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Billy Evans, the partner of Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes, is currently in the process of raising money for his own startup. Its a blood-testing company. According to reports from NPR and The New York Times, both of which spoke with anonymous sources close to the venture, 33-year-old Evans has already raised several million dollars for a new stealth” startup focusing on diagnostics and health testing. Prior to this news, Evans first came into the public eye back in 2018 when he began dating Holmes, who is currently serving out an 11-year federal prison sentence for committing fraud through her infamous blood-testing company Theranos. Over the weekend, Evanss startup Haemanthus spoke out on X to reassure investors and potential future customers that its not Theranos 2.0. The company has no apparent contact information, and the direct messages on its X account are closed. Fast Company was unable to reach the company for further comment. Heres everything we know about the company so far. What is Haemanthus? Based on information provided to NPR, Haemanthus is a diagnostics company thats planning to build a tool that can scan biological material like blood, sweat, and urine to identify potential diseases. The name Haemanthus itself appears to be an allusion to a flower of the same name, colloquially termed the blood lily. To many readers, that whole premise might sound strikingly similar to the story behind Theranos, which promised to dole out accurate diagnoses using a single drop of blood, before it ultimately started falling apart. However, Haemanthus took to X this Sunday to clarify that its tech is not an extension of Theranos. The post starts by acknowledging Evanss relationship with Holmes and adding that Skepticism is rational, before categorically denying any connection to Holmess failed blood-testing company. This is not Theranos 2.0, the post reads. Theranos attempted to miniaturize existing tests. Our approach is fundamentally different. We use light to read the complete molecular story in biological fluids, seeing patterns current tests cant detect. Not an improvement. A different paradigm. What kind of tech is the company developing? Sources told NPR that Haemanthus is currently in the early stages of using light detection technology that can essentially guide AI sensors to conduct medical tests. The company is specifically focusing on Raman spectroscopy, a form of chemical analysis thats been used to diagnose amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and some forms of cancer. Based on a notice published in late January, the company has already received a patent for its Raman spectroscopy system. A photo provided to potential investors and obtained by The New York Times reportedly indicates that Haemanthus plans to build a small rectangular device to contain the tech, which will include a door and a digital display screen. Sources told the publication that Haemanthus plans to roll out its tech for veterinary purposes first, before ultimately developing a stamp-size, wearable device for humans. This trajectory was confirmed in part in Haemanthuss X thread. We’re starting with veterinary medicine. Not because it’s easier, but because it’s practical and meaningful. It validates our technology, helps animals who can’t describe symptoms, and builds the foundation for human applications, the post reads. Who is working for the company? Sources told both NPR and The New York Times that the startup currently has between 10 and 12 employees, most of whom worked with Evans previously at the lidar tech company Luminar Technologies. Haemanthus reportedly told investors that it had around two dozen advisers, including veterinarians and diagnosticians, though specific names were not provided. How much money has been raised? So far, The New York Times reported, the company has raised $3.5 million through family and friends and is currently seeking another $15 million from investors in the Austin and Say Francisco Bay areas. Materials reviewed by the publication reportedly suggest that the company has an ultimate goal of raising more than $50 million. Is Elizabeth Holmes involved? In February, Holmes told People magazine that she plans to return to her career in healthcare technology after her release, and that shes continuing to write patents for new inventions while serving her sentence. And in its exclusive initial coverage of Haemanthus, NPR cited sources who claimed that Holmes has been providing advice to Evans on his new venture from behind bars. On X, however, Haemanthus strongly refuted that claim. Setting the record straight, the company wrote. Elizabeth Holmes has zero involvement in Haemanthus. We’ve learned from her company’s mistakes, but she has no role, now or future. NYT and NPR implied otherwise. We’ve stayed quiet to build real tech, not conceal. Demonstrating, not promising.
