Shareholders Sue AI Weapon-Detecting Company, Allege It 'Does Not Reliably Detect Knives or Guns'

This article was produced in collaboration with Court Watch, an independent outlet that unearths overlooked court records.

Thursday, New York City Mayor Eric Adams announced that the subway would begin to install Evolv scanners, which are AI-powered weapon detectors that have been widely deployed at schools, music venues, and sports stadiums around the world. “Facts don't matter if people don't believe they are in a safe environment,” Adams said. 

Adams did not mention that Evolv was just sued by some of its own shareholders, who are upset that they have lost money on Evolv stock because they say the company has exaggerated the extent to which it is able to actually detect weapons, which has led to negative press coverage and ongoing investigations by both the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Federal Trade Commission. 

The class-action lawsuit, filed earlier this week in Massachusetts, alleges that much of Evolv’s marketing language over the last several years is either untrue or has been overstated, which the plaintiffs say has led to an inflated stock price and scrutiny from the media and regulators. Earlier this month, for example, Evolv had to admit that, in fact, its detectors had not been tested by the UK government’s National Protective Security Authority, which does not do the type of testing Evolv claimed it had done. 

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