Appen Limited ($APX)

Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. My name is Vanessa Liu, and it is my pleasure as Chair of Appen Limited to welcome everyone joining us today for our Annual General Meeting. I'd like to begin by acknowledging the traditional custodians of the land on which we gather, the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation. I also acknowledge the traditional custodians of the various lands on which you are joining us from and the First Nations people participating in our meeting. I pay my respects to their Elders, past, present and emerging. It is now just past 10 a.m., the nominated time for the meeting, and I've been informed that a quorum is present. I note that the meeting has been validly constituted, and I'm pleased to declare the meeting open. I would like to begin by introducing my fellow directors that are present with us today. Robin Low, Non-Executive Director and Chair of the Audit and Risk Management Committee; Stuart Davis, Non-Executive Director and member of the Audit and Risk Management Committee; and our Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director, Ryan Kolln. Lynn Mickleburgh, Non-Executive Director and member of our People and Culture Committee is joining us by phone as she is based in the U.S. Steve Hasker, our Chair, our Non-Executive Director and Chair of our People and Culture Committee, is unable to be live with us today, but has prepared his remarks. We also have various Appen executives present representatives from the company's auditors, KPMG, and representatives from the company's share register, MUFG Corporate Markets. There are 4 components to today's meeting. First, I will provide you with an update on the business from a strategic perspective. Second, our CEO, Ryan Kolln, will provide a market overview, a recap of the group's 2025 performance and outlook. Third, we will open the meeting for questions on general business. Fourth, we will then move to the formal business of the meeting, where the items set out in the Notice of Meeting and addendum will be put to shareholders. We will also allocate time for questions on each of the items of business when they are considered. So thank you to those shareholders who have submitted questions prior to the meeting. We've endeavored to address these during the upcoming presentations. So as you might see, this is my first AGM as Chair of Appen, having been appointed to the role on the 1st of January 2026, following Richard Freudenstein's retirement from the Board on the 31st of December 2025. I'd like to take a minute to recognize Richard's contribution. He joined the Appen in Board in 2021, became Chair during one of the most challenging periods in the company's history and stayed the course with discipline and determination. Under his stewardship, we positioned Appen to participate in the generative AI market and his creative foundation from which we now grow. I and the entire Board are grateful to Richard for his leadership and his support during the transition. I've had the privilege of serving on the Appen Board since 2020. Over the years, I've seen the qualities that make it genuinely special the depth of its data expertise, the scale of its global crowd, the strength of its technology and the culture of the people who show up every day to deliver for our customers. I take on this role with clear eyes, high expectations and genuine excitement about what lies ahead, and we'll continue to work very closely with Ryan and the executive team as we continue to execute on our strategy. Before I invite Ryan to speak in more detail about the performance of our business, our strategy and the outlook, I'd like to reflect on Appen's context in the market and then our progress over the past year. I will then provide commentary on the items of business we are asking shareholders to vote on today. We are living through one of the most consequential technology transitions in human history. Artificial Intelligence is being interwoven into the fabric of daily life into the way we communicate, the way we work, the way businesses make decisions, the way scientific breakthroughs happen. The models powering the transformation are becoming more capable, more multilingual and more autonomous with every iteration. At the heart of this transformation is a key point. AI models learn from data. Specifically, they learned from high-quality human-annotated, carefully curated data, the kind that Appen has been creating for nearly 3 decades. As models become more sophisticated, the data requirements do not diminish, they grow. For AI to become even more reliable, the data needs become more complex, more domain-specific, more demanding of genuine human expertise and judgments. This is a great opportunity for Appen because we have the scale, the infrastructure, the global crowd the reliability and the institutional knowledge that this moment requires. So with this context, let's turn to our performance over the last year and note that values referred to are in U.S. dollars unless stated otherwise. In 2025, Appen recorded total operating revenue of $230 million -- $230.8 million, representing growth of 4.5% on the prior year when excluding the impact of the Google contract termination in FY '24. Underlying EBITDA before FX improved significantly to $12.2 million, an increase of 250.8% compared to $3.5 million in 2024. The Board once again made the decision not to declare an interim or final dividend to ensure capital is allocated appropriately as we pursue growth opportunities. Throughout 2025, the business remained focused on maximizing growth while managing costs. We successfully executed against a $10 million cost reduction program largely through technology-enabled efficiencies, which contributed meaningfully to the improvement in gross margins. Revenue from generative AI grew considerably. It's now representing 33% of total revenue by the end of the year, up from 22% in 2024. We also sharpened our customer focus, which contributed to strong new project wins in generative AI throughout the year and particularly in the second half. The combination of revenue growth, improving gross margins and disciplined cost management, delivered continued EBITDA growth across the year. We remain committed to managing our cost base in line with the revenue opportunity while continuing to invest in the technology and talent required to capture significant opportunity that's represented by generative AI. Ryan Kolln has continued to lead Appen with strong operational discipline and a clear focus on growth. His leadership has contributed directly to our improved financial and operational