Elizabeth Holmes: Top Theranos executive Sunny Balwani convicted

Michael Liedtke

Associated Press

SAN JOSE, Calif. — A jury on Thursday convicted former Theranos executive Ramesh “Sunny” Balwani of collaborating with disgraced Theranos CEO Elizabeth Holmes in a massive fraud involving the blood-testing company that once enthralled Silicon Valley.

The 12 jurors found Balwani guilty on all 12 felony counts of defrauding both Theranos investors and the patients who relied on wildly unreliable blood tests that could have jeopardized their health.

Balwani sat impassively as the verdicts were read, blinking frequently.

The outcome puts Balwani and Holmes in similar situations. Holmes was convicted on four counts of investor fraud and conspiracy earlier this year. During that trial, Holmes tearfully accused Balwani of sexually emotionally abusing her while they were lovers. An attorney for Balwani has vehemently denied those charges.

Both Holmes, 38, and Balwani, 57, face up to 20 years in prison.

Holmes is scheduled to be sentenced in late September. The date of Balwani’s sentencing is expected to be set in the coming days.

The dual convictions representing a resounding victory for federal prosecutors, who seized on the Theranos case as a rare opportunity to hold ambitious entrepreneurs accountable for engaging in technological hyperbole while pursuing fame and fortune. In the process, they hoped to discourage the practice of making bold and unproven promises about still-nascent products – a startup strategy known as "fake it until you make it.”

Politics:Betsy DeVos' family claims $100 million con with investment in health care startup Theranos

Tech:Elizabeth Holmes guilty verdict sends a warning to Silicon Valley. Will investors listen?

After the verdicts were read and the jury was dismissed, Balwani walked over to his two brothers who were sitting behind him for what appeared to be a solemn discussion. The three sat quietly, heads bowed.

While Holmes insinuated during her trial that Balwani manipulated her into making poor choices, Balwani’s lawyers explicitly sought to shift all the blame for any misconduct squarely on Holmes.

As part of Balwani’s defense, the lawyers pointed out that Holmes was not only CEO, but also a Silicon Valley star who persuaded investors to pour nearly $1 billion into Theranos. Holmes boasted that her company had found a way to scan for hundreds of potential diseases with a device called the Edison that could test just a few drops of blood taken with a finger prick. Such technology could potentially revolutionize healthcare.

But it turned out that the Edison never worked properly, providing faulty test results that Theranos conducted as part of a deal to set up mini labs in Walgreen’s pharmacies. The flaws in Theranos’ vaunted technology prompted Holmes and Balwani to shift their testing to conventional machines made by other vendors and while drawing vials of blood from patients' veins – a far cry from Holmes' promises.

After committing about $15 million of his own money to bolster Theranos and then becoming the company’s chief operating officer in 2010, Balwani eventually oversaw the blood-testing lab that was delivering the inaccurate results and supervised the Walgreen’s deal.

Unlike Holmes, who spent seven days on the witness stand during her trial, Balwani didn’t testify in his own defense.

Balwani’s defense mirrored Holmes’s in one key aspect: Both depicted the pair as tireless workers who believed so deeply in Theranos’ technology that they never sold their respective stakes in the Palo Alto, California, company. At one point in 2014, Holmes’ fortune was estimated at $4.5 billion while Balwani’s Theranos holdings were valued at $500 million.

But everything began to unravel in late 2015 after a series of explosive articles in The Wall Street Journal exposed rampant problems with Theranos’ technology. By May 2016, Holmes had dumped Balwani as her business and romantic partner.

Sunny Balwani trial: Former Theranos COO is guilty of federal fraud ...

(CNN Business) Ramesh "Sunny" Balwani, the former COO of failed blood testing startup Theranos and ex-boyfriend of founder Elizabeth Holmes, was found guilty of defrauding investors and patients.

Jury deliberations stretched for four full days following a lengthy trial that got underway in March with opening statements. A jury of five men and seven women determined that Balwani had defrauded both patients and investors, finding him guilty on all 12 charges he faced, which included ten counts of federal wire fraud and two counts of conspiracy to commit wire fraud.

During Holmes' trial, a separate jury acquitted her on charges pertaining to defrauding patients, and were not able to reach a unanimous verdict on three of the charges concerning defrauding investors. She was found guilty on four charges relating to investors.

Balwani, the former president and COO at the failed blood testing startup, was indicted four years ago alongside Holmes, the founder and former CEO, for allegedly defrauding investors and patients. Their trials were severed after Holmes' legal team outlined in legal filings that she planned to make accusations about their relationship as part of her defense.

Balwani showed little emotion as his fate was read aloud. Afterward, he briefly huddled with a small support system present in the courtroom. The verdict comes roughly six months after Holmes' trial concluded.

In a statement read outside the courthouse Thursday, US Attorney Stephanie Hinds thanked jurors for "dutifully navigating through the complex issues presented by this case."

"We appreciate the verdict and look forward to sentencing proceedings," Hinds said.

In a written statement to CNN Business, Balwani defense attorney Jeffrey Coopersmith of Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe said: "We are obviously disappointed with the verdicts. We plan to study and consider all of Mr. Balwani's options including an appeal."

Balwani's verdict marks an end to a rare criminal fraud case against two Silicon Valley startup executives and the final chapter of a company, and a founder, once viewed as a posterchild for the entrepreneurial dream of building a disruptive product with the potential to change the world.

"Balwani is a reminder that she, like everyone, didn't do it by herself," Margaret O'Mara, a historian of the tech industry and professor at the University of Washington told CNN Business. "He still had a significant role running the company."

Holmes founded Theranos when she was 19 years old in an effort to create a cheaper, more efficient alternative to traditional blood testing, a goal she said was inspired by her own fear of needles. The startup later claimed to have developed technology capable of testing for a range of conditions, including cancer and diabetes, using just a few drops of blood. Theranos ultimately raised $945 million from investors, including well-known figures such as media mogul Rupert Murdoch and Walmart's Walton family. It also struck up partnerships with prominent retailers.

Then it all came crashing down, beginning with a 2015 Wall Street Journal investigation into the startup that revealed holes in its testing methods and technological capabilities.

Balwani's trial took place in the same San Jose, California courtroom where Holmes was convicted. His case, also presided over by Judge Edward Davila, was pushed back several times due to delays in Holmes' trial and later by a surge in Covid-19.

To make its case against Balwani, the government called two dozen witnesses as it sought to convince jurors that he knowingly and intentionally lied to and deceived investors and patients in order to get money for Theranos. As with Holmes' case, the government sought to untangle the layers of the alleged fraud for jurors, including concealing use of third-party manufactured machines, overstating financials, misrepresenting work with pharmaceutical companies and the military, and leveraging the media to perpetuate the scheme.

The defense, on the other hand, called two witnesses to testify. During opening and closing arguments, it portrayed Balwani as having acted in good faith and having believed in the company's technology. It also argued prosecutors cherry-picked information to prove its case and cast doubt on whether the government had enough evidence for the jury to find Balwani guilty.

Balwani, 57, faces up to 20 years in prison as well as a fine of $250,000 plus restitution for each count of wire fraud and each conspiracy count.

Holmes, 38, is slated to be sentenced in late September. Balwani is scheduled to be sentenced in November.

Balwani's road to Holmes, and Theranos

While Holmes' stunning rise and fall is likely what most will remember about the story of Theranos in years to come, O'Mara said Balwani is actually "more representative of the Valley in terms of his career."

Balwani and Holmes first crossed paths in the summer of 2002. The two met while attending a summer program in Beijing to learn Mandarin. Balwani, nearly 20 years older than Holmes, had already had a successful career in the software industry and as an entrepreneur.

