‘The Dropout’: The Real Tyler Shultz Begged his Grandfather, George Shultz, to Expose Elizabeth Holmes
As viewers watch The Dropout on Hulu, many want to know the truth about Tyler Shultz (Dylan Minnette) and his grandfather, Theranos board member, George Shultz (Sam Waterston). Like it is depicted in the true crime drama, Tyler tried multiple times to explain the inaccuracies in Elizabeth Holmes’ (portrayed by Amanda Seyfried) labs to his grandfather. The real-life Tyler Shultz described his conversations to different outlets, including whether or not his grandfather ever apologized.
‘The Dropout’ portrays Tyler Shultz very accurately
As depicted in The Dropout Episode 6, the real-life Tyler Shultz did not become a Theranos employee until after his grandfather, George Shultz, recruited many political figures to the company board. Tyler’s LinkedIn profile showed that he worked as a research engineer at Theranos for eight months — September 2013 to April 2014.
Tyler met Holmes in real life at his grandfather’s home in 2011, while he was in college at Stanford. He recalled asking the entrepreneur if he could intern at Theranos. The answer was yes, and the rest is a tumultuous history. While working there, Tyler witnessed that the blood-testing technology did not work. It gave inaccurate results to actual patients. He went to his grandfather, George Shultz, to break the news that Holmes was lying. The first time he spoke to his grandfather about the inaccuracies in the lab, he brought Erika Cheung to George Shultz’s home for dinner. All of these events are portrayed accurately in The Dropout based on Tyler Shultz’s real-life interviews.
‘The Dropout’: Tyler tried to tell his grandfather the truth about Theranos
“He didn’t believe me,” Shultz told NPR. “He said, ‘Elizabeth has assured me that they go above and beyond all regulatory standards. I think you’re wrong is what he told me.”
Tyler didn’t give up trying to convince his grandfather of the lies within Theranos. He begged and pleaded with George Shultz, but the man took a long time to come around.
“I said, ‘I know you brought all your friends into this, and you feel like you need to stay there to protect your friends,'” Tyler recalls telling his grandfather. “‘But there’s still an opportunity for you to get them out too,’ he said. ‘You can lead the way for the board to do the right thing and hold Elizabeth accountable.'”
‘The Dropout’: Did George Shultz apologize to his grandson, Tyler Shultz?
Like in Hulu’s The Dropout, George Shultz never apologized to his grandson, Tyler Shultz. However, the former secretary of state did admit that Tyler was right. George also told Tyler the things Holmes did and said to make him believe her.
“In one of my last conversations with him, he told me a story about how he got Elizabeth invited during fleet week in San Francisco to go give a speech to United States Navy sailors,” Tyler recalled to CBS News. “He said with tears in her eyes; she told the room how she was so honored and humbled that her life’s work would save the lives of United States servicemen and women.”
George told Tyler the story to help him understand why the older man believed Holmes.
“He said he could not believe that anybody could get in front of these men and women who are willing to put their lives in front of our country and lie directly to their face as convincingly as she lied,” Tyler continued.
George Shultz died on Feb. 6, 2021, so Tyler will never get that apology from his grandfather.
What does Tyler Shultz do now?
Since The Dropout events, Tyler Shultz has come a long way from the 22-year-old fresh out of college. He co-founded a startup company, Flux Biosciences, in August 2017. Tyler is currently the CEO and co-founder of the medical equipment manufacturing company in Palo Alto, California. It sounds like he learned a lot (of what not to do) from his experiences at Theranos and remained in a similar field.
“Flux Biosciences utilizes magnetic sensing to bring the power of medical-grade diagnostics into patients’ homes,” the company LinkedIn profile reads. “We believe that all people deserve to be empowered, active, and autonomous drivers of their own health through accessible, affordable, and actionable insights.”
The Dropout is currently streaming on Hulu, releasing new episodes every Thursday.
