Synthego Files for IPO: Pioneering Scalable Genome Engineering with Over $3.2B Raised and 250,000+ CRISPR Edits Completed

In 2012, scientists successfully transformed the CRISPR system into an efficient gene-editing tool for the first time, enabling precise cutting and editing of DNA in vitro. The emergence of CRISPR technology has provided unprecedented editing precision and flexibility for life science research.

CRISPR Technology: A Method for Gene Editing Using RNA-Guided DNA Endonucleases to Cut DNA at Specific Locations. As a gene-editing technology that is low-cost, easy to operate, highly efficient, and versatile, it has been widely applied in synthetic biology, medical research, environmental protection, agriculture, and other fields in recent years, significantly promoting the development of these areas.

It was also in this year that Synthego, a genome engineering company headquartered in Silicon Valley, USA, was officially born.Synthego is a leading provider of genomic engineering solutions, dedicated to offering academic researchers and biopharmaceutical companies a suite of products and services for gene editing to accelerate the development of CRISPR-based cell and gene therapies.。

Synthego Builds a Large-Scale Genome Engineering Platform Starting from Full-Stack Gene Editing Engineering by Leveraging Innovative Technologies Such as Machine Learning, Automation, and Gene Editing. Based on this, Synthego Can Engineer Cells Using CRISPR Technology, Provide Synthetic RNA Solutions, and Bioinformatics Services. Specific Products Include CRISPR Nucleases, Synthetic RNA Series Products, Engineered Cells, and Screening Libraries.

In 2012, Synthego was co-founded by Paul Dabrowski and Michael Dabrowski. Before officially entering the bioscience field, Paul and Michael worked as engineers at SpaceX, which was founded by Elon Musk.Despite neither Paul nor Michael having received formal medical training before, they hope to apply the Silicon Valley spirit, characterized by automation and high-speed iteration, to the biotechnology field.

At the time of its establishment, Paul and Michael set their sights on the field of nucleic acid synthesis. After conducting market research, they ultimately chose to focus on developing key materials and experimental services for gene editing based on CRISPR technology, aiming to accelerate advancements in fundamental scientific research, critical disease treatments, and synthetic biology applications.

Synthego's development philosophy has attracted a group of professionals such as engineers, chemists, synthetic biologists, and computational biologists. Currently, Synthego has up to 400 employees and has hired Avi Raval, the former Managing Director of PERELLA WEINBERG PARTNERS, as CFO, and Craig Christianson, the former executive of global biotechnology company Promega Corporation, as CEO.

With the advantages of the core team and technical accumulation,Synthego has developed a high-throughput, standardized genomic engineering platform. This platform is a software-driven automated system that highly integrates core technologies from multiple fields, including proprietary software and hardware, machine learning, bioinformatics, and engineering biology, to achieve the standardized, large-scale, and high-quality production of gene-editing tools and cell-based models.。

Among them, the platform includes two major technical platforms—the gene editing tool platform Halo™ and the genomic engineering cell platform Eclipse™.

Halo™ is an innovative platform that integrates chemistry, industrialization, and automation, comprising a system that incorporates dedicated hardware, microfluidic technology, and dynamic learning algorithms. It can produce personalized, high-quality gene-editing tools according to customer needs, seamlessly supporting customers across different research requirements from Research Use Only (RUO) to Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) compliance.

Eclipse™ is a high-throughput cell engineering platform that delivers large-scale, highly predictable CRISPR-engineered cells. Notably, the platform integrates machine learning and automation technologies, leveraging experience from hundreds of thousands of genomic edits across hundreds of cell types. This enables the execution of predictable CRISPR edits tailored to customer needs while maximizing editing success rates and maintaining the integrity of cell lines.

Synthego's official website shows that its genomic engineering platform can control product quality, scale up large-scale experiments, and reduce costs through automated workflows. The products and technical services it produces can minimize variables and risks in biological research.

Currently, Synthego provides comprehensive CRISPR solutions and services through its genomic engineering platform, thereby enhancing the efficiency of gene-editing experiments, reducing experimental costs, and ultimately accelerating the development of cell and gene therapies.