Originally from South Asia, Balwani moved to the United States on a student visa in 1986 to attend college in Texas. After graduating, he came to Silicon Valley and worked for tech companies such as Lotus and Microsoft. He went on to start an e-commerce company, which he eventually sold. By 2002, he was back in school to get his MBA.

As Holmes testified in her own defense in her trial, the two forged a friendship. They kept in touch and their relationship ultimately turned romantic. By 2005, the year after Holmes dropped out of Stanford to work full-time on Theranos, the pair were living together.

Balwani took a formal role at Theranos in 2009, shortly after guaranteeing a $10 million loan to the company. At the recommendation of Theranos' board, according to Balwani's defense, he would eventually take on the role of COO and president. Their romantic relationship, however, was largely kept private from investors, employees and business partners.

Under the leadership of Holmes and Balwani, Theranos struck a major retail partnership with Walgreens, hit a $9 billion valuation and received glowing coverage in the press. Holmes was featured on multiple magazine covers and hailed as the rare female founder of a billion-dollar business, not to mention one said to be a paper billionaire.

But in 2015, the Journal reported that Theranos had only ever performed roughly a dozen of the hundreds of tests it offered using its proprietary blood testing device, and with questionable accuracy. The Journal also revealed Theranos was relying on third-party manufactured devices from traditional blood-testing companies rather than its own proprietary technology.

Balwani, who had been overseeing the lab that processed patient samples, departed the company in May 2016. (Their personal relationship also ended at that time.) Theranos voided two years of blood test results.

In 2018, following nearly two years of turmoil, Holmes and Theranos settled "massive fraud" charges with the US Securities and Exchange Commission, but did not admit to or deny any of the allegations as part of the deal. Balwani, on the other hand, is fighting the charges. Coopersmith, the attorney also representing him in his criminal trial, said in a statement at the time that he "accurately represented Theranos to investors to the best of his ability."

Theranos dissolved soon after.

"Partners in everything"

While their trials were separated, each featured prominently in the other's court proceedings.

As assistant US attorney Robert Leach told jurors during the prosecution's opening arguments in Balwani's trial, the government believes he and Holmes "were partners in everything, including their crimes."

While Balwani was an integral part of Theranos and a confidante to Holmes throughout her time running the company, he was more of a behind-the-scenes force. In addition to the critical role of overseeing its patient lab, he also oversaw its key retail partnership with Walgreens and managing Theranos' financial projections. Balwani, at times, also communicated directly with some investors to secure deals.

During her criminal trial, Holmes suggested that Balwani wielded even more power than she did at her own company in some ways. Taking the stand in her own defense, she testified that she was the victim of a decade-long abusive relationship with Balwani. She claimed Balwani exerted tremendous control over her, prescribing a restrictive lifestyle and image to become successful in the business world. At times, she alleged in testimony, he forced her to have sex with him. Balwani's attorneys have strongly denied the allegations.

Holmes stopped short of saying Balwani directed her to mislead anyone. "He impacted everything about who I was, and I don't fully understand that," she testified.

Mark MacDougall, a white-collar defense lawyer and former federal prosecutor, said both the prosecution and the defense likely benefited by being able to see how evidence and witness testimony fared with jurors in Holmes' trial. "Each side in Sunny's trial would have made adjustments based on the outcome of the Holmes case, which could account for a different verdict," he said.

While Balwani did not take the stand, his defense team's strategy included pointing the finger back at Holmes. The defense highlighted to jurors that he, too, was a believer in Holmes and in Theranos, just as numerous other notable investors, business partners and employees had been.

The list of people who believed in Holmes and Theranos included Stanford University chemical engineering professor Channing Robertson, who served as the company's first board member; former Defense Secretary James Mattis and former Secretary of State George Shultz, who also once served on the board.

"That was the board at Theranos that the investors were understandably impressed with, as was Mr. Balwani no doubt," said Coopersmith, during closing arguments.

The caliber of Theranos' backers was reflected in the witnesses called by the government. Among those who testified in both trials were investor Chris Lucas, whose uncle Don Lucas was a well-known Silicon Valley investor and onetime chairman of Theranos' board; Lisa Peterson, who helped vet a deal for the billionaire family of former US Education Secretary Betsy DeVos, and Daniel Mosley, a prominent lawyer who was introduced to Theranos through his longtime client Henry Kissinger, the former Secretary of State who once served on the board of the company. (Mosley went on to introduce several of his clients to Holmes and Theranos, including the DeVos family.)

"This is what Elizabeth was able to do...the charisma, the drive, the vision, the goal to change diagnostic testing, and he bought into that vision," added Coopersmith.

Balwani's attorneys also emphasized a missing database as reason for jurors to be skeptical of the prosecution's case. The database contained the company's testing records but the prosecution was never ultimately able to retrieve access before it was destroyed.

"It's important to the process and to your deliberations that you focus on what actually is in evidence and not speculate about things that are not before you," said assistant US attorney John Bostic in the prosecution's rebuttal to the defense's closing arguments shortly before case went to jurors.

Who is Elizabeth Holmes and what did she do?

Update: A jury convicted Elizabeth Holmes on two counts of wire fraud and two counts of conspiracy to commit fraud after seven days of deliberation. The verdict followed a three-month trial featuring dozens of witnesses — including Holmes herself. She now faces up to 20 years in prison for each count, although legal experts say she is unlikely to receive anything close to the maximum sentence.

Update: Opening statements for the trial began today for the trial of Elizabeth Holmes. Earlier last week, a jury of seven men and five women were chosen after days of questioning around 200 potential jurors. Holmes plans on citing domestic abuse from former coworker and romantic partner Sunny Belwadi in her defense, according to leaked court documents.

The trial of Elizabeth Holmes, founder and CEO of the failed multi-billion dollar startup Theranos, started Tuesday.

Holmes, and her colleague and former romantic partner Ramesh “Sunny” Balwani, are currently charged with nine counts of wire fraud and two counts of conspiracy to commit wire fraud.

The charges stem from allegations that the two were involved in a scheme to defraud doctors, patients and investors by marketing faulty blood tests, putting lives at risk and losing billions of dollars of venture capital, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

Holmes is being tried first. Balwani's trial is set to start in January of 2022.

Elizabeth Holmes: a Silicon Valley visionary and fantasy

Holmes was once known as the youngest female self-made billionaire, who modeled herself after Steve Jobs, adopting his signature black turtlenecks as part of her own style.

Holmes dropped out of Stanford University at 19 to start her own medical diagnostics company.

According to "Bad Blood: Secrets and Lies of a Silicon Valley Startup" – a book written about Holmes by John Carreyrou, the reporter who exposed her – Holmes' winning pitch was that a pinprick of blood could be used to run dozens of tests on the machines they developed, helping people detect life-threatening conditions earlier.

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Her vision drew in top talent from Stanford as well as powerful investors such as Larry Ellison, founder of Oracle; Rupert Murdoch, billionaire media mogul; the Walton family, who founded Walmart; and Betsy DeVos, the former education secretary under President Trump.

Theranos grew into a company with over 800 employees, a $9 billion valuation, and a laboratory space in a suburb of Silicon Valley.

She rubbed shoulders with tech titans and politicians.

Then-Vice President Joe Biden even visited the startup saying, "I've been threatening Elizabeth for the past year that I'm going to take the opportunity to be shown around. Talk about being inspired!"

In 2015, Arizona lawmakers passed a bill, signed by Gov. Doug Ducey — one of the company's biggest cheerleaders — that allowed people to directly purchase lab tests.

However, Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich reached a $4.65 million settlement with Theranos over consumer fraud issues. Arizonans who purchased the faulty tests received refunds of $60.92 on average.

The company first came to Arizona consumers in 2013 as part of a partnership with Walgreen's, eventually locating its testing sites within 40 of its stores in metro-Phoenix.

After Holmes negotiated the Walgreen's deal, Theranos products appeared in thousands of blood testing centers at Walgreens stores. Doctors began using Theranos testing devices to diagnose patients and dispense medical advice.

At the peak of her career in 2015, Forbes estimated her net worth at $4.5 billion.

Forbes has since reevaluated and dropped her net worth to zero.

What happened?

Theranos: A house of cards ready to collapse

As it turns out, the technology developed by Theranos didn't work.

An explosive investigation by The Wall Street Journal revealed that employees expressed doubt about the machine's capabilities, but company management and lawyers reportedly silenced and threatened them.

One of Theranos' employees, a British biochemist who repeatedly voiced his concerns, committed suicide in 2013. His widow received letters from Theranos threatening lawsuits if she spoke up.

A whistleblower named Tyler Schultz eventually emerged from Theranos, who worked with Journal reporter Carreyrou to expose Holmes and Balwani, the other individual on trial for fraud as the former president of Theranos.

Schultz started working at Theranos's labs as a fresh graduate from Stanford University. When he raised concerns about quality checks behind Theranos' proprietary technology, he was disregarded by Holmes and insulted by Balwani.

Matters were further complicated by the fact that Tyler's grandfather, George Schultz, former Secretary of State under President Reagan, sat on Theranos's board and vigorously defended Holmes.

Eventually, the truth spilled out.

Employees spoke out. Doctors noticed that the tests were unreliable, and patients were suffering from inaccurate diagnoses. Retail partners like Walgreens and Safeway were beginning to put Theranos devices under a microscope and pulling out of deals.

The house of cards Holmes constructed with her sleek laboratories and invigorating speeches was collapsing.

The Trial of Elizabeth Holmes and Sunny Balwani: A narrative of abuse

In 2018, the United States District Court of San Jose indicted Holmes and Balwani for committing fraud against investors, doctors, patients and media. The indictment states that they lied about the efficacy of the technology, the financial health of the company, and the state of its partnerships with the Department of Defense and Walgreens.

The trial was postponed multiple times due to procedural issues, the coronavirus pandemic, and Holmes' pregnancy.

Recently unsealed court documents reveal Holmes' strategy for the trial. She plans to accuse her former boyfriend and business partner Balwani of what happened at Theranos, claiming that he was asserting his influence and controlling her decision-making capabilities.

The document states that Holmes is going to "introduce evidence that Mr. Balwani verbally disparaged her and withdrew 'affection if she displeased him'; controlled what she ate, how she dressed, how much money she could spend, who she could interact with – essentially dominating her and erasing her capacity to make decisions."

The juror selection process started Tuesday. Opening arguments are scheduled to begin Wednesday. Sept. 8.

Contributing: Michael Liedtke of The Associated Press

Michelle Shen is a Money & Tech Digital Reporter for USA TODAY. You can reach her @michelle_shen10 on Twitter.

The rise and fall of Elizabeth Holmes: A timeline - CNN

(CNN) Four years after the top two Theranos executives, Elizabeth Holmes and Ramesh "Sunny" Balwani, were first indicted together on a dozen federal fraud charges stemming from their time heading up the failed blood testing startup, both have been convicted by juries.

Holmes, the founder and former CEO of Theranos, was found guilty on four out of 11 federal fraud and conspiracy charges in January after a months-long trial. Balwani, Theranos' former president and COO who was also Holmes' live-in boyfriend at the time, was found guilty on Thursday of ten counts of federal wire fraud and two counts of conspiracy to commit wire fraud.

Their trials marked the final chapter for Theranos, a startup once valued at $9 billion and lauded for its promise to upend the healthcare industry. Theranos claimed its technology could accurately and efficiently test for conditions like cancer and diabetes with just a few drops of blood. With that promise, it attracted $945 million in financing, a board of well-known political figures and prominent retail partners.

Then came a Wall Street Journal investigation into the company, which called into question the company's testing methods and the capabilities of its technology. In 2018, Holmes and Balwani were each charged with a dozen counts of wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Both pleaded not guilty.

Their trials were separated after Holmes indicated she would pursue a defense that included alleging she was the victim of a decade-long abusive relationship with Balwani that impacted every part of her life. (Balwani's legal team has strongly denied the allegations in court filings.)

Here are the highlights of the rise and fall of Theranos.

March 2004: Holmes drops out of Stanford to pursue Theranos

Holmes, a Stanford University sophomore studying chemical engineering, drops out of school to pursue her startup, Theranos, which she founded in 2003 at age 19. The name is a combination of the words "therapy" and "diagnosis."

September 2009: Ramesh "Sunny" Balwani joins Theranos

Balwani guarantees a $10 million loan to Theranos and soon after takes on a formal role at the startup. Balwani, roughly 20 years older than Holmes, first met her in 2002 through a program in Beijing to learn Mandarin. Balwani had enjoyed a successful career in the software industry, and following the sale of his e-commerce startup, was pursuing an MBA.

The two kept in touch and began living together in 2005, Holmes testified during her criminal trial. Their personal relationship was largely concealed from employees, investors and business partners. Balwani would ultimately become the company's chief operating officer and president of the startup.

September 2013: Holmes opens up about Theranos; announces Walgreens partnership

A decade after first starting the company, Holmes takes the lid off Theranos and courts media attention the same month that Theranos and Walgreens announce they've struck up a long-term partnership. The first Theranos Wellness Center location opens in a Walgreens in Palo Alto where consumers can access Theranos' blood test.

The original plan had been to make Theranos' testing available at Walgreens locations nationwide.

September 2014: Holmes named one of the richest women in America by Forbes

Holmes is named to the magazine's American billionaire list with the outlet reporting she owns a 50% stake in the startup, pinning her personal wealth at $4.5 billion.

Elizabeth Holmes speaking onstage at TechCrunch Disrupt on September 8, 2014 in San Francisco, California.

December 2014: Theranos has raised $400 million

Theranos has raised more than $400 million, according to a profile of the company and Holmes by The New Yorker. It counts Oracle's Larry Ellison among its investors.

July 2015: Theranos gets FDA approval for Herpes test

The FDA clears Theranos to use of its proprietary tiny blood-collection vials to finger stick blood test for herpes simplex 1 virus -- its first and only approval for a diagnostic test.

October 2015: Theranos is the subject of a Wall Street Journal investigation; Holmes hits back

The Wall Street Journal reports Theranos is using its proprietary technique on only a small number of the 240 tests it performs, and that the vast majority of its tests are done with traditional vials of blood drawn from the arm, not the "few drops" taken by a finger prick. In response, Theranos defends its testing practices, calling the Journal's reporting "factually and scientifically erroneous."

A day later, Theranos halts the use of its blood-collection vials for all but the herpes test due to pressures from the FDA. (Later that month, the FDA released two heavily redacted reports citing 14 concerns, including calling the company's proprietary vial an "uncleared medical device.")

One week after the Journal report, Holmes is interviewed on-stage at the outlet's conference in Laguna Beach. "We know what we're doing and we're very proud of it," she says.

Holmes speaking at a Wall Street Journal technology conference in Laguna Beach, California on October 21, 2015.

