Carlos Watson, co-founder of media startup Ozy Media, is on trial for allegedly defrauding investors of tens of millions of dollars by misrepresenting the company’s success, according to a Bloomberg report.Prosecutors claim Watson lied about multiple aspects of Ozy’s business, including boasting that Google had offered to buy the company for hundreds of millions of dollars.
The once-prominent media company collapsed in 2021 after The New York Times exposed a scheme where Ozy’s COO, Samir Rao, impersonated a senior Google executive during a call with Goldman Sachs bankers. Rao, who has pleaded guilty, testified that he and Watson aimed to mislead investors into believing Ozy was profitable.
Sundar Pichai: Never offered to buy Ozy Media for $600 million
Google CEO Sundar Pichai refuted Watson’s claims during his testimony, stating that Google never considered acquiring Ozy, though they did explore hiring Watson to lead their news programming. Pichai also clarified that a potential $25 million investment was part of that proposed employment deal.
“Mr. Watson was a critical part of Ozy Media, and we were considering making an investment in the company to make the transition easier,” Pichai said, according to Bloomberg.
When questioned by the prosecutor, Pichai denied ever offering to buy Ozy for $600 million. Prosecutors allege Watson used this fabricated Google offer to secure additional investment after the Goldman Sachs deal fell through.
Despite Watson’s claims of a close relationship with Google’s CEO, Pichai revealed they had only spoken twice: briefly at a conference and during Watson’s job interview, which occurred weeks after the Goldman Sachs call and for which he was ultimately not selected.
Goldman Sachs bankers called the call “very disturbing”
Other witnesses included Goldman Sachs bankers who participated in the call where Rao impersonated the Google executive. Hillel Moerman, one of two Goldman bankers who were on the February 2, 2021, call when Rao impersonated YouTube executive Alex Piper. Moerman reportedly told jurors it was “one of the most disturbing calls I’ve been on in my career.”
Moerman described it as “a surreal experience. The person spoke in an unnaturally deep voice.” Goldman was reportedly considering a $35 million investment in Ozy and had requested the call after Watson claimed YouTube was one of Ozy’s “most important” clients.
Another Goldman banker, Allison Berardo, testified that what she and Moerman heard on the call “did not sound like a human voice.” “We were both in a state of shock,” Moerman said, as per the Bloomberg report. “Something was off.”
Ozy’s former chief of staff, Suzee Han, also testified, admitting her role in the scheme. “We lied about Ozy’s past performance and historical financials,” Han said according to Bloomberg. “We lied about how the company was doing at that time, so the company’s current performance. We lied about how the company was going to do.”
The trial is ongoing.
