According to the New York Times,"Blood Test Goddess"Billy Evans, a partner of Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes, is launching a new startup aimed at "optimizing human health" through blood testing.
The New York Times reportedly interviewed two investors who invested in the startup, called Haemanthus, and reviewed some marketing materials.
Among the materials, the company said it has developed a machine that uses lasers to analyze blood, saliva and urine samples to detect cancer and infections. The company reportedly plans to start with pet health before expanding to humans, and is seeking to raise more than $50 million in funding.
This is consistent with Theranos's promotion, which promised to draw a small amount of blood from a pricked finger to conduct various medical tests. In 2022, Holmes (with whom Evans has two children) was sentenced to 11 years in prison for defrauding investors, but she said in a recent interview that she remained "fully committed to my dream of making healthcare solutions affordable for everyone."
Jim Breyer, an early Facebook investor, told The New York Times that his team had been approached to invest but turned it down "for many of the same reasons we turned down Theranos twice."
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