Amid the criticism, Theranos reportedly shakes up its board of directors , eliminating Henry Kissinger and George Shultz as directors while moving them to a new board of counselors; the company also forms a separate medical board.

November 2015: Theranos and Safeway partnership falls short

Safeway, which invested $350 million into building out clinics in hundreds of its supermarkets to eventually offer Theranos blood tests, reportedly looks to dissolve its relationship with the company before it ever offered its services.

January 2016: Federal regulators take issue with Theranos' California lab; Walgreens pulls back

Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) sends Theranos a letter saying its California lab has failed to comply with federal standards and that patients are in "immediate jeopardy." It gives the company 10 days to address the issues.

In response, Walgreens says it will not send any lab tests to Theranos' California lab for analysis and suspends Theranos services at its Palo Alto Walgreens location.

March 2016: CMS threatens to ban Holmes, Balwani from lab business

CMS threatens to ban Holmes and Balwani from the laboratory business for two years after the company allegedly failed to fix problems at its California lab. Theranos says that's a "worst case scenario.

May 2016: Balwani steps down; Theranos voids two years of blood tests

Balwani departs. The company also adds three new board members as part of the restructuring: Fabrizio Bonanni, a former executive vice president of biotech firm Amgen, former CDC director William Foege, and former Wells Fargo CEO Richard Kovacevich.

Theranos voids two years of blood test results from its proprietary testing devices, correcting tens of thousands of blood-test reports, the Journal reports.

June 2016: Holmes net worth revised to $0; Theranos loses its largest retail partner

Forbes revises its estimate of Holmes' net worth from $4.5 billion to $0 . The magazine also lowers its valuation for the company from $9 billion to $800 million.

Walgreens, once Theranos' largest retail partner, ends its partnership with the company and says it will close all 40 Theranos Wellness Centers.

July 2016: Holmes is banned from running labs for two years

CMS revokes Theranos' license to operate its California lab and bans Holmes from running a blood-testing lab for two years.

August 2016: The company unveils 'miniLab' device

Holmes tries to move past recent setbacks by unveiling a mini testing laboratory, called miniLab, at a conference for the American Association for Clinical Chemistry. In selling the device, versus operating its own clinics, Theranos seeks to effectively side-step CMS sanctions, which don't prohibit research and development.

October 2016: Theranos investor sues the company; Theranos downsizes

Theranos investor Partner Fund Management sues the company for $96.1 million , the amount it sunk into the company in February 2014, plus damages. It accuses the company of securities fraud. Theranos and Partner Fund Management settled in May, 2017, for an undisclosed amount.

The company also lays off 340 employees as it closes clinical labs and wellness centers as it attempts to pivot and focus on the miniLab.

November 2016: Walgreens sues Theranos

Walgreens sues the blood testing startup for breach of contract. Walgreens sought to recover the $140 million it poured into the company. The lawsuit was settled August, 2017.

January 2017: More layoffs, followed by a failed lab inspection

Theranos downsizes its workforce yet again following the increased scrutiny into its operations, laying off approximately 155 employees or about 41% of staffers.

The Wall Street Journal reports that Theranos failed a second regulatory lab inspection in September, and that the company was closing its last blood testing location as a result.

April 2017: Theranos settles with CMS, and Arizona AG

Theranos settles with the CMS, agreeing to pay $30,000 and to not to own or operate any clinical labs for two years.

Theranos also settles with the Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich over allegations that its advertisements misrepresented the method, accuracy, and reliability of its blood testing and that the company was out of compliance with federal regulations governing clinical lab testing. Theranos agrees to pay $4.65 million back to its Arizona customers as part of a settlement deal.

March 2018: Holmes and Balwani charged with massive fraud

The SEC charges Holmes and Balwani with a "massive fraud" involving more than $700 million from investors through an "elaborate, years-long fraud in which they exaggerated or made false statements about the company's technology, business, and financial performance."

The SEC alleges Holmes and Balwani knew that Theranos' proprietary analyzer could perform only 12 of the 200 tests it published on its patient testing menu.

Theranos and Holmes agree to resolve the claims against them, and Holmes gives up control of the company and much of her stake in it. Balwani, however, is fighting the charges, with his attorney saying he "accurately represented Theranos to investors to the best of his ability."

May 2018: "Bad Blood"

Reporter John Carreyrou, who first broke open the story of Theranos for the Wall Street Journal, publishes "Bad Blood," a definitive look at what happened inside the disgraced company. Director Adam McKay (who directed "The Big Short") secures the rights to make the film, starring Jennifer Lawrence as Holmes, by the same name.

June 2018: Holmes and Balwani indicted on criminal fraud charges

Holmes and Balwani are indicted on federal wire fraud charges over allegedly engaging in a multi-million dollar scheme to defraud investors, as well as a scheme to defraud doctors and patients. Both have pleaded not guilty.

Minutes before the charges were made public, Theranos announced that Holmes has stepped down as CEO. The company's general counsel, David Taylor, takes over as CEO. Holmes remains chair of the company's board.

Former Theranos COO Ramesh "Sunny' Balwani leaves the Robert F. Peckham U.S. Federal Court on June 28, 2019 in San Jose, California. Former Theranos CEO Elizabeth Holmes and former COO Ramesh Balwani were apperaing in federal court for a status hearing, both facing charges of conspiracy and wire fraud for allegedly engaging in a multimillion-dollar scheme to defraud investors with the Theranos blood testing lab services.

September 2018: Theranos to dissolve

Taylor emails shareholders that Theranos will dissolve, according to a report from The Wall Street Journal. Taylor said more than 80 potential buyers were not interested in a sale. "We are now out of time," Taylor wrote

March 2019: Theranos gets the documentary treatment

Alex Gibney, the prolific documentary filmmaker behind "Dirty Money," "Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room," and "The Armstrong Lie," debuts "The Inventor" on HBO, following the rise and fall of Theranos.

September 2020: Holmes' possible defense strategy comes to light

A new court document reveals Holmes may seek a "mental disease" defense in her criminal fraud trial. Later, in August 2021, unsealed court documents reveal Holmes is likely to claim she was the victim of a decade-long abusive relationship with Balwani. (Balwani's legal team strongly denied the claims in court filings.) The allegations led to the severing of their trials. His trial is slated to begin in 2022.

December 2020: Holmes' criminal trial delayed til 2021

March 2021: Holmes' pregnancy further delays trial

News surfaces that Holmes' is expecting her first child, once more further delaying her criminal trial. Holmes' counsel advised the US government that Holmes is due in July 2021, a court document revealed. She gave birth in July

Elizabeth Holmes, founder and former chief executive officer of Theranos Inc. (center right), arrives at U.S. federal court in San Jose, California, U.S., on Thursday May 6, 2021. Holmes and her lawyers appeared in-person in the federal court where the Theranos founder and former chief executive officer was scheduled to go to trial in August on charges that the blood-test startup once valued at $9 billion was a fraud.

August 2021: Holmes' criminal trial begins with jury selection

More than 80 potential jurors are brought into a San Jose courtroom for questioning over the course of two days to determine if they are fit to serve as impartial, fair jurors for the criminal trial of Holmes. A jury of seven men and five women is selected, with five alternatives.

January 2022: Holmes found guilty on four of 11 federal charges

Holmes is found guilty of one count of conspiracy to defraud investors as well as three wire fraud counts tied to specific investors. She is found not guilty on three additional charges concerning defrauding patients and one charge of conspiracy to defraud patients. The jury returns no verdict on three of the charges concerning defrauding investors. Holmes faces up to 20 years in prison as well as a fine of $250,000 plus restitution for each count.

