios by air, road and sea. While changes in the regulatory environment could impact the Company in future years, we believe any changes will be overall positive for the Company. We continuously review potential changes in the regulatory environment and maintain contact with key personnel at certain agencies including the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) as well as the DHS previously mentioned. We expect to develop similar relationships with governmental agencies in target markets both in the US and internationally. At this time, we believe our offerings are complementary to the current and evolving standards and that we will adapt to any new regulations as they are promulgated.

Employees

We have a current staff of 71 employees, of which 65 are full-time, the majority of which work in the Jacksonville area, none of which are subject to a collective bargaining agreement. We have not experienced any work stoppages and we consider our relationship with our employees to be good.

Our Risks and Challenges

An investment in our securities involves a high degree of risk. You should carefully consider the risks summarized below. The risks are discussed more fully in the “Risk Factors” section of this prospectus immediately following this prospectus summary. These risks include, but are not limited to, the following:

Recent Developments 

On March 31, 2023, the Company issued 12,463 shares of common stock for payment of board fees to three directors in the amount of $32,500 for services to the board which was expensed during the three months ended March 31, 2023.

On April 1, 2023, the Board granted to certain key employees an aggregate of 353,117 non-qualified stock options with a strike price of $4.22, a term of 5-years and a 3-year vesting period. The options were granted prior to the certificates being issued subject to a pending modification of specific language contained within the option agreement pertaining to certain rights of the holder in the event of a merger or acquisition. The specific language was approved by the shareholders on May 17, 2023 after which the option certificates were issued with the modified language. The specific language had no bearing on the grant date nor on the valuation. Following the approval by the shareholders but prior to issuance of the certificates, one holder resigned from the Company and forfeited 60,000 unvested options leading to a net issuance during the quarter of 293,117 non-qualified stock options. The Company expects to take a charge of approximately $556,000 during the vesting period.

As previously reported, on May 16, 2023 the Company held its 2023 annual meeting of stockholders. Certain matters were approved at the meeting including election of Board members, the issuance of shares of common stock upon conversion of shares of Series D Preferred Stock, an Employee Stock Purchase Plan (ESPP), and ratification of the auditors.

On June 30, 2023, the Company issued 65,561 shares of common stock to employees participating in the Company’s Employee Stock Purchase Plan at the end of a six-month offering period. The employee participation totaled $117,048 for the six months ended June 30, 2023 and represented a purchase price $1.79 per share based upon 85% of the lower price per share on either the first trading day of the offering period or the purchase date.

On July 1, 2023, the Company awarded an employee 50,000 non-qualified stock options, that received final board approval in November 2023, which have a 5-year term and a 3-year vesting period.

On June 30 2023, the Company issued an aggregate of 5,645 shares of common stock for payment of board fees to three directors in the amount of $32,500 for services to the board which was expensed during the three months ended June 30, 2023.

On July 19, 2023, the Board of Directors elected Frank Lonegro as a member of the Board, effective immediately.

On August 30, 2023, the Company hired Christopher King as its Chief Commercial Officer. Mr. King is a veteran of the logistics and energy markets who has led numerous commercial teams who successfully won over $1 billion in new revenue, asset sales and contract extensions as well as brings Six Sigma leadership expertise to the team.

On August 30, 2023, the Company awarded 70,000 non-qualified stock options for a new employee, that received final board approval in November 2023, which have a 5-year term and a 3-year vesting period.

On September 29, 2023, the Company issued an aggregate of 7,910 shares of common stock for payment of board fees to four directors in the amount of $40,565 for services to the board which was expensed during the three months ended September 30, 2023.

On November 30, 2023, the Company awarded 50,000 non-qualified stock options to a consultant, that received final board approval in November 2023, which have a 5-year term and a 3-year vesting period.

On December 29, 2023, the Company issued an aggregate of 12,231 shares of common stock for payment of board fees to four directors in the amount of $37,500 for services to the board which was expensed during the three months ended December 31, 2023.

On December 29, 2023, the Company issued 45,977 shares of Common Stock to employees participating in the Company’s Employee Stock Purchase Plan at the end of a six-month offering period. The employee participation totaled $113,352 for the six months ended December 31, 2023 and represented a purchase price of $2.47 per share based upon 85% of the lower price per share on either the first trading date of the offering period or the purchase date.

On March 28, 2024, the Company issued an aggregate of 8,655 shares of common stock for payment of board fees to four directors in the amount of $37,500 for services to the board which was expensed during the three months ended March 31, 2024.

In a private placement, the Company sold (i) 500 shares of Series D Preferred Stock and 2,125 shares of Series E Preferred Stock on March 22, 2024, (ii) 120 shared of Series D Preferred Stock on March 28, 2024, and (iii) 250 shares of Series D Preferred Stock on April 3, 2024. The Company received aggregate proceeds of $2,995,000. The Series D Preferred Stock and the Series E Preferred Stock are each convertible into Common Stock at a conversion price of $3.00 per share.

Corporate Information

Our principal executive office is located at 7660 Centurion Parkway, Suite 100, Jacksonville, FL 32256. Our telephone number is (904) 296-2807. Our website address is www.duostechnologies.com. Information contained on our website is not a part of this prospectus, and the inclusion of our website address in this prospectus is an inactive textual reference only.

THE OFFERING

This prospectus relates to the offer and sale from time to time of up to 998,337 shares of our Common Stock by the Selling Stockholders that may be issued upon conversion of the Series D Preferred Stock and the Series E Preferred Stock. See “Selling Stockholders”.

Unless otherwise indicated in this prospectus, throughout this prospectus the number of shares of our common stock outstanding is based on 7,315,318 shares of our common stock outstanding as of April 9, 2024 and excludes the following:

SUMMARY OF CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL INFORMATION

The following summary consolidated statement of operations data for the fiscal years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022 and the summary consolidated balance sheet data as of December 31, 2023 and 2022 have been derived from our audited consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in this prospectus. You should read the summary consolidated financial data in conjunction with those financial statements and the accompanying notes and “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations.” Our consolidated financial statements are prepared and presented in accordance with United States generally accepted accounting principles, or U.S. GAAP.

DUOS TECHNOLOGIES GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS

DUOS TECHNOLOGIES GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES

CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS

DUOS TECHNOLOGIES GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES

CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS (CONTINUED)

RISK FACTORS

Investing in our securities involves a great deal of risk. Careful consideration should be made of the following factors as well as other information included in this prospectus before deciding to purchase our securities. There are many risks that affect our business and results of operations, some of which are beyond our control. Our business, financial condition or operating results could be materially harmed by any of these risks. This could cause the trading price of our securities to decline, and you may lose all or part of your investment. Additional risks that we do not yet know of or that we currently think are immaterial may also affect our business and results of operations.

Risks Related to Our Company and Business

The nature of the technology management platforms utilized by us are complex and highly integrated, and if we fail to successfully manage releases or integrate new solutions, it could harm our revenues, operating income, and reputation.

The technology platforms developed and designed by us accommodate integrated applications that include our own developed technology and third-party technology, thereby substantially increasing their functionality.

Due to this complexity and the condensed development cycles under which we operate, we may experience errors in our software, corruption or loss of our data, or unexpected performance issues from time to time. For example, our solutions may face interoperability difficulties with software operating systems or programs being used by our customers, or new releases, upgrades, fixes or the integration of acquired technologies may have unanticipated consequences on the operation and performance of our other solutions. If we encounter integration challenges or discover errors in our solutions late in our development cycle, it may cause us to delay our launch dates. Any major integration or interoperability issues or launch delays could have a material adverse effect on our revenues, operating income and reputation.

We face risks as a result of the coronavirus (COVID-19 pandemic) lingering effects which could significantly disrupt our research and development, operations, sales, and financial results.

Our business has been adversely impacted by the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition to global macroeconomic effects, the COVID-19 pandemic and related adverse public health developments caused disruption and/or delays to our operations and sales activities. Our third-party manufacturers and our customers were disrupted by worker absenteeism, quarantines and restrictions on employees’ ability to work, office and factory closures, disruptions to ports and other shipping infrastructure, border closures, or other travel or health-related restrictions. Depending on the magnitude of such effects on our activities or the operations of our third-party manufacturers and third-party distributors, the supply of our products, in some cases, continue to be delayed, which could continue to adversely affect our business, operations and customer relationships. In addition, the pandemic or other disease outbreak have had and may continue to have over the longer term a material adverse effect on the economies and financial markets of many countries, resulting in an economic downturn that will affect demand for our products and services and impact our operating results. There can be no assurance that any decrease in sales resulting from the pandemic slowdown will be offset by increased sales in subsequent periods. Although the magnitude of the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak on our business and operations remains uncertain, the continued spread of COVID-19 and the related public health measures and travel and business restrictions may adversely impact our business, financial condition, operating results and cash flows. In addition, we have experienced and may in the future experience disruptions to our business operations resulting from quarantines, self-isolations, or other restrictions on the ability of our employees to perform their jobs that may impact our ability to develop and design our products and services in a timely manner or meet required milestones or customer commitments.

We may be adversely affected by the effects of inflation and supply chain disruption

Our business operates in an environment of long bid to contract award cycles. Our customer’s bid requirements are such that firm pricing is expected on much or all of our proposals and as such we must commit to certain commercial terms and conditions such as pricing. In addition, the Company hires employees and contractors to perform most (if not all) of the work required to complete a contract. We are beginning to experience the impacts of inflation upon previously forecasted costs including employees that require higher salaries, contractors demanding higher prices for jobs and higher costs for materials necessary to complete contracts. While we endeavor to charge additional costs to our customers, in some cases this may not be possible contractually and as a result our profitability may suffer as a result. Although we anticipate these effects to be mitigated in the long term, we cannot be assured that this will be possible in all or any instances and as such our revenue, profitability and growth prospects may suffer as a result of this.

Current supply chain issues continue to extend deadlines for shipment of key components used in our technology systems. The effect of this may be to delay revenue recognition. We have experienced and expect to continue to experience delays to our business operations resulting from lack of materials availability, delays in securing key components such as video cameras requiring certain computer chips, and other material and personnel shortages that may impact our ability to implement our products and services in a timely manner or meet required milestones or customer commitments.  In addition, higher costs for travel may adversely impact our business, financial condition, operating results and cash flows. This has made it necessary for the Company to order certain components prior to receiving a contract to ensure we have key components available when necessary to satisfy future contract obligations.

Our products and services may fail to keep pace with rapidly changing technology and evolving industry standards.

The market in which we operate is characterized by rapid, and sometimes disruptive, technological developments, evolving industry standards, frequent new product introductions and enhancements and changes in customer requirements. In addition, both traditional and new competitors are investing heavily in our market areas and competing for customers. As next-generation video analytics technology continues to evolve, we must keep pace in order to maintain or expand our market position. We continue to introduce new product offerings focused on automating mechanical and security inspections in the rail, logistics, intermodal and government sectors as potential revenue drivers. If we are not able to successfully add staff resources with sufficient technical skills to develop and bring these new products to market in a timely manner, achieve market acceptance of our products and services or identify new market opportunities for our products and services, our business and results of operations may be materially and adversely affected.

The market opportunity for our products and services may not develop in the ways that we anticipate.

The demand for our products and services could change quickly and in ways that we may not anticipate. Our operating results may be adversely affected if the market opportunity for our products and services does not develop in the ways that we anticipate or if other technologies become more accepted or standard in our industry or disrupt our technology platforms.

Our revenues are dependent on general economic conditions and the willingness of enterprises to invest in technology.

