If he's the GABA Labs guy, then I'm pretty sure the pitch was basically designer GHB. Which really is a fantastic substitute for alcohol. Very similar intoxication effects, with far fewer downsides. My buddy took that approach to still be able to enjoy social drinking despite gastrointestinal issues preventing the consumption of alcohol. No hangovers, either.

GHB gets a bad rep because it's extremely potent (imagine the same intoxication level as a shot of liquor from 1/3ml of GHB), so it gets used to drug people surreptitiously, and most people aren't good at controlling dosages of liquids like that. Sold pre-diluted, it really wouldn't be much different safety-wise than alcohol.