The story of Elizabeth Holmes and the years-long fraud she perpetuated should be a big warning for all of Silicon Valley, according to the director of HBO’s new Theranos documentary.
Alex Gibney, the director of The Inventor: Out for Blood in Silicon Valley, says Silicon Valley’s “fetishization of the entrepreneur” is the reason why Holmes was able to get away with her lies for so long.
By now, the story is well-known. After years of lying about what her blood testing startup was capable of, Holmes, who was once routinely compared to Steve Jobs, is staring down fraud charges from the SEC.
While Gibney’s documentary explores the rise and fall of Holmes and Theranos, it’s also a searing indictment of a startup culture that was so desperate for a fresh-faced visionary that it refused to question whether or not she could deliver in her promises. Read more…