OpenAI CEO Invests in Startup Touting Blood-Testing Tech Similar to Disgraced Theranos

The CEO of OpenAI Sam Altman is among a group of investors putting tens of millions of dollars in a biotechnology company that aims to succeed where Theranos failed. 

According to a Bloomberg report, Sam Altman, venture capital firm 8VC and Laboratory Corp. of America Holdings have invested $48 million in Vital Biosciences Inc., which aims to build a machine that can quickly screen blood samples for a variety of ailments and medical conditions at the same time. 

The company is reminiscent of Theranos, which infamously imploded after it was revealed that CEO Elizabeth Holmes and COO Sunny Balwani made exaggerated and false claims about the efficacy of the company’s blood testing machine, Edison. Theranos had raised millions of dollars in investment from multiple high-profile VC firms and individuals on the basis of the claims.

Holmes was initially sentenced to 11 years in prison for her part in the scheme, although that term was later shortened to 9 years. Holmes is due for release in 2032. 

“The fact that Theranos happened raised the bar in a really big way," Vital CEO Vasu Nadella told Bloomberg. “There’s not a day that goes by where we don’t talk about Theranos multiple times.”

Vital Biosciences was founded in 2019 and claims on its website that it’s VitalOne machine will “deliver comprehensive lab-grade results” in minutes and will also give patients access to their test results via an app. 

According to Bloomberg, the machine is designed to run hematology, chemistry and immunoassay tests to help diagnose conditions like high cholesterol or anemia using a sample collected and tested in a doctor’s office — the machine would cut the need to send a sample to a lab for analysis and so could speed diagnosis and treatment. 

The Vital Biosciences website lays out a vision in which the company’s technology will be able to test for various diseases and conditions, including sexually transmitted diseases and other common infections.

Nadella told Bloomberg that the $48 million investment will enable the company to finish developing the VitalOne machine and begin clinical studies. 

The technology will get its first public demonstration on Monday at the American Association of Clinical Chemistry’s clinical lab expo — an event that Theranos' ex-CEO Holmes also spoke at in 2016. 

Vital Biosciences co-founder Mounir Koussa told Bloomberg that the company knows it can be compared to Theranos, and is actively working to show that their machine gives out legitimate results. 

Before it the VitalOne is cleared for use, the company must first prove to the Federal Drug Administration that the machine works as intended and is safe and effective. The company aims to begin the process for approval to use their machine in a clinical setting in 2024, according to the report.