Elizabeth Holmes drawn as villain, underdog as trial begins

By MICHAEL LIEDTKE
AP Technology Writer

SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) — The highly anticipated fraud trial of fallen Silicon Valley star Elizabeth Holmes began Wednesday with dueling portraits of the former entrepreneur sketched by prosecutors and defense lawyers. A federal prosecutor cast Holmes as a conniving entrepreneur who duped investors, customers and patients for years, even though she knew her startup, Theranos, was nearly bankrupt and its much-hyped blood-testing technology was a flop. Holmes’ defense team countered with a more heroic narrative describing her as a tireless worker who tried to develop a faster, cheaper and less invasive way to test blood samples.