Theranos whistleblower Tyler Shultz warns of fraud risk in the AI boom

Tyler Shultz, who helped expose Theranos’ inaccurate blood-testing devices, told The San Francisco Standard, in an interview reported by TechCrunch, that the difficulty of conducting due diligence on artificial intelligence products could make deception easier. He said it is hard to distinguish something genuinely new from a ChatGPT-based product and argued that investors should stop handing over large amounts of money after superficial meetings with founders.

The warning comes as attention grows around “You Can See Everything,” a documentary about Elizabeth Holmes, and the parallels Shultz sees between Theranos and the current AI boom. Theranos reached a valuation of about $10 billion even though its technology did not work as promised. The film also shows Holmes and Billy Evans working on Haemanthus, a diagnostics company they call “Theranos 2.0” that, according to TechCrunch, reportedly raised about $20 million.