Geoffrey Hinton

Geoffrey Hinton

Sweden

Frank - The JPMorgan $175M Mistake by Charlie Javice

Frank - The JPMorgan $175M Mistake by Charlie Javice

Charlie Javice’s fintech startup Frank claimed to democratize student aid applications. In 2021, JPMorgan Chase acquired the company for $175 million, based on a user base of 4.25 million. However, the company only had around 300,000 users—most of the rest were fabricated using purchased email lists.

Is Whistleblowing Patriotic or Disloyal?

Is Whistleblowing Patriotic or Disloyal?

A Global Debate on Conscience, Citizenship, and Consequences Whistleblowing sits at a volatile intersection of ethics, legality, and identity. To some, the act of exposing wrongdoing—particularly within government or national institutions—is a profound form of patriotism. It represents loyalty not to a regime or a superior, but to

Aspiration Partners - The $145M Fintech Fraud by Co‑Founder Joseph Sanberg

Aspiration Partners - The $145M Fintech Fraud by Co‑Founder Joseph Sanberg

Aspiration, a climate-focused fintech startup pioneering "ethical banking," has seen explosive growth and garnered star-studded backing. In 2020–2021, co-founder Joseph Sanberg and board member Ibrahim AlHusseini allegedly obtained two major investor loans ($55M and $145M) by misrepresenting AlHusseini’s financial capacity through the use of fictitious documents.

Ozy Media: Celebrity-backed Media Startup’s $70M Fraud Collapse

Ozy Media: Celebrity-backed Media Startup’s $70M Fraud Collapse

Ozy Media, co-founded by Carlos Watson and Samir Rao in 2013, built a narrative of a millennial-focused, multi-channel media empire. They raised over $70M from luminaries like Laurene Powell Jobs and Marc Lasry. In reality, the founders fabricated financial projections, impersonated executives (notably a fake YouTube official to Goldman Sachs)

Should Private Companies Pay Whistleblower Rewards? A Case for Ethical Incentives in Business

Should Private Companies Pay Whistleblower Rewards? A Case for Ethical Incentives in Business

In 2012, Bradley Birkenfeld, a former UBS banker, received $104 million from the U.S. Internal Revenue Service for exposing one of the largest tax fraud schemes in history. His reward, while staggering, wasn’t from his employer—it came from a government-run whistleblower reward program. But what if companies

AllHere Education: The $10M Fraud in EdTech by Joanna Smith-Griffin

AllHere Education: The $10M Fraud in EdTech by Joanna Smith-Griffin

AllHere Education, a Harvard-incubated AI startup led by founder Joanna Smith-Griffin, promoted “Ed”—an AI chatbot intended to reduce student absenteeism in school districts like LAUSD. Between late 2020 and mid-2024, she deceived investors by inflating revenue, cash reserves, and customer contracts. The company raised nearly $10M, but generated just

SKAEL - AI-Enabled Startup Founder Pleads to $30M Fraud

SKAEL - AI-Enabled Startup Founder Pleads to $30M Fraud

SKAEL Inc., based in San Francisco and operating in automation and AI-based “digital employees,” was led by founder and ex-CEO Baba Nadimpalli from 2016 to 2022. In June 2025, Nadimpalli pleaded guilty to securities fraud and wire fraud, admitting to raising over $30 million from investors between 2021–2022 by