💰 $1.5 billion missing
💰 $450 million stolen from Qatar and Microsoft
But radio silence in the French media 🤡
The story is so huge it seems fake.
Except it's not 🧵👇
January 2024, Davos.
Duggal parades around in a €1,000 Dior sweater. He's THE star of the moment.
The BBC, celebrities, ministers... Everyone wants his opinion on AI.
His secret?
Builder.ai, the startup that "democratizes programming through AI"
The valuation is crazy: $1.5 billion 🚀
One year later, January 2025:
Investors demand to see the accounts.
Panic on board.
The PwC auditors arrive, and then... the house of cards collapses.
Of the $217 million in declared revenue, only $51 million actually existed.
The rest? Just hot air...
The audit reveals his genius technique:
Step 1: Create a fake "partner" company
Step 2: Bill each other millions (round-tripping)
Step 3: Show these "revenues" to investors
Step 4: Raise $450 million on these bogus figures
Simple. Effective. Illegal. 😎
Yet, the red flags were EVERYWHERE:
2012: Accused of embezzling $695,000 from his first startup
2019: The Wall Street Journal reveals his lies about AI
2020: Prosecuted for stealing $1.5 million from SoftBank
But the ChatGPT euphoria swept it all away.
VCs wanted their piece of the pie...
Quand il y a beaucoup de compétition pour investir, les gens bougent vite.
Et quand ils bougent vite, ils ne font pas leur due diligence.
Microsoft a même invité Duggal à son CEO Summit...
2 semaines avant la faillite. Edifiant.
Bottom line:
👉 $91 million owed to Amazon (unpaid)
👉 Microsoft and QSI had invested $450 million
👉 EY had awarded him "Entrepreneur of the Year" 🤡
Meanwhile, Duggal has fled to Dubai and is already looking for funding for his next scam.
The audacity of the guy...
This story is just another warning.
Tech companies represent 34% of the S&P 500.
The giants are throwing away billions without looking.
The red flags are there. Don't give in to FOMO.
Protect yourself. Get informed.
Follow @undefined to stay awake.
