Aware Adds Product Strategy Innovator to Executive Team to Further Align Biometric Platform and Vision with Market Growth

BURLINGTON, Mass., Jan. 23, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Aware, Inc., (NASDAQ: AWRE),  a global biometric platform company that uses data science, machine learning, and artificial intelligence to tackle everyday business and identity challenges through biometrics, has appointed industry veteran AJ Naddell to the new position of Chief Product Officer (CPO), effective as of January 16, 2024. At a time of continued transformation for Aware, Naddell will advance the company’s product-market-fit to further capitalize on the $15.2 billion multi-factor authentication market as interest in Aware’s platform offerings grows.

Naddell brings more than 10 years of proven leadership, with a history of leveraging product management to drive top-line growth and optimize the bottom line for offerings around the world. His experience includes roles at companies such as IBM, Imageware and most recently, TECH5. Naddell’s demonstrated history of optimizing operations, transforming product strategies, and strengthening cross-functional collaboration is a key piece to accelerating Aware’s efforts in driving recurring revenue and top-line growth.

“I’m thrilled to join Aware, a company that has been at the forefront of the biometrics industry for decades,” said Naddell. “Drawing upon my extensive experience and expertise in the identity and biometrics domain, I aim to enhance Aware's platforms, driving revenue growth and predictability by seamlessly integrating product strategy and optimizing the user experience.”

As CPO, Naddell will be leading product management for the organization focusing on aligning product strategy with overall business objectives. Naddell will oversee the entire product development lifecycle, from ideation and prioritization to execution and release, working closely with engineering and design teams to ensure timely and high-quality product delivery while maintaining a clear product roadmap. He will manage the product management office by conducting thorough market research to identify emerging trends, customer preferences, and competitive landscapes, which will enable Aware to make even more informed decisions regarding product market fit, product positioning, differentiation, and pricing strategies. Naddell’s addition bridges the front end of the business and engineering, further assisting in building top line and recurring revenue growth through the acceleration and expansion of the platform capabilities offered to its customers.

“The past few years have been transformative for Aware as we’ve emphasized growing our recurring revenue base,” said Bob Eckel, Aware’s president and chief executive officer. “Now that we’re better positioned as a biometric identity platform company, it’s the right time to add a chief product officer to help strengthen our value propositions and platform offerings. It will further build on Aware’s profitable, lifelong customer relationships. We look forward to leveraging AJ’s expertise in these efforts.”

About Aware
Aware is a global biometric platform company that uses data science, machine learning, and artificial intelligence to tackle everyday business and identity challenges through biometrics. For over 30 years we’ve been a trusted name in the field. Aware’s offerings address the growing challenges that government and commercial enterprises face in knowing, authenticating and securing individuals through frictionless and highly secure user experiences. Our algorithms are based on diverse operational data sets from around the world, and we prioritize making biometric technology in an ethical and responsible manner. Aware is a publicly held company (NASDAQ: AWRE) based in Burlington, Massachusetts. To learn more, visit our website or follow us on LinkedIn and X.

Safe Harbor Warning
Portions of this release contain forward-looking statements regarding future events and are subject to risks and uncertainties, such as estimates or projections of future revenue, earnings and non-recurring charges, and the growth of the biometrics markets. Aware wishes to caution you that there are factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the results indicated by such statements. Risk factors related to our business include, but are not limited to: i) our operating results may fluctuate significantly and are difficult to predict; ii) a significant commercial market for biometrics technology may not develop, and if it does, we may not be successful in that market; iii) we face intense competition from other biometrics solution providers; iv) our business is subject to rapid technological change; v) part of our future business is dependent on market demand for, and acceptance of, the cloud-based model for the use of software. Risk factors related to our business include, but are not limited to: i) our operating results may fluctuate significantly and are difficult to predict; ii) a significant commercial market for biometrics technology may not develop, and if it does, we may not be successful in that market; iii) we face intense competition from other biometrics solution providers; iv) our business is subject to rapid technological change; and v) part of our future business is dependent on market demand for, and acceptance of, the cloud-based model for the use of software. We refer you to the documents Aware files from time to time with the Securities and Exchange Commission, specifically the section titled Risk Factors in our annual report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022 and other reports and filings made with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

CONTACT
Company Contact                
Gina Rodrigues                                                        
Aware, Inc.                                                        
781-687-0300                                                                
grodrigues@aware.com