We believe that operators in the business sectors we are focused on continue to be cautious about sustained economic growth and seek to maintain or improve profitability through cost control and constrained spending. While our core technologies are designed to address cost reduction, other factors may cause companies to delay or cancel capital projects, including the implementation of our products and services. In addition, the business sectors in which we are focused are under financial pressure to reduce capital investment which may make it more difficult for us to close large contracts in the immediate future. We believe there is a growing market trend toward more customers exploring operating expense models as opposed to capital expense models for procuring technology. We believe the market trend toward operating expense models will continue as customers seek ways of reducing their overhead and other costs. All of the foregoing may result in continued pressure on our ability to increase our revenue and may potentially create competitive pricing pressures and price erosion. If these or other conditions limit our ability to grow revenue or cause our revenue to decline our operating results may be materially and adversely affected.

Our working capital profile may shift over time to require additional investment.

Historically, the Company has leveraged significant milestone payments at a contract onset to fund the purchase of required materials. Expansion into a subscription format would allow the Company to potentially transact faster and more routinely with a larger customer base than it has previously had. In certain instances where the Company would build, own and operate its own assets, it may require a different working capital and capitalization strategy whereby the Company will be required to make upfront investments without significant customer milestone payments to offset the investment. The Company believes that this presents a short-term capital risk but will, long-term, improve the overall performance of the business.

Some of our competitors are larger and have greater financial and other resources than we do.

Some of our product offerings compete and will compete with other similar products from our competitors. These competitive products could be marketed by well-established, successful companies that possess greater financial, marketing, distributional, personnel and other resources than we possess. In certain instances, competitors with greater financial resources also may be able to enter a market in direct competition with us offering attractive marketing tools to encourage the sale of products that compete with our products or present cost features that our target end users may find attractive.

We have a history of losses and our growth plans may lead to additional losses and negative operating cash flows in the future.

Our accumulated deficit was approximately $64 million as of December 31, 2023. Our operating losses may continue as we continue to expend resources to further develop and enhance our technology offering, complete prototyping for proof-of-concept, obtain regulatory clearances or approvals as required, expand our business development activities and finance capabilities and conduct further research and development. We also expect to experience negative cash flow in the short-term until our revenues and margins increase at a rate greater than our expenses, which may not occur.

We may be unable to protect our intellectual property, which could impair our competitive advantage, reduce our revenue, and increase our costs.

Our success and ability to compete depend in part on our ability to maintain the proprietary aspects of our technologies and products. We rely on a combination of trade secrets, patents, copyrights, trademarks, confidentiality agreements, and other contractual provisions to protect our intellectual property, but these measures may provide only limited protection. We customarily enter into written confidentiality and non-disclosure agreements with our employees, consultants, customers, manufacturers, and other recipients of information about our technologies and products and assignment of invention agreements with our employees and consultants. We may not always be able to enforce these agreements and may fail to enter into any such agreement in every instance when appropriate. We license from third-parties certain technology used in and for our products. These third-party licenses are granted with restrictions; therefore, such third-party technology may not remain available to us on terms beneficial to us. Our failure to enforce and protect our intellectual property rights or obtain from third parties the right to use necessary technology could have a material adverse effect on our business, operating results, and financial condition. In addition, the laws of some foreign countries do not protect proprietary rights as fully as do the laws of the United States.

Patents may not be issued from the patent applications that we have filed or may file in the future. Our issued patents may be challenged, invalidated, or circumvented, and claims of our patents may not be of sufficient scope or strength, or issued in the proper geographic regions, to provide meaningful protection or any commercial advantage. We have registered certain of our trademarks in the United States and other countries. We cannot assure you that we will obtain registrations of principal or other trademarks in key markets in the future. Failure to obtain registrations could compromise our ability to protect fully our trademarks and brands and could increase the risk of challenge from third parties to our use of our trademarks and brands.

We may be required to incur substantial expenses and divert management attention and resources in defending intellectual property litigation against us.

We cannot be certain that our technologies and products do not and will not infringe on issued patents or other proprietary rights of others. While we are not currently subject to any infringement claim, any future claim, with or without merit, could result in significant litigation costs and diversion of resources, including the attention of management, and could require us to enter into royalty and licensing agreements, any of which could have a material adverse effect on our business. We may not be able to obtain such licenses on commercially reasonable terms, if at all, or the terms of any offered licenses may be unacceptable to us. If forced to cease using such technology, we may be unable to develop or obtain alternate technology. Accordingly, an adverse determination in a judicial or administrative proceeding, or failure to obtain necessary licenses, could prevent us from manufacturing, using, or selling certain of our products, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, operating results, and financial condition.

Furthermore, parties making such claims could secure a judgment awarding substantial damages, as well as injunctive or other equitable relief, which could effectively block our ability to make, use, or sell our products in the United States or abroad. Such a judgment could have a material adverse effect on our business, operating results, and financial condition. In addition, we are obligated under certain agreements to indemnify the other party in connection with infringement by us of the proprietary rights of third parties. In the event that we are required to indemnify parties under these agreements, it could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, and results of operations.

We may incur substantial expenses and divert management resources in prosecuting others for their unauthorized use of our intellectual property rights.

Other companies, including our competitors, may develop technologies that are similar or superior to our technologies, duplicate our technologies, or design around our patents, and may have or obtain patents or other proprietary rights that would prevent, limit, or interfere with our ability to make, use, or sell our products. Although we do not have operations outside North America at this time, we may compete for contracts in other countries in the future. Effective intellectual property protection may be unavailable, or limited, in some foreign countries in which we may do business, such as China. Unauthorized parties may attempt to copy or otherwise use aspects of our technologies and products that we regard as proprietary. Our means of protecting our proprietary rights in the United States or abroad may not be adequate or competitors may independently develop similar technologies. If our intellectual property protection is insufficient to protect our intellectual property rights, we could face increased competition in the market for our technologies and products.

Should any of our competitors file patent applications or obtain patents that claim inventions also claimed by us, we may choose to participate in an interference proceeding to determine the right to a patent for these inventions, because our business would be harmed if we fail to enforce and protect our intellectual property rights. Even if the outcome is favorable, this proceeding could result in substantial cost to us and disrupt our business.

In the future, we also may need to file lawsuits to enforce our intellectual property rights, to protect our trade secrets, or to determine the validity and scope of the proprietary rights of others. This litigation, whether successful or unsuccessful, could result in substantial costs and diversion of resources, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, and results of operations.

If we are unable to apply technology effectively in driving value for our clients through technology-based solutions or gain internal efficiencies and effective internal controls through the application of technology and related tools, our operating results, client relationships, growth and compliance programs could be adversely affected.

Our future success depends, in part, on our ability to anticipate and respond effectively to the threat and opportunity presented by new technology disruption and developments. These may include new software applications or related services based on artificial intelligence, machine learning, or robotics. We may be exposed to competitive risks related to the adoption and application of new technologies by established market participants or new entrants, start-up companies and others. These new entrants are focused on using technology and innovation, including artificial intelligence, to simplify and improve the client experience, increase efficiencies, alter business models and effect other potentially disruptive changes in the industries in which we operate. We must also develop and implement technology solutions and technical expertise among our employees that anticipate and keep pace with rapid and continuing changes in technology, industry standards, client preferences and internal control standards. We may not be successful in anticipating or responding to these developments on a timely and cost-effective basis and our ideas may not be accepted in the marketplace. Additionally, the effort to gain technological expertise and develop new technologies in our business requires us to incur significant expenses. If we cannot offer new technologies as quickly as our competitors, or if our competitors develop more cost-effective technologies or product offerings, we could experience a material adverse effect on our operating results, client relationships, growth and compliance programs.

We are dependent on information technology networks and systems to securely process, transmit and store electronic information and to communicate among our locations around North America and with our people, clients, partners and vendors. As the breadth and complexity of this infrastructure continues to grow, including as a result of the use of mobile technologies, social media and cloud-based services, the risk of security breaches and cyberattacks increases. Such breaches could lead to shutdowns or disruptions of or damage to our systems and those of our clients, alliance partners and vendors, and unauthorized disclosure of sensitive or confidential information, including personal data. In the past, we have experienced data security breaches resulting from unauthorized access to our and our service providers’ systems, which to date have not had a material impact on our operations, however, there is no assurance that such impacts will not be material in the future.

In providing services and solutions to clients, we may be required to manage, utilize and store sensitive or confidential client data, possibly including personal data, and we anticipate these activities to increase, including through the use of artificial intelligence, the internet of things and analytics. Unauthorized disclosure of sensitive or confidential client data, whether through systems failure, employee negligence, fraud, misappropriation, or other intentional or unintentional acts, could damage our reputation, could cause us to lose clients and could result in significant financial exposure. Similarly, unauthorized access to our or through our or our service providers’ information systems or those we develop for our clients, whether by our employees or third parties, including a cyberattack by computer programmers, hackers, members of organized crime and/or state-sponsored organizations, who continuously develop and deploy viruses, ransomware or other malicious software programs or social engineering attacks, could result in negative publicity, significant remediation costs, legal liability, damage to our reputation and government sanctions and could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations. Cybersecurity threats are constantly expanding and evolving, thereby increasing the difficulty of detecting and defending against them and maintaining effective security measures and protocols.

We depend on key personnel who would be difficult to replace, and our business plan will likely be harmed if we lose their services or cannot hire additional qualified personnel.

Our success depends substantially on the efforts and abilities of our senior management and certain key personnel. The competition for qualified management and key personnel, especially engineers, is intense. Although we maintain non-competition and non-disclosure covenants with all our key personnel, we do not have employment agreements with most of them. The loss of services of key employees, or the inability to hire, train, and retain key personnel, especially engineers and technical support personnel, could delay the development and sale of our products, disrupt our business, and interfere with our ability to execute our business plan.

Due to our dependence on a limited number of customers, we are subject to a concentration of credit risk.

For the year ended December 31, 2023, three customers accounted for 48%, 30%, and 11% of revenues. For the year ended December 31, 2022, four customers accounted for 42%, 18%, 14% and 14% of revenues. In all cases, there are no minimum contract values stated. Each contract covers an agreement to deliver a rail inspection portal which, once accepted, must be paid in full, with 30% or more being due and payable prior to delivery. The balances of the contracts are for service and maintenance which is paid annually in advance with revenues recorded ratably over the contract period.

As of December 31, 2023, two customers accounted for 83%, and 11% of our accounts receivable. In the case of insolvency by one of our significant customers, accounts receivable with respect to that customer might not be collectible, might not be fully collectible, or might be collectible over longer than normal terms, each of which could adversely affect our financial position. Additionally, our largest customer accounted for approximately 48% of our total revenues for the year ended December 31, 2023. This concentration of credit risk makes us more vulnerable economically. The loss of any of these customers could materially reduce our revenues and net income, which could have a material adverse effect on our business.

Risks Related to Our Common Stock

There is currently not an active liquid trading market for the Company’s common stock.

Our common stock is quoted on the Nasdaq Capital Market tier under the symbol “DUOT”. However, there is currently limited active trading in our common stock. Although there are periodic volume spikes from time to time, we cannot give an assurance that a consistent, active trading market will develop. If an active market for our common stock develops, there is a significant risk that our stock price may fluctuate in the future in response to any of the following factors, some of which are beyond our control:

You may experience dilution of your ownership interest due to future issuances of our securities.