Category:
E-Commerce
Artificial intelligence might be the future of the workplace, but companies that are trying to get a head start on that future are running into all sorts of problems. Klarna and Duloingo have been some of the poster children for the “AI-first” workplace. Two years ago, Klarna CEO Sebastian Siemiatkowski announced he wanted his company to be the “favorite guinea pig” of OpenAI, instituting a hiring freeze and replacing as many workers as possible with AI systems. Last month, Duolingo announced an AI-first shift, saying it would stop using contractors to do work AI can handle and only increase headcount when teams have maximized all possible automation. Klarna, while still investing in AI, seems to have renewed appreciation for the human touch. And Duolingo is finding itself under attack on social media for its decision. Klarna CEO Siemiatkowski tells Bloomberg the fintech company is about to go on a hiring spree, in order to ensure customers will always have the option to speak to a live representative. The company did not say how many people it plans to add, but Siemiatkowski indicated Klarna would look at students and rural areas to boost its workforce. Last year, Klarna, in an announcement, said AI was doing the work of 700 customer service agents. Now, it’s focusing on adding human connections. As cost unfortunately seems to have been a too predominant evaluation factor when organizing this, what you end up having is lower quality, Siemiatkowski said. Really investing in the quality of the human support is the way of the future for us. But Klarna says it is still enthusiastic about AI. Duolingo’s AI-first push is much newer, and there have been no policy reversals on its part as yet. But the company is facing a tsunami of pushback from the general public on social media after announcing the move, particularly on TikTok. The top comments on virtually every recent post have nothing to do with the video or the company and everything to do with the company’s embrace of AI. For example, a Duolingo TikTok video jumping on board the “Mama may I have a cookie” trend saw replies like “mama may I have real people running the company ” (with 69,000 likes) and, “How about NO ai, keep your employees.” Another video that tied into the How to Train Your Dragon character Hiccup brought comments like “Was firing all your employees and replacing them with AI also a hiccup?” Other comments are more serious: “Using AI is disgusting,” wrote one user. “Language learning should be pioneered by PEOPLE. By making this decision duolingo is actively harming the environment, their customers, and employees when it hurts the most.” Another wrote, “What kind of audience do you think you’ve built that it’s okay to go ‘AI first’. we don’t want AI, we want real people doing good work. Goodbye Duo, if this is the way you’re going you wont be missed.” Others claimed to have deleted the app: “Deleted Duolingo last week. A 650+ day streak never felt so meaningless once I saw the news.” Duolingo says much of that feedback is coming from people who dont understand what AI-first means. A lot of the feedback weve seen comes from a place of passion for Duolingo, which we really appreciate, a representative told Fast Company. To clarify, AI isnt replacing our learning expertsits a tool they use to make Duolingo better. Everything we create with AI is guided by our team of learning design experts. . Were committed to using AI with human oversight, to help us deliver on our mission to make the best education in the world available to everyone.” Companies, in general, remain excited about the potential cost savings of AI, sometimes for good reason. Duolingos stock is at an all time high and the company recently raised its sales forecast for 2025. A study by the World Economic Forum (WEF) found that 40% of employers expect to reduce their workforce and hand over automated tasks to the technology. As bullish as executives might be, however, that excitement has not made its way into the consumer space. Almost half of the Generation Z job hunters told the WEF they believed AI has reduced the value of their college education. And researchers at Harvard University say the technology is still threatening to people. “From early on in life humans strive to manage their surroundings to achieve their goals. So theyre naturally reluctant to adopt innovations that seem to reduce their control over a situation,” wrote Julian De Freitas, an assistant professor in the marketing unit at Harvard Business School. “The possibility that AI tools might completely take over tasks previously handled by humans, rather than just assist with them, stirs up deep concerns and worries.”Update, May 12, 2025: This article has been updated with comments from Klarna and Duolingo.
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E-Commerce
Despite a strong start to the year, traffic at U.S. quick service restaurants (QSR), which has been steadily declining month by month, was down 1.7% year-over-year compared to last April, signaling growing consumer caution or shifts in dining behaviors, according to Revenue Management Solutions (RMS), a company that analyzes data and provides insights about the restaurant industry. At the same time, RMS found on average, fast food prices increased in April by +2.0% year-over-year, steady with inflation trends. In case you’re not familiar with restaurant industry lingo, a quick service restaurant (QSR) describes establishments that prioritize speed and convenience, sometimes used interchangeably with the term “fast food”which brings to mind McDonald’s, Wendy’s, and Burger King, but also includes a wider variety of restaurant chains such as Dunkin Donuts, Chipotle, Dominos, and Boston Market. Many fast food and fast casual chains are seeing slower growth and declining sales fueled by high prices, inflation, and fears that President Trump’s tariffs will cause a recession, which have prompted fewer Americans to eat out. For example, for the first quarter of 2025, Chipotle not only missed revenue estimates but said same-store sales dropped for the first time since 2020. And McDonalds, which reported earnings on May 1, said sales dropped in the beginning of the year, marking its second consecutive quarter of declines. The chain’s same-store sales dropped 3.6% in the U.S. the worst drop since 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to CNN. RMS’s Q1 consumer survey also found 40% of American diners said theyre spending less of their disposable income on restaurants, with 1 in 4 U.S. consumers reporting instead that they’re shopping at grocery stores, citing better value. As Fast Company previously reported, rising menu prices in 2024 at McDonalds, Taco Bell, Wendys, KFC, and other fast food chains caused a consumer backlash as price-conscious customers decided the food wasnt worth the cost. This lead to sales declines and the closure of some underperforming chain locations, including for Wendys and Shake Shack. A closer look at RMS’s April numbers, which compare fast food performance trends YOY (April 2025 to April 2024), shows that while average prices increase 2.0% YOY, net sales also increased 0.5% YOY, with the average check price rising 2.1% YOY. Broken down by meal time, the numbers show breakfast traffic decreased the most by some -9.1% YOY, and lunch was down 3.1% compared to April of 2024, but customers for dinner were up 1.2% YOY, highlighting that Americans were still going out for dinner.
Category:
E-Commerce
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