performance. During the year, we strengthened our executive team with key additions across delivery, sales, crowd operations and legal functions. These additions reinforce our capability in the areas most critical to our future growth, particularly in developing complex data solutions that are relevant for generative AI and to delivering consistently strong outcomes for our customers. I want to thank the entire executive team and Appen employees around the world for their continued efforts and commitment. Appen remains committed to delivering strong social, governance and sustainability outcomes. Customer satisfaction improved meaningfully in 2025 with customer NPS rising up to 68, up from 57 in the prior year. This result reflects the quality of our project delivery and the strength of our customer relationships. Our crowd Net Promoter Score, NPS, declined to 22 from 33 in the prior year, primarily due to project availability and earnings stability during certain periods of the year. We recognize the importance contributors place on having a steady, reliable source of income and improving the contributor experience remains a top priority. We continue to uphold the principles outlined in our Crowd Code of Conduct and our Global Ethical Sourcing and Modern Slavery Policy. Employee engagement increased to 83% up from 79% in 2024, and diversity continues to remain a priority. Women represented 58% of our total workforce and female representation amongst our senior leadership team increased to 54%, exceeding our target of 30%. Just wanted to touch on governance. So as noted, this is my first AGM as Chair following Richard's resignation in December 2025. During 2025, Mini Peiris also retired from the Board due to the increasing demands of her executive role in the United States. Mini joined us in 2023 and brought valuable perspective on the digital marketplace in our key market, and we thank her for her contributions and also wish her well. The Board currently comprises 5 Independent Nonexecutive Directors and our CEO, Ryan, and we maintain 50% female representation at the Board level. I'm satisfied that the Board has the right skills, the diversity of thought and industry depth to guide Appen through this next phase, and we remain committed to maintaining a well-balanced high-performing board. Our governance practices continue to align with the ASX corporate governance principles and recommendations. The People and Culture Committee chaired by Steve Hasker, continues to carefully consider the skills and composition required to drive the company's future growth. This year, Steve Hasker and Lynn Mickleburgh, are standing for reelection in accordance with the company's constitution and ASX listing rules. Both Steve and Lynn will be addressing shareholders on their candidacy later in the meeting. The Board recommends shareholders vote in favor of both reelections. Before we cover current remuneration matters, I would like to address the first strike against last year's remuneration report. The Board take shareholder feedback very seriously, and we acknowledge the concerns that were expressed. We have reflected carefully on that feedback. And as you will hear from the Chair of the Board's People and Culture Committee later in the meeting, we are committed to ensuring that our remuneration framework is transparent and clearly aligned with shareholder outcomes. Appen and the Board remain committed to the highest standards of governance and to demonstrating through our actions that executive remuneration is tied directly to the performance that we deliver for you. Turning briefly to remuneration. The 2025 short-term incentive framework was weighted 80% of financial performance and 20% to nonfinancial metrics. The final STI outcome for KMPs, so our Key Management Personnel was 10% of, reflecting a year in which our financial metrics did not meet the minimum achievement thresholds despite both showing substantial improvement over our prior year. Customer NPS was a strong result, achieving 119% of target, reflecting the high quality of service and project delivery that our customers have experienced. Crowd NPS was below the minimum payout threshold. Under Item 5 of today's agenda, we are seeking shareholder approval to grant 3,024,260 performance rights to Ryan under the fiscal year '26 long-term incentive plan valued at $1.5 million. The number of performance rights was calculated using the December 2025 VWAP of AUD 0.746 per share. These rights are subject to vesting conditions based on absolute total shareholder return and revenue CAGR, measured over a 3-year period to the 31st of December 2028. Ryan's total remuneration includes a fixed component of $600,000, and STI opportunity of $600,000 and an LTI opportunity of 250% of fixed pay. The Board believes the structure is appropriately rigorous, competitive for the global technology sector and aligned with shareholder interests. Under Item 6 and 7, we are also seeking shareholder approval for the issue of deferred STI shares to Ryan. Item 6 relates to 223,777 shares deferred from Ryan's fiscal year '24 STI award and Item 7 relates to 15,640 shares deferred from its fiscal year '25 STI award. These deferred share issues are consistent with the terms of the STI framework approved by shareholders and reflect the Board's commitment to aligning executive remuneration with the long-term interest of shareholders. Later in the meeting, Steve Hasker, Chair of the Board's People and Culture Committee will speak to the remuneration report in more detail. In closing, I am pleased with the progress Appen made in 2025. We delivered a materially improved financial results with underlying EBITDA growing 250.8% and cash generation turning strongly positive. We grew our China business significantly, strengthen our customer relationships and deepened our position in the generative AI market. There is much more work to do, but the foundations are strong and I'm excited about the opportunity ahead for Appen. The next chapter of AI is not about bigger models, but about models that work reliably in the real world across languages, cultures, domains and contexts. Human judgment is more important than ever to make AI trustworthy, safe and effective. So on behalf of the Board, I would like to thank all of our shareholders for your continued support. We remain deeply committed to building a business that creates genuine durable value for our shareholders. And we also thank our executive team and Appen employees around the world for their commitment and contributions during what has been another very important year in Appen's evolution. I now welcome Ryan to give a CEO address.

