Bill Ackman publicly declared financial and public support for former Harvard Business School professor Francesca Gino, saying she is innocent of allegations that led Harvard to strip her of tenure. Ackman wrote on X that he is backing Gino’s litigation against the university and called the case one of the most important in academia for protecting individual reputations against institutional overreach. The dispute centers on a 2023 tenure-review process launched by HBS leadership and culminated in a rare revocation of tenure. Harvard Law professor Lawrence Lessig has also produced a series of podcasts arguing Gino’s innocence. The case is fast becoming a test of institutional tenure procedures, internal investigations and how elite universities balance research‑integrity probes with due process and reputational risk.