That may have been why she got a lot of press, and her gender may also have been the focus of much of that press. But I don't see any evidence that people invested in her -because- she was female. In fact, many of the most public and well known VC firms did not invest in Holmes. These big public firms are the ones most interested in deal flow and PR image. If Holmes was such a draw for being female, why did they pass?

In fact, most of Theranos' investors were individuals like Rupert Murdoch and Larry Ellison or firms that were positioned to profit from retail testing like Walgreens and Safeway.

I'll start entertaining the idea that investors are putting money into female owned companies just because they are female when I see the percentage of capital invested in female owned companies go above a few meager percentage points.