Bad Blood: Secrets and Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup - John Carreyrou - ★★★★.½

AUTHOR: John Carreyrou

GENRE: Investigative nonfiction, True Crime

RATING: 4.5 stars.

Imagine this. Right since childhood, you have had this burning desire to become a billionaire. You have your marketing plan ready, you have your investments ready, you have the external showy infrastructure ready, you have your personal PR portfolio ready,... The only thing not ready is the most crucial necessity: the product itself. What do you do then? Fake it till you make it. That's what Elizabeth Holmes did with Theranos.

This book reveals the bloodthirsty (pun intended) ambition of Elizabeth Holmes, the young founder of Theranos, a healthcare corporation established in 2003 and so grandiose in its plans and marketing aggression that its peak valuation was about $10 billion in 2013 and 2014.

Holmes named Theranos combining the words “therapy” and “diagnosis". Having a wealthy and reputed family helped her get the seed investments as well as the credibility, in spite of being a college dropout. Joining her as her right-hand man, both professionally in Theranos and personally in a secret romantic liaison, was Ramesh "Sunny" Balwani, an Indian-American businessman 20 years her senior and with no background in or knowledge of the healthcare industry.

Theranos purported to revolutionise blood testing. It claimed to have devised multiple blood tests that required only a few drops of blood taken by pinprick from your finger and could be run in the company-developed device named Edison. However, the claims later proved to be false. Theranos went defunct in September 2018. Holmes and Balwani, who keep claiming that they are not guilty, are currently facing a trial on multiple charges of fraud and conspiracy. The trial was due to begin in October 2020 but has been pushed ahead to March 2021 because of the covid pandemic.

John Carreyrou, the author of this book, is a two-time Pulitzer Prize–winning investigative reporter at the Wall Street Journal. He first cast shadows on the shiny public facade of Theranos with his WSJ article on its fraudulent activities in 2015. Among those providing him with crucial insider information are various ex-employees of Theranos who reveal such shocking facts about the corporation that you struggle to accept the lies and deception. It just goes to show that truth is indeed stranger than fiction.

Elizabeth Holmes comes across as a strangely competitive, intelligent and paranoid woman. One ought to give credit to her inventiveness. Her medical ideas are original if nothing else. The idea of obtaining reliable test results from just 50 microlitres (0.05 ml) of blood drawn from a finger pinprick rather than veinous draws, the idea of using an arm patch to diagnose and treat medical conditions, the keen business eye to spot where the Edison device could be potentially used, ... All are a perfect combination of medicine, engineering, technology and management strategy. If only her inventiveness had come with a iota of integrity and didn't overflow into lies that she herself seems to believe at times! She could have proved herself a worthy role model by becoming the first female Silicon Valley billionaire, but unfortunately, her ideas were all fizz and no substance, and her moral code was defective.

Ramesh Balwani seems to suffer from the same delusions as typical traditional Indian bosses do: your working hours are more important than the work you do, your life belongs to the company as it pays you a salary, your boss can fire you anyway he seems fit (and I mean "fire" in both its verb forms), and you can butter your way to the top. He comes across as a pompous jerk who bullied his opinions onto subordinates and simply wanted yes men around him. He reminded me of every bad boss I've worked with.

For those who want to take the easy way out, there is a 2019 documentary named "The Inventor: Out For Blood In Silicon Valley". The documentary gives you a pretty good look at Elizabeth Holmes, Ramesh Balwani, and some of the whistleblowers of Theranos, but at about 90 minutes long, it isn't as comprehensive as the book. Go for both if you can to get a comprehensive picture.

I've read two books this year related to whistleblowing in the medical industry. One was an Indian company with an Indian founder and an American CEO. The other was an American company with an American founder and an Indian CEO. Both companies were equally guilty of exaggerating their accomplishments and going beyond ethical limits. Makes you wonder, where will people draw the line of integrity if they can't even stop playing with others' lives in their greed for money and fame!

There are many reasons why this book is an engrossing read and worth your time. But if you ever need a book on how NOT to run a company/business, let this book be your Bible.