We are in a capital-intensive business, and we may not have sufficient funds to finance the growth of our business or to support our projected capital expenditures. As a result, we may require additional funds from future equity or debt financings, including potential sales of preferred shares or convertible debt, to complete the development of new projects and pay the general and administrative costs of our business. We may in the future issue our previously authorized and unissued securities, resulting in the dilution of the ownership interests of holders of our common stock. We are currently authorized to issue 500,000,000 shares of common stock and 10,000,000 shares of preferred stock. We may also issue additional shares of common stock or other securities that are convertible into or exercisable for common stock in future public offerings or private placements for capital raising purposes or for other business purposes. The future issuance of a substantial number of shares of common stock into the public market, or the perception that such issuance could occur, could adversely affect the prevailing market price of our common shares. A decline in the price of our common stock could make it more difficult to raise funds through future offerings of our common stock or securities convertible into common stock.

Our Board of Directors may issue and fix the terms of shares of our Preferred Stock without stockholder approval, which could adversely affect the voting power of holders of our Common Stock or any change in control of our Company.

Our Articles of Incorporation authorize the issuance of up to 10,000,000 shares of “blank check” preferred stock, with such designations, rights and preferences as may be determined from time to time by the Board of Directors. Our Board of Directors is empowered, without shareholder approval, to issue shares of preferred stock with dividend, liquidation, conversion, voting or other rights which could adversely affect the voting power or other rights of the holders of our common stock. In the event of such issuances, the preferred stock could be used, under certain circumstances, as a method of discouraging, delaying, or preventing a change in control of our Company. 

We do not expect to pay dividends and investors should not buy our common stock expecting to receive dividends.

We do not anticipate that we will declare or pay any dividends in the foreseeable future. Consequently, you will only realize an economic gain on your investment in our common stock if the price appreciates. You should not purchase our common stock expecting to receive cash dividends. Accordingly, our stockholders will not realize a return on their investment unless the trading price of our common stock appreciates, which is uncertain and unpredictable. In addition, because we do not pay dividends, our common stock may be less attractive, which may cause us to have trouble raising additional funds which could affect our ability to expand our business operations.

Our operating results are likely to fluctuate from period to period.

We anticipate that there may be significant fluctuations in our future operating results. Potential causes of future fluctuations in our operating results may include:

We are subject to the Florida anti-takeover provisions, which may prevent you from exercising a vote on business combinations, mergers or otherwise.

As a Florida corporation, we are subject to certain anti-takeover provisions that apply to public corporations under Florida law. Pursuant to Section 607.0901 of the Florida Business Corporation Act, or the Florida Act, a publicly held Florida corporation, under certain circumstances, may not engage in a broad range of business combinations or other extraordinary corporate transactions with an interested shareholder without the approval of the holders of two-thirds of the voting shares of the corporation (excluding shares held by the interested shareholder).

An interested shareholder is defined as a person who together with affiliates and associates beneficially owns more than 15% of a corporation’s outstanding voting shares. We have not made an election in our amended Articles of Incorporation to opt out of Section 607.0901.

In addition, we are subject to Section 607.0902 of the Florida Act which prohibits the voting of shares in a publicly held Florida corporation that are acquired in a control-share acquisition unless (i) our board of directors approved such acquisition prior to its consummation or (ii) after such acquisition, in lieu of prior approval by our board of directors, the holders of a majority of the corporation’s voting shares, exclusive of shares owned by officers of the corporation, employee directors or the acquiring party, approve the granting of voting rights as to the shares acquired in the control-share acquisition. A control-share acquisition is defined as an acquisition that immediately thereafter entitles the acquiring party to 20% or more of the total voting power in an election of directors.

CAUTIONARY NOTE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

This prospectus contains forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements give our current expectations or forecasts of future events. You can identify these statements by the fact that they do not relate strictly to historical or current facts. Forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties and include statements regarding, among other things, our projected revenue growth and profitability, our growth strategies and opportunity, anticipated trends in our market and our anticipated needs for working capital. They are generally identifiable by use of the words “may,” “will,” “should,” “anticipate,” “estimate,” “plans,” “potential,” “projects,” “continuing,” “ongoing,” “expects,” “management believes,” “we believe,” “we intend” or the negative of these words or other variations on these words or comparable terminology. These statements may be found under the sections entitled “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” and “Business,” as well as in this prospectus generally. In particular, these include statements relating to future actions, prospective products, market acceptance, future performance or results of current and anticipated products, sales efforts, expenses, and the outcome of contingencies such as legal proceedings and financial results.

Examples of forward-looking statements in this prospectus include, but are not limited to, our expectations regarding our business strategy, business prospects, operating results, operating expenses, working capital, liquidity and capital expenditure requirements. Important assumptions relating to the forward-looking statements include, among others, assumptions regarding demand for our products, the cost, terms and availability of components, pricing levels, the timing and cost of capital expenditures, competitive conditions and general economic conditions. These statements are based on our management’s expectations, beliefs and assumptions concerning future events affecting us, which in turn are based on currently available information. These assumptions could prove inaccurate. Although we believe that the estimates and projections reflected in the forward-looking statements are reasonable, our expectations may prove to be incorrect.

Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the results and events anticipated or implied by such forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to:

We operate in a very competitive and rapidly changing environment. New risks emerge from time to time. It is not possible for us to predict all of those risks, nor can we assess the impact of all of those risks on our business or the extent to which any factor may cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statement. The forward-looking statements in this prospectus are based on assumptions management believes are reasonable. However, due to the uncertainties associated with forward-looking statements, you should not place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements. Further, forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made, and unless required by law, we expressly disclaim any obligation or undertaking to publicly update any of them in light of new information, future events, or otherwise.

USE OF PROCEEDS

We will not receive any proceeds from the sale of common stock by the Selling Stockholders. All of the net proceeds from the sale of our common stock will go to the Selling Stockholders as described below in the sections entitled “Selling Stockholders” and “Plan of Distribution”. We have agreed to bear the expenses relating to the registration of the common stock for the Selling Stockholders.

 SELLING STOCKHOLDERS

On March 22, 2024, March 28, 2024 and April 3, 2024, the Company entered into Securities Purchase Agreements (the “Purchase Agreements”) with certain existing and other accredited investors (the “Selling Stockholders”). Pursuant to the Purchase Agreements, the Selling Stockholders purchased an aggregate of 870 shares of Series D Preferred Stock and 2,125 shares of Series E Preferred Stock, at a price in each case of $1,000 per share, and the Company received proceeds of $2,995,000.

Each of the Series D Preferred Stock and the Series E Preferred Stock is convertible into Common Stock at $3.00 a share. If all of the 870 shares of Series D Preferred Stock and the 2,125 shares of Series E Preferred Stock were converted, the Company would issue 998,337 shares of Common Stock.

NASDAQ Marketplace Rule 5635(d), however, limits the number of shares of Common Stock (or securities that are convertible into Common Stock) issuable without shareholder approval in the case of private offerings of Common Stock at a price less then the Minimum Price (which is defined as the lower of (i) the closing price of the Common Stock immediately preceding the signing of the Purchase Agreement or (ii) the average closing price of the Common Stock for the five trading days immediately preceding the signing of the agreement). The conversion price of each of the Series D Preferred Stock and the Series E Preferred Stock was less than the Minimum Price.

The terms of the Series D Preferred Stock provided that no shares could be converted into Common Stock until the shareholder approval was received. The Company’s shareholders approved the full convertibility of the Series D Preferred Stock at the Annual Meeting of Shareholders held on May 16, 2023.

The terms of the Series E Preferred Stock provide that, until shareholder approval is obtained, the Company may not issue upon conversion of any shares of Series E Preferred Stock a number of shares of Common Stock which, when aggregated with any shares of Common Stock issued upon the conversion of any other shares of Series E Preferred Stock would exceed 1,430,484 shares (subject to adjustment). Such number represents 19.99% of the number of shares of Common Stock issued and outstanding as of the filing date of the Series E Preferred Stock Certificate of Designation.

The Company's shareholders have not yet approved the full convertibility of the Series E Preferred Stock. The Company expects to seek such approval at its next Annual Meeting of Shareholders, although there can be no assurance that such approval will be received. As a result, the shares of Series E Preferred Stock held by the Selling Stockholders may not be convertible pending receipt of shareholder approval.

The shares of common stock being offered by the Selling Stockholders are those issuable to the Selling Stockholders, upon conversion of the Series D Preferred Stock and Series E Preferred Stock. We are registering the shares of common stock in order to permit the Selling Stockholders to offer the shares for resale from time to time. Due to the ownership of the shares of Series D Preferred Stock and Series E Preferred Stock, as well as ownership of common stock, and warrants, the Selling Stockholders collectively have had a material relationship with us within the past three years and hold the largest percentage ownership of the Company subject to certain limitations as described herein.

The table below lists the Selling Stockholders and other information regarding the beneficial ownership of the shares of Common Stock by each of the Selling Stockholders. The first column lists the number of shares of Common Stock beneficially owned by each Selling Stockholder as of April 15, 2024, assuming receipt of the Series E Preferred Stockholder approval and conversion of the Series D Preferred Stock and Series E Preferred Stock, as well as conversion of other convertible preferred stock and exercise of any warrants held by the Selling Stockholders on that date. The third column lists the shares of Common Stock being offered by this prospectus by the Selling Stockholders.

In accordance with the terms of registration rights agreements with the Selling Stockholders, this prospectus generally covers the resale of the maximum number of shares of common stock issuable upon conversion of the Series D Preferred Stock and Series E Preferred Stock, determined as if the outstanding shares of Series D Preferred Stock and Series E Preferred Stock were converted in full as of the trading day immediately preceding the applicable date of determination and subject to adjustment as provided in the registration rights agreements, without regard to any limitations on the conversion of the Series D Preferred Stock and Series E Preferred Stock. The fourth column assumes the sale of all of the shares offered by the Selling Stockholders pursuant to this prospectus.

Under the terms of the Series D Preferred Certificate of Designation and the Series E Preferred Certificate of Designation, a Selling Stockholder may not convert the Series D Preferred Stock or the Series E Preferred Stock to the extent such conversion would cause such Selling Stockholder, together with its affiliates and attribution parties, to beneficially own a number of shares of common stock which would exceed 19.99% of our then outstanding common stock following such conversion. The warrants held by the Selling Stockholders limit the exercise of such warrants if such exercise would cause such Selling Stockholder, together with its affiliates and attribution parties, to beneficially own a number of shares of common stock which would exceed 9.99% of our then outstanding common stock following such exercise. In the case of each such conversion or exercise, the determination of beneficial ownership would exclude shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants which have not been exercised and shares of common stock issuable upon conversion of the preferred stock which has not been converted. The numbers of shares in the second column do not reflect these limitations. The Selling Stockholders may sell all, some, or none of their shares in this offering. See “Plan of Distribution.”

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PLAN OF DISTRIBUTION

Each Selling Stockholder of the securities and any of their pledgees, assignees and successors-in-interest may, from time to time, sell any or all of their securities covered hereby on the principal Trading Market or any other stock exchange, market or trading facility on which the securities are traded or in private transactions. These sales may be at fixed or negotiated prices. A Selling Stockholder may use any one or more of the following methods when selling securities:

The Selling Stockholders may also sell securities under Rule 144 or any other exemption from registration under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), if available, rather than under this prospectus. The Selling Stockholders have the sole and absolute discretion not to accept any purchase offer or make any sale of securities if they deem the purchase price to be unsatisfactory at any particular time.

