On July 1, 2020, the Company’s board of directors approved the 2020 Equity Incentive Plan (“Previous Plan”) which permits the granting of incentive stock options, non-statutory stock options, stock appreciation rights, restricted stock awards (“RSAs”), restricted stock units (“RSUs”) and other stock-based awards to employees, directors, officers and consultants. As of September 16, 2020, the approval date of the New Plan (as defined below), no additional awards will be granted under the Previous Plan. The terms of the Previous Plan will continue to govern the terms of outstanding equity awards that were granted prior to approval of the New Plan.

On September 16, 2020, the Company’s stockholders approved the 2020 Stock Incentive Plan (“New Plan”), which became effective upon the execution of the underwriting agreement in connection with the IPO. The number of shares of common stock reserved for issuance under the New Plan automatically increases on January 1 of each year, for a period of ten years, from January 1, 2021, continuing through January 1, 2030, by 5% of the total number of shares of common stock outstanding on December 31 of the preceding calendar year, or a lesser number of shares as may be determined by the Company’s board of directors. On January 1, 2023, the Company’s board of directors increased the number of shares of common stock reserved for issuance under the New Plan by 3,160,375 shares.

Furthermore, on September 16, 2020, the Company’s stockholders approved the Employee Stock Purchase Plan (“ESPP”), which became effective upon the execution of the underwriting agreement in connection with the IPO. The maximum number of shares of common stock that may be issued under the ESPP will not exceed 362,000 shares of common stock, plus the number of shares of common stock that are automatically added on January 1st of each year for a period of up to ten years, commencing on the first January 1 following the IPO and ending on (and including) January 1, 2030, in an amount equal to the lesser of (i) one percent (1.0%) of the total number of shares of capital stock outstanding on December 31st of the preceding calendar year, and (ii) 724,000 shares of common stock. No shares

were added to the ESPP in 2021. On January 1, 2022 and 2023, the Company’s board of directors increased the number of shares of common stock reserved for issuance under the ESPP by 384,739 and 632,075 respectively. The Company has issued an aggregate of 141,393 shares of common stock under the ESPP as of December 31, 2023.

On December 15, 2023, the Company's board of directors adopted the Taysha Gene Therapies, Inc. 2023 Inducement Plan (the “Inducement Plan”). The Inducement Plan was adopted without stockholder approval pursuant to Nasdaq Listing Rule 5635(c)(4). The Board reserved 4,000,000 shares of the Company’s common stock for issuance under the Inducement Plan.

The only persons eligible to receive grants of Inducement Awards (as defined below) under the Inducement Plan are individuals who satisfy the standards for inducement grants under Nasdaq Listing Rule 5635(c)(4). The Inducement Plan will be administered by the Board and the Company’s Compensation Committee. Inducement Awards may only be granted by: (i) the Compensation Committee, provided such committee is comprised solely of “independent directors” (as defined by Nasdaq Listing Rule 5605(a)(2)) or (ii) a majority of the Company’s “independent directors.” An “Inducement Award” means any right to receive the Company’s common stock, cash or other property granted under the Inducement Plan (including nonstatutory stock options, restricted stock awards, restricted stock unit awards, stock appreciation rights, performance stock awards, performance cash awards or other stock-based awards). No grants have been issued under the Inducement Plan as of December 31, 2023.

The number of shares available for grant under the Company’s incentive plans were as follows:


	Previous			New			Inducement
	Plan			Plan			Plan		Total
Available for grant - January 1, 2022		—			1,652,101			—		1,652,101
Plan adjustments and amendments		—			1,923,697			—		1,923,697
Grants		—			(4,775,676	)		—		(4,775,676	)
Forfeitures		—			2,267,560			—		2,267,560
Available for grant - December 31, 2022		—			1,067,682			—		1,067,682
Plan adjustments and amendments		(667,828	)		3,828,203			4,000,000		7,160,375
Grants		—			(5,447,757	)		—		(5,447,757	)
Forfeitures		667,828			3,714,597			—		4,382,425
Available for grant - December 31, 2023		—			3,162,725			4,000,000		7,162,725

During the year ended December 31, 2023, 2,726,871 shares of common stock under the New Plan were awarded with a weighted-average grant date fair value per share of $0.71. The stock options vest over one to four years and have a ten-year contractual term.

