Vicor (VICR) 27th Annual Needham Growth Conference summary

Legal and licensing updates

• Final determination in the ITC litigation against Delta Electronics expected in early February, potentially leading to an exclusion order and bond requirements for infringing imports.

• Major customers remain skeptical of Delta's workaround, believing it still infringes asserted patents.

• Increased interest from both OEMs and non-OEMs in licensing the patent portfolio, including AI hardware suppliers and hyperscalers.

• Royalty revenue from the existing OEM licensee has grown significantly, with royalties based on aggregate power for OEMs and anticipated usage for non-OEMs.

• Legal progress reported in both ITC and retaliatory lawsuits, with satisfaction in the legal team's achievements.

Technology and product development

• Gen 5 technology offers much higher current density (up to 4.5A/mm²), enabling simpler, more efficient power delivery for high-performance systems.

• Vertical power delivery (VPD) is becoming necessary for efficiency and scalability, with second-gen VPD enabled by Gen 5 addressing manufacturability and robustness issues.

• Lead customer ramp for Gen 5 expected this year, with broader customer sampling to follow after ensuring solution robustness.

• Gen 5 VPD reduces component count dramatically compared to multi-phase solutions and improves thermal management with thinner, lower-resistance modules.

• Gen 5 technology advantages extend to automotive applications, especially in 48V regulator platforms.

Market and business outlook

• Automotive: Two OEMs entering production by end of year into 2026, with three more in design-in phase targeting 2027 production and broader ramps in 2028-2029.

• Automotive design-ins focus on high-voltage to 48V DC-DC conversion, with interest across the product portfolio.

• Aerospace and defense, and industrial: Goal to double business in five to seven years, focusing on top 100 global customers, aiming for $500M-$600M from these segments.

• Brick products expected to remain stable but not drive growth; advanced products and licensing are the main growth engines.