PublicThe company's main products currently include two categories —— CRISPR nucleases and synthetic RNA series products.Among them, CRISPR nucleases include high-fidelity nucleases hfCas12Max® and SpCas9 nucleases. The synthetic RNA series mainly includes research-use gRNA, IND-enabling sgRNA, and GMP sgRNA.

It is worth mentioning that in July 2022, Synthego announced the start of construction of a GMP-compliant sgRNA production system, which was put into operation by the end of 2022. As a result, the company's GMP sgRNA can be used in clinical trials.

So far, Synthego has reached cooperation with Mammoth Biosciences, Sherlock Biosciences, University of California, San Francisco and Berkeley, as well as the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to accelerate the research and development of related therapies and the application of diagnostic technologies.

Synthego stated that after analyzing nearly 1,000 peer-reviewed studies, the company found that these studies used Synthego's technology in at least one step. Among them is a major NIH project developing a stem cell model for Alzheimer's disease.

According to the data published on the Synthego official website, so far,Products and services have been used in more than 45 countries and regions; the company has synthesized over 1 million sgRNAs and conducted more than 250,000 gene edits, with an average editing efficiency of up to 80%; its technology has been cited by more than 648 peer-reviewed publications, covering numerous fields from gene function validation and disease model construction to primary cells and iPS.。

At the same time, Synthego has gained the favor of the market and capital with its professional technology and outstanding products and solutions. Currently,Synthego Completes 9 Rounds of Financing Totaling $459.7 Million (Approximately 3.28 Billion Yuan), including RA Capital, Founders Fund, 8VC, ZhenFund and other well-known investment institutions and companies.

Synthego Financing Situation Image Source: crunchbase Official Website

In December 2023, the world's first CRISPR gene-editing therapy, Casgevy (exa-cel), was approved for marketing. With the launch of Casgevy, the industry's attention to CRISPR therapies has significantly increased. According to incomplete statistics, there are currently multiple CRISPR gene-editing therapies in active development worldwide. Among them, at least 11 therapies have entered the clinical trial stage. The FDA estimates that starting from 2025, 10 to 20 CGT products will be globally approved each year.

Moreover, with the booming development of synthetic biology, gene-editing technology, as a key underlying technology and tool for cell construction, has become the cornerstone of industrial development. As the market scale of the synthetic biology industry continues to expand, the demand for upstream tool-layer fields will also increase.

According to CBinsights' forecast data, with the broader application of synthetic biology across various fields and improvements in technology, the market size of the synthetic biology industry is expected to expand rapidly. By 2027, the market size of synthetic biology is projected to reach $38.7 billion. Among this, healthcare will be the largest细分 market, with a market size expected to reach $10.3 billion, accounting for 26.6%.

Facing this $10 billion market, Synthego, a company in the upstream tool layer of synthetic biology, is continuously strengthening its core technology and expanding the industrial application scope of its genome engineering solutions by streamlining operations and broadening external collaborations.

March 2024,Synthego Announces Spin-Out of Eclipse™ Platform into EditCo Bio, and appointed Craig Christianson as the company's CEO, thereby allowing itself to focus on the innovative development of product tools based on CRISPR technology.

Going forward, EditCo will operate as an independent entity, providing edited cells and highly optimized synthetic sgRNA products to the rapidly expanding CRISPR market, further expanding its business and increasing market share. John Tan, former President and COO of Synthego, will serve as the company’s CEO, while Dr. Travis Maures, former CTO of Synthego, will take on the role of CSO.

May 2024,Synthego Announces Collaboration with HuiDa Gene on High-Fidelity Nuclease hfCas12Max®According to the licensing agreement, Huigene will grant Synthego the rights to produce and commercially sell hfCas12Max® nuclease, optimize gRNA for research use, and sublicense hfCas12Max® nuclease for therapeutic purposes. This collaboration between the two parties will streamline the development process of CRISPR-based therapeutic applications, providing developers with high-precision, high-efficiency, and next-generation genomic editing tools, thereby enhancing the development efficiency of CRISPR therapies.

Meanwhile, Synthego is continuously driving revolutionary advancements in genomic engineering technologies. By expanding the capacity and functionality of its gene-editing tool platform Halo™, developing next-generation light-controlled CRISPR technology CRISPRoff to reduce CRISPR off-target effects, and more, the company provides comprehensive CRISPR solutions and technical support to accelerate the development of