The following weighted-average assumptions were used to estimate the fair value of time-based vesting stock options that were granted during the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022:


	Year Ended December 31,
	2023			2022
Risk-free interest rate		3.68	%		2.95	%
Expected dividend yield		—			—
Expected term (in years)		5.5			6.1
Expected volatility		82	%		78	%

The following table summarizes time-based vesting stock option activity, during the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022:


						Weighted
				Weighted		Average		Aggregate
				Average		Remaining		Intrinsic
	Stock			Exercise		Contractual		Value
	Options			Price		Life (in years)		(in thousands)
Outstanding at January 1, 2022		3,649,962		$	24.13		9.2	$	—
Options granted		4,775,676			4.48
Options cancelled or forfeited		(2,048,192	)		15.25
Options expired		(219,368	)		24.36
Outstanding at December 31, 2022		6,158,078		$	11.84		8.9	$	62
Options granted		2,726,871			0.99
Options cancelled or forfeited		(2,050,562	)		10.70
Options expired		(873,465	)		22.21
Outstanding at December 31, 2023		5,960,922		$	5.75		8.7	$	1,960
Options exercisable at December 31, 2023		1,580,373		$	13.51		7.6	$	8

The aggregate intrinsic value in the above table is calculated as the difference between the fair value of the Company’s common stock at the respective reporting date and the exercise price of the stock options. As of December 31, 2023, the total unrecognized compensation related to unvested time-based vesting stock option awards granted was $8.4 million, which the Company expects to recognize over a weighted-average period of approximately 1.9 years. No stock options were exercised during the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022.

In February 2023, the Company issued options to purchase 70,235 shares of common stock to employees under the New Plan that contain performance-based vesting conditions, subject to continued employment through each anniversary and achievement of the performance conditions. The grant date fair value of these awards was not material. As of December 31, 2023, 58,346 of the shares subject to the performance-based options were outstanding, all of which vested during the period. No stock options were exercised during the period.

In May 2023, the Company issued options to purchase 2,166,653 shares of common stock to employees under the New Plan that contain both service and performance-based vesting conditions (the "Original Options"), with a weighted average grant date fair value per share of $0.50. These Original Options were expected to vest over a 3.6 year term if a combination of clinical, regulatory and financing performance conditions were achieved. No compensation expense was recognized in 2023 related to the Original Options as achievement of the performance conditions was not considered probable. The following weighted-average assumptions were used to estimate the fair value of the options granted in February 2023 and the Original Options that were granted in May 2023:

In December 2023, the Company modified all of the Original Options to amend the clinical and regulatory performance conditions and decreased the number of options granted to 1,516,655 (the “Modified Options”). The Company accounted for the changes in award terms as a modification in accordance with ASC 718, Compensation - Stock Compensation. Total compensation cost is equal to the modification date fair value. The Modified Options have a grant date fair value per share of $1.28. The following assumptions were used to estimate the fair value of the Modified Options:

The Modified Options will vest over 3.0 years. The Company recognized stock-based compensation expense of $0.1 million in 2023 related to the Modified Options. As of December 31, 2023, the total unrecognized compensation expense related to the Modified Options was $1.9 million, which the Company expects to recognize over a weighted average period of approximately 2.0 years using the accelerated attribution method. As of December 31, 2023, 1,516,655 of the Modified Options were outstanding. No stock options vested or were exercised during the period.

In February 2023, the Company issued options to purchase 70,233 shares of common stock to employees under the New Plan that contain a market-based vesting condition, subject to continued employment through each anniversary and achievement of the market condition. The grant date fair value of the stock options that contain market-based vesting conditions was not material. As of December 31, 2023, the market condition was not met and all 70,233 shares were forfeited.