Thank you, Vanessa, and good morning, everyone. Thanks for joining us today. I'll cover 3 areas this morning. First, the AI market and Appen's role in it; second, our FY '25 results; and third, our growth strategy and guide for FY '26. Let me start with the market. Appen plays a critical role in the AI ecosystem by providing high-quality data that is used to build and monitor AI models. AI development depends on 3 inputs: algorithms, compute and data. Algorithms are the way that the models are configured. This approach is highly complex and is how researchers are able to define new techniques for model development. You can think of this as the blueprint for AI development. Compute is what is required to train and run the models. This is the raw horsepower that is in large demand across model builders. The third ingredient is data. These are the examples that are used to inform the models how to behave and that is increasingly has the largest influence on how models perform. Appen's role in the AI ecosystem is to provide the world's leading AI builders with a high-quality, human-generated data they need to build and improve their models. To understand why that role matters, it helps to look at what data is actually available to model builders. There are 3 types. Public data is the text, images and audio that has been collected largely from the Internet. The world's leading AI labs have mostly exhausted this source. It's already captured in their existing models and training on it provides little ability to differentiate. Synthetic data, generated by other AI models, carries a different set of risks. Models trained on it can struggle to solve novel or real-world situations, and in some cases it leads to model collapse, where model quality degrades over successive generations. That leaves real-world, human-generated data. This is the input that brings genuine expertise, diverse perspectives and real-world nuance into model performance. It's the only data type that can push a model into new capabilities and into new domains. And this is not a temporary gap. Every new model capability needs from reasoning, domain expertise to multilingual fluency and physical real-world understanding, requires fresh human data to unlock it. Appen's role is to create high-quality data that is used to build the world's best AI. The models that power the products, billions of people use, the assistance, the search engines, coding tools, translation services were all built with data that companies like Appen provide. And AI training is not a singular task. The techniques and approaches required to build and improve a model are varied, numerous, and constantly changing as the field evolves. Teaching a model to write better code requires human expertise, reviewing its outputs and explaining what is right or wrong. Teaching a model to understand Japanese or Arabic requires native speakers providing examples in those languages. Teaching a robot to pick up objects requires humans demonstrating the task and having every moment carefully labeled. Each application requires a different approach, different skills, different quality standards and as AI evolves, new techniques emerge that we need to support. Appen supports the full set of human data techniques used in AI development today. We have deep expertise delivering high-quality data across each of them, and we continue to evolve our capabilities as the demands of our customers change. That ability to move with the market is one of the things that sets us apart. Three structural trends are driving sustained demand in the AI market. The first is consumer AI globalization. The global digital advertising market is approximately $740 billion. As AI-powered products are deployed across different countries and cultures, they need human data to reflect local nuance. This work requires Appen's global workforce. Second is enterprise AI adoption. McKinsey estimates $2.6 trillion to $4.4 trillion in annual value potential from enterprise AI use cases. Embedding domain expertise into enterprise models require specialist human data. The third is new form factors. Humanoid and industrial robotics is projected to be a $60 billion to $100 billion market by the early 2030s, models that interact with the real world need training data that reflects it. The important point is that as data demand scales with model development, as AI adoption grows, so does the demand for what we do. Now let me give some concrete examples of where we are winning in FY '26. The first example is supporting robotics. We annotated egocentric human video to build data sets for physical AI training, delivering over 50,000 units of data across annotation and evaluation workflows. The second is related to verifying coding outputs from AI models. We worked with a leading coding foundation model to evaluate coding outputs, identifying vulnerabilities and errors. We have a direct relationship with our research team and technical leaders and the program has expanded multiple times since the initial signing in Q1. The third is related to enterprise AI solutions. We developed reinforcement learning environments across 20 domains, delivering 1,000 synthetic artifacts with domain experts validating outputs and removing errors and hallucinations. The fourth is AI for music. So we evaluate the ability for a model to generate music, spanning multiple countries and musical genres. The final example is coding the development of a multilingual speech model. We delivered data across approximately 60 languages for a leading AI lab. That program has since been expanded into its next phase. So what's -- also worth noting is that physical AI, coding models and reinforcement learning are amongst the fastest-growing and most heavily invested areas in AI right now. The fact that we are not only winning initial projects in these areas, but expanding them is a really strong signal. It tells us that our customers value what we deliver and that we are well positioned to grow as these markets scale. Appen is really well positioned to capture growth at global scale. We have a deep track record supporting the globalization of AI models for consumer-facing applications. We've been doing this for 30 years, and the next wave of large-scale AI data demand is in areas where that experience is directly relevant. We're combining that 30-year legacy with new technical capabilities required