Elizabeth Holmes’ Partner Reportedly Seeking Investors for New Blood Testing Venture

Billy Evans, partner to Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes, is set to launch a new initiative called Haemanthus, which aims to enhance “human health optimization” through blood analysis, according to The New York Times.

The Times spoke with two investors who evaluated the startup’s offerings and shared their perspectives on its potential.

Haemanthus has created a device that employs lasers to analyze blood, saliva, and urine samples for detecting cancers and infections. The company will initially focus on veterinary health before expanding into human health, with a goal of securing over $50 million in funding.

This venture echoes the Theranos saga, which falsely asserted it could perform numerous medical tests using small blood samples from finger pricks. Elizabeth Holmes, who shares two children with Evans, was sentenced to 11 years in prison for defrauding investors in 2022, but she has recently reiterated her commitment to “providing affordable healthcare solutions for all.”

Jim Breyer, an early investor in Facebook, informed The Times that his team was approached for a potential investment but chose to decline “for many of the same reasons we opted not to invest in Theranos on two occasions.”