Holmes's sentencing date is set for late September to allow for the completion of Balwani's trial. In the meantime, Holmes remains free on a $500,000 bond secured by property.

Elizabeth Holmes, founder of Theranos Inc., left center, departs from federal court with, from left, husband Billy Evans, parents Noel Holmes and Christian Holmes IV in San Jose, California, U.S., on Monday, Jan. 3, 2022.

March 2022: After Hulu miniseries debuts, Balwani's criminal trial kicks off

"The Dropout," a scripted miniseries about Theranos produced by ABC, debuts on Hulu. Amanda Seyfried stars as Holmes and Naveen Andrews plays Balwani. Their romantic and professional relationship features prominently in the show.

Following delays due to Holmes' prolonged trial then a surge of Covid-19, jury selection for Balwani's trial gets underway. On March 22, opening arguments are held and the government's first witness, a former Theranos employee turned whistleblower, is called to the stand.

July 2022: Balwani guilty of federal fraud

After four full days of deliberations, a jury finds Balwani guilty of ten counts of federal wire fraud and two counts of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Like Holmes, Balwani faces up to 20 years in prison as well as a fine of $250,000 plus restitution for each count of wire fraud and each conspiracy count.

(CNN) More than three years after Elizabeth Holmes was first indicted and nearly four months after her trial kicked off, the founder and former CEO of failed blood testing startup Theranos was found guilty on four out of 11 federal fraud and conspiracy charges .

The verdict comes after a stunning downfall that saw Holmes, once hailed as the next Steve Jobs, go from being a tech industry icon to being a rare Silicon Valley entrepreneur on trial for fraud.

A Stanford University dropout, Holmes -- inspired by her own fear of needles -- started the company at the age of 19, with a mission of creating a cheaper, more efficient alternative to a traditional blood test. Theranos promised patients the ability to test for conditions like cancer and diabetes with just a few drops of blood. She attracted hundreds of millions of dollars in funding, a board of well-known political figures, and key retail partners.

But a Wall Street Journal investigation poked holes into Theranos' testing and technology, and the dominoes fell from there. Holmes and her former business partner, Ramesh "Sunny" Balwani, were charged in 2018 by the US government with multiple counts of wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud. (Both pleaded not guilty.)

Here are the highlights of the rise and fall of Elizabeth Holmes and Theranos.

March 2004: Holmes drops out of Stanford to pursue Theranos

Holmes, a Stanford University sophomore studying chemical engineering, drops out of school to pursue her startup, Theranos, which she founded in 2003 at age 19. The name is a combination of the words "therapy" and "diagnosis."

September 2009: Ramesh "Sunny" Balwani joins Theranos as Holmes' right-hand man

Balwani joins as chief operating officer and president of the startup. Balwani, nearly 20 years her senior, met Holmes in 2002 on a trip to Beijing through Stanford University. The two are later revealed to be romantically involved.

September 2013: Holmes opens up about Theranos; announces Walgreens partnership

A decade after first starting the company, Holmes takes the lid off Theranos and courts media attention the same month that Theranos and Walgreens announce they've struck up a long-term partnership. The first Theranos Wellness Center location opens in a Walgreens in Palo Alto where consumers can access Theranos' blood test.

The original plan had been to make Theranos' testing available at Walgreens locations nationwide.

September 2014: Holmes named one of the richest women in America by Forbes

Holmes is named to the magazine's American billionaire list with the outlet reporting she owns a 50% stake in the startup, pinning her personal wealth at $4.5 billion.

Elizabeth Holmes speaking onstage at TechCrunch Disrupt on September 8, 2014 in San Francisco, California.

December 2014: Theranos has raised $400 million

Theranos has raised more than $400 million, according to a profile of the company and Holmes by The New Yorker. It counts Oracle's Larry Ellison among its investors.

July 2015: Theranos gets FDA approval for Herpes test

The FDA clears Theranos to use of its proprietary tiny blood-collection vials to finger stick blood test for herpes simplex 1 virus -- its first and only approval for a diagnostic test.

October 2015: Theranos is the subject of a Wall Street Journal investigation; Holmes hits back

The Wall Street Journal reports Theranos is using its proprietary technique on only a small number of the 240 tests it performs, and that the vast majority of its tests are done with traditional vials of blood drawn from the arm, not the "few drops" taken by a finger prick. In response, Theranos defends its testing practices, calling the Journal's reporting "factually and scientifically erroneous."

A day later, Theranos halts the use of its blood-collection vials for all but the herpes test due to pressures from the FDA. (Later that month, the FDA released two heavily redacted reports citing 14 concerns, including calling the company's proprietary vial an "uncleared medical device.")

One week after the Journal report, Holmes is interviewed on-stage at the outlet's conference in Laguna Beach. "We know what we're doing and we're very proud of it," she says.

Holmes speaking at a Wall Street Journal technology conference in Laguna Beach, California on October 21, 2015.

Amid the criticism, Theranos reportedly shakes up its board of directors , eliminating Henry Kissinger and George Shultz as directors while moving them to a new board of counselors; the company also forms a separate medical board.

November 2015: Theranos and Safeway partnership falls short

Safeway, which invested $350 million into building out clinics in hundreds of its supermarkets to eventually offer Theranos blood tests, reportedly looks to dissolve its relationship with the company before it ever offered its services.

January 2016: Federal regulators take issue with Theranos' California lab; Walgreens pulls back

Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) sends Theranos a letter saying its California lab has failed to comply with federal standards and that patients are in "immediate jeopardy." It gives the company 10 days to address the issues.

In response, Walgreens says it will not send any lab tests to Theranos' California lab for analysis and suspends Theranos services at its Palo Alto Walgreens location.

March 2016: CMS threatens to ban Holmes, Balwani from lab business

CMS threatens to ban Holmes and Balwani from the laboratory business for two years after the company allegedly failed to fix problems at its California lab. Theranos says that's a "worst case scenario.

May 2016: Balwani steps down; Theranos voids two years of blood tests

Balwani departs. The company also adds three new board members as part of the restructuring: Fabrizio Bonanni, a former executive vice president of biotech firm Amgen, former CDC director William Foege, and former Wells Fargo CEO Richard Kovacevich.

Theranos voids two years of blood test results from its proprietary testing devices, correcting tens of thousands of blood-test reports, the Journal reports.

June 2016: Holmes net worth revised to $0; Theranos loses its largest retail partner

Forbes revises its estimate of Holmes' net worth from $4.5 billion to $0 . The magazine also lowers its valuation for the company from $9 billion to $800 million.

Walgreens, once Theranos' largest retail partner, ends its partnership with the company and says it will close all 40 Theranos Wellness Centers.

July 2016: Holmes is banned from running labs for two years

CMS revokes Theranos' license to operate its California lab and bans Holmes from running a blood-testing lab for two years.

August 2016: The company unveils 'miniLab' device

Holmes tries to move past recent setbacks by unveiling a mini testing laboratory, called miniLab, at a conference for the American Association for Clinical Chemistry. In selling the device, versus operating its own clinics, Theranos seeks to effectively side-step CMS sanctions, which don't prohibit research and development.

October 2016: Theranos investor sues the company; Theranos downsizes

Theranos investor Partner Fund Management sues the company for $96.1 million , the amount it sunk into the company in February 2014, plus damages. It accuses the company of securities fraud. Theranos and Partner Fund Management settled in May, 2017, for an undisclosed amount.

The company also lays off 340 employees as it closes clinical labs and wellness centers as it attempts to pivot and focus on the miniLab.

