The inside story of WeWork, its audacious founder, and the company's dramatic unraveling is revealed by the journalists who first broke the story. Adam Neumann arrived in New York in 2001 after five years in the Israeli navy. Within fifteen years, he became the charismatic CEO of a company valued at $47 billion. With his long hair and inspirational mantras, Neumann embodied the image of a Silicon Valley entrepreneur. He envisioned WeWork as a radical reimagining of workspace for a new generation. As billions in funding flowed in, Neumann's ambitions expanded to include building schools, creating cities, and even colonizing Mars. The company spent money rapidly, outpacing its revenue. From his private jet, often filled with marijuana smoke, Neumann sought more capital. However, in late 2019, just weeks before WeWork's highly publicized IPO, everything collapsed. Neumann was ousted but remained a billionaire. The extraordinary rise and fall of WeWork echo the recent demise of Theranos and the hubris of the dotcom era. This account delves into why major banking and venture capital figures bought into the hype and what the future holds for Silicon Valley ‘unicorns’.
