by Dan Frey
PATIENT DESCRIPTION:
Patient is mid-20s PhD candidate in Computer Science graduate program. Physically fit. No reported housing issues. Social member of his community. Limited romantic and sexual history (more later).
SESSION NOTES:
At time of assessment, Patient was lethargic, depressive, and filled with shame. Patient had been treated with antipsychotics and precipitating manic state had subsided.
Nature of Patient’s manic states: grandiosity combined with paranoid delusion. At peak states of agitation, Patient believes himself to be only individual capable of solving major global crises. During these episodes, he also believes the course for which he worked as a TA was a theatrical production entirely for the purpose of tricking him, testing him, or monitoring him (varies). Patient believed peers and colleagues were in on an elaborate deception targeting the contents of his mind.
Over course of last 2–3 weeks, Patient had come to believe that the federal government was spying on him through his university. Incident at Student Services building resulted from belief that the University was monitoring his thoughts through radio devices concealed therein.
Patient also reports romantic fixation on a female friend who is married to a close male friend of Patient (incidentally, same male friend who notified Campus Police of Patient’s episode, and likely saved his life). Patient believes female friend to be the only person he is capable of loving, while Patient’s male friend is the only person in the world who loves him. This overblown self-dramatization of personal life is consistent with BPD.
Patient reports strong desire to improve his mental health, and acknowledges role of discontinuing medication in this episode. Patient acknowledges history of suicidal ideation but reports none currently.
RECOMMENDATION:
48-hr inpatient hold for ongoing assessment and monitoring, followed by intensive outpatient therapy (group sessions, individual talk therapy, psychiatrist-guided pharma protocol).
EXCERPT FROM CONGRESSIONAL HEARING—DECEMBER 1, 2021
REP. ALEJANDRO CORTES (D-NM): Mr. Boyce, were you aware of the mental-health history of your co-founder?
BOYCE: Aware? Of course. I was actively involved in it from college onward. When he had his breakdown in grad school, I was the one who helped get him into treatment, and helped him avoid going to jail. I was there for him all the way.
REP. ALEJANDRO CORTES (D-NM): Were you ever concerned about his ability to responsibly participate in managing the company?
BOYCE: Managing was really my job. That’s why we made a good team. Adhi’s a genius, but you leave him to his own devices, he’s gonna get lost.
REP. ALEJANDRO CORTES (D-NM): Is it possible that might explain his absence today?
BOYCE: Possibly. I dunno. He’s high-functioning, so, the episodes, you never really see them coming until it’s too late. And when all this started going down—when he started getting a little bit paranoid and pulling away, I wasn’t paying as much attention maybe, because I was dealing with other issues.
MEDIUM.COM POST, LATER PICKED UP BY HUFFPOST—OCTOBER 12, 2021
THE FUTURE IS NOT FEMALE
By Carrie Chan
Unless you’ve been hiding under a rock, you know that The Future is on track to become the tech story of the decade. Their technology is being widely heralded as a communications revolution that will empower people equally to take charge of their future.
“Equally”? Riiiight. Don’t believe the hype.
I was working at The Future until just recently, in what I considered to be the enviable position of Chief Marketing Officer. I enjoyed the title, and the startup-with-cash-to-burn salary. But the time came when I had no choice but to leave, due to a culture of sexism, secrecy, and boys’ club power dynamics that I could not bring myself to remain a part of.
Before going any further, I have to be honest about part of my time at The Future that I’m not proud of. For six months on and off, CEO Ben Boyce and I engaged in a relationship that crossed lines of what is professionally appropriate. On at least one occasion, the relationship became physical.
Now, I know, “crossed lines” and “became physical” are frustratingly vague, but trust that I’ll dish in more depth soon. For now, I’ve got lawsuits to worry about.
The real point I want to make is about how emotionally difficult this hostile work environment became. It was impossible to maintain healthy boundaries in a situation where every interaction was infused with an unspoken expectation that I would play the role of the “cool girl”—unfazed by raunchy conversation and leering looks.
On top of that, the situation got a whole lot worse when Ben brought his wife to work at the company (where she is still employed). Ben would flirt with me one minute, then switch it off as soon as she approached. He was clearly playing mind games and obviously enjoyed the power dynamic.
Meanwhile, he teased the possibility that “our future” together was very promising (as he’d seen through his little device), which I knew was an insinuation intended to entice me toward a romantic relationship. Anyone who has dated in the Valley (or probably any other major city) knows this is classic fuckboy behavior (yeah, married men can be fuckboys too).
Now, the heart of this is not simply the all-too-familiar story of an illicit office romance. It is the story of a technological wonder, being controlled by men, and used to exploit women.
