Jeffrey Remsik
President and CEO, Bottom Line Marketing & Public Relations
“Bad Blood: Secret Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup” tells the story of Theranos, a Silicon Valley biotech startup that claimed to have developed revolutionary blood testing technology.
The company raised more than $700 million from venture capitalists and private investors, which resulted in a $10 billion valuation at its peak in 2014. In 2018, the SEC charged founder Elizabeth Holmes with fraud for raising money through false or exaggerated claims.
Jeffrey Remsik, president and chief executive officer of Bottom Line Marketing & Public Relations, drew comparisons between “Bad Blood” and “The Smartest Guys in the Room,” a book about the rise and fall of Enron.
“‘Bad Blood’ also is about the vision, values and the passion that drive entrepreneurs,” Remsik said. “They devote their life to the vision, which comes to define their self-worth. No one can match their level of commitment and hard work. ‘We are so innovative that the normal business rules don’t apply to us.’ But what rules do apply? Do the ends justify the means?”