Over the past three years, Wingwomen Inc. has experienced a sustained pattern of conduct that we believe to be unethical and, in some instances, potentially unlawful. These actions appear to have originated from individuals affiliated with other organizations in the women’s health industry — including consultants, investors, and industry peers. What initially appeared to be isolated incidents in 2023 developed into a concerning pattern of interference, misrepresentation, and reputational harm.

We have long believed our work should speak for itself. However, we now recognize that silence in the face of persistent falsehoods allowed damaging narratives to take root. It’s time to provide clarity, assert our values, and protect our mission.

What We've Faced

The behaviors we’ve encountered fall into the realm of serious business torts—wrongful conduct that inflicted significant damage on our company, team, and community. These include:

Interference with Business Relationships

Partners, clients, and vendors were coerced into ending relationships with us—some under threat of losing funding or access to key industry networks. These tactics led to broken contracts and service disruptions. We have proof that certain external parties may have sought to influence or pressure clients, vendors, and collaborators to disengage from Wingwomen Inc. In some cases, partners reversed course unexpectedly, citing concerns that appeared to be externally driven. These disruptions resulted in broken contracts and lost opportunities.

Misinformation & Defamation

Misleading or inaccurate statements about our leadership, operations, and business model circulated within professional networks — often without direct engagement from the individuals involved. These narratives appeared to negatively affect our credibility and fundraising efforts, despite lacking basis in fact.

Intellectual Property Theft & Trade Secret Misuse

Confidential materials—strategy decks, presentations, financial models, proformas, and proprietary content—were repurposed, ripped off or copied for competitive advantage, violating both federal protections and the collaborative values of this field.

NDA Abuse & Misrepresentation of Intentions

On multiple occasions, individuals expressed interest in collaboration, only to later act in ways inconsistent with their stated intentions. Some entered into Non-Disclosure Agreements (NDAs) under the premise of support or investment, but appeared to use that access to inform parallel or competitive initiatives. We consider this a significant breach of trust and are revisiting how such agreements are evaluated and enforced moving forward.

Nonpayment & Uncompensated Contributions

In several cases, our team delivered services or intellectual contributions with the expectation of payment or future collaboration. These commitments were not fulfilled. While we understand that not every opportunity results in compensation, the repeated pattern of benefit without acknowledgment or reciprocity placed an undue burden on our small team.

Questionable Advising and Conflicts of Interest Among Consultants

External consultants advising on regulatory pathways and commercialization for our medical device offerings uniformly expressed doubt about the viability of our products — despite subsequent FDA confirmation that several devices met applicable standards for market entry. In retrospect, some of these advisors had affiliations with adjacent ventures, presenting potential conflicts of interest that were not disclosed. These interactions significantly delayed our development timeline and depleted valuable resources.

Deliberate Exclusion and Coordinated Gatekeeping

Wingwomen Inc. encountered systematic exclusion from key industry opportunities due to the influence of a small, interconnected network of advisors and decision-makers. Despite strong traction, validation, and clear market demand, we were repeatedly sidelined—often under the guise of vague feedback or moving goalposts. Many of the individuals involved shared affiliations or interests that were not disclosed during application processes. In hindsight, this pattern suggests intentional blackballing, designed to limit our visibility and progress in favor of competing interests.

Discriminatory Conduct

One of the most troubling incidents involved a threat with racially charged symbolism, directed at our founder by individuals associated with an industry program. Although this event was reported through appropriate channels, it was met with silence and inaction. Regardless of intent, actions that evoke historic violence have no place in a space dedicated to health, innovation, and equity.

We share this not to sensationalize, but to underscore the gravity of what we — and potentially others — have faced when working to create change in historically exclusive industries.

The Impact

The greatest damage was not just from individual actions—but from their cumulative, compounding effect. Lies and bad-faith behaviors snowballed into a toxic ecosystem where truth was ignored and misinformation spread unchecked. Opportunities vanished without explanation. Trusted allies fell silent. And our mission was nearly derailed.
We lost time, momentum, and partnerships.
But we did not lose our resolve.

What We’re Doing Now

We’re Taking Accountability

We acknowledge that remaining silent — even under advisement — may have contributed to prolonged harm. That delay affected not only our internal team, but our partners, clients, and supporters who were exposed to conflicting narratives without clarity. We take responsibility for that and are committed to direct, transparent communication moving forward.

To guard against future harm and ensure responsible collaboration, we’ve implemented the following safeguards:

Stricter vetting of partnerships and affiliations
Confidentiality protocols with tiered access to sensitive materials
Required written disclosures of potential conflicts of interest
Formal review processes for new engagements and advisory relationships

These safeguards have been put into place to ensure transparency, integrity, and protection for our team and mission.

These measures are designed to preserve the integrity of our work and protect the mission we serve.

We’ve Hired Organizational & Communications Experts

We’ve engaged a specialized team to support internal infrastructure and ensure all public communications are rooted in verifiable information and aligned with our organizational values.

We’re Correcting the Record

We are actively reaching out to parties who may have unknowingly contributed to misinformation. Likewise, we welcome confidential conversations with anyone holding credible insights about the events referenced in this statement.

If you believe you’ve received inaccurate information about Wingwomen Inc., or if you’d like to share insight directly, please contact us through this confidential form.

We’re Disclosing Conflicts of Interest

We celebrate collaboration built on transparency and mutual respect. Going forward, any undisclosed conflicts of interest — whether personal, professional, or financial — will be grounds for disengagement. We will not knowingly partner with individuals or organizations that fail to disclose overlapping interests or affiliations in writing.

An Open Invitation

If you’ve been misinformed about Wingwomen Inc.—or if you possess direct knowledge of the issues we’ve described—we invite you to connect with us confidentially.

We are currently reviewing all incidents described here with legal counsel and exploring appropriate channels — including professional accountability, restorative dialogue, and, where necessary, legal action.

We also aim to support other early-stage innovators navigating similar challenges by sharing lessons learned and advocating for more ethical industry norms.

Looking Ahead

Wingwomen Inc. was founded to reimagine and rebuild a maternal health system grounded in equity and care. That mission is unchanged.

We are owning our role.
We are protecting our future.
And we are building—intentionally—with those who share our values.

– The Wingwomen Inc. Team

Legal Disclaimer

This statement reflects the experiences and perspectives of Wingwomen Inc. and is based on information available to the company at the time of publication. It is not intended to assert legal conclusions or definitive findings regarding any individuals or entities. All parties are presumed to have acted in good faith unless determined otherwise through formal legal or investigative processes.

Official Statement from Wingwomen Inc.