Broker-dealers engaged by the Selling Stockholders may arrange for other brokers-dealers to participate in sales. Broker-dealers may receive commissions or discounts from the Selling Stockholders (or, if any broker-dealer acts as agent for the purchaser of securities, from the purchaser) in amounts to be negotiated, but, except as set forth in a supplement to this prospectus, in the case of an agency transaction not in excess of a customary brokerage commission in compliance with FINRA Rule 2440; and in the case of a principal transaction a markup or markdown in compliance with FINRA IM- 2440.

In connection with the sale of the securities or interests therein, the Selling Stockholders may enter into hedging transactions with broker-dealers or other financial institutions, which may in turn engage in short sales of the securities in the course of hedging the positions they assume. The Selling Stockholders may also sell securities short and deliver these securities to close out their short positions, or loan or pledge the securities to broker-dealers that in turn may sell these securities. The Selling Stockholders may also enter into option or other transactions with broker-dealers or other financial institutions or create one or more derivative securities which require the delivery to such broker-dealer or other financial institution of securities offered by this prospectus, which securities such broker-dealer or other financial institution may resell pursuant to this prospectus (as supplemented or amended to reflect such transaction).

The Selling Stockholders may from time-to-time pledge or grant a security interest in some or all of their securities to their broker-dealers under the margin provisions of customer agreements or to other parties to secure other obligations. If a Selling Stockholder defaults on a margin loan or other secured obligation, the broker-dealer or secured party may, from time to time, offer and sell the securities pledged or secured thereby pursuant to this prospectus. The Selling Stockholders and any other persons participating in the sale or distribution of the securities will be subject to applicable provisions of the Securities Act and the Exchange Act, and the rules and regulations thereunder, including, without limitation, Regulation M. These provisions may restrict certain activities of and limit the timing of purchases and sales of any of the securities by, the Selling Stockholders or any other person, which limitations may affect the marketability of the securities.

The Selling Stockholders also may transfer the shares of our securities in other circumstances, in which case the transferees, pledgees or other successors-in-interest will be the selling beneficial owners for purposes of this prospectus.

A Selling Stockholder that is an entity may elect to make a pro rata in-kind distribution of securities to its members, partners or shareholders pursuant to the registration statement of which this prospectus is part by delivering a prospectus. To the extent that such members, partners or shareholders are not affiliates of ours, such members, partners or shareholders would thereby receive freely tradeable securities pursuant to the distribution through a registration statement.

The Selling Stockholders and any broker-dealers or agents that are involved in selling the securities may be deemed to be “underwriters” within the meaning of the Securities Act in connection with such sales. In such event, any commissions received by such broker-dealers or agents and any profit on the resale of the securities purchased by them may be deemed to be underwriting commissions or discounts under the Securities Act. Each Selling Stockholder has informed the Company that it does not have any written or oral agreement or understanding, directly or indirectly, with any person to distribute the securities.

The Company is required to pay certain fees and expenses incurred by the Company incident to the registration of the securities. The Company has agreed to indemnify the Selling Stockholders against certain losses, claims, damages and liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act.

We agreed to keep this prospectus effective until the earlier of (i) the date on which the securities may be resold by the Selling Stockholders without registration and without regard to any volume or manner-of-sale limitations by reason of Rule 144, without the requirement for the Company to be in compliance with the current public information under Rule 144 under the Securities Act or any other rule of similar effect or (ii) all of the securities have been sold pursuant to this prospectus or Rule 144 under the Securities Act or any other rule of similar effect. The resale securities will be sold only through registered or licensed brokers or dealers if required under applicable state securities laws. In addition, in certain states, the resale securities covered hereby may not be sold unless they have been registered or qualified for sale in the applicable state or an exemption from the registration or qualification requirement is available and is complied with.

Under applicable rules and regulations under the Exchange Act, any person engaged in the distribution of the resale securities may not simultaneously engage in market making activities with respect to the common stock for the applicable restricted period, as defined in Regulation M, prior to the commencement of the distribution. In addition, the Selling Stockholders will be subject to applicable provisions of the Exchange Act and the rules and regulations thereunder, including Regulation M, which may limit the timing of purchases and sales of the common stock by the Selling Stockholders or any other person. We will make copies of this prospectus available to the Selling Stockholders and have informed them of the need to deliver a copy of this prospectus to each purchaser at or prior to the time of the sale (including by compliance with Rule 172 under the Securities Act).

MARKET FOR COMMON EQUITY AND RELATED SHAREHOLDER MATTERS

(a) Market Information

Our common stock is quoted on the Nasdaq Capital Markets (“Nasdaq”) under the trading symbol “DUOT”.

(b) Holders

As of April 9, 2024, there were approximately 252 holders of record of our common stock, and the closing price of our common stock as reported on the Nasdaq Capital Market on April 9, 2024 was $3.10 per share.

The transfer agent and registrar for our common stock is Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company located at 1 State Street, 30th Floor, New York, NY 10004.

MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF
FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

This Registration Statement on Form S-1 and other reports filed by the Company from time to time with the SEC (collectively, the “Filings”) contain or may contain forward-looking statements and information that are based upon beliefs of, and information currently available to, the Company’s management as well as estimates and assumptions made by Company’s management. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which are only predictions and speak only as of the date hereof. When used in the Filings, the words “anticipate,” “believe,” “estimate,” “expect,” “future,” “intend,” “plan,” or the negative of these terms and similar expressions as they relate to the Company or the Company’s management identify forward-looking statements. Such statements reflect the current view of the Company with respect to future events and are subject to risks, uncertainties, assumptions, and other factors, including the risks relating to the Company’s business, industry, and the Company’s operations and results of operations. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should the underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may differ significantly from those anticipated, believed, estimated, expected, intended, or planned.

Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in the forward-looking statements are reasonable, the Company cannot guarantee future results, levels of activity, performance, or achievements. Except as required by applicable law, including the securities laws of the United States, the Company does not intend to update any of the forward-looking statements to conform these statements to actual results.

Our financial statements are prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States (“GAAP”). These accounting principles require us to make certain estimates, judgments and assumptions. We believe that the estimates, judgments and assumptions upon which we rely are reasonable based upon information available to us at the time that these estimates, judgments and assumptions are made. These estimates, judgments and assumptions can affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities as of the date of the financial statements as well as the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the periods presented. Our financial statements would be affected to the extent there are material differences between these estimates and actual results. In many cases, the accounting treatment of a particular transaction is specifically dictated by GAAP and does not require management’s judgment in its application. There are also areas in which management’s judgment in selecting any available alternative would not produce a materially different result. The following discussion should be read in conjunction with our financial statements and notes thereto appearing elsewhere in this Registration Statement on Form S-1.

Overview

The Company, operating under its brand name duostech, develops and deploys technology systems with focus on inspecting and evaluating moving vehicles. Its technology focus is within the Vision Technology market sector and, more specifically, the Machine Vision subsector. Machine Vision companies provide imaging-based automatic inspection and analysis for process control for industry with potential expansion into other markets. Duos has developed key technologies over the past several years in software, industry specific hardware and artificial intelligence and has demonstrated industrial strength usability of its systems supporting rail, logistics and intermodal businesses that streamline operations, improve safety and reduce costs. Our team includes engineering subject matter expertise in hardware, software, and information technology as well as industry specific applications of artificial intelligence also referred to as Expert Artificial Intelligence. We also have specific industry experts in the rail industry on staff and as consultants.

Duos is currently developing industry solutions for its target markets which will address rail, trucking, aviation and other vehicle-based processes. Duos’ initial offering, the Railcar Inspection Portal (RIP), provides both freight and transit railroad customers and select government agencies the ability to conduct fully remote railcar inspections of trains while they are moving at full speed. The RIP utilizes a variety of sophisticated optical, laser and speed sensors to scan each passing railcar to create a high-resolution image-set of the top, sides and undercarriage. These images are then processed with our edge data center using artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms to identify safety and security defects on each railcar. The algorithms are developed in conjunction with industrial application experts, in this case resident Railcar Mechanical Engineers, to provide specific guidance in the analysis (“human in the loop”). Within seconds of the railcar passing through the RIP, a detailed report is sent to the customer where they are able to take action on identified issues. This solution has the potential to transform the railroad industry immediately increasing safety, improving efficiency and reducing costs. The Company has already deployed this system with several Class 1 railroads and anticipates an increased demand from transit and other railroad customers along with selected government agencies that operate and/or manage rail traffic. The Company has deployed RIPs in Canada, Mexico and the United States and anticipates expanding this solution into Europe, Asia and the Middle East in coming years.

The Company has also developed the Automated Logistics Information System (ALIS) which automates gatehouse operations where transport trucks enter and exit large logistics and intermodal facilities. This solution incorporates a similar set of sensors, data processing and artificial intelligence to streamline the customer’s logistics transactions and tracking and can also automate the security and safety inspection if called for. The Company has already deployed this system with one large North American retailer and anticipates increased demand from other large retailers, railroad intermodal operators and select government agencies that manage logistics and border crossing points. The Company is evaluating other solutions for moving vehicles including aircraft, which could provide similar benefits in terms of safety and efficiency for required inspections as part of an operations process.

We have developed two proprietary solutions that operate our software and artificial intelligence. centraco^® is an Enterprise Information Management Software platform that consolidates data and events from multiple sources into a unified and distributive user interface. Customized to the end user’s Concept of Operations (CONOPS), it provides improved situational awareness and data visualization for operational objectives compared to traditional manual inspections. truevue360^™ is our fully integrated platform that we utilize to develop and deploy Artificial Intelligence (AI) algorithms, including Machine Learning, Computer Vision, Object Detection and Deep Neural Network-based processing for real-time applications.

These same Artificial Intelligence applications have begun to open up other opportunities for the Company to provide revenue producing solutions with potentially high market adoption.

In 2021, the Company ended support of its IT Asset Management (ITAM) solution which cataloged results for data center asset inventory and audit services. We are currently evaluating using our current operations experience within “edge data centers” (as deployed for our Railcar Inspection Portal) to drive additional revenues within other markets requiring this type of solution although no specific offering has been developed at this time.

In the last quarter of 2022, the Company elected not to renew a support contract for its Integrated Correctional Automation System (iCAS) for one customer. The Company subsequently sold its iCAS assets to a buyer during the second quarter of 2023 for $165,000 via a convertible note.

The year 2022 ushered in a new phase in the Company’s development. Although we continue to see an extension of challenges faced in 2022, we also see positive changes and opportunities for our business that will be discussed in greater detail herein. They include:

Prospects and Outlook

The Company’s focus is to improve operational and technical execution which, we believe, will in turn enable the commercial side of the business to expand RIP and ALIS delivery into existing customers and to expand and diversify our current customer base. The Company’s primary customers have indicated readiness to order more equipment and services should the Company execute as expected on key deliverables. With the Company working toward a subscription platform approach and its expansion of its artificial intelligence offering, this will also open up additional commercial avenues to the Company. Historically, the Company has been focused on large, one-time sales with the subscription opportunities representing an expanded addressable market with emphasis on recurring revenues.

Additionally, the Company is making engineering and software upgrades to the RIP to meet anticipated Federal Railroad Association (FRA) and Association of American Railroad (AAR) standards. These upgrades will continue to be released throughout 2024 and are expected to drive revenue growth this year and beyond.

The Company is expanding its focus in the rail industry to encompass passenger transportation and was awarded a large, multi-year contract with a national rail carrier. The Company anticipates that it will install a two-RIP solution for the carrier in 2024, with a long-term services agreement commencing upon delivery of the system. 

Although the Company’s prospects for future revenue growth are anticipated to be favorable, investing in our securities involves risk and careful consideration should be made before deciding to purchase our securities. There are many risks that affect our business and results of operations, some of which are beyond our control and unexpected macro events can have a severe impact on the business. Please see the risk factors identified in “Risk Factors” elsewhere in this prospectus.