November 2016: Walgreens sues Theranos

Walgreens sues the blood testing startup for breach of contract. Walgreens sought to recover the $140 million it poured into the company. The lawsuit was settled August, 2017.

January 2017: More layoffs, followed by a failed lab inspection

Theranos downsizes its workforce yet again following the increased scrutiny into its operations, laying off approximately 155 employees or about 41% of staffers.

The Wall Street Journal reports that Theranos failed a second regulatory lab inspection in September, and that the company was closing its last blood testing location as a result.

April 2017: Theranos settles with CMS, and Arizona AG

Theranos settles with the CMS, agreeing to pay $30,000 and to not to own or operate any clinical labs for two years.

Theranos also settles with the Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich over allegations that its advertisements misrepresented the method, accuracy, and reliability of its blood testing and that the company was out of compliance with federal regulations governing clinical lab testing. Theranos agrees to pay $4.65 million back to its Arizona customers as part of a settlement deal.

March 2018: Holmes charged with massive fraud

The SEC charges Holmes and Balwani with a "massive fraud" involving more than $700 million from investors through an "elaborate, years-long fraud in which they exaggerated or made false statements about the company's technology, business, and financial performance."

The SEC alleges Holmes and Balwani knew that Theranos' proprietary analyzer could perform only 12 of the 200 tests it published on its patient testing menu.

Theranos and Holmes agree to resolve the claims against them, and Holmes gives up control of the company and much of her stake in it. Balwani, however, is fighting the charges, with his attorney saying he "accurately represented Theranos to investors to the best of his ability."

May 2018: "Bad Blood"

Reporter John Carreyrou, who first broke open the story of Theranos for the Wall Street Journal, publishes "Bad Blood," a definitive look at what happened inside the disgraced company. Director Adam McKay (who directed "The Big Short") secures the rights to make the film, starring Jennifer Lawrence as Holmes, by the same name.

June 2018: Holmes and Balwani indicted on criminal fraud charges

Holmes and Balwani are indicted on federal wire fraud charges over allegedly engaging in a multi-million dollar scheme to defraud investors, as well as a scheme to defraud doctors and patients. Both have pleaded not guilty.

Minutes before the charges were made public, Theranos announced that Holmes has stepped down as CEO. The company's general counsel, David Taylor, takes over as CEO. Holmes remains chair of the company's board.

Former Theranos COO Ramesh "Sunny' Balwani leaves the Robert F. Peckham U.S. Federal Court on June 28, 2019 in San Jose, California. Former Theranos CEO Elizabeth Holmes and former COO Ramesh Balwani were apperaing in federal court for a status hearing, both facing charges of conspiracy and wire fraud for allegedly engaging in a multimillion-dollar scheme to defraud investors with the Theranos blood testing lab services.

September 2018: Theranos to dissolve

Taylor emails shareholders that Theranos will dissolve, according to a report from The Wall Street Journal. Taylor said more than 80 potential buyers were not interested in a sale. "We are now out of time," Taylor wrote

March 2019: Theranos gets the documentary treatment

Alex Gibney, the prolific documentary filmmaker behind "Dirty Money," "Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room," and "The Armstrong Lie," debuts "The Inventor" on HBO, following the rise and fall of Theranos.

September 2020: Holmes' possible defense strategy comes to light

A new court document reveals Holmes may seek a "mental disease" defense in her criminal fraud trial. Later, in August 2021, unsealed court documents reveal Holmes is likely to claim she was the victim of a decade-long abusive relationship with Balwani. The allegations led to the severing of their trials. His trial is slated to begin in 2022.

December 2020: Holmes' criminal trial delayed til 2021

March 2021: Holmes' pregnancy further delays trial

News surfaces that Holmes' is expecting her first child, once more further delaying her criminal trial. Holmes' counsel advised the US government that Holmes is due in July 2021, a court document revealed. She gave birth in July

Holmes collects her belongings after going through security at the Robert F. Peckham Federal Building with her defense team on August 31, 2021 in San Jose, California.

August 2021: Holmes' criminal trial begins with jury selection

More than 80 potential jurors are brought into a San Jose courtroom for questioning over the course of two days to determine if they are fit to serve as impartial, fair jurors for the criminal trial of Holmes. A jury of seven men and five women is selected, with five alternatives.

December 2021: Jury begins deliberating her fate

After three months of testimony from 32 witnesses, the criminal fraud case of Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes makes its way to the jury of eight men and four women who will decide her fate. The jury would go on to deliberate for more than 50 hours before returning a verdict.

January 2022: Holmes found guilty on four of 11 federal charges

Holmes is found guilty of one count of conspiracy to defraud investors as well as three wire fraud counts tied to specific investors. She is found not guilty on three additional charges concerning defrauding patients and one charge of conspiracy to defraud patients. The jury returns no verdict on three of the charges concerning defrauding investors. Holmes faces up to 20 years in prison as well as a fine of $250,000 plus restitution for each count.

Elizabeth Holmes trial verdict: Guilty on four out of 11 charges | CNN ...

(CNN Business) Elizabeth Holmes , the former CEO and founder of failed blood testing startup Theranos, was found guilty on four charges of defrauding investors, capping off the stunning downfall of a former tech icon .

She was found not guilty on three additional charges concerning defrauding patients and one charge of conspiracy to defraud patients. The jury returned no verdict on three of the charges concerning defrauding investors, and Judge Edward Davila, who is presiding over the case, is expected to declare a mistrial on those charges.

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The charges Holmes was found guilty of include one count of conspiracy to defraud investors, as well as three wire fraud counts tied to specific investors. Holmes faces up to 20 years in prison as well as a fine of $250,000 plus restitution for each count.

Holmes departed the courthouse hand-in-hand with her partner, Billy Evans, her mother and her father. She was met with a sea of cameras and reporters but did not comment in response to questions shouted from reporters.

In a statement, U.S. Attorney Stephanie Hinds applauded the verdict.

"The jurors in this 15-week trial navigated a complex case amid a pandemic and scheduling obstacles," she said, in a statement that was read aloud by a spokesperson outside the courthouse. "The guilty verdicts in this case reflect Ms. Holmes' culpability in this large-scale investor fraud, and she must now face sentencing for her crimes."

Notably, the jury of eight men and four women determined that Holmes was guilty on counts pertaining to investors, but none of the counts that pertained to defrauding patients. Over the course of its 11-week case, the government called just three patient witnesses to the stand, two of whom were individually tied to wire fraud counts.

The jury deliberated for over 50 hours before returning a verdict on eight of the 11 charges. Earlier Monday, the jury returned a note indicating they could not reach a unanimous verdict on three of the counts. In response, Judge Davila issued what is known as an Allen charge, instructing them to continue deliberating to try to reach a verdict.

However, hours later, the jury returned another note that indicated it remained unable to reach a verdict on those counts. The counts pertained to three of the investor wire fraud charges.

The verdict comes after a trial that spanned over three months at a federal courthouse in San Jose. More than 30 witnesses testified during the trial, culminating with Holmes, who took the stand for seven days in her own defense.

Holmes' case marked a rare criminal fraud trial of a Silicon Valley entrepreneur. Jurors were tasked with determining whether Holmes was a well-meaning founder who made mistakes as she built her startup, as her defense posited, or whether she intentionally deceived investors and patients in order to help herself and her company succeed, as federal prosecutors alleged.

Elizabeth Holmes is kissed on her head by her father in federal court in San Jose, California, on January 3, 2022.

While Holmes was the one on trial, the outcome of her case could serve as a cautionary tale for others in Silicon Valley.