for the next phase of AI. In the last 12 months, we've added more than 20 industry experts with deep technical backgrounds across AI and machine learning. These are the people who understand our customers' problems from the inside, and they're directly contributing to the new projects we are winning and expanding. Our market position in China is one of strength. Appen China revenue is significantly larger than the leading local Chinese listed competitor, and we are the vendor of choice for top Chinese technology companies and model builders. Finally, we have built to scale. Our products and processes are built to adapt with customer requirements and technology is central to how we operate and drive operational efficiencies. Now let's turn to our financial results for FY '25. FY '25 was a year of meaningful progress for Appen. At the group level, we delivered $230.8 million in revenue, up 4.5% on FY '24 when you exclude the impact of Google. Growth was driven predominantly by new project wins and expansions in generative AI. Generative AI is the clear growth driver for the market and a positive signal that we are executing well against our strategy. On profitability, we delivered $12.2 million in underlying EBITDA, excluding FX. The full year margin was 5.3%, with a strong end to the year, with Q4 coming in at 18.2% EBITDA margin. We also continue to capture operational efficiencies through technology, innovation and automation. Now looking at our 2 segments. On Appen Global, the full year revenue was $127.9 million, which was down year-on-year. However, we ended the year on a high note, with Q4 revenue of $41.4 million, up 56% on Q3 and EBITDA of $10.2 million at a 24.6% margin. Appen China had an exceptional year, delivering $102.9 million in revenue, up 75% year-on-year, with EBITDA up 640% to $10.6 million. Growth is driven predominantly by new and expanding generative AI-related projects. Across the group, 44% (sic) [ 44.1% ] of Q4 revenue came from generative AI, up from 34.8% a year ago. Finally, we closed the year with $59.8 million in cash on hand. We continue to drive operational efficiencies across the business. In FY '25, we realized $10 million in annualized cost efficiencies through technology and automation. In summary, FY '24 (sic) [ FY '25 ] was a year that demonstrated real progress, revenue growth, improved margins and exceptional performance from Appen China. As mentioned, group performance -- group revenue was $230.8 million for the full year. Gross margin improved to 40.3%, up 100 basis points on FY '24, driven by a higher mix of generative AI projects across both divisions. Underlying EBITDA before FX was $12.2 million, up 251% on the prior year. Appen Global revenue for FY '25 was $127.9 million, down 21% on FY '24, excluding Google, reflecting lower volumes through Q1 and Q3. Q4 told a different story. Revenue of $41.4 million was up 56% on Q3, driven by new project wins. Underlying EBITDA for Q4 was $10.2 million, reflecting a 24.6% EBITDA margin for quarter. We also executed $10 million in annualized cost efficiencies across Appen Global through automation and operational improvements. Appen China grew 75% in FY '25, delivering $102.9 million in revenue. Growth was driven by new and expanding LLM-related projects, including work supporting the international expansion of Chinese technology customers. The profitability improvement was significant. Underlying EBITDA before FX was $10.6 million for the full year, up 640% on FY '24, reflecting a 10.3% EBITDA margin. Q4 FY '25 delivered a record $4.3 million at 13.5% margin. With that financial context, let me turn to our growth strategy and what we are focused on in FY '26. Our FY '26 strategy is focused on 4 priorities. First is data quality. This remains the north star across our operations, technology and talent. Quality is what drives repeat business and program expansion with our customers. The second is customer growth. We are focused on market segments with the highest account potential, predominantly hyperscalers and newer foundation model builders. We have more than 20 industry experts added in the team in the last 12 months who are supporting that growth. Third is new data segments. We're expanding into additional modalities and techniques through co-innovation with our customers. Coding is a real high priority for us in FY '26. Fourth is operational efficiencies. We're continuing to embed AI-led efficiencies across our operations, which I will cover on the next slide. On operational efficiency, the progress we have made is tangible, and I want to walk through them. In project delivery, we have built custom tools to access data faster, deployed AI quality agents to improve annotation accuracy, and automated workflows to reduce time to deliver. In our workforce operations, we use AI-assisted interviewing to validate contributor performance and provide real-time feedback, improving onboarding speed and contributor quality. Across the organization, company-wide AI usage and increasingly agentic operations are reducing our operating costs and accelerating our output. We continue to invest in how we are using AI across every part of the business, and we see significant potential for further efficiencies in many areas. This remains an active and high priority area of focus for us. I'll now cover our outlook and guidance statement for FY '26. We remain confident in the AI data market and in Appen's ability to meaningfully contribute to the development of leading foundation models. We continue to see positive signals on LLM-related growth from both Appen Global and Appen China customers. Tight cost controls remain in place, in keeping with our focus on managing costs in line with revenue opportunity. As in previous years, Appen Global revenue is predominantly project-based and seasonally skewes to H2. Shareholders should expect to see that pattern to continue. Considering this, Appen reaffirms the following FY '26 guidance: revenue of $270 million to $300 million and underlying EBITDA margin before FX of approximately 5% to 10%. The data market is large and growing. We're laser-focused on the fundamentals of delivering high-quality data for our clients and evolving as their data needs change. I'm very confident in our ability to capture growth in this fast-paced market. I want to thank you for your continued support. I'll now hand back to Vanessa.