Results of Operations

The following discussion should be read in conjunction with the consolidated financial statements included in this prospectus.

For the year ended December 31, 2023 compared to December 31, 2022

The following table sets forth a summary of our Consolidated Statements of Operations that is used in the following discussions of our results of operations:

Revenues

For the full year 2023, there was a 50% decrease in overall revenues compared to 2022. This decrease was primarily driven by the substantial completion of two freight RIP projects, alongside ongoing procurement and manufacturing for our transit-focused RIPs in 2022. However, in 2023, despite progress into the advanced stages of procurement and manufacturing for the transit-focused RIPs, customer-driven delays beyond the Company’s control arose during the ongoing production of the two high-speed transit-focused RIPs and thus resulted in timing delays of the overall project delivery timeline shifting anticipated revenues into 2024. For the full year 2023, there was a small increase in services and consulting revenues as there were one-time services performed in 2022, related to major site maintenance and repairs for a single customer which did not occur in 2023. Underlying recurring revenues climbed by approximately 23% on a year-over-year basis. This growth is fueled by the expansion of service contracts following the completion of new portals in early 2023, coupled with the deployment of AI services deployed with several customers. The Company is focusing on increasing its business from services and the increase is the result of new contracts for existing and new systems which the Company anticipates will continue growing throughout 2024 and beyond. The Company continues to navigate delays outside of the Company's control related to the ongoing production and installation of our two high-speed transit-focused Railcar Inspection Portals. Management cautions that because of the delays in anticipated start dates, certain installations may produce revenues towards the end of 2024. These deferrals resulted in a slightly lower revenue growth performance than originally anticipated. However, the bulk of these deferred revenues are expected to be reported in 2024.

While customer-driven delays in the installation of our high-speed transit-focused Railcar Inspection Portals have impacted revenue growth timing year-over-year, the Company's capital structure remains resilient, allowing us to pursue large projects despite unexpected delays. It should be noted that the Company recently increased its working capital to account for an increase in pre-contract procurement activities to avoid a slowdown in revenues caused by delays in receiving certain components as had been the case in previous years. The Company undertook a major review of operations during 2021 and made significant changes in staffing including additional engineering staff and revamping its software development and Artificial Intelligence staffing. These efforts have yielded benefits throughout 2022, 2023 and beyond.

Overall, in 2023, the Company achieved notable success in advancing procurement and manufacturing for its transit-focused RIPs, expanding service contracts, and securing new AI contracts and growing its AI portfolio, including the announcement of its inaugural subscription customer. Recurring revenue from services and consulting continues to grow and is expected to contribute significantly to future revenue streams, bolstered by new long-term contracts with existing customers expected to commence in the coming months.

Cost of Revenues

Cost of revenues largely comprises equipment, certain fixed labor and overhead necessary to support the implementation of new systems and support and maintenance of existing systems. Cost of revenues on technology systems decreased during the period compared to the equivalent period in 2022 in-line with the decline in project revenues. The decline in costs generally follows the same trend as project revenues year-over-year as a result of an overall timing difference of major project work related to the substantial completion of two freight Railcar Inspection Portals and subsequent progression of procurement and manufacturing for the transit-focused RIPs compared to the equivalent period in 2023 where the Company continued to progress into the advanced stages of procurement and manufacturing of the transit-focused RIPs, which it anticipates completing during 2024.

These internal costs are being recognized against project and support revenues with a similar reduction in costs previously recognized for research and development, engineering and internal support. The project costs reflect subsequent allocations of fixed costs related to the staff and departmental costs associated with procurement, manufacturing and installation of RIP installations. As such, in 2023, this fixed component contributed to a negative margin on the Technology systems revenues. In concert with this, there is a continued focus on construction costs and savings through efficiency, but the Company has elected to retain its key employees in anticipation of expected sales growth in technology systems and services in 2024 and beyond.

Cost of revenues decreased on services and consulting year-over-year. The decrease in costs was a result of one-time services performed in 2022, related to major site maintenance and repairs for a single customer slightly offset by additional services costs related to the completion of two new freight portals in early 2023. The Company continues to put into service additional artificial intelligence algorithms and maintenance and support services which are high margin and represent only marginal increases in the requisite costs to deliver these services.

Gross Margin

Gross margin showed a decrease for the year ended December 31, 2023 as compared to the same period in 2022. As noted above, the decline in margin was a direct result of an increased level of business activity the Company recognized in 2022 related to the delivery of two freight portals and the progression of the transit-focused RIPs compared to the activity in 2023 as well as project delays that were experienced in the latter half of 2023. The business activity in 2023 consisted primarily of continued progression into the advanced stages of procurement and manufacturing for the transit-focused RIPs. The Company began to recognize revenue and profit on those activities in accordance with its revenue recognition policy. The recognition of the revenue and subsequent profit from these projects, as well as underlying services and maintenance revenues from existing and recently completed projects, coupled with the previously mentioned fixed departmental costs resulted in a gross margin of approximately 18%. By comparison for the full-year 2022, the Company had increased business activity from a handful of projects primarily related to the substantial completion of two freight RIPs along with significant progress made on the procurement and manufacturing of our two transit-focused RIPs. The recognition of the revenue and subsequent profit from these major projects, as well as underlying services and maintenance revenues from existing projects, resulted in a 32% gross margin in 2022.

Operating Expenses

Overall operating expenses were higher by 10% in 2023 as compared to the full-year 2022. There was a 12% increase in sales and marketing related to increased investment into the capability of the commercial team, including the addition of professionals with extensive experience and leadership in the rail industry. Research and development costs saw a 10% uptick during the year, driven by the increased personnel costs related to the departments allocated to R&D. Additionally, a 10% increase in general and administration costs was influenced by several factors, including non-cash amortization charges associated with roughly 400,000 share options that were issued during 2023 as well as an increase in incentive programs tied to certain 2022 performance targets. These efforts reflect a focus on employee retention and to drive higher performance and attract and retain better quality resources in a tight labor market. The Company still faces some pressure on existing staff compensation as a result of inflation in prior years but remains focused to manage and stabilize administrative costs without interruption to customer service. Other factors driving the increase in general and administration costs include an increase in depreciation charges linked to capitalized AI development cost for third party support to expand Duos’ AI catalog to over 40 algorithms by the end of 2023. Lastly the Company saw increased general and administration costs related to a financing deal which was ultimately not consummated with a bank as well as additional legal and consulting fees related to intellectual property and patents documentation and support. These changes in expenses reflect the Company's ongoing efforts to invest in talent, expand capabilities, and drive growth in line with its operating plan.

Loss From Operations

The losses from operations for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022 were $11,446,566 and $6,865,149, respectively. The increase in losses from operations during the year was the result of declining system revenues stemming from a decrease in business activity as well as project delays experienced in the latter half of 2023 that were beyond the Company’s control. The Company has continued to face inflation and supply chain pressures during 2023 and, as normal course of business, has worked to balance these impacts through management of customer contracts and cost control efforts.

Interest Expense

Interest expense for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022 was $7,159 and $9,191, respectively. The reduction in interest expense was primarily attributed to the extinguishment of equipment financing payables in 2023 that were present during 2022.

Other Income

Other income for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022 was $212,007 and $9,557, respectively. The increase is mainly attributable to the Company's sale of its iCAS assets to a purchaser in the second quarter of 2023 for $165,000 through a convertible note.

Net Loss

The net loss for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022 was $11,241,718 and $6,864,783, respectively. The increase in net loss is primarily attributable to the decrease in project activity in 2023 compared to 2022, offset slightly with an increase in the Company’s recurring services and consulting. Net loss per common share was $1.56 and $1.11 for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively.

Liquidity and Capital Resources

As of December 31, 2023, the Company has a cash balance of $2,441,842 and an Accounts Receivable balance of $1,462,463.

Cash Flows

The following table sets forth the major components of our statements of cash flows data for the periods presented:

Net cash used in operating activities for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022 was $8,746,564 and $7,873,307, respectively. The increase in net cash used in operations for the year ended December 31, 2023 was the result of expenditures related to current projects as previously discussed as well as expenditures related to projects which the Company anticipates will be completed in 2024. In addition, there are several changes in assets and liabilities that increased the use of cash in operations including decreases in accounts payable, accrued expenses and the operating lease obligation.

Net cash used in investing activities for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022 was $1,093,909 and $644,888, respectively. The Company continued to invest in computing, lab equipment, internal use software and artificial intelligence detections development as reflected in the year-over-year increase in 2023.

Net cash provided in financing activities for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022 was $11,161,223 and $8,745,567, respectively. Cash flows provided by financing activities during 2023 were primarily attributable to gross proceeds from the issuance of preferred stock to shareholders in the amount of $11,500,000, offset by $25,797 in issuance costs. 2023 marked an increase from 2022 financing activities of $8,745,567.

During 2023, we funded our operations through the sale of our equity (or equity linked) securities, and through revenues generated and cash received from ongoing project execution, services and associated maintenance revenues. As of March 27, 2024, we have cash on hand of approximately $3,329,753 after an equity capital raise in March 2024 which provided net proceeds of $2,745,000. We have approximately $165,500 in monthly lease and other mandatory payments, not including payroll and ordinary expenses which are due monthly.

On a long-term basis, our liquidity is dependent on the continuation and expansion of operations and receipt of revenues. Our current capital and access to further capital and revenues are sufficient to fund such expansion and we are now less dependent on timely payments by our customers for projects and work in process, however we expect such timely payments to continue. Material cash requirements will be satisfied within the normal course of business including substantial upfront payments from our customers prior to starting projects. In some cases, the Company may elect to purchase materials and supplies in advance of contract award but where there is a high probability of that award. Most, if not all, high value items that are pre-purchased, can be re-purposed if necessary. The maximum amount of material cash requirements not currently supported by up-front customer deposits is expected to be less than $1 million.

Demand for the products and services will be dependent on, among other things, market acceptance of our products and services, the technology market in general, and general economic conditions, which are cyclical in nature. In as much as a major portion of our activities is the receipt of revenues from the sales of our products and services, our business operations may be adversely affected by our competitors and prolonged recession periods although these are not considered to be a factor at present.

In the event of expansion into owning and operating its own Railcar Inspection Portals, the Company’s cash requirements and timing may shift. Specifically, the Company would endeavor to buy all materials ahead of time and invest in the RIP with follow-on contracts for long-term services and licensing. While this would shift the Company’s cash requirements, it anticipates a 12 – 18-month cash break-even point for each site and an opportunity for improved cash flows over time with high-margin agreements with the investment bolstered by access to further funding via common stock and private placement offerings.

Liquidity

Under Accounting Codification ASC 205, Presentation of Financial Statements—Going Concern (Subtopic 205-40) (“ASC 205-40”), the Company has the responsibility to evaluate whether conditions and/or events raise substantial doubt about its ability to meet its future financial obligations as they become due within one year after the date that the financial statements are issued. As required by ASC 205-40, this evaluation shall initially not take into consideration the potential mitigating effects of plans that have not been fully implemented as of the date the financial statements are issued. Management has assessed the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern in accordance with the requirement of ASC 205-40.

As reflected in the accompanying consolidated financial statements, the Company had a net loss of $11,241,718 for the year ended December 31, 2023. During the same period, cash used in operating activities was $8,746,564. The working capital surplus and accumulated deficit as of December 31, 2023, were $3,009,842 and $63,603,552, respectively. In previous financial reports, the Company had raised substantial doubt about continuing as a going concern. This was principally due to a lack of working capital prior to an underwritten offerings and private placements which were completed during the first, third and fourth quarters of 2022, the first, third and fourth quarters of 2023, as well as the first quarter of 2024.