In February 2023, the Company issued 81,236 RSUs to employees under the New Plan. The RSUs are subject to a service-based vesting condition. The service-based RSUs vest in equal annual installments over a four-year period. The Company at any time may accelerate the vesting of the RSUs. Such shares are not accounted for as outstanding until they vest.

The Company’s default tax withholding method for RSUs granted prior to 2023 is the sell-to-cover method, in which shares with a market value equivalent to the tax withholding obligation are sold on behalf of the holder of the RSUs upon vesting and settlement to cover the tax withholding liability and the cash proceeds from such sales are remitted by the Company to taxing authorities. For RSUs granted in 2023, the Company’s tax withholding policy allows the RSU holder to choose to either pay cash to the Company for the tax withholding obligation or elect the net withholding method, in which shares with a market equivalent to the tax withholding obligation are withheld and the net shares are issued to the RSU holder.

In March 2023, the Company issued 251,296 RSUs to the former President and Chief Executive officer of the Company in connection with his resignation from the Company and Board of Directors. The RSUs vested immediately.

The Company’s RSU activity for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022 was as follows:


				Weighted
				Average
				Grant Date
	Number			Fair Value
	of Shares			per Share
Nonvested at January 1, 2022		1,886,765		$	6.52
Restricted units granted		—			—
Vested		(628,921	)		6.52
Cancelled or forfeited		—			—
Nonvested at December 31, 2022		1,257,844		$	6.52
Restricted units granted		332,532			1.06
Vested		(556,989	)		4.78
Cancelled or forfeited		(658,343	)		5.18
Nonvested at December 31, 2023		375,044		$	6.63

As of December 31, 2023, the total unrecognized compensation related to unvested RSUs granted was $1.4 million which is expected to be amortized on a straight-line basis over a weighted-average period of approximately 0.7 years.

In February 2023, the Company issued 81,233 RSUs to employees under the New Plan that contain a combination of performance and market-based vesting conditions, subject to continued employment through each anniversary and achievement of market and performance conditions. The grant date fair value of the RSUs that contain performance and market-based vesting conditions was not material. As of December 31, 2023, 46,562 of the RSUs were forfeited and 34,671 RSUs vested and were settled during the period.

The Company’s former President and Chief Executive Officer, was awarded 769,058 RSAs under the Existing Plan on July 1, 2020, which vested over a three-year term, subject to continuous employment. The fair value of these RSAs at the grant date of July 1, 2020, was $5.28 per share. On March 2, 2023, the Company’s former President and Chief Executive Officer resigned from the Board of Directors, therefore cancelling any remaining unvested tranches.

The Company’s RSA activity for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022 was as follows:


				Weighted
				Average
				Grant Date
	Number			Fair Value
	of Shares			per Share
Nonvested at January 1, 2022		341,975		$	5.28
Restricted stock granted		—			—
Vested		(256,481	)		5.28
Nonvested at December 31, 2022		85,494		$	5.28
Restricted stock granted		—			—
Vested		(64,120	)		5.28
Cancelled or forfeited		(21,374	)		5.28
Nonvested at December 31, 2023		—		$	—

In February 2022, the Company’s board of directors authorized the first offering under the ESPP. Under the ESPP, eligible employees may purchase shares of Taysha common stock through payroll deductions at a price equal to 85% of the lower of the fair market values of the stock as of the beginning or the end of six-month offering periods. An employee’s payroll deductions under the ESPP are limited to 15% of the employee’s compensation and employees may not purchase more than 1,800 of shares of Taysha common stock during any offering period. During the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, stock-based compensation expense related to the ESPP was not material.

The following table summarizes the total stock-based compensation expense for the stock options, ESPP, RSAs and RSUs recorded in the consolidated statements of operations for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022 (in thousands):


	For the Year Ended December 31,
	2023		2022
Research and development expense	$	2,225	$	7,608
General and administrative expense		5,680		10,435
Total	$	7,905	$	18,043