WeWork: How Adam Neumann Lost $47 Billion in 4 Years | The Complete Story

August 2019: WeWork was worth $47 billion—the world's most valuable startup. November 2023: Bankrupt. This is the complete story of how Adam Neumann convinced SoftBank, Goldman Sachs, and the world that renting desks was worth more than Uber—and how it all came crashing down in just 4 years.

From tequila-fueled parties and private jets stuffed with marijuana to the devastating IPO that exposed a $47 billion fraud, this documentary reveals the shocking truth behind WeWork's rise and fall.

⏱️ TIMESTAMPS:
0:00 - Cold Open: The $47 Billion That Vanished
0:45 - Chapter 1: The Hustler (Adam's Origin Story)
5:30 - Chapter 2: The Believer (SoftBank's $4.4B Bet)
10:00 - Chapter 3: The Unraveling (The IPO Disaster)
15:30 - Chapter 4: The Aftermath (Bankruptcy)
18:30 - Chapter 5: The Reckoning (Who Paid the Price)
19:30 - The Lesson Nobody Learned

🔥 KEY REVELATIONS IN THIS VIDEO:
• Masayoshi Son invested $4.4 billion after just a 28-minute meeting
• Adam Neumann cashed out $700 million before the IPO collapse
• WeWork committed to $47 billion in rent but had only $4 billion in customer revenue
• Flight crews wore oxygen masks due to marijuana smoke on Adam's private jets
• Adam threw a tequila party with Run-DMC minutes after firing 1,000 employees
• SoftBank lost $14.4 billion trying to save WeWork
• Adam walked away with $1.7 billion while employees lost everything
• Adam's new company just raised $350 million—history repeating?

📊 THE NUMBERS THAT SHOCKED WALL STREET:
Peak valuation: $47 billion (January 2019)
Failed IPO attempt: $10 billion (August 2019)
SPAC merger: $9 billion (October 2021)
Bankruptcy: -$3.6 billion (November 2023)
Post-bankruptcy: $760 million (June 2024)
Total collapse: 98.4% loss in value

💼 THE SHOCKING CONFLICTS OF INTEREST:
Adam Neumann:
→ Bought buildings, leased them back to WeWork at inflated prices
→ Trademarked "We" and sold it to WeWork for $5.9 million
→ Took $700 million in personal stock sales before IPO
→ Borrowed millions from WeWork for personal expenses
→ Left with $1.7 billion payout after destroying the company

The victims:
→ 20,000 employees lost their jobs
→ SoftBank lost $14.4 billion
→ Pension funds and investors lost billions
→ Landlords left with empty buildings worldwide

⚠️ THE WARNING NOBODY HEEDED:
In August 2022, Andreessen Horowitz gave Adam Neumann $350 million for his new real estate startup called "Flow." Same founder. Same industry. Same red flags. Will history repeat itself?

🎬 THE RISE AND FALL SERIES - MORE BUSINESS DISASTERS:
This is part of our "Rise and Fall" series documenting the biggest business failures in history. If you want to understand how billion-dollar companies collapse, subscribe for:

→ Theranos: How Elizabeth Holmes' $9B Fraud Landed Her in Prison
→ FTX: Sam Bankman-Fried's $32 Billion Crypto Collapse
→ Enron: The Accounting Fraud That Changed Corporate America
→ Lehman Brothers: The Bank That Triggered the 2008 Crisis
→ BlockBuster: How Netflix Killed a $5 Billion Empire

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📚 SOURCES & FACT-CHECKING:
This documentary is meticulously researched and fact-checked using:
• WeWork SEC S-1 IPO filing (August 2019)
• WeWork Chapter 11 bankruptcy documents (November 2023)
• The Wall Street Journal investigative reporting (2019-2024)
• Bloomberg financial analysis and data
• Financial Times coverage of SoftBank investments
• SoftBank investor presentations and earnings reports
• Court testimony and legal filings
• Masayoshi Son public statements
• Financial statements and quarterly reports

Full source list with links available upon request.

💡 WHY THIS MATTERS TODAY:
WeWork's story isn't just about one failed company—it's a warning about:
• Founder worship culture in Silicon Valley
• Venture capital's obsession with growth over profitability
• Lack of oversight and due diligence
• The danger of charismatic leaders with unlimited funding
• How "vision" can blind investors to basic business fundamentals

The same patterns continue today. In 2024, dozens of unprofitable "unicorn" startups are still raising billions based on charisma and promises of "disruption." WeWork's collapse should have changed everything. It didn't.

🎯 RELATED TOPICS & KEYWORDS:
#WeWork #AdamNeumann #BusinessFailure #StartupCollapse #SoftBank #MasayoshiSon #SiliconValley #Bankruptcy #CorporateDisaster #BusinessDocumentary #RiseAndFall #StartupCulture #VentureCapital #IPOFail #BusinessHistory #CorporateScandal #Entrepreneurship #FailedStartup #TechBubble #RealEstate

⚖️ DISCLAIMER:
This video is for educational and entertainment purposes. All information is based on publicly available sources, court documents, and financial filings. This is not financial advice.

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