Thank you very much, Ryan. I would now like to open the meeting to general business questions. You'll have the opportunity to ask questions pertaining to each resolution when we get to the formal business of the meeting. Before we begin, visitors are reminded that this is a shareholders meeting, and therefore, only shareholders, proxy holders, body corporate representatives or attorneys are able to ask questions at this meeting. Visitors have been issued a red card. If shareholders holding a blue or yellow card wish to make comments or questions, you should raise your admission card. When called upon, please state your name, or if you're acting as a proxy, identify whom you are appointed to represent and prior to making a comment or asking a question. So in the interest of all shareholders, I would also ask that you be concise in your question or comments, and we will endeavor to respond in the same way. I will now take general business questions. The microphone is coming.

Thank you, Vanessa and Ryan, for your talk. The question is, could panel share some remarks in terms of the lesson learned from the lost of Google contract? Is it reflected in perhaps the Appen China success so far?

I think just some general remarks before I take it to, Ryan. So maybe just for all shareholders. The Google contract we had lost that a few years ago where the last bit of the revenue we saw in fiscal year '24. I will pass it on to Ryan, who could talk more about the discussions we have been having ongoing with not just Google, but many other customers.

Thank you. When we look at the success of Appen China, I'll start there. It's really driven by continued focus on our customers, delivering really high-quality data. And the lesson learned for us from the Google loss is making sure we have that discipline and that laser focus across our counts at Appen Global. And I can confidently say that the quality and the depth of relationship we have with our customers is exceptionally high at the moment. We are laser focused on the fundamentals. And that is the best way to avoid situations like Google happening again, but it's also the best way to deliver continued sustainable growth in the business. So a key focus on the fundamentals, I think, is the big lesson for us.

Other questions? Yes please.

Owen Morgan, shareholder. Ryan, congratulations on the progress you're making. It's really encouraging to see the focus on the fundamentals. I'm interested about the U.S. and what your thoughts might be in relation to expanding revenue there and your customer base? And I also note you have a balance sheet that you could leverage.

