Element Biosciences, a growing biotech company in San Diego, just raised $277 million in funding.
Wellington management private investment led the way, and other big companies like Samsung Electronics and Fidelity also invested money.
Now, Element Biosciences has a total of $680 million in funding.
This new funding has made the company worth $1.03 billion.
This shows that many investors believe Element Biosciences has a bright future and can grow a lot in the coming years.
The Biology’s mysteries
Element Biosciences is a company focused on the mysteries of biology.
Their main product is the Aviti DNA sequencing system which helps to read out DNA, RNA and proteins: the building blocks of life.
With these building blocks in mind, scientists determine more accurate and specific treatment plans for various illnesses.
Molly Ho, the CEO and founder of the company, said that this new money will help them do more research and make more of their medicine.
The Aviti sequencer
The main focus of Element Biosciences is the Aviti sequencer.
It is already evident that this device will bring a lot of changes in this field.
It has about 200 units installed in different laboratories, hospitals and firms dealing with pharmaceutical products.
According to Tech Zero News, the Aviti sequencer made more than $25 million in 2023. The company expects to generate more than double of this revenue in 2024.
However, what distinguishes the Aviti sequencer is its “avidity sequencing” technology.
In contrast with approaches that have been used for nearly 20 years, avidity sequencing provides almost 100% accuracy requires fewer reagents and steps and is therefore cost-efficient.
Competing with giants
Element Biosciences will operate in a market that is already occupied by a market incumbent Illumina which currently holds 80% of the sequencing market.
Despite its relatively low stock price over the last few years, Illumina remains a large company with a market capitalization of roughly $17 billion and revenue of around $4.
About 5 billion dollars in sales last year.
However, there are some advantages for Element, firstly the company’s technology and non-traditional workflow provide a competitive advantage.
Their instruments are designed for small and specialized labs and encompass more opportunities and versatility compared to their large competitors.
The team behind the innovation
Molly Ho was born in China and migrated to the United States in 1992 for her PhD program in protein biophysics and biochemistry at UCLA.
After three years in academia, she joined the biotech industry, working in several companies including future rivals Pacific Biosciences and Illumina.
Illumina in 2017, and together with Mike Previte, the current CTO of the company, and Matthew Keringer, the VP of biochemistry, she co-founded Element Biosciences.
Their competencies and shared vision help the company to promote innovative solutions in the field of DNA sequencing.
Growing across Europe
This just shows that Element Biosciences is not just targeting the US market alone.
Earlier this year, they released the Aviti24 sequencer that allows for multiple omics workflows at the same time.
It is also increasing its focus on artificial intelligence; recently, the firm has hired an executive for AI.
Currently, their products use machine learning as a part of the genome sequencing process.
However, it will have to be advanced over time as Element’s clients accumulate more and more diverse data.
Supporting scientists everywhere
Molly Ho has the view that scientific tools should be within every researcher no matter the amount of money they have.
She refers to this as an investment in scientific freedom.
Through the affordability of these advanced tools, Element Biosciences seeks to assist the scientific fraternity in making discoveries.
This new funding is a move towards that vision, providing equal opportunities to allow researchers to access, decode and understand the secrets of life.
Great times ahead
According to Forbes news, Brightening the future of the biology field, Element Biosciences has received $277 million in new funding.
Their innovative equipment and dedication to making it available for use will allow researchers to reveal the secrets of life and create new possibilities in the medical sector.
The future is bright for this young and driven company and the scientific world looks forward to the next innovation from this startup.
Related Post
