Exhibit 10.8
ARTIVA BIOTHERAPEUTICS, INC.
NON-EMPLOYEE DIRECTOR COMPENSATION POLICY
Each member of the Board of Directors (the “Board”) who is not also serving as an employee of or consultant to Artiva Biotherapeutics, Inc. (the “Company”) or any of its subsidiaries (each such member, an “Eligible Director”) will receive the compensation described in this Non-Employee Director Compensation Policy for his or her Board service upon and following the date of the underwriting agreement between the Company and the underwriters managing the initial public offering of the Company’s common stock (the “Common Stock”), pursuant to which the Common Stock is priced in such initial public offering (the “Effective Date”). An Eligible Director may decline all or any portion of his or her or their compensation by giving notice to the Company prior to the date cash may be paid or equity awards are to be granted, as the case may be. This policy is effective as of the Effective Date and may be amended at any time in the sole discretion of the Board, or by the Compensation Committee of the Board at the recommendation of the Board.
Annual Cash Compensation
The annual cash compensation amount set forth below is payable to Eligible Directors in equal quarterly installments, payable in arrears on the last day of each fiscal quarter in which the service occurred. If an Eligible Director joins the Board or a committee of the Board at a time other than effective as of the first day of a fiscal quarter, each annual retainer set forth below will be prorated based on days served in the applicable fiscal year, with the prorated amount paid for the first fiscal quarter in which the Eligible Director provides the service and regular full quarterly payments thereafter. All annual cash fees are vested upon payment.
| 1. | Annual Board Service Retainer: |
| a. | All Eligible Directors: $40,000 |
| b. | Independent Chair of the Board (in addition to Eligible Director Service Retainer): $30,000 |
| 2. | Annual Committee Chair Service Retainer: |
| a. | Chair of the Audit Committee: $15,000 |
| b. | Chair of the Compensation Committee: $12,000 |
| c. | Chair of the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee: $10,000 |
| 3. | Annual Committee Member Service Retainer (not applicable to Committee Chairs): |
| a. | Member of the Audit Committee: $7,500 |
| b. | Member of the Compensation Committee: $6,000 |
| c. | Member of the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee: $5,000 |
1.
Equity Compensation
The equity compensation set forth below will be granted under the Company’s 2024 Equity Incentive Plan (the “Plan”), subject to the approval of the Plan by the Company’s stockholders. All stock options granted under this policy will be nonstatutory stock options, with an exercise price per share equal to 100% of the Fair Market Value (as defined in the Plan) of the underlying Common Stock on the date of grant, and a term of ten years from the date of grant (subject to earlier termination in connection with a termination of service as provided in the Plan, provided that upon a termination of service other than for death, Disability or Cause (as each such term is defined in the Plan), the post-termination exercise period will be three months from the date of termination).
1. Initial Grant: For each Eligible Director who is first elected or appointed to the Board following the Effective Date, on the date of such Eligible Director’s initial election or appointment to the Board (or, if such date is not a market trading day, the first market trading day thereafter), the Eligible Director will be automatically, and without further action by the Board or the Compensation Committee of the Board, granted a stock option to purchase 27,500 shares of Common Stock (the “Initial Grant”). One-third of the shares subject to each Initial Grant will vest following the grant date thereof, with the remaining shares vesting monthly over an additional two years following the grant date thereof, subject to the Eligible Director’s Continuous Service (as defined in the Plan) through each such vesting date, and will vest in full upon a Change in Control (as defined in the Plan).
2. Annual Grant: On the date of each annual stockholder meeting of the Company held after the Effective Date, each Eligible Director who continues to serve as a non-employee member of the Board following such stockholder meeting will be automatically, and without further action by the Board or the Compensation Committee of the Board, granted a stock option to purchase 13,750 shares of Common Stock (the “Annual Grant”). The shares subject to the Annual Grant will vest in full on the earlier of the date that is 12 months following the grant date thereof or the date of the Company’s next annual stockholder meeting, subject to the Eligible Director’s Continuous Service (as defined in the Plan) through such vesting date, and will vest in full upon a Change in Control (as defined in the Plan).
Non-Employee Director Compensation Limit
Notwithstanding the foregoing, the aggregate value of all compensation granted or paid, as applicable, to any individual for service as a Non-Employee Director (as defined in the Plan) shall in no event exceed the limits set forth in Section 3(d) of the Plan.
2.
