A federal judge in New Jersey dismissed securities-fraud claims against an AI drug discovery company, rejecting assertions that failing to disclose the Exscientia CEO’s alleged sexual misconduct violated securities law.
The plaintiffs argued that not disclosing the CEO’s actions meant the company’s code of conduct and statements about inclusivity were misleading. But most of the statements in question were simply “inactionable puffery,” wrote Chief Judge Renee Marie Bumb of the US District Court for the District of New Jersey.
“To hold a company liable for securities fraud for failing to live up to its stated aspirations could turn all ...