Thank you for the question. The U.S. market is -- has massive potential for us clearly, and it's a really high focus to make sure that we're growing revenue in the U.S. part of the market. What we are really focusing on at the moment is building out capabilities and winning projects in areas that are growing. And I think some of the areas that we demonstrated today like coding, robotics. We are seeing a resurgence in the demand for things like even speech recognition models, which we have very deep expertise in. So we're starting to see a really a lot of positive momentum from our existing clients and in new clients in these areas that we think are very high growth. The quality feedback we're getting at the moment is really high. We're seeing expansion opportunities on these projects. So we're really confident in the progress that we're making. I think it's only a function of time before we start to see these turn into materially large projects. In terms of the balance sheet, I think we feel pretty comfortable with the level of investment that we have at the moment. We do need some working capital to support the projects because of the differential between when we pay the crowd and when we receive payments from our customers. So that's -- we want to make sure that we have a sufficient buffer as larger projects come in to support that.

Are there other questions? Okay. Seeing no further questions, thank you so much for those questions.

We'll now progress to the formal business of the meeting. The Notice of Meeting and addendum were made available to all registered shareholders in advance of the meeting, and I will take those documents as read. During the course of the meeting, I will present various resolutions to the meeting. We will strive to ensure that shareholders who wish to speak have an opportunity to do so. I've been advised that all proxies received for the meeting have been checked, and I declare them valid for voting. I will disclose proxy votes on your screen prior to the vote being taken for each item. These figures include the results as recorded at the closing time for receipt of proxies, which was 10:00 a.m. on Wednesday, the 20th of May 2026. There are a number of voting exclusions that apply to the resolutions being presented at today's meeting. These were outlined in the Notice of Meeting and addendum. Voting on all resolutions will be decided by a poll, which I now declare open. The poll will be taken at the end of the meeting and the results announced to the ASX shortly after the close of the meeting. As Chair of the meeting and as detailed in the Notice of Meeting and addendum, I will vote, where authorized, all undirected proxies in favor of the resolutions in Items 2 to 7 and against the conditional resolution in Item 8. So the first item of notified business is to receive and consider the financial report, the directors' report and the auditor's report for the year ended 31 December 2025. There is no formal resolution required for this item, but I invite shareholders to ask questions or make a comment on the financial report or the reports of the directors and auditors. Ask questions of or make a comment on the management of the company or ask any questions of the auditor relevant to the conduct of the audit, the preparation and content of the auditor's report, the accounting policies adopted by the company in relation to the preparation of the financial statements or the independence of the auditor in relation to the conduct of the audit. I will now take questions on the company's financial statements, the performance of the company over the last year, the director's report or the auditor's report. No questions. Seeing no questions, I will now move on to the next item of notified business, the remuneration report. Before we move to questions and a vote on the remuneration report, I would like to hand over to Steve Hasker, Chair of the People and Culture Committee for his report.