As previously noted, the Company was successful during 2023 in raising gross proceeds of over $11,500,000 from the sale of Series E and F Preferred Stock. Additionally, late in the first quarter of 2024, the Company raised gross proceeds of $2,745,000 from the issuance of a combination of Series D and E Preferred Stock (See Note 17). As part of its strategy, the Company will endeavor to utilize the Preferred Series E and the remainder of the Series D as additional funding mechanisms. Additionally, during the second quarter of 2024, the Company will again have access to its S-3 “shelf registration” statement allowing the Company to sell additional common shares. As of the date of this prospectus, the Company estimates that it has available capacity on its shelf registration which it can utilize to bolster working capital and growth of the business in the event it did not have an uptake in the preferred classes of shares previously noted. Although additional investment is not assured, the Company is comfortable that it would be able to raise sufficient capital to support expanded operations based on an anticipated increase in business activity. In the long run, the continuation of the Company as a going concern is dependent upon the ability of the Company to continue executing its business plan, generate enough revenue, and attain consistently profitable operations. Although the lingering effects of the global pandemic related to the coronavirus (Covid-19) previously affected our operations, particularly in our supply chain, we now believe that the supply chain lags have largely been abated. We have analyzed our cash flow under “stress test” conditions and have determined that we have sufficient liquid assets on hand or available via the capital markets to maintain operations for at least twelve months from the date of this prospectus.

In addition, management has taken and continues to take actions including, but not limited to, elimination of certain costs that do not contribute to short term revenue, and re-aligning both management and staffing with a focus on improving certain skill sets necessary to build growth and profitability and focusing product strategy on opportunities that are likely to bear results in the relatively short term. The Company believes that, with the combination of commercial sales success, Series E Preferred Stock offering coupled with an S-3 shelf registration availability starting in the second quarter of 2024, it will have sufficient working capital to meet its obligations over the following twelve months. In the last twelve months the Company has seen growth in its contracted backlog as well as significant, positive signs from new commercial projects that indicate improvements in future revenues.

Management believes that, at this time, the conditions in our market space with ongoing contract delays and the additional time needed to execute on new contracts previously reported have put a strain on our cash reserves. However, recent private placements as well as the availability to raise capital via its shelf registration indicate there is no substantial doubt for the Company to continue as a going concern for a period of twelve months. We continue executing the plan to grow our business and achieve profitability. The Company may selectively look at opportunities for fund raising in the future. Management has extensively evaluated our requirements for the next 12 months and has determined that the Company currently has sufficient cash and access to capital to operate for at least that period.

While no assurance can be provided, management believes that these actions provide the opportunity for the Company to continue as a going concern and to grow its business and achieve profitability with access to additional capital funding. Ultimately the continuation of the Company as a going concern is dependent upon the ability of the Company to continue executing the plan described above which was put in place in late 2022 and will continue in 2024 and beyond. As a result, we expect to generate sufficient revenue and to attain profitable operations with minimal cash use in the next 12-18 months. These consolidated financial statements do not include any adjustments related to the recoverability and classification of recorded asset amounts and classification of liabilities that might be necessary should the Company be unable to continue as a going concern.

Critical Accounting Estimates

Revenue Recognition

The Company recognizes revenue over time using a cost-based input methodology in which significant judgement is required to estimate costs to complete projects. These estimated costs are then used to determine the progress towards contract completion and the corresponding amount of revenue to recognize. The Company follows the principles in ASC 606 which include the following: a contract with a customer creates distinct contract assets and performance obligations, satisfaction of a performance obligation creates revenue, and a performance obligation is satisfied upon transfer of control to a good or service to a customer.

Revenue is recognized by evaluating the Company revenue contracts with customers based on the five-step model under ASC 606:

The Company generates revenue from four sources:

Stock Based Compensation  

The Company accounts for employee and non-employee stock-based compensation in accordance with ASC 718-10, “Share-Based Payment,” which requires the measurement and recognition of compensation expense for all share-based payment awards made to employees and directors including stock options, restricted stock units, and employee stock purchases based on estimated fair values. The stock-based compensation carries a graded vesting feature subject to the condition of time of employment service with awarded stock-based compensation tranches vesting evenly upon the anniversary date of the award.

The Company estimates the fair value of stock options granted using the Black-Scholes option-pricing formula. In accordance with ASC 718-10-35-8, the Company elected to recognize the fair value of the stock award using the graded vesting method as time of employment service is the criteria for vesting. The Company amortizes the fair value of the stock award over the requisite service periods of the awards, which is generally the vesting period. The Company’s determination of fair value using an option-pricing model is affected by the stock price as well as assumptions regarding a number of highly subjective variables.

The Company estimates volatility based upon the historical stock price of the Company and estimates the expected term for stock options using the simplified method for employees and directors and the contractual term for non-employees. The risk-free rate is determined based upon the prevailing rate of United States Treasury securities with similar maturities.

BUSINESS

Our Corporate History

Information Systems Associates, Inc. (“ISA”) was incorporated in Florida on May 31, 1994. Our original business operations consisted of consulting services for asset management of large corporate data centers and the development and licensing of information technology (“IT”) asset management software. In late 2014, ISA entered negotiations with Duos Technologies, Inc. (“duostech™”) for the purposes of executing a merger between the two organizations (also known as a “reverse triangular merger”). Incorporated under the laws of Florida on November 30, 1990, duostech™ operated in various industry segments, specializing in the design, development and deployment of proprietary technology applications and turn-key engineered systems. This transaction was completed on April 1, 2015, whereby duostech™ became a wholly owned subsidiary of ISA. After the merger was completed, ISA changed its corporate name to Duos Technologies Group, Inc. The Company, based in Jacksonville, Florida, oversees its wholly owned subsidiary, duostech™ and employs approximately 71 people and is a technology company which designs, develops, deploys and operates intelligent technology solutions with a focus on software applications and artificial intelligence (“AI”). The Company has a strong portfolio of intellectual property. The Company’s headquarters are located at 7660 Centurion Parkway, Suite 100, Jacksonville, Florida 32256 and main telephone number is (904) 296-2807.

Overview

The Company, operating under its brand name duostech, develops and deploys technology systems with focus on inspecting and evaluating moving vehicles. Its technology focus is within the Vision Technology market sector and, more specifically, the Machine Vision subsector. Machine Vision companies provide imaging-based automatic inspection and analysis for process control for industry with potential expansion into other markets. Duos has developed key technologies over the past several years in software, industry specific hardware and artificial intelligence and has demonstrated industrial strength usability of its systems supporting rail, logistics and intermodal businesses that streamline operations, improve safety and reduce costs. Our team includes engineering subject matter expertise in hardware, software, and information technology as well as industry specific applications of artificial intelligence also referred to as Expert Artificial Intelligence. We also have specific industry experts in the rail industry on staff and as consultants.

Duos is currently developing industry solutions for its target markets which will address rail, trucking, aviation and other vehicle-based processes. Duos’ initial offering, the Railcar Inspection Portal (RIP), provides both freight and transit railroad customers and select government agencies the ability to conduct fully remote railcar inspections of trains while they are moving at full speed. The RIP utilizes a variety of sophisticated optical, laser and speed sensors to scan each passing railcar to create a high-resolution image-set of the top, sides and undercarriage. These images are then processed with our edge data center using artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms to identify safety and security defects on each railcar. The algorithms are developed in conjunction with industrial application experts, in this case resident Railcar Mechanical Engineers, to provide specific guidance in the analysis (“human in the loop”). Within seconds of the railcar passing through the RIP, a detailed report is sent to the customer where they are able to take action on identified issues. This solution has the potential to transform the railroad industry immediately increasing safety, improving efficiency and reducing costs. The Company has already deployed this system with several Class 1 railroads and anticipates an increased demand from transit and other railroad customers along with selected government agencies that operate and/or manage rail traffic. The Company has deployed RIPs in Canada, Mexico and the United States and anticipates expanding this solution into Europe, Asia and the Middle East in coming years.

The Company has also developed the Automated Logistics Information System (ALIS) which automates gatehouse operations where transport trucks enter and exit large logistics and intermodal facilities. This solution incorporates a similar set of sensors, data processing and artificial intelligence to streamline the customer’s logistics transactions and tracking and can also automate the security and safety inspection if called for. The Company has already deployed this system with one large North American retailer and anticipates increased demand from other large retailers, railroad intermodal operators and select government agencies that manage logistics and border crossing points. The Company is evaluating other solutions for moving vehicles including aircraft, which could provide similar benefits in terms of safety and efficiency for required inspections as part of an operations process.

We have developed two proprietary solutions that operate our software and artificial intelligence. centraco^® is an Enterprise Information Management Software platform that consolidates data and events from multiple sources into a unified and distributive user interface. Customized to the end user’s Concept of Operations (CONOPS), it provides improved situational awareness and data visualization for operational objectives compared to traditional manual inspections. truevue360^™ is our fully integrated platform that we utilize to develop and deploy Artificial Intelligence (AI) algorithms, including Machine Learning, Computer Vision, Object Detection and Deep Neural Network-based processing for real-time applications.

These same Artificial Intelligence applications have begun to open up other opportunities for the Company to provide revenue producing solutions with potentially high market adoption.

In 2021, the Company ended support of its IT Asset Management (ITAM) solution which cataloged results for data center asset inventory and audit services. We are currently evaluating using our current operations experience within “edge data centers” (as deployed for our Railcar Inspection Portal) to drive additional revenues within other markets requiring this type of solution although no specific offering has been developed at this time.

In the last quarter of 2022, the Company elected not to renew a support contract for its Integrated Correctional Automation System (iCAS) for one customer. The Company subsequently sold its iCAS assets to a buyer during the second quarter of 2023 for $165,000 via a convertible note.

The year 2022 ushered in a new phase in the Company’s development. Although we continue to see an extension of challenges faced in 2022, we also see positive changes and opportunities for our business that will be discussed in greater detail herein. They include:

duostech™

Railcar Inspection Portal (rip®)

Federal regulations require each railcar/train to be inspected for mechanical defects prior to leaving a rail yard. Founded in 1934, the Association of American Railroads (AAR) is responsible for setting the standards for the safety and productivity of the U.S./North American freight rail industry, and by extension, has established the inspection parameters for the rail industry’s rolling stock. Also known as the “Why Made” codes, the AAR established approximately 110 inspection points under its guidelines for mechanical inspections.

Under current practice, inspections are conducted manually, a very labor intensive and inefficient process that only covers a select number of inspection points and can take several hours per train. We believe our Railcar Inspection Portal has the potential to reduce this inspection to minutes while the train is moving at speed, improving safety, reducing dwell time and optimizing maintenance.

Our system combines high-definition image and data capture technologies with our AI-based analytics applications that are typically installed on active tracks located between two rail yards. We inspect railcars traveling through our inspection portal at speeds of up to 70 mph and report mechanical anomalies detected by our system to the inbound train yard, well ahead of the train entering the yard.

Currently, three Class 1 railroads and several transit and international railroads use our rip® technology with one of those railroads broadly deploying the technology across its network.

The Company continues to expand its detection capabilities through the development and integration of additional sensor technologies to include laser, infrared, thermal, sound and x-ray to process AI-based analytics of inspection points. Currently the Company has a high-reliability catalog of over 48 artificial intelligence algorithms which can be integrated into the RIP to enhance mechanical anomalies detections. These detections support railroads in the active maintenance and overall safety of their railcar fleet and networks.