"This is a verdict that should matter not just to Silicon Valley but to the people who celebrate it, invest in it and use its products," said Margaret O'Mara, a historian of the tech industry and professor at the University of Washington. "She was made possible by a Valley business culture that celebrated and encouraged very young, marginally experienced people."

George Demos, a former Securities and Exchange Commission prosecutor and adjunct law professor at the UC Davis School of Law, called the verdict "a significant win for the government and sends a powerful signal to Silicon Valley that fraud cannot masquerade as innovation."

While much of Silicon Valley has tried to distance itself from Theranos for a variety of reasons, including that the startup was a medical device manufacturer, the power and control Holmes wielded over Theranos had all the trappings of a tech company, O'Mara said.

"She was not just the CEO," O'Mara said, "she was a very powerful CEO in the Silicon Valley model."

The rise and fall of Elizabeth Holmes

Holmes, now 37, started Theranos in 2003 at the age of 19 and soon thereafter dropped out of Stanford to pursue it full-time. After a decade under the radar, Holmes began courting the press with claims that Theranos had invented technology that could accurately and reliably test for a range of conditions using just a few drops of blood taken from a finger prick. The unveiling coincided with the company's announcement in 2013 of a major retail partnership with Walgreens.

Theranos raised $945 million from an impressive list of investors, including media mogul Rupert Murdoch, Oracle founder Larry Ellison, Walmart's Walton family and the billionaire family of former Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos.

At its peak, Theranos was valued at $9 billion, making Holmes a paper billionaire. She was lauded on magazine covers, frequently wearing a signature black turtleneck that invited comparisons to the late Apple CEO. (She has not worn that look in the courtroom.)

Elizabeth Holmes during an interview in September 2015.

O'Mara said Holmes was particularly beloved by the media as an intrepid entrepreneur working on a product that aimed to make the world better -- and a rare female founder at that.

But the dominoes started to fall after a Wall Street Journal investigation in 2015 found the company had only ever performed roughly a dozen of the hundreds of tests it offered using its proprietary blood testing device, and with questionable accuracy. Instead, Theranos was relying on third-party manufactured devices from traditional blood testing companies.

In 2016, Theranos voided two years of blood test results. In 2018, Holmes and Theranos settled " massive fraud" charges with the Securities and Exchange Commission, but did not admit to or deny any of the allegations as part of the deal. Theranos dissolved soon after

The scene inside and outside the courtroom

First indicted in 2018, Holmes' trial was delayed by the pandemic and the birth of her child. But public interest in Holmes has remained strong since then, with documentaries, podcasts, an upcoming TV miniseries and a planned feature film.

That fascination was apparent outside the courtroom. Members of the public and the press gathered as early as 2 a.m. local time on major days of the trial to get one of the 34 courtroom seats available. A ticketed overflow room sat another roughly 45 people. There was otherwise no way to view the events because audio and video recordings were prohibited.

The trial drew apparent friends of Holmes, some of whom showed up on the day of opening statements dressed in a look that resembled the former CEO at Theranos' peak -- clad in black attire with blonde hair pulled back at the nape of their necks. It also attracted an artist who set up a performance art display outside the courthouse, selling a very limited number of blonde wigs, black turtlenecks and "blood energy" drinks. She said she wanted to see "what it was like experiencing her energy."

During jury selection, the father of Holmes' partner showed up early to snag a seat inside the courtroom. He assumed a nickname and claimed to be a concerned citizen, but on the first day of the trial he walked into the courtroom alongside Holmes. After his identity was revealed publicly, he wasn't seen again at the trial.

Theranos founder and former CEO Elizabeth Holmes arrives for her trial at the Robert F. Peckham Federal Building on December 07, 2021 in San Jose, California.

For her part, Holmes -- wearing a work dress and jacket or skirt suit in greys, blues or greens with a green or blue mask -- arrived each court day walking hand-in-hand with either her mother, Noel, or her partner, Billy Evans, or both. When Holmes took the stand, the group of friends and family sitting in reserved seating swelled. Her father was seen in the courtroom during closing arguments.

As the trial went on, three jurors were dismissed. One juror was reported by another for playing Sudoku during the proceedings. Another was excused after disclosing she was experiencing anxiety stemming from the prospect of sending Holmes to prison, and cited her Buddhist beliefs. The alternate juror tapped to replace her expressed some concern about sentencing Holmes because she is very young. She remained on the jury tasked with determining Holmes' fate.

The government's 11-week case against Holmes

In its closing arguments, the prosecution alleged that, faced with a business running out of money, Holmes "chose fraud" rather than "failure."

During the trial, federal prosecutors called 29 witnesses to testify, including former Theranos employees, retail executives and a former US Defense Secretary. Through these witnesses, the government attempted to show the layers of the alleged fraud, including how Theranos concealed its use of third-party manufactured machines to test patient blood, overstated its financials, misrepresented its work with pharmaceutical companies and the military, and used the media to perpetuate the untruths.

In his final remarks, prosecutor John Bostic said Holmes was "especially fond of using" half-truths, which he described as something that is "arguably technically correct, but still leaves the listener with an unmistakable incorrect understanding about what the truth is."

Elizabeth Holmes, founder of Theranos Inc., left center, departs from federal court with, from left, husband Billy Evans, parents Noel Holmes and Christian Holmes IV in San Jose, California, U.S., on Monday, Jan. 3, 2022.

As an example of that, he pointed to journalist Roger Parloff's recordings of interviews with Holmes done in conjunction with a 2014 Fortune Magazine cover story that were played in court during the reporter's time on the stand. Holmes is heard rationalizing why some patients had their blood taken through venipuncture rather than solely its marketed fingerstick blood draws. "At no point during that conversation did she tell Mr. Parloff that the reason ... was that the company's own technology could not do the range of tests that she was offering," said Bostic.

"It does not matter whether Ms. Holmes had the intent to make the lie true or to avoid being found out. The problem is in making the misrepresentations on the day it's made," he added.

Bostic also said Holmes "borrowed the credibility" of others, through her startup's high-profile retail partnerships, her magazine cover pieces and her board stocked with powerful names, including former Defense Secretaries and two former Secretaries of State.

"By attaching herself to these individuals and organizations," he continued, "she bolstered Theranos' own credibility, and by exaggerating those contexts, she caused others to believe that Theranos must have the legitimacy of those other entities."

Elizabeth Holmes listens as the clerk is reading the verdict and her family is clutching each other's hands in federal court in San Jose, California, on January 3, 2022.

Holmes testifies for 7 days in her own defense

The defense called three witnesses, concluding with Holmes. Known for her charm and charisma while CEO, Holmes' testimony ranged from speaking emphatically about her belief in the company's technology to pointing the finger at others -- notably, her ex-boyfriend and former Theranos COO Ramesh "Sunny" Balwani.

While the origin story of Theranos is well-known, Holmes shed more light on her decision to drop out of Stanford. She testified she had been raped as a student and was having trouble attending classes. She said she left school to throw herself into building what became Theranos, seeking business advice from Balwani, 20 years her senior, whom she had met after graduating from high school and whom she viewed as a successful tech executive.

Holmes testified she and Balwani had a decade-long abusive relationship. She said Balwani tried to control nearly every aspect of her life as he sought to help her become successful. Balwani, through court filings, has denied the abuse allegations. (Balwani faces the same charges as Holmes and is set to be tried early this year. He has pleaded not guilty.)

Holmes also testified that Balwani, whom she lived with, served as her most important adviser during her time at Theranos. She testified that he didn't control what she said to investors, board members, retail partners, and the media during her time at the helm of Theranos. But his influence on her life loomed large.