Thank you, Vanessa, and good morning, everyone. As Chair of the People and Culture Committee, it's my pleasure to present Appen's remuneration report for year ended 31 December 2025. The report outlines our remuneration framework, the outcomes achieved for the year and how those outcomes align with Appen's performance and strategy. It's included as part of the director's report in the 2025 Annual Report and is the subject of Item 2 of business at today's meeting. The People and Culture Committee is responsible for overseeing Appen's approach to people, to culture, to leadership development to succession planning as well as executive remuneration. In fulfilling this role, the committee aims to ensure that our remuneration practices are transparent, competitive and closely aligned with the interest of our shareholders. We seek to reward performance that delivers sustainable long-term value, and we are committed to sound governance and continuous engagement with our stakeholders. In 2025, Appen delivered substantial improvements in profitability. The business grew underlying EBITDA before FX by 250% to $12.2 million, and operating revenue grew 4.5% to $230 million, driven by new project wins in generative AI and operational efficiencies across the group. Notwithstanding this progress, the company did not meet its financial performance targets for revenue and EBITDA in 2025. Short-term incentive outcomes for FY 2025 reflected this performance. The group STI performance scorecard included 80% weighting on financial metrics and 20% on nonfinancial measures. Financial measures comprise EBITDA at 50% weighting and revenue at 30% weighting. Both financial measures fell below the minimum achievement threshold of 90% of target, resulting in 0 payout for financial measures. For the nonfinancial outcomes, customer NPS achieved 119% of target. However, crowd NPS was below the minimum threshold. Nonfinancial outcomes were capped at 100% of target. Hence, the results translate into a final STI outcome of 10% of target for Key Management Personnel. And in line with policy, 75% of the STI was delivered in cash and 25% in deferred equity for the CEO. The Board believes these outcomes reflect the disciplined application of our remuneration framework. With respect to long-term incentives, legacy grants award in relation to previous roles held by current KMP were tested during 2025. The 2022 Award tranche 4 lapsed in full as the 20% UBEBS performance condition was not met. With respect to the 2022 Awards tranche 3 and the 2023 Annual Awards tranche 2, the service conditions were met during FY '25 and the performance rights vested. There were no changes to Appen's executive key management personnel during the year. Richard Freudenstein retired from the Board effective 31 December 2025, and Mini Peiris resigned as a Non-Executive Director on the 16th of May 2025. And we thank them both for their significant contributions to Appen. Vanessa Liu was appointed the Non-Executive Chair effective the 1st of January 2026. Subject to shareholders' approval under Item 5, the Board has approved a long-term incentive award for Ryan Kolln for FY 2026. The grant has a face value of USD 1.5 million equivalent to 3,024,260 performance rights. The number of performance rights is calculated using December 2025 VWAP of AUD 0.746. These rights were vested over a 3-year period from the 1st of January 2026 to the 31st of December 2028, with 2 equally weighted performance hurdles, absolute total shareholder return, or TSR, and revenue compound annual growth rate or revenue CAGR. Vesting for TSR will begin only if the company delivers at least 95% TSR and full vesting at 120%. For the purposes of calculating TSR, the starting share price will be AUD 1.43. For revenue, vesting begins at 26% CAGR and reaches full vesting at 33% or greater. The grant includes malus and clawback provisions. Turning to nonexecutive director fees. The total amount paid in 2025 was $616,145. This remains well within the shareholder approved fee pool of AUD 1.4 million, unchanged since the 2021 AGM. There will be no changes to nonexecutive director fees in 2026. The fees are benchmarked against ASX-listed peers to ensure they reflect the scale and complexity of Appen's operations. Nonexecutive directors do not receive short or long-term incentives. The minimum shareholding policy requires that all non-executive directors hold shares equal to at least 1 year's base fee to be achieved within 3 years of appointment. All directors who have served for at least 3 years are compliant. Today, we are seeking your support for 4 remuneration-related resolutions under Items 2, 5, 6 and 7. Item 2 is the nonbinding advisory vote on the 2025 remuneration report. Item 5 is the approval of the proposed long-term incentive award for the CEO. Item 6, is the issue of the FY '24 short-term incentive shares to the CEO for past performance. And Item 7 is the issue of the FY 2025 short-term incentive shares to the CEO for past performance. In closing, I would like to reiterate that the Board is committed to good governance and remuneration practice that reflect Appen's business strategy and shareholder outcomes. Appen remains firmly focused on its long-term growth strategy, and we believe our remuneration framework remains fit for purpose. We aim to align structure, framework and outcomes with sustainable shareholder value creation while also attracting and retaining top talent in the North American and Australian technology markets. With this, the Board recommends that shareholders vote in favor of the resolutions. Thank you, and I will now hand back to the Chair.

Thank you so much, Steve. I will now put the resolution to the meeting as displayed on the screen. Details of votes received for this item are on the screen now. I now open this item for discussion. So are there any questions? Seeing there are no questions, we'll move on to the next item. The next item of notified business concerns the reelection of Mr. Stephen Hasker as a Non-Executive Director. I put the resolution to the meeting as displayed on the screen. Before opening this item for discussion, I would just like to say a few words about -- I would like to ask Steve to say a few words about his reelection.

Thank you, Vanessa. I've now had the privilege to serve on the Appen Board for over 11 years. I believe I bring a distinctive set of skills that enable me to add genuine value here. In my current role as President and CEO of Thomson Reuters, I lead a company of over 27,000 people across more than 75 countries, providing critical news, information and technology to customers around the world. That role gives me direct daily experience in navigating the rapidly evolving intersection of AI, data and Professional Information Services, which is precisely the space in which Appen operates. Before Thomson Reuters, I served as Chief Executive of CAA Global, a portfolio company of TPG Capital and as Global President and Chief Operating Officer of Nielsen, a global leader in information, data and measurement. Earlier in my career, I spent nearly 12 years at McKinsey & Company as a partner in the global media, information and technology practice, advising some of the world's leading companies on strategy and transformation. Throughout my career, I've sat at the center of information, data and technology. And I understand firsthand the strategic challenges and opportunities that come with building AI-powered products and services at scale. And I'm deeply committed to helping Appen realize its potential, and it's very donating landscape. I would be honored to be reelected to continue to serve the interests of Appen shareholders. Thank you.

