Bad Blood – Importance of information

John Carreyrou’s Bad Blood has received quite a bit of attention. The book was included in Bill Gates' list of '5 books I loved in 2018'. The book also won the Financial Times / McKinsey Business Book of the Year Award in 2018. The book is to be turned into a movie, with Jennifer Lawrence as the founder and CEO Elizabeth Holmes.

The book tells the tale of Theranos. The case has been widely publicised, as the promise was something that affects just about everyone: blood tests done quick and cheap. If true, it would have been truly revolutionary, but unfortunately, the technology could not live up to the hype, not yet.

Theranos was founded in 2004, and in September 2018 it was officially dissolving. In June 2018, the federal government indicted both Holmes and Theranos’ former president Ramesh Balwani on criminal fraud charges.

Theranos promised big, but could not deliver

Many startups start with a big promise, but when it comes to showing what you actually have and what you can deliver, few put up as elaborate a scaffolding, as Theranos seems to have done. One cannot but think that they wanted it to work, and could not accept that they could not deliver on the grand promise. In 2015, the veil came down on the front page of the Wall Street Journal.

The case will no doubt fascinate for years, especially how it went on for so long. Basically people wanted to believe, they wanted to be the first ones in on such a revolutionary technology.

Whenever someone promises something big, something revolutionary, one should check the evidence. Check what is being written about the company, the technology and the people involved. Also, take a look at the business field. M-Brain can help you there. Even if you decide to take something on faith, the better you do the investigation, the safer you are in your choice.

Read the original article on: https://www.m-brain.com/blog-posts/bad-blood-importance-of-information/