Elizabeth Holmes’s Partner Reportedly Raises Millions for New Blood Testing Startup
Billy Evans the romantic partner of Elizabeth Holmes and father of her children has reportedly raised millions of dollars for a new health technology startup that draws clear parallels to Theranos the failed company that led to Holmes’s conviction and federal prison sentence.
According to the New York Times Evans is pitching his new venture named Haemanthus as a diagnostic company capable of detecting illnesses from small samples of blood urine and saliva. The pitch echoes many of the same promises once made by Theranos which claimed to deliver fast accurate testing from just a finger-prick’s worth of blood.
Haemanthus was incorporated in February 2024 and has already begun outlining plans for its product rollout. In a patent filed in January the company described a device that could analyze sweat urine saliva and minimal amounts of blood to detect various health conditions. Initially the device would be used to diagnose illnesses in animals but the company’s long-term goal includes adapting the technology for human use.
The marketing materials reviewed by the Times describe a laser-based device capable of scanning biological samples and analyzing them on a molecular level within seconds. The eventual vision includes creating a compact wearable version of the device for humans which would provide real-time health monitoring.
Evans an heir to a hotel fortune has reportedly raised close to 20 million dollars from private investors and friends despite skepticism in some circles. Several potential backers have already declined to invest according to the Times but Evans has managed to secure funding while reportedly receiving advice from Holmes herself.
The similarities between Haemanthus and Theranos are difficult to ignore. Theranos also positioned itself as a revolutionary health diagnostics company with a mission to democratize access to testing. At its peak in 2014 the company reached a valuation of 9 billion dollars thanks to investment from high-profile business leaders and political figures.
However Theranos’s downfall came after a series of investigative reports by the Wall Street Journal which revealed that the technology did not work as advertised. Tests were unreliable and often produced false results raising concerns about patient safety. The company dissolved in 2018 and Holmes was later convicted of defrauding investors. In 2022 she was sentenced to 11 years in federal prison.
Despite this history Evans is pressing forward with his new venture. He met Holmes in 2017 while she was under federal investigation. They now have two children and Evans is reportedly living in Texas with them while Holmes serves her sentence at a federal facility roughly two hours away.
Haemanthus has not publicly addressed the comparisons to Theranos but the overlap in goals technology and timing has drawn widespread attention. Whether the company can deliver on its promises without repeating past failures remains to be seen.