I asked Ben, on multiple occasions, for permission to use The Future’s Prototype device. After all, Ben and his co-founder, Adhvan, regularly used it, and it was slated for imminent commercial release to the public. And I knew it could be invaluable for me in doing my job.
But Ben refused every single time—except for in the one instance when it would directly benefit him, and help him cover up his misconduct.
In fact, Ben seemed to enjoy refusing to grant me access to his precious Prototype. He would tease me with hints of what he might know. On occasion, he implied that he would provide infallible stock tips in exchange for sexual favors (yeah, “just the tip” jokes, try not to barf in your mouth).
The problem here is not limited to this company, or this technology. It is a systemic oppression of women by men, using the leverage of technology and the wealth of this industry.
If we want our future to be different from what I saw at The Future, we need to stand up to this company—to boycott their upcoming product launch until we see real, actionable change in the way women are treated there, and throughout Silicon Valley.
TEXT MESSAGE EXCHANGE
LEILA KEENER-BOYCE
October 12, 2021 1:52 PM
Honest question here: how much more of this am I going to be asked to put up with? Because my tolerance is stretched to the breaking point, and I need you to at least be clear about what I’m up against.
BEN BOYCE
Babe this chick is off her rocker.
The only reason this is happening is I made it CLEAR to her that I’m not interested and happily married.
Happily, right.
Hey first you were mad bc you thought I was gonna end up with her
Now you know that’s not gonna happen and you’re still pissed
Are you trying to convince me that I don’t have the right to be upset about my husband being accused of sexual harassment?
Look I’m really sorry. I fucked up.
I owe it to you to deal with this.
We will, I promise.
But the work part has to happen first
The press are asking if I’m gonna resign.
This could cost us everything.
I’m at the office working on a public statement.
You can help me, or not.
As far as we’re concerned, this is definitely not “over.” But I also don’t want you to bot
ch this or embarrass me any more than you already have. So yes, I will be there in 20 minutes, and you don’t do anything without running it through me.
PRESS RELEASE STATEMENT FROM BEN BOYCE
I am shocked and disappointed by the accusations from our former employee that were published online today, in a piece that blindsided our company.
First, as a happily married man, I must address the allegations and insinuations. Ms. Chan was flirtatious toward me since the first time I met her. I attempted to keep our interactions professional nonetheless. At one company event, I did, unfortunately, during a lapse of judgment connected with excessive drinking, share an inappropriate moment with her. But it was never a sexual relationship, and I am deeply sorry for how I hurt my wife through my poor judgment, which I will never do again.
Second, regarding our company culture, I am appalled by Ms. Chan’s reckless and unfounded allegations. As a Black entrepreneur, I, and my Indian American co-founder, Adhvan Chaudry, are aware of what it means to belong to a marginalized group, and to try to distinguish yourself in the predominantly white culture of Silicon Valley.
At The Future, we treat women with utmost respect. Hopefully, there is no more clear indication of that than the fact that my wife, Leila Keener-Boyce—as proud and strong a feminist as you are likely to find—chose to leave her previous law firm to work here. We will continue to try to grow and find new and better ways to elevate our female colleagues, but we will not stand idly by and accept reckless accusations.
The Future is, by its nature, a democratic technology. We have chosen to build our device, and will soon roll it out, in a way that benefits the greatest number of people possible. The Future is an equalizer and champion of the oppressed. Historical inequalities and injustice, including the marginalization of women, will be challenged and eventually erased by the technology we are building for YOU.
TEXT MESSAGE EXCHANGE
LEILA KEENER-BOYCE
October 12, 2021 7:25 PM
ADHVAN CHAUDRY
Dark times, Lei.
Calling this woman’s story into question.
Come on, think about it from my perspective. All I have to go on is what Ben tells me. Given that my marriage and my livelihood are both staked to this company, maybe you could cut me a little fucking slack here.
I just want you to be your best self.
The you that college-you would be proud of.
I did the best I could with the information I had.
You could’ve asked me.
Are you saying you knew about this?
Of course I knew.
WTF. Why didn’t you talk to me sooner?
Wasn’t my place.
But if you asked, I would never lie to you.
OK then. Was it really just a kiss?
Far as you know.
Yes.
Well, more of a sloppy make-out, but yes, that’s all I saw.
Wait you’re telling me you actually saw this happen?
At the 4th of July party?
Yes. After you left.
Everybody was quite drunk.
Not that that’s an excuse.
Why do you think me and Ben had that fight?
I can think of several good reasons actually.
Fair enough.
I asked him about it repeatedly, he told me it was about money.
Can you imagine me hitting him over $?