Thank you so much, Steve. I just wanted to say a quick word on Steve. We're just incredibly lucky as a Board to be able to draw upon his expertise. He's obviously in areas that are very relevant when it comes to AI and just also his corporate expertise has been just invaluable for us. So we are just very lucky. Details of the votes received for this item are now presented on the screen. And I now open this item for discussion. Are there any questions? Seeing no questions. Thank you. We will move on to the next item, which is the reelection of Lynn Mickleburgh as a Nonexecutive Director. I put the resolution to the meeting as displayed on the screen. And before opening this item for discussion, Lynn will say a few words about her reelection.

Thank you, Vanessa. I've now had the privilege of serving on the Appen Board for over 3 years, and I believe I bring a range of skills and experience that enable me to add real value to this board. In particular, I have deep expertise in finance, business transformation and scaling technology businesses having held senior leadership roles at companies including Adobe, Citrix and Atlassian. At Atlassian, I served as Head of Commerce and Business Optimization during a period of significant growth. I also previously served as a Nonexecutive Director of Altium and ASX 100 public software company, where I was Chair of the Human Resources Committee and member of the Audit and Risk Committee. During my time there, I helped support the company's strategic growth as its market valuation increase from under USD 1 billion to more than USD 6 billion, contributing to the journey that culminated in its acquisition by Renesas Electronics in 2024. That experience gave me a strong understanding of corporate governance, executive compensation and value creation in high-growth technology businesses. I'm genuinely excited about the opportunities ahead for Appen in the rapidly evolving AI landscape, and I would be honored to continue serving the interest of Appen shareholders through reelection to the Board. Thank you.

Thank you so much, Lynn. Also wanted to comment that Lynn's expertise, particularly in transformation has also been incredibly helpful for the Board over the last few years. Details of the votes received for this item are now presented on the screen. I will now open this item for discussion. Are there any questions? Thank you. Seeing no questions, we will move on to Item 5. The next item of business is in relation to the grant of fiscal year '26 long-term incentive performance rights to our CEO and Managing Director, Mr. Ryan Kolln. I put the resolution to the meeting as shown on the screen. Details of the votes received for this item are now on the screen. I'll now open this item for discussion. Are there any questions? No, seeing no questions. Thank you. We will move on to Item 6. And this next item of business is in relation to the issue of fiscal year '24 short-term incentive shares to our CEO and Managing Director, Mr. Ryan Kolln. I put the resolution to the meeting as shown on the screen. Details of votes received for this item are now on the screen. I now open this item for discussion. Are there any questions? Seeing no questions, we will move on to Item 7. This next item of the business is in relation to the issue of fiscal year '25 short-term incentive shares to our CEO and Managing Director, Ryan Kolln. I put the resolution to the meeting as shown on the screen. And details of votes received for this item are now on the screen. I now open this item for discussion. Are there any questions? Seeing no questions, we will move on to Item 8. So this next item of business is a conditional resolution and will only be taken into account if the outcome of Item 2 is such that at least 25% of the votes cast are against the adoption of the remuneration report. I will put the resolution to the meeting as shown on the screen, conditional upon the outcome of item 2. I now open this item for discussion. Are there any questions? No. Thank you. And ladies and gentlemen, this concludes the formalities of the meeting -- sorry, the results of the voting. Sorry about that, my first time. Shareholders are asked to now complete your voting card. To cast your vote for, against or abstain, please place a mark in the corresponding box for each item on your voting card. If you place a mark more than one box in relation to a resolution, your vote for that resolution will be invalid and MUFG will collect your voting card now. [Voting]

We just have a few more here upfront. Okay, I now declare the poll closed. And as I mentioned earlier, the results of this meeting will be announced to ASX as soon as they have been counted and verified. I now declare the meeting closed. So thank you so much. I would like to take the chance to also thank my fellow directors and Ryan and the management team for their diligence and commitment to this business. I'd also like to thank shareholders for your support and for coming today. I look forward to meeting with you again at next year's Annual General Meeting.