A high-flying Silicon Valley couple has been arrested after allegedly being caught scamming investors out of more than $60 million in cash for their lavish lifestyle.
Alexander Beckman, 41, the founder and former CEO of AI Firm Gameon, and his lawyer wife Valerie Lau Beckman, 38, are accused of carrying out a “brazen and wide-ranging” six-year fraud.
The couple faces dozens of federal charges, including securities fraud, conspiracy and identity theft, for allegedly using investor cash to buy luxury homes, cars and private schools for Alexander's children.
Beckman made his name in Silicon Valley after founding Gameon in 2014, creating AI Chatbot services for clients including professional sports teams and fashion retailers.
He was seen at galas rubbing shoulders with elites including Twitter founder Jack Dorsey, all the while allegedly stealing millions from investors and hiding them with fraudulent documents.
According to a lawsuit filed this week in San Francisco's U.S. District Court, the scheme came down after Gameon's board of directors found a company bank account meant to have more than $11 million contained just 37 cents.
To hide the funds, it is alleged that Valerie fooled an investment firm representative at a San Francisco bank last June using a forged balance sheet, but was caught on surveillance cameras.
The investment firm, which is not being named, had poured $5.7 million into Gameon in 2021 and met Valerie at the bank to see how much the AI startup had in its accounts at the time.
Alexander Beckman, 41, the founder and former CEO of artificial intelligence company Gameon, and his lawyer wife Valerie Lau Beckman, 38, are alleged to have carried out a 'brazen and wide-ranging' six-year fraud for dupe investors out of more than $60 million
Last June, Valerie was allegedly caught using bank surveillance footage of a fraudulent balance to claim Gameon had $13.4 million in one bank account — when it actually contained only $25.93 at the time, prosecutors say
According to the complaint, Valerie met with the investment representative and showed a healthy bank balance of $13.4 million, the Mercury News reports.
But the true bank balance in that account at that time became only $25.93.
Valerie had reportedly already gone to the bank before the meeting and emailed a fake statement to a bank employee, asking them to print it out and place it in an envelope and telling them Alexander would pick it up later.
The scheme worked at the time, prosecutors said, as the investment representative believed the statement was real and shared photos of it with other members of Gameon's Board,” the indictment said.
The Beckmans allegedly ran similar schemes for years, using a range of tactics including fake financial documents and fictitious identities – including an entire fictitious board of directors at one time – to pour millions into their personal accounts.
Gameon's list of customers using their AI chatbot included NFL teams such as the Los Angeles Chargers and Las Vegas Raiders, baseball giants New York Yankees and Premier League Title Challengers Arsenal.
Celebrities including Snoop Dogg and Joe Montana were also reportedly investors in the company.
The couple allegedly diverted millions from the company into their personal accounts for luxury purchases including private schools, jewelry and homes, including this $1.5 million mansion
This $4.5 million mansion in Presidio Heights, one of the most elite neighborhoods in San Francisco, was also acquired with investors' cash, with Alexander allegedly faking an entire board of directors meeting claiming to have a $5 loan million to have been offered
The investment company was allegedly duped by Valerie at the bank, one of four, another in San Francisco and two in New York, that were defrauded by the Beckmans.
In another alleged example, one of the companies received an email from Valerie in April 2021 with Gameon doing $4 million in sales and earning $1.9 million that month.
Alexander also allegedly showed investor documents claiming Gameon had $69 million in revenue and $54 million in profits by 2022 — all documents that prosecutors said were fictitious because GameOne's sales never reached $1 million in any year .
After receiving the document, the investment firm decided to send Gameon another $2.5 million three days later, the complaint alleges.
The following month, it is alleged, Valerie sent the same company a spreadsheet showing $9 million with two banks – when in reality they only had $2,350 in one bank and a negative balance in the other.
As alleged by prosecutors this week: 'Gameon was dependent on new investor funds to operate, burned through its funds, received forfeitures from banks, was delinquent in paying certain customers, and was often on the verge of not having enough money in hand. to have the bank operating and payroll. '
To carry out the alleged scam, Alexander would create fake email addresses for real employees, including the Chief's chief financial officer, to Dupe Investors.
He also allegedly “fabricated two GameOn audit reports using the names, signatures and trademarks of reputable accounting firms.”
The couple was arrested in San Francisco on Thursday and pleaded not guilty – with Alexander facing 23 criminal counts, and Valerie facing 16 counts
Prosecutors said the Beckmans poured millions into Gameon from investors, financing a lavish lifestyle that included private education for Alexander's children, a lavish wedding in 2023, jewelry and a Tesla Model X.
According to real estate records obtained by the Real Deal, they also bought two homes in Presidio Heights, one of the most elite neighborhoods in San Francisco.
The first, a $1.5 million mansion, was financed by a secret $360,000 personal loan from Gameon.
Two years later, the couple allegedly transferred a staggering $4.2 million directly into their personal accounts to purchase a second home, all while “knowing that the money was proceeds to defraud Gameon Investors,” the indictment read.
After purchasing the second home with cash, Alexander allegedly attempted to obtain a loan to pay back what they took from the company, with an email to a loan officer detailed in the order allegedly containing the possible loan of 'the most aggressive' loan has requested.
When the loan officer asked for more information, the pair provided board minutes and a board signature showing Gameon approved a loan of up to $5 million — all of which were allegedly forged.
Beckman remained in Gameon as the company's CEO until last summer, when he was forced to resign after a company bank account allegedly contained only 37 cents.
When pressed, Beckman told VentureBeat at the time, “I understand there are serious allegations being made, and I take them very seriously. Accordingly, I look forward to correcting the record and providing the full story at the appropriate time. '
Ten days after Beckman's firing, Gameon revealed that its financial statements dating back years were fake, rebranded itself on the platform and fired almost every employee.
The couple was arrested in San Francisco on Thursday and pleaded not guilty – with Alexander facing 23 criminal counts and Valerie facing 16 counts.
Once seen as a high-flying, wealthy couple, the indictment against them calls for a slew of lavish purchases to be forfeited, including their multi-million dollar mansions and the Tesla.
