from Hacker News

Elizabeth Holmes' PR campaign continues

by smgit on 2/13/25, 12:17 PM with 52 comments

  • by prepend on 2/13/25, 12:42 PM

    I’ve seen TikTok videos of her recently and was wondering about why as she’s not famous or talented.

    I think it’s bad that she defrauded so many people but still has massive enough cash that she’s paying a PR firm while she’s in prison. So the lesson here is to suck, lie, and be a mean person and you still walk away with cash.

    If she ends up launching a Gwyneth Paltrow-type style brand after release, I’m going to weep a little bit.

  • by duxup on 2/13/25, 1:43 PM

    >“I’m not the same person I was back then,” Holmes tells People, vaguely saying that “there are things I would have done differently.” She still insists Theranos was a failure, not a fraud.

    So ... same person? "would have done differently" seems like a very empty statement, what could it possibly mean? Just not get caught?

    The amazing thing about all this is her company apparently had nothing of value, not even an idea anyone that some company chose to buy after the fact.

  • by belter on 2/13/25, 1:27 PM

    "Why Elizabeth Holmes Was On Trial and Mark Zuckerberg Wasn’t" (2021) - https://archive.is/jbrjw

  • by ChrisArchitect on 2/13/25, 3:30 PM

  • by gorgoiler on 2/13/25, 1:21 PM

    The People subtitle reminds us she has a fraud conviction and the first paragraph objectively calls her “disgraced” while reporting that Holmes maintains her innocence.

    What would The Verge prefer? To be any more explicit would require openly calling Holmes out of her mind. I’m quite capable of reading that between the lines.

  • by rqtwteye on 2/13/25, 1:21 PM

    Trying to pull a Michael Milken. Her husband has money, so she probably will succeed in the long run.

  • by voidr on 2/14/25, 8:51 AM

    > the emphasis is on Holmes as a mother, and how hard it is for her to be away from her children.

    Many mothers are in prison for far less, don't believe she should get a free pass.

  • by matwood on 2/13/25, 1:13 PM

    She was a fraud and deserved to be convicted. But, I also think she was over sentenced because she pulled one over on and embarrassed a bunch of rich guys.

  • by tyronehed on 2/13/25, 1:28 PM

    Play with people's money and see the fangs come out.

  • by SebFender on 2/13/25, 1:30 PM

    Straight to the garbage.

  • by thr0away on 2/13/25, 1:49 PM

    Is she any worse than POTUS? I think she may receive a presidential pardon!

  • by GlibMonkeyDeath on 2/13/25, 3:46 PM

    "Theranos failed. But failure is not fraud"

    "...she's continuing to write patents for new inventions and plans to resume her career in healthcare technology after her release."

    The most charitable interpretation of her behavior is that she is still too uneducated to understand that what her company was built on could never work. There was a reason none of the traditional biotech VC's would listen to her.

    And it wasn't like the fraud she perpetuated was harmless.

    Then, while under indictment, she has two kids? The only ones who I feel sorry for are her children.

    The sooner we stop hearing about this sociopath the better.

  • by recursivedoubts on 2/13/25, 2:37 PM

    Daily reminder that according to some studies roughly 4% of CEOs are sociopaths.

  • by dijit on 2/13/25, 12:58 PM

    I'm always dubious when it comes to hagiographies of individuals in media.

    It feels good for someone else to point it out, since in this case it really rings hollow for basically everyone.

    Why should we humanise and care about someone who was a terrible boss, a terrible fraudster and a bare-face liar.

    What endeavours were not financed because of her? Who's career was torpedoed and who was stolen away from noble causes because of her lies? Taking some accountability is rare, she should, and we don't have to applaud her for it. It should be expected.

  • by anshumankmr on 2/13/25, 12:55 PM

    She is doing her part in improving healthcare for everyone. Which is to do nothing and stay in jail.