The Belgian Waffle

A scrappy Flemish speech recognition company tries to put its hometown on the global tech map.

Sponsors
Routable - http://ohmyfraud.promo/routable
Bluebook - http://ohmyfraud.promo/bluebook

• (00:00) - A Pie to the Face
• (01:00) - Welcome to Oh My Fraud
• (06:00) - Welcome to Flanders, Belgium
• (07:30) - Meet the Founders: Jo Lernout and Pol Hauspie
• (09:30) - The Dream of Voice Recognition
• (15:12) - Going Public in a Crowded Market
• (17:42) - Creating the Flanders Language Valley
• (21:42) - Gaston Bastiaens and His Wine Cellar Wager
• (26:23) - Microsoft's $45 Million Investment
• (29:23) - The Philosophy of Pie Throwing
• (30:53) - Explosive Growth and Suspicious Numbers
• (32:53) - Dragon Systems and Dictaphone Acquisitions
• (35:23) - The Korean Revenue Mystery
• (38:23) - Wall Street Journal Starts Digging
• (42:18) - "I Lied About Everything"
• (43:48) - The Resignation and Bankruptcy
• (47:48) - The SEC Reveals the Fraud
• (49:48) - Criminal Convictions and Symbolic Justice
• (50:48) - Lessons Learned: Fake It Till You Make It
• (52:18) - What Happened to the Technology
• (53:48) - Closing Thoughts

HOW TO EARN FREE CPE

In less than 10 minutes, you can earn NASBA-approved accounting CPE after listening to this episode. Download our mobile app, sign up, and look for the Oh My Fraud channel. Register for the course, complete a short quiz, and get your CPE certificate.

https://www.earmark.app/

Download the app:

Apple: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/earmark-cpe/id1562599728
Android: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.earmarkcpe.app

CONNECT WITH CALEB
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/calebnewquist/

Email us at [e-mail]

Sources:

• How Hype Hurt Lernout & Hauspie [Bloomberg via Wayback Machine]
• How High-Tech Dream Shattered In Scandal at Lernout & Hauspie [WSJ]
• Lernout & Hauspie Speech Products: Financing From Start-up through IPO [INSEAD, Herwig Langohr,  Benoit Leleux,  Danny Lein, July 2000, accessed on Sept. 16, 2025]
• Lernout & Hauspie Speech Products: The Question [INSEAD, Arnoud De Meyer,  Bart Pycke, January 1998, accessed on Sept. 16, 2025]
• Quarterdeck Office Systems [Wikipedia]
• Patent Is Won By Quarterdeck [NYT]
• Internet Hype Gives New Life to Quarterdeck Stock [LAT]
• Gaston Bastiaens [Apple.Fandom]
• Today in Apple history: Apple exec bets his wine cellar on Newton [CultofMac]
• Will Microsoft's Stake in Lernout & Hauspie Drive Growth in Speech? [Speech Technology Magazine]
• In Brussels, Gates Takes a Pie in the Face [Reuters via Wayback Machine]
• Bill Gates Being Hit in the Face With a Pie (1998) [YouTube]
• Noël Godin [Wikipedia]
• He Plasters Paris’ Elite With Cream Pies [LAT]
• Bernard-Henri Levy Pied again in Belgium [YouTube]
• FM Interviews: Noël Godin [First Monday]
• Lernout & Hauspie Shares Drop Amid Puzzling Revenue Results [WSJ]
• .css-j9qmi7{display:-webkit-box;display:-webkit-flex;display:-ms-flexbox;display:flex;-webkit-flex-direction:row;-ms-flex-direction:row;flex-direction:row;font-weight:700;margin-bottom:1rem;margin-top:2.8rem;width:100%;-webkit-box-pack:start;-ms-flex-pack:start;-webkit-justify-content:start;justify-content:start;padding-left:5rem;}@media only screen and (max-width: 599px){.css-j9qmi7{padding-left:0;-webkit-box-pack:center;-ms-flex-pack:center;-webkit-justify-content:center;justify-content:center;}}.css-j9qmi7 svg{fill:#27292D;}.css-j9qmi7 .eagfbvw0{-webkit-align-items:center;-webkit-box-align:center;-ms-flex-align:center;align-items:center;color:#27292D;}