content: I disagree. Venture capital investing involves asking people to take a chance on an idea whose value cannot be easily predicted. When the idea is found unworkable, the typical VC-backed company will either give the remaining money back (rare) or consult the investors and see which is their favorite backup idea to blow the remaining money on. Theranos did something completely different. They found their idea was unworkable and lied that it was fine. They then pretended to commercialize the technology and lied to their customers, many of whom they probably killed. All of the usual Silicon Valley venture capitalists reviewed the company and found that it was unlikely to succeed. The only investment they made was in popcorn to munch while watching the inevitable implosion. They went to venture capital outsiders to get funding, and had, for a tech company, an utterly bizarre board of directors. Theranos appears to have been a delusion of grandeur that gradually turned into a manic scam.