AudioEye (AEYE) S-8Registration of securities for employees

As filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on June 7, 2024

Registration No. 333-

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549

FORM S-8

REGISTRATION STATEMENT UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933

AUDIOEYE, INC.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

AudioEye, Inc. 2020 Equity Incentive Plan

(Full title of the plan)

James Spolar, Esq.

General Counsel and Corporate Secretary

AudioEye, Inc.

5210 E. Williams Circle, Suite 750

Tucson, Arizona 85711

(866) 331-5324

(Name, address and telephone number, including area code, of agent for service)

Copy to:

Matt Kuhn, Esq.

Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP

2200 Wells Fargo Center

90 South Seventh Street

Minneapolis, Minnesota 55402

(612) 766-7000

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, a smaller reporting company or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company,” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 7(a)(2)(B) of the Securities Act. ¨

EXPLANATORY NOTE

This registration statement on Form S-8 relates to the registration of an additional 1,500,000 shares of common stock, $0.00001 par value per share, of AudioEye, Inc. (the “Registrant”), issuable under the AudioEye, Inc. 2020 Equity Incentive Plan (the “Plan”). Pursuant to General Instruction E of Form S-8, the contents of the Registrant’s registration statement on Form S-8 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”) on December 9, 2020 (Registration No. 333-251225) is incorporated herein by reference and made a part of this registration statement, except as amended hereby.

PART II

Information Required in the Registration Statement

Item 3. Incorporation of Documents by Reference.

The Registrant incorporates by reference in this registration statement the following documents that the Registrant has filed with the Commission:

All documents that the Registrant files with the Commission pursuant to Sections 13(a), 13(c), 14 or 15(d) of the Exchange Act after the filing of this registration statement but prior to the filing of a post-effective amendment which (i) indicates that all of the shares of the Registrant’s common stock covered by this registration statement have been sold, or which (ii) deregisters all of the shares then remaining unsold, shall be deemed to be incorporated by reference in and to be part of this registration statement from the respective dates of filing.

Any statement in a document incorporated or deemed to be incorporated by reference in this registration statement shall be deemed to be modified or superseded to the extent that a statement in this registration statement, or in any document filed after the filing of this registration statement which is deemed to be incorporated by reference in this registration statement, modifies or supersedes the earlier statement. The earlier statement shall be deemed to be incorporated in this registration statement only as so modified or superseded.

Item 6. Indemnification of Directors and Officers.

The Registrant’s bylaws provide that the Registrant shall indemnify any person made or threatened to be made a party to an action, suit or proceeding, whether criminal, civil, administrative or investigative, by reason of the fact that such person is or was a director, officer, employee or agent of the Registrant, or any predecessor of the Registrant, or serves or served at any other enterprise as a director, officer or employee at the request of the Registrant, against expenses (including attorneys’ fees), judgments, fines and amounts paid in settlement actually and reasonably incurred by him or her in connection with such action, suit or proceeding if he or she acted in good faith and in a manner he or she reasonably believed to be in or not opposed to the best interests of the Registrant, and, with respect to any criminal action or proceeding, had no reasonable cause to believe his or her conduct was unlawful.

The Registrant’s bylaws provide that the Registrant is not required to indemnify any director or officer for expenses incurred in connection with a derivative proceeding as to which such person is adjudged to be liable to the Registrant unless and only to the extent that the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware or the court in which such action or suit was brought determines that such person is fairly and reasonably entitled to indemnity for such expenses which the Court of Chancery or such other court shall deem proper. In addition, the Registrant’s bylaws provide that expenses incurred in defending a civil or criminal action, suit or proceeding may be paid by the Registrant in advance of the final disposition of such action, suit or proceeding upon receipt of an undertaking by or on behalf of the director, officer, employee or agent to repay such amount if it shall be ultimately determined that he or she is not entitled to be indemnified. Further, the Registrant’s bylaws provide that the indemnification and advancement of expenses provided by its bylaws shall not be exclusive of any other rights to which those seeking indemnification or advancement of expenses may be entitled under any law, agreement, vote of stockholders or disinterested directors or otherwise. 

The Registrant’s Restated Certificate of Incorporation provides that a director or officer of the Registrant shall not be personally liable to the Registrant or its stockholders for monetary damages for breach of fiduciary duty as a director or officer; provided, however, that the foregoing shall not eliminate or limit the liability of a director or officer (i) for any breach of the director’s or officer’s duty of loyalty to the Registrant or its stockholders, (ii) for acts or omissions not in good faith or which involve intentional misconduct or a knowing violation of law, (iii) under Section 174 of the Delaware General Corporation Law, (iv) for any transaction from which the director or officer derived an improper personal benefit, or (v) in the case of an officer, in any action by or in the right of the Registrant.

The Registrant has also entered into separate indemnification agreements with its directors and officers that require the Registrant, among other things, to indemnify to the fullest extent permitted by the laws of the State of Delaware and subject to certain exceptions. The Registrant is not required to indemnify under the agreement for (i) actions initiated by the director without the authorization of consent of the board of directors; (ii) actions initiated to enforce the indemnification agreement unless the director is successful; (iii) actions resulting from violations of Section 16 of the Exchange Act in which a final judgment has been rendered against the director; (iv) actions for any reimbursement of any bonus or other incentive-based or equity-based compensation or of any profits realized from the sale of securities of the Registrant, as required in each case under the Exchange Act or applicable law; (v) actions for prohibited amounts pursuant to Section 410(a) of ERISA; and (vi) actions to enforce any non-compete or non-disclosure provisions of any agreement.

The indemnification provided for above provides for reimbursement of all losses of the indemnified party, including expenses, judgment, fines and amounts paid in settlement. The right to indemnification set forth above includes the right for the Registrant to pay the expenses (including attorneys’ fees) incurred in defending any such proceeding in advance of its final disposition in certain circumstances.

The Registrant maintains insurance policies that provide coverage to its directors, officers, employees or agents against certain liabilities.

Item 8. Exhibits.

SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, the Registrant certifies that it has reasonable grounds to believe that it meets all of the requirements for filing on Form S-8 and has duly caused this Registration Statement to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized, in the City of Tucson, State of Arizona, on June 7, 2024.

POWER OF ATTORNEY

KNOW ALL PERSONS BY THESE PRESENTS, that each person whose signature appears below constitutes and appoints David Moradi, the undersigned’s true lawful attorney-in-fact, as agent with full power of substitution and resubstitution for him and in his name, place and stead, in any and all capacity, to sign any and all amendments to this Registration Statement and to file the same, with all exhibits thereto, and other documents in connection therewith, with the Securities and Exchange Commission, granting unto such attorney-in-fact and agent full power and authority to do and perform each and every act and thing requisite and necessary to be done in and about the premises, as fully and to all intents and purposes as he might or could do in person, hereby ratifying and confirming all that said attorneys-in-fact and agents, or his substitute or substitutes, may lawfully do or cause to be done by virtue hereof.

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, this Registration Statement has been signed by the following persons in the capacities and on the date indicated.