First of all, if a pharma company had an annual income of 2bn from HIV treatments, and that companies CEO went forward with a HIV cure that is only predicted to earch 3bn overall; that CEO could essentially be removed from his position, as that would not be in the best interest of the company and shareholders.
Also, there does not need to be an evil twist where someone deliberately holds back a developed cure. It is much easier to cut/steer the research in ways that favor treatment/management options, ensuring that a cure would only be found be accident.
> that CEO could essentially be removed from his position, as that would not be in the best interest of the company and shareholders.
No. Stuff like this gets posted to HN all the time but that is just not how things work. In a public corporation, management has broad latitude to make decisions about how to run the company and shareholders have essentially no say in it. They can sell the stock if they don't like it.
If you don't believe me, consider that Tim Cook, CEO of one of the most valuable public companies on Earth, said almost exactly the same thing in a shareholder meeting and nobody batted an eye.
Also, there does not need to be an evil twist where someone deliberately holds back a developed cure. It is much easier to cut/steer the research in ways that favor treatment/management options, ensuring that a cure would only be found be accident.