"He impacted everything about who I was, and I don't fully understand that," Holmes testified.

Holmes' defense team did not call an expert to testify about the possible implications of the alleged abuse on her role as CEO, despite having indicated it may do so. In his closing arguments, prosecutor Jeffrey Schenk told jurors they did not need to decide whether the abuse happened to reach a verdict.

"The case is about false statements made to investors and false statements made to patients," he said.

Asked whether she ever led patients to believe Theranos could offer accurate and reliable blood tests while knowing it could not, Holmes testified: "Of course not."

Arizona played a role in the Elizabeth Holmes saga. So did local news

For a while there when you'd see Elizabeth Holmes’ name in headlines and stories, it was often preceded by the word “disgraced.”

Now it's "convicted."

It wasn’t long ago that Holmes was described in starkly different terms: brilliant, rich, pioneering. It’s a head-spinning fall from grace, a riches-to-rags story compelling enough that Hulu is making a scripted series about the whole affair starring Amanda Seyfried. And Apple has announced a film version starring Jennifer Lawrence as Holmes.

The saga dragged the fake-it-till-you-make-it ethos of Silicon Valley startups under the microscope.

It was also fodder for Alex Gibney's 2019 documentary "The Inventor: Out for Blood in Silicon Valley," available on HBO Max. It's the kind of story with tentacles that reach into aspects of health care, startup culture and how we view wealth and its acquisition.

And Arizona played a part in it. So did the Arizona news media reporting on it. Media coverage, in fact, was a driving force in bringing the real story to light.

Holmes was charged with 11 counts of fraud, allegedly deceiving patients and investors about Theranos Inc., the startup she founded in 2003. She was convicted Monday, Jan. 3, on four counts of fraud and conspiracy. The jury found her not guilty on four other counts; it was deadlocked on three more.

Holmes' former business and romantic partner Ramesh "Sunny" Balwani has also been charged; his trial is scheduled for later in 2022. Promises that the company’s blood-testing machines could perform an array of tests using only drops of blood proved unfounded, prosecutors say.

'The Inventor' serves as both a primer and a reminder

A look back at “The Inventor” serves as both a useful primer on the company’s history — Gibney has access to Holmes throughout the film — and a reminder that Arizona served as a test market for both Theranos’ products and its promises.

Part of what makes the story so interesting is Holmes herself. She dropped out of Stanford University to start the company.

Dressed in black turtlenecks like Steve Jobs (but not in jeans, which were also part of Jobs’ signature look, she notes in the film, laughing), Holmes both fits the cliche of the hard-charging tech executive and also blows it up — she was a woman demanding entry into a boys’ club of boys’ clubs. And she got there, becoming a billionaire (the company was valued at more than $9 billion in 2015).

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But how? And at what cost?

At the cost of her reputation and personal fortune, for one thing. At the cost of the $4.65 million fraud settlement Theranos agreed to pay Arizona consumers in 2017. And possibly 20 years of her freedom if convicted. (Holmes has pleaded not guilty.)

“The Inventor” lays out Holmes’ claims for Theranos and its eventual failure, a methodical takedown of a business built classically on overpromising and underdelivering. The first half is devoted to how Holmes built Theranos, and how she attracted a heavy-hitting list of investors such as Rupert Murdoch, as well as board members including Henry Kissinger and and George Schultz.

It also chronicles the claims Holmes made for what would have been revolutionary technology — if it had worked. It didn’t, the how of which Gibney also details.

Media plays a big part in the film and in the story overall. Roger Parloff wrote a widely read, positive profile of Holmes and the company for Fortune in 2014. He’s interviewed in the film and rightfully angry, seemingly moved almost to tears at one point. (Parloff later wrote a follow-up, “How Theranos Misled Me.”)

But it was Wall Street Journal reporter John Carreyrou’s 2015 story that broke the news of Theranos’ failings (the film is considered a companion piece to his book “Bad Blood”).

Arizona comes into play in the second half of the film. Theranos operated retail locations inside Walgreens stores in Phoenix in 2013, making it the proving ground for the supposedly new technology.

The film shows Holmes testifying before gushing legislators, who would pass a bill signed by Gov. Doug Ducey that allowed people to order tests without a doctor’s orders. We see Fox 10’s John Hook and Kari Lake present a story about Theranos, and the station’s Linda Williams offer a cautionary note that some medical professionals were skeptical.

National media broke the Theranos story; local media covered it, too

Outside the film, Theranos got plenty of coverage from local media. As early as 2015, The Arizona Republic was writing stories about the company not always meeting lab regulations. That story prompted a published retort from Holmes in the form of a letter to the editor, defending Theranos' transparency and performance.

Prosecutors would disagree. And an editor's note said the newspaper stood by its story.

What unfolds in “The Inventor” is a great story — great in the media sense that it’s interesting, complex, filled with compelling people promising the moon and failing to deliver. Not so great if you were one of the people placing your faith in Theranos for accurate blood work — or if you worked for the company.

The story has moved into a different phase. Theranos no longer exists. A jury has decided Holmes' fate; another will decide the fate of Balwani. The media will cover it; who knows, maybe Gibney will shoot a coda for his film.

But it remains a story, one that began as a triumph, and ends, yes, in disgrace.

Reach Goodykoontz at bill.goodykoontz@arizonarepublic.com. Facebook: facebook.com/GoodyOnFilm. Twitter: @goodyk. Subscribe to the weekly movies newsletter.

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Elizabeth Holmes' No. 2 and ex-boyfriend is about to have his day in ...

(CNN Business) More than two months after Theranos founder and former CEO Elizabeth Holmes was found guilty on four of 11 charges in her criminal fraud case, the trial of her ex-boyfriend and second-in-command at the failed blood testing company is set to begin.

kick of as soon as Wednesday, with opening arguments in the same San Jose, California, courtroom where Holmes was convicted. Ramesh "Sunny" Balwani, who served as Theranos' chief operating officer and president, was first indicted alongside Holmes nearly four years ago on the same set of federal fraud charges. His trial is expected tokick of as soon as Wednesday,with opening arguments in the same San Jose, California, courtroom where Holmes was convicted.

A jury of 18 people, including six alternates, was initially selected on Friday and expected to be sworn in Monday. But the court said Monday afternoon that further juror selection is necessary and slated to occur Tuesday. The trial, which is closed to cameras and audio recordings, is slated to go on for 13 weeks.

Balwani faces a dozen federal wire fraud and conspiracy charges over allegations he knowingly misrepresented the capabilities of Theranos' blood testing technology to investors, doctors and patients in order to take their money. If convicted, Balwani faces up to 20 years in prison as well as a fine of $250,000 plus restitution for each count of wire fraud and each conspiracy count. He has pleaded not guilty. (Holmes' sentencing has been set for late September .)

Balwani is less of a household name than Holmes, a onetime tech industry icon who was featured on magazine covers and has been the subject of documentaries, podcasts and, most recently, "The Dropout," a limited series on Hulu. But his trial could offer new glimpses into their relationship and the decision-making process inside the C-suite at Theranos. It could also offer a forum for Balwani and his attorneys to point the finger at Holmes after she attempted during her own trial to shift blame to Balwani.

Read More

Theranos trial: Elizabeth Holmes' domestic abuse claim is another con

Evan Nierman

Opinion contributor

Was the bold and confident founder of the blood-testing startup Theranos a long-suffering victim of an abusive boyfriend who controlled her every move and therefore not responsible for the epic meltdown of a company once valued at more than $9 billion? Court documents indicate that this is the story the disgraced Theranos CEO is hawking at her criminal trial.