Bad Blood: Secrets and Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup
by John Carreyrou · 2018
In a nutshell
Investigative account of the rise and fall of Theranos and Elizabeth Holmes, highlighting fraud and deception in a high-profile startup. Shelved 111 times as startup on Goodreads with average rating 4.40 from 284,147 ratings, published 2018.
Overview
Chronicles the Theranos scandal, from blood-testing promises to exposure of falsified technology and leadership failures.
Key Lessons
- Dangers of unchecked founder authority.
- Importance of due diligence in investments.
- Ethical pitfalls in hype-driven startups.
Hardcover and ebook; available via major retailers.
Reference
Bad Blood: Secrets and Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup — publisher / official page. Summary adapted from the Awesome Startup Books collection.
If you like this, read
What You Do Is Who You Are: How to Create Your Business Culture
Ben Horowitz's guide to building and maintaining strong company culture, drawing lessons from history's most effective leaders.
Season of the Witch
Delves into the cultural history of San Francisco from the 1950s to the 1980s, illustrating how its free-spirited, creative nature developed. Recommended for entrepreneurs new to the region to grasp the cultural context of this innovation hub. Offers insight into the historical forces shaping the Bay Area's identity as a center for experimentation and unconventional thinking.
The Entrepreneurs
Historical and analytical book by Derek Lidow that traces entrepreneurs across cultures and millennia, examining how their relentless drive to create and capture value has repeatedly transformed economies and societies. Highly relevant for startup founders who want a deep, long-term perspective on entrepreneurship beyond modern Silicon Valley narratives.
Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap and Others Don’t
Jim Collins’s management classic that analyzes how good companies become great and sustain performance over time. It introduces concepts like Level 5 leadership, hedgehog concept, and disciplined culture—frameworks that help startup founders think about building enduring, high-performing organizations beyond the early hustle phase.
Principles: Life and Work
A book by Ray Dalio that distills the core principles behind his life, investment success, and the building of Bridgewater Associates. While not startup-specific, it’s widely recommended for founders for its rigorous thinking on decision-making, culture, management, and creating systems that scale—core challenges in building and leading a startup.
Return on Character: The Real Reason Leaders and Their Companies Win
A research-driven book that links leader character to organizational performance, offering data and frameworks showing how character-based leadership drives long-term results. Startup founders can use it to build principled cultures and trust-based organizations from day one.