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Description of Business
12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2024
Description Of Business [Abstract]  
Description of Business
1.
Description of Business

Atara Biotherapeutics, Inc. (Atara, we, our or the Company) was incorporated in August 2012 in Delaware. Atara is a leader in T-cell immunotherapy, leveraging its novel allogeneic Epstein-Barr Virus (EBV) T-cell platform to develop transformative therapies for patients with cancer and autoimmune disease.

Our most advanced T-cell immunotherapy program, tab-cel® (tabelecleucel), has received marketing authorization approval under the proprietary name Ebvallo™ by the European Commission (EC) for commercial sale and use in the European Economic Area (EEA), by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) for commercial sale and use in the United Kingdom (UK) and by Swissmedic for commercial sale and use in Switzerland. Tab-cel is currently in Phase 3 development in the US. In October 2021, we entered into a commercialization agreement (Pierre Fabre Commercialization Agreement) with Pierre Fabre Medicament (Pierre Fabre), as amended in September 2022, pursuant to which we granted to Pierre Fabre an exclusive, field-limited license to commercialize and distribute Ebvallo in Europe and select emerging markets in the Middle East, Africa, Eastern Europe and Central Asia (the Initial Territory), following regulatory approval. In October 2023, we amended and restated the Pierre Fabre Commercialization Agreement (A&R Commercialization Agreement). Pursuant to the A&R Commercialization Agreement, Pierre Fabre’s exclusive rights to research, develop, manufacture, commercialize and distribute tab-cel (Ebvallo) were expanded to include all other countries in the world (Additional Territory) in addition to the Initial Territory (Initial Territory and Additional Territory together, the Territory)), subject to our performance of certain obligations. See Note 5 for further information. In December 2022, we sold a portion of our right to receive royalties and certain milestones in Ebvallo under the Pierre Fabre Commercialization Agreement to HCR Molag Fund L.P. (HCRx) for a total investment amount of $31.0 million, subject to a repayment cap between 185% and 250% of the total investment amount by HCRx. See Note 6 for further information.

We have licensed rights to T-cell product candidates from Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK), rights related to our next-generation CAR T programs from MSK, and rights to know-how and technology from the Council of the Queensland Institute of Medical Research (QIMR Berghofer). See Note 9 for further information.

In November 2023, we announced a reduction in force that reduced our workforce by approximately 30%. We recognized $6.7 million in total for severance and related benefits for employees laid off under the reduction in force. These charges are one-time termination benefits and are all cash charges. In January 2024, we announced a strategic reduction in workforce of approximately 25%. We recognized $5.1 million in total for severance and related benefits for employees laid off under the reduction in force. These charges are one-time termination benefits and are all cash charges. The majority of the associated costs are cash expenditures and primarily represent one-time termination benefits. Refer to Note 8 for further information.