I can’t really imagine you hitting anyone at all. I hope you don’t think you were defending my honor or some macho nonsense.
I was just mad at him.
Sorry I didn’t tell you sooner
Didn’t feel like the right thing to do.
Because he’s your friend?
Something like that.
I’m your friend too, you know.
Yes but I wanted you to be more.
Which is why I couldn’t tell you.
Ugh. You didn’t think that maybe knowing the truth about that would’ve spared me some of the guilt about what happened between us? I’ve been losing sleep over this.
I couldn’t let it be part of your decision-making process.
Well, mission accomplished I guess. But now I’ve got other decisions to make, like whether or not I should leave.
Ben, or The Future?
Both. And to be honest, the main reason I’m feeling conflicted is that my dad would love to be right. About both. And that’s perhaps the only thing that could make this worse.
So. Should I stay or should I go now?
It’s a real dilemma.
Can’t you just tell me what I’m actually going to do? I know you’ve seen more than you’ve told me.
I can tell you that you will be fine.
Come on. Please.
If I tell you, my telling you will be entangled with the choice.
Better if you don’t know.
If that’s how you honestly feel about it, then why do you want to put a machine into the world that pretty much does exactly that?
I’m starting to wonder that myself.
CHAPTER 19
DOD INTERNAL MEMO
Internally Circulated 10/6/2021
Publicly Released 9/15/2022
Downloaded Through Prototype 11/3/2021
Department of Defense
1000 Pentagon Rd.
Washington, DC 20301-1000
Memorandum to
Secretaries of the Military Departments
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
Undersecretary of Defense
Chiefs of the Military Services
General Counsel to the DoD
SUBJECT: SECURITY THREATS FROM EMERGING CIVILIAN TECHNOLOGY
The civilian technology firm The Future has developed a consumer product that (per their claims) enables the user to access the Internet in the future. Their stated intention is to launch the product for sale in the United States on 1/1/2022. This memorandum summarizes potential security threats posed by this technology.
1) Foreign Military Powers
International governments which have access to this technology will be able to foresee future troop deployments and military tactics of the U.S. Armed Forces, which could be used by them for strategic advantage.
2) International Terrorists
Terror groups including (but not limited to) radical jihadis could use The Future technology to plan attacks for maximum damage, or could use foreknowledge as a recruiting tool (especially toward populations with lower educational and technological access).
3) Foreign Intelligence Services
Hostile uses of the technology include gathering information about our planned intelligence operations, future satellite data gathering, digital spy craft and deception, etc.
4) Weapons Technology Advances
The Future device/services could be used to transmit/intercept/relay underlying plans for upcoming missile, firearm, and cyberweapons systems, into the present moment, creating technological leaps for our enemies.
Recommendation: The DoD moves to recognize this firm and its technology as a Threat to National Security (TNS), and advises immediate legal intervention to compel them to cease and desist until proper regulatory procedures can be put in place.
EMAIL—NOVEMBER 4, 2021
From: Ben Boyce
To: Leila Keener-Boyce
Hey babe, I know things are a bit weird right now, but something came up I’d like your help on. Kevin and I were using the Prototype to review some things coming down the pipeline, and we got our hands on this DoD memo.
It was written last month, but it will be publicly available (I think through a leak) la
te next year. Sharing with you bc it seems like we should try to get ahead of this. And given that we are experiencing certain Discrepancies now, not sure what will happen with this…
REPLY
Got it. Wonderful. I was just thinking, fighting off this Google lawsuit on behalf of my unfaithful husband isn’t giving me enough to do, I could really use a legal battle with the Department of Defense. So yeah, let me get right on this.
And hey, I might be able to strategize on this effectively if you would share any additional info about what’s coming down the pipeline. But I know that’s not gonna happen. So I have to field this blindly.
REPLY
Hey babe, I hear you on all of those frustrations. That said, I’m not clear on what it means in terms of whether or not you’re going to address this, or if I should engage someone else on staff to do it.
EMAIL—NOVEMBER 8, 2021
From: Leila Keener-Boyce
To: (undisclosed recipients)
To the Secretary of Defense and DoD Staff:
As Chief Legal Officer for The Future, I am writing to you pre-preemptively in regard to the DoD Memo “Security Threats from Emerging Civilian Technology.”
Underlying all this, I believe, is a fundamental misunderstanding about the nature of our technology, and the way it will affect the world once it is deployed uniformly (meaning, with equal access to all, which obviates any strategic advantages or security threats).
I am reaching out in the hope that we can avoid costly and drawn-out legal action. We have not violated any laws, and our company does not fall under the jurisdiction of the Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement, and therefore is not subject to the scrutiny of your Department.
