Elizabeth Homes perpetrated one of the most notorious frauds in American history. But, where does she rank on the scale compared to the rest of our fraudsters?
In episode 37 of Game Theory, we dive into the story of Elizabeth Holmes and her fraud at Theranos. Holmes is the second edition of our Fraudster index after Billy McFarland, the giant douche who faked a music festival and created an influencer hellscape in the Caribbean.
Listen to episode 31 wherever podcasts are found.
Billy, a snake oil salesman for rich, hot millennial idiots, does not compare to Holmes. And this conversation is why we started this series in the first place. Like many of you sickos out there, I love true crime -- particularly crazy stories of fraud. Thanks to the glut of streaming services out there, my little guilty pleasure has a lot of fodder for debate.
So, where does Elizabeth Holmes score on our index?
The Game Theory Fraudster Index works like this: Give each fraudster(s) a rank on a scale of 1-10 in five categories:
Success
Intelligence
Luck
Depravity (evil)
Lying/Storytelling
Elizabeth Holmes, now a convicted felon, convinced some of the most powerful, albeit washed-up, old white men that she'd innovated a solution to the pain-in-the-ass way we all get our blood drawn for medical tests.
Her solution looked like a pinter and only needed a drop of blood to give detailed information about your health. Theoretically, this would be so disruptive that it could not only save/extend lives but also change the cost of healthcare worldwide.
Of course, it isn't possible, but that's a small detail. In her fraud, she took money from investors, created a culture of silos and lying, and fed off the status of being the youngest self-made woman billionaire ever.
From where I sit, she simply had a great idea that she wanted to work. But, she didn't know how to do it. So, she lied and said she figured it out to get investments all while she hoodwinked a bunch of well-meaning workaholic scientists to make it work while she enjoyed pretending she was a combination of Jonas Salk and Steve Jobs.
Then, the bill came due. The Wall Street Journal sniffed the bullshit out, her employees started snitching to reporters that not only did the blood-printer-thingy not work, but she was actually a dictatorial nightmare. Eventually, she sued her employees for talking to reporters which backfired spectacularly in one case because the employee was the grandson of one of the mega-powerful, rich, revered old white men she'd defrauded (lol).
In 2022, she was convicted of fraud and will likely spend time in prison. Along the way, she made people handle blood samples without PPE, stole billions -- with a B -- from investors, and threatened employees and journalists.
Needless to say, for me and Chris, Elizabeth is one of the best and scariest fraudsters ever discovered.
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