I am wondering if the Flower Technologies / Ensilica (UK ASIC design firm) delay is related to the Alpha-T  delays ?
If Alpha-T were counting on using the Ensilica device as a fallback after Dexcel issues, then it could be February before they ship …

You can read about that drama in the August update here: https://www.flowertechnology.com

TL;DR Flower didn't raise enough money thru pre-orders to completely fund Ensilica to do the asic development.