26 votes

Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes found guilty

11 comments

  1. [7]
    3_3_2_LA
    Link
    I love reading books about current events like this. I read Bad Blood a while ago and it's interesting to see the story unfold. Probably related if you have similar taste is An Ugly Truth and I'll...

    I love reading books about current events like this.
    I read Bad Blood a while ago and it's interesting to see the story unfold.
    Probably related if you have similar taste is An Ugly Truth and I'll Be Gone In The Dark.

    If anyone knows of books in a similar vein, I'd appreciate recommendations!

    8 votes
    1. [6]
      kfwyre
      Link Parent
      Nick Bilton’s American Kingpin. It’s about the guy who ran the dark web Silk Road site. I read it around the same time I read Bad Blood and I couldn’t put either one down!

      Nick Bilton’s American Kingpin. It’s about the guy who ran the dark web Silk Road site. I read it around the same time I read Bad Blood and I couldn’t put either one down!

      9 votes
      1. [4]
        3_3_2_LA
        Link Parent
        I just finished reading it and it was unputdownable. Thanks a ton for the rec! :-)

        I just finished reading it and it was unputdownable. Thanks a ton for the rec! :-)

        6 votes
        1. [3]
          kfwyre
          Link Parent
          WHAAAAAT?! Finished already?! I gave the recommendation just yesterday! That’s an incredible turnaround time. Glad you enjoyed it.

          WHAAAAAT?! Finished already?! I gave the recommendation just yesterday!

          That’s an incredible turnaround time. Glad you enjoyed it.

          6 votes
          1. [2]
            3_3_2_LA
            Link Parent
            I'm a bit embarrassed to admit that I wolfed it down in one sitting but......you got anymore recs for books like that? 👀

            I'm a bit embarrassed to admit that I wolfed it down in one sitting but......you got anymore recs for books like that? 👀

            4 votes
            1. kfwyre
              Link Parent
              Don't be embarrassed! That is IMPRESSIVE. I fear that my recommendation probably peaked there and nothing I offer now will live up to Kingpin's magnetism, but here goes: If you want more of...

              Don't be embarrassed! That is IMPRESSIVE.

              I fear that my recommendation probably peaked there and nothing I offer now will live up to Kingpin's magnetism, but here goes:

              If you want more of person-does-bad-things-you-can't-look-away-from: The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson. It's about a famous serial killer and the 1893 World's Fair, and I read the thing pretty much cover-to-cover on back-to-back flights. The book is noteworthy in that, somehow, its sections on engineering the fair are somehow as compelling as its sections on the serial killer.

              If you want more of real-life-techno-thriller: Countdown to Zero Day by Kim Zetter. This covers the now famous Stuxnet worm which, at the time, was not meant to be a worldwide phenomenon but instead a covert and targeted deactivation of Iran's nuclear program. It might not be as interesting to anyone with an actual tech background, but as a lay reader who thinks computer stuff is endlessly cool and interesting, I thought it was fascinating.

              7 votes
      2. 3_3_2_LA
        Link Parent
        Perfect, all I remember is a pertinent Forbes article. Tysm!

        Perfect, all I remember is a pertinent Forbes article. Tysm!

        2 votes
  2. [4]
    drannex
    (edited )
    Link
    She took money from billionaires and tried to do something cool with it and got swept up in reality and marketing. The only reason she went to trial and subsequently found guilty was because she...

    She took money from billionaires and tried to do something cool with it and got swept up in reality and marketing. The only reason she went to trial and subsequently found guilty was because she lost money from all across the ruling class, showed that they serve no due diligence on their investments, and made a public mockery of them. She was someone who they had to make an example of.

    Edit: I never said what she did was right or if the technology was remotely close to what they were hoping for, just that this would have been just another obscure failure. She was only convicted on fraud to investors, and not for the results to customers that were the majority of the other counts she was up for. The results were not great for the customers, but only marginally below industry standards and still used a new type of system to attempt.

    5 votes
    1. [2]
      lou
      (edited )
      Link Parent
      She literally lied to everyone every step of the way, sold a product that didn't existed, and endangered her customers with subpar testing. I wouldn't call any of that "trying to do something...

      She literally lied to everyone every step of the way, sold a product that didn't existed, and endangered her customers with subpar testing. I wouldn't call any of that "trying to do something cool". She never tried. This is not a story of someone who flied too close to the sun. She's a con-artist.

      32 votes
      1. [2]
        Comment deleted by author
        Link Parent
        1. lou
          Link Parent
          I love those old sounding words. I've heard "sycophant" but never looked it up. I did that now, and I love it. Such a specific kind of bad person.

          a person who acts obsequiously toward someone important in order to gain advantage.

          I love those old sounding words. I've heard "sycophant" but never looked it up. I did that now, and I love it. Such a specific kind of bad person.

          3 votes
    2. rosco
      Link Parent
      This is such an interesting take I hadn't considered. I fully agree with you that she is being made an example because of who she defrauded. Another fun example of how fraud and manipulation are...

      This is such an interesting take I hadn't considered. I fully agree with you that she is being made an example because of who she defrauded. Another fun example of how fraud and manipulation are only legal and acceptable if you do it poor and middling folks.

      I still have a hard time believing she tried to do something cool and got swept up in everything. Theranos had no product or significant R&D. The company didn't spring out of promising research in a bio-medical lab, instead it was just an idea she had while attending Stanford as a Freshman. If there was signaling of progress I would be with you, as it is though she just feels like a classic silicon valley grifter. Her father was a VP at Enron (OG grifter) and she comes from a family with legacy wealth.

      16 votes