Markets

We believe the opportunity for our Railcar Inspection Portal business is substantial and continues to be our number one priority. We are currently engaged with the RIP solution with three of seven Class 1 railroad operators with 13 systems already deployed across the North American rail network. Because of our early leadership position, we have been able to accumulate experience and intellectual property that we believe would be time-consuming and expensive for a new competitor to replicate. Furthermore, we believe we have the ability to upgrade and scale our solutions with additional technologies in the future. We believe that the current market for our technologies is substantial. At the same time, we recognize that the technology life cycle is fast and evolving. Potential competitors could move into this sector, and it is possible that some Class 1 railroads could develop their own solutions that limit our total addressable market.

In late 2022, the Company announced it will pursue a subscription platform for the RIPs. Under this new model, the Company will build, own and operate its RIP product and offer the data access for each portal to potential customers. This expansion of the RIP offering would potentially open up the addressable market to other railroads, railcar owners, and car lessors. This shift increases the pool of potential customers by lowering the entry point for the RIP and would reshape the Company’s working capital needs to invest in the construction of a RIP ahead of customer revenue inflows. The Company continues to explore this expansion on the long-term effects it may have on future cash flows.

Another market we are pursuing as our second priority is using our Automated Logistics and Information Systems solution (alis™). Potential customers include commercial retail logistics and intermodal operators, Class 1 rail intermodal operators that are moving large amounts of automobiles, and U.S. Government agencies such as the Department of Defense and the Department of Homeland Security. Today, we currently have 20 production systems in use, but we believe the greenfield opportunity here to be substantial. We have identified over 900 lanes of traffic within nearly 300 facilities as potential business opportunities in the near-term.

Currently, we are focused on the North American market, but plan to expand globally in the future with interest from Europe, Asia and the Middle East.

Patents and Trademarks

The Company holds a number of patents and trademarks for our technology solutions. We protect our intellectual property rights by relying on federal, state, and common law rights, as well as contractual restrictions. We control access to our proprietary technology by entering into confidentiality and invention assignment agreements with all of our employees and contractors, and confidentiality agreements with third parties. We also actively engage in monitoring activities with respect to infringing uses of our intellectual property by third parties.

Specific Areas of Competition

One of our primary commercial goals is to develop innovative technology solutions and target potential “greenfield” market spaces in order to maximize our business footprint and give us the ability to help define the market parameters for the future.

Other companies that participate in the visual and optical (laser) based railcar inspection systems market include Wabtec (Beena Vision), KLD Labs, WID, IEM, and Camlin Rail. Some Class 1 railroads have stated that they are developing “in-house” solutions. We believe that Duos has a significant competitive advantage in that we have multiple years of deployment experience, have access to millions of images where our RIP has performed scans with AI analysis and in-house industry expertise to train our systems and make identification of common problems more automated.

Our Automated Logistics Information System (ALIS) also represents an opportunity to expand into a mature market that we believe has a significant technology gap.  While most facilities, such as distribution centers, that process commercial trucks in and out have sophisticated software management applications for logistics control, they have most often not implemented an advanced gatehouse automation solution. Historically, this category was referred to as “Automated Gate Systems” or AGS.  The purpose of AGS technology is to streamline entry in to and exit out of facilities.  The marketplace for this was mostly seaports and intermodal transfer facilities and was relatively expensive technology to deploy. 

Our Growth Strategy

Vision

The Company designs, develops, deploys and operates intelligent technology solutions for inspecting and evaluating moving objects. Its technology application focus is within the rail and intermodal markets which offers imaging-based automatic inspection and analysis for process control for industry with potential expansion into other markets.

Objectives

Organic Growth

Our organic growth strategy is to continue our focus and prioritization in the rail, logistics and intermodal market space. In this regard, the Company has made significant changes in the senior management team to include a new Chief Executive Officer, who joined the Company in September 2020 and has years of experience successfully leading start-up and turn-around companies. In addition, a key account executive from one of Duos’ competitors joined the team during late 2022 to support the continued revenue growth of the business bringing significant sales experience focused around the rail market. In the third quarter of 2023, the Company also brought on a new Chief Commercial Officer bringing significant experience from the sales and operations aspects of the intermodal and power industries. In 2021, the Company also hired a new Chief Technology Officer bringing 25 years of experience in designing and delivering value driven technologies. Our new CTO has already led the team through instrumental changes to its approach to software and artificial intelligence development. The team also saw a change in CFO in late 2022 with the new CFO bringing significant experience in growth for asset-intensive businesses which aligns with the subscription format the Company will expand into.

The new leadership team’s focus is to improve operational and technical execution which will in turn enable the commercial side of the business to expand RIP and ALIS delivery into existing and new customers. Even though supply chain issues are expected to continue in 2024, the Company’s primary customers have indicated readiness to order more equipment and services based upon the Company’s current performance and the new subscription offerings expands the universe of potential customers.

Additionally, the CEO has directed that the Company make continual engineering and software upgrades to the RIP to meet anticipated Federal Railroad Association (FRA) and Association of American Railroad (AAR) standards.

Manufacturing and Assembly

The Company designs and develops technology solutions using a combination of in-house fabrication, commercial off-the-shelf technology, and outsourced manufacturing. On-site installations are performed using a combination of in-house project managers and engineers and using third-party sub-contractors as needed. Throughout the process of design, develop, deploy and operate, the Company maintains responsibility for all aspects. Our internal manufacturing operations consist primarily of materials procurement, assembly, testing and quality control by our engineers. If not manufactured internally, we use third-party manufacturing partners to produce our hardware related components and hardware products and we most often complete final assembly, testing and quality control processes for these components and products. Our manufacturing processes are based on standardization of components across product types, centralization of assembly and distribution centers, and a “build-to-order” methodology in which products generally are built only after customers have placed firm orders. For most of our hardware products, we have existing alternate sources of supply.

For 2024 and possibly beyond, we expect to face significant challenges with macro-economic impacts, specifically inflation and supply chain disruption. Although these started to be identified in late 2021, we believe they continue to manifest themselves in ways that could challenge our business growth in the future. Specifically, the ability to source key components and certain implementation services will dictate just how quickly the Company can meet desired installation deadlines. In the industries in which we operate, the time from concept to contract can be substantial. Although we are now adapting to these challenges, previous bids that have been submitted could be challenging to execute within the financial framework and execution times originally envisaged. We continue to have dialogue with our customers regarding potential price increases and implementation delays, but we may suffer some economic impacts as a result of this. Revenue recognition could be delayed as a result of these factors and profitability could be impacted due to higher costs for materials and other services. The Company will continue to monitor the situation and update shareholders as the situation unfolds.

Research and Development

The Company’s R&D and software development teams design and develop all systems and software applications with a combination of full-time in-house software engineers and outside contractors. Internal development allows us to maintain technical control over the design and development of our products. Rapid technological advances in hardware and software development, evolving standards in computer hardware and software technology, and changing customer requirements characterize the markets in which we compete. We plan to continue to dedicate significant resources to research and development efforts, including software development, to maintain and improve our current product and services offerings.

Government Regulations

The Company has worked with various agencies of the federal government for more than 10 years including the Department of Homeland Security (“DHS”). When our solutions have been deployed into these agencies, they meet specific requirements for certification, safety and security that are stipulated in requirements and contract documents. The Company is currently competing for other government related work and strictly follows the rules and regulations outlined in the Federal Acquisition Regulations.

The Company’s primary customers are all governed by regulations related to the safe and effective transportation of goods and passengers, primarily by rail, but in future scenarios by air, road and sea. While changes in the regulatory environment could impact the Company in future years, we believe any changes will be overall positive for the Company. We continuously review potential changes in the regulatory environment and maintain contact with key personnel at certain agencies including the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) as well as the DHS previously mentioned. We expect to develop similar relationships with governmental agencies in target markets both in the US and internationally. At this time, we believe our offerings are complementary to the current and evolving standards and that we will adapt to any new regulations as they are promulgated.

Employees

We have a current staff of 71 employees, of which 66 are full-time, the majority of which work in the Jacksonville area, none of which are subject to a collective bargaining agreement. We have not experienced any work stoppages and we consider our relationship with our employees to be good.

Properties.

On July 26, 2021, the Company entered a new operating lease agreement of office and warehouse combination space of 40,000 square feet with the lease commencing on November 1, 2021 and ending May 31, 2032. This additional space allows for resource growth and engineering efforts for operations before deploying to the field. The rent for the first twelve months of the term were calculated as rentable base space on 30,000 square feet. The rent is subject to an annual escalation of 2.5%, beginning December 1, 2022. The Company made a security deposit payment in the amount of $600,000 on July 26, 2021. The Company has applied the FASB issued ASU No. 2016-02 Leases (Topic 842) (“ASU 2016-02”) in the fourth quarter of 2021.

The Company now has a total of office and warehouse space of 40,000 square feet.

Rental expense for the office lease during 2023 and 2022 was $781,638 and $782,591, respectively.

Legal Proceedings.

From time to time, we may be involved in litigation relating to claims arising out of our operations in the normal course of business. We are currently not involved in any litigation that we believe could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition or results of operations. There is no action, suit, proceeding, inquiry or investigation before or by any court, public board, government agency, self-regulatory organization or body pending or, to the knowledge of the executive officers of our Company or any of our subsidiaries, threatened against or affecting our Company, our common stock, any of our subsidiaries or any of our Company’s or our subsidiaries’ officers or directors in their capacities as such, in which an adverse decision could have a material adverse effect.

Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance

The following is a list of our executive officers and directors. All directors serve one-year terms or until their successors are duly qualified and elected or his earlier resignation, removal or disqualification. The officers of the Company are elected by the Board.

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Charles P. Ferry, Chief Executive Officer, Director

Mr. Ferry was appointed Chief Executive Officer, effective September 1, 2020. Mr. Ferry was then elected as a member of our Board of Directors on November 19, 2020 by our shareholders. Mr. Ferry combines over three years of experience in the energy industry and seven years in the defense contracting industry following 26 years of active-duty service in the United States Army. From 2018 through 2020, Mr. Ferry was the Chief Executive Officer for APR Energy, a global fast-track power company. Prior to this, Mr. Ferry was the President and Chief Operating Officer of APR Energy from 2016 to 2018. From 2014 to 2016, Mr. Ferry was the General Manager for ARMA Global Corporation, a wholly owned subsidiary of General Dynamics, a defense contracting company that delivered Information Technology engineering, services, and logistics. Mr. Ferry was the Vice President of ARMA Global Corporation from 2010 to 2014 before being acquired by General Dynamics. From 2009 to 2010, Mr. Ferry was the Director, Business Development and Operations at Lockheed-Martin. His leadership assignments in the U.S. Army include: Director, NORAD-NORTHCOM Current Operations, Infantry Battalion Task Force Commander, Joint Special Operations Task Force Commander, Regimental and Battalion Operations Officer, and Airborne Rifle Company Commander. His military leadership assignments include 48 months of combat in Somalia, Afghanistan and Iraq.

Mr. Ferry has an undergraduate degree from Brigham Young University.

Our Board of Directors believes Mr. Ferry brings significant commercial and operational experience to the Company and has shown demonstrable leadership skills as both a Military officer with a distinguished service record and in leading companies to profitable growth.

