Yup, I thought that as a possibility. I know the person who was advising him fairly well, we used to be "friends" and coworkers, he contacted me a few times since about other matters but not this. I also wondered if the VC dropped HIS services. He was a Stanford MBA, no technical background. I also wonder if VCs throw money around almost at random, I don't know if many are able to evaluate anything of a technical nature fairly.
The wife watched Sharp Tank a lot, so I catch some of it, and I think their "evaluations" are shallow perforce given time and TV limitations. I guess some work out for them.
A lot of times someone will say they have a provisional patent, which is worth squat, or even an issued patent, but of what sort? With what claims? Just having a patent means nothing. You have to look at the claims and the art area.