Andrew W. Murphy, Chief Financial Officer

Mr. Murphy has over 16 years of progressive business experience in accounting and finance including nearly five years of public company experience for a London Stock Exchange-based company. He joined Duos Technologies, Inc. in 2020 where he served on the Commercial team to support new project bids while also building out the Finance function. Prior to joining Duos, from 2011 to 2020 Mr. Murphy held progressive senior Finance roles within APR Energy, a global fast-track power and asset management company formerly listed on the London Stock Exchange (LSE). In these roles Mr. Murphy oversaw the pricing & risk management efforts for more than $800 million in new business and asset transactions across the globe. Additionally, he was also responsible for managing the FP&A function as well as supporting M&A activity and the investor relations function during APR Energy’s time on the LSE. Prior to his time with APR, Mr. Murphy served in corporate accounting roles within a Fortune 500 company as well as time working in public accounting with a focus on tax and business services.

Mr. Murphy graduated from Jacksonville University “cum laude” with a business degree in Accounting and later received his Master’s degree in Business Administration with a focus in Finance.

Kenneth Ehrman, Chairman

Mr. Ehrman joined the Board on January 31, 2019. He was elected as Chairman of the Board in November 2020. As an innovator in intelligent machine to machine (MtoM wireless technology) and industrial applications of the internet of things (IoT), Mr. Ehrman has coauthored more than 40 patents in wireless communications, mobile data, asset tracking, power management cargo and impact sensing as well as rental car management.  Mr. Ehrman is the founder of Halo Collar, which invented a technology used for the tracking of canines to replace GPS-based wireless fences. Halo Collar has recorded more than 20,000-unit sales since its inception in July 2020. He also currently serves as an independent consultant to several high-technology companies in supply chain/logistics and transportation. Mr. Ehrman advises technology companies focused on solutions for these industries.

Prior to joining our Board, Mr. Ehrman served as Chief Executive Officer of I.D. Systems, Inc., a company he founded in 1993 as a Stanford University engineering student. During his tenure at I.D. Systems, he pioneered the commercial use of radio frequency identification technology for industrial asset management and took the company public on the Nasdaq in 1999. Under his leadership, I.D. Systems was named one of North America’s fastest growing technology companies by Deloitte in 2005, 2006, and 2012. Mr. Ehrman received multiple awards during his time at I.D. Systems, including Deloitte Entrepreneur of the Year and Ground Support Worldwide Engineer/Innovator Leader.

Mr. Ehrman is also the Chairman of the Corporate Governance and Nominating Committee as well as a member of the Compensation Committee. The Board believes that Mr. Ehrman’s management experience, engineering expertise and long history and familiarity with industries the Company currently operates in, make him ideally qualified to help lead the Company towards continued growth.

Frank A. Lonegro, Director 

Mr. Lonegro was elected to the Board of Directors on July 19, 2023. Since February 2024, Mr. Lonegro has been the Chief Executive Officer and a board member of Landstar Systems, Inc. (Nasdaq: LSTR), a technology-focused integrated transportation solutions and services provider based in Jacksonville, Florida. From 2020 to early 2024, Mr. Lonegro was an Executive Vice President and the Chief Financial Officer of Beacon Roofing Supply, Inc., the largest publicly traded distributor of roofing materials and complementary building products in North America. Prior to Beacon, he had a nearly 20-year career with CSX Corporation, a Fortune 500 transportation company, where he most recently served as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer from 2015 to 2019. Mr. Lonegro’s career at CSX entailed a unique blend of cross-functional experience, combining financial, operational and functional executive leadership roles. As Chief Financial Officer, he helped lead transformative operational changes yielding substantial productivity savings and markedly improved operating margins which led to significant stockholder value creation. Prior to his role as Chief Financial Officer, Mr. Lonegro delivered strong results in key leadership roles of increasing responsibility across operations, service, information technology and internal audit. Prior to joining CSX, Mr. Lonegro practiced law for seven years, focusing on complex commercial litigation, loan workouts and business transactions. Mr. Lonegro earned a bachelor’s degree from Duke University, a law degree from the University of Florida and an MBA from the University of Florida.

 Ned Mavrommatis, Director

Mr. Mavrommatis has served as the Chief Financial Officer of Halo Collar since May 2022. The Halo Collar is the newest smart safety system for dogs. Co-founded by Cesar Millan, this patented system utilizes proprietary technology & dog psychology to provide a wireless smart fence, smart training, GPS tracker and activity tracker combined into one easy-to-use smart collar. Prior to Halo Collar Mr. Mavrommatis served as the Chief Financial Officer of PowerFleet, Inc. (NASDAQ: PWFL) from October 2019 to May 2022 and I.D Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: IDSY) from August 1999 to October 2019. Mr. Mavrommatis started his career in public accounting.

Mr. Mavrommatis received a Master of Business Administration in finance from New York University’s Leonard Stern School of Business and a Bachelor of Business Administration in accounting from Bernard M. Baruch College, The City University of New York. Mr. Mavrommatis is also a Certified Public Accountant.

James Craig Nixon, Director

Mr. Nixon joined our Board of Directors on July 15, 2021 and serves as Chairman of the Compensation Committee and a member of the Audit and Corporate Governance and Nominating Committees. Brigadier General Craig Nixon (Ret.) is a combat decorated, special operations soldier. Over a 29-year Army career, Brigadier General Nixon served in a wide range of assignments including seven tours in special operations units including assignments as the Commander, 75th Ranger Regiment and Director of Operations for Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC) and US Special Operations Command. He is a combat decorated soldier whose awards include the Distinguished Service Medal, Silver Star, three Bronze Stars, and the Purple Heart.

After retiring from the Army in 2011, he was an original Partner at McChrystal Group, helped create a highly successful leadership consulting company and led their engagements with a number of technology focused Fortune 500 companies. In 2013 he became the Chief Executive Officer of ACADEMI and over three years through a combination of organic growth and acquisitions built Constellis Group, a global leader in security and training with over 10,000 employees in 30 countries. During his tenure Constellis tripled in revenue to over $1 billion annually and saw a fivefold increase in EBITDA. Mr. Nixon is founder and Chief Executive Officer of Nixon Six Solutions from January 2016 until present, a consulting firm focusing on growth and market entry strategy, leadership, and mergers & acquisitions. He is on a number of government and technology boards and is also a frequent speaker on geopolitics, leadership, and veterans’ challenges.

Brigadier General Nixon is a graduate of Auburn University and has earned master’s degrees from the Command and Staff College and the Air War College. He is a decorated retired General Officer, successful entrepreneur, and passionate supporter of veteran non-profit organizations. He was selected for the Ranger Hall of Fame and Auburn University at Montgomery Top Fifty Alumni in 2017.

Our Board of Directors believes that Mr. Nixon’s extensive military and management experience and familiarity with technology industries make him ideally suited to help lead the Company towards excellence in operations and strategic planning.

Key Employees

Jeff Necciai, Chief Technology Officer, Operating Subsidiary Duos Technologies, Inc.

Mr. Necciai brings over 25 years of experience in designing, developing, and delivering value-driven technology solutions across a wide range of industries to Duos. Prior to joining Duos in January 2021, Jeff served as the Chief Technology Officer of NASCENT Technology, where he cultivated and led high-performing cross-functional product teams to develop and deliver comprehensive gate automation solutions to rail and maritime terminal customers. Jeff was responsible for the solution design and software architecture for many of the company's innovations, including an advanced OCR and imaging solution, proprietary point-to-point VoIP technology, an automated work queue management system, a line of integrated “smart” outdoor IP-based callboxes, and a comprehensive human-assisted security and surveillance platform. In 2001, Jeff co-founded and served as Lead Systems Architect for Solution Dynamics, which developed remote digital video surveillance products for institutional customers. Jeff is listed on several technology-based patents and has contributed articles for publications such as American Shipper, World Cargo News, and the Journal of Commerce. Jeff holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Business Administration from Clarion University of Pennsylvania.

Chris King, Chief Commercial Officer, Operating Subsidiary Duos Technologies, Inc.

Mr. King joins Duos with over 20 years of operational and commercial leadership experience within the energy and supply chain sectors. Prior to joining Duos, he served in a series of progressive management roles within APR Energy (“APR”), a global fast track power company. During Mr. King’s time at APR, his responsibilities included: leading all power plant operations, which consisted of 16 sites around the world and over 500 employees; managing acquisition integrations of over $300 million in new projects; maintaining full P&L accountability for all operations; and building and heading up a team that closed over $1 billion in new revenue, asset sales, and contract extensions. Prior to his time at APR, Mr. King held several operational leadership roles at CEVA Logistics, including a role as Lean Six Sigma Leader in charge of designing and executing continuous improvement projects for CEVA operations across the world.

Family Relationships

There are no family relationships among any of our directors or executive officers.

Section 16(a) Beneficial Ownership Reporting Compliance

Section 16(a) of the Exchange Act requires the Company’s executive officers and directors, and persons who own more than 10% of the Company’s common stock, to file reports of ownership and changes in ownership on Forms 3, 4 and 5 with the SEC.

Based solely on our review of certain reports filed with the SEC pursuant to Section 16(a) of the Exchange Act, the reports required to be filed with respect to transactions in our Common Stock during the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023, were filed timely, except for one Form 4 for each of Mr. Ferry and Mr. Murphy in connection with grants of options were not filed timely.

Code of Ethics

The Company has adopted a Code of Ethics for adherence by its Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, to ensure honest and ethical conduct, full, fair and proper disclosure of financial information in the Company’s periodic reports filed pursuant to the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and compliance with applicable laws, rules, and regulations. Any person may obtain a copy of our Code of Ethics by mailing a request to the Company at 7660 Centurion Parkway, Suite 100, Jacksonville, Florida 33256.

Board Composition and Director Independence

Our Board of Directors currently consists of five members: Mr. Kenneth Ehrman, Mr. Charles P. Ferry, Mr. Ned Mavrommatis, Mr. James Craig Nixon, and Mr. Frank Lonegro. The directors will serve until our next annual meeting and until their successors are duly elected and qualified. The Company defines “independent” as that term is defined in Nasdaq Listing Rule 5605(a)(2).

In making the determination of whether a member of the board is independent, our board considers, among other things, transactions and relationships between each director and his immediate family and the Company, including those reported under the caption “Certain Relationships and Related Party Transactions”. The purpose of this review is to determine whether any such relationships or transactions are material and, therefore, inconsistent with a determination that the directors are independent. Based on such review and its understanding of such relationships and transactions, our board affirmatively determined that Mr. Ehrman, Mr. Mavrommatis, Mr. Nixon, and Mr. Lonegro are all qualified as independent and none of them have any material relationship with us that might interfere with his exercise of independent judgment.

Board Committees

Our Board of Directors has established an audit committee, a compensation committee and a corporate governance and nominating committee. Each committee has its own charter, which is available on our website at www.duostech.com. Each of the board committees has the composition and responsibilities described below.

Members will serve on these committees until their resignation or until otherwise determined by our Board of Directors.

Mr. Mavrommatis, Mr. Nixon and Mr. Ehrman, all of whom are independent directors within the meaning of the Nasdaq’s listing rules, are the Chairman of the Audit Committee, the Compensation Committee and the Corporate Governance and Nominating Committee, respectively. Each of the independent members of our Board of Directors also serves on one or more committees as previously disclosed.

Audit Committee

The Audit Committee oversees our accounting and financial reporting processes and oversees the audit of our financial statements and the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting. The specific functions of this Committee include, but are not limited to:

Our board has determined that Mr. Mavrommatis is currently qualified as an “audit committee financial expert”, as such term is defined in Item 407(d)(5) of Regulation S-K. Mr. Mavrommatis serves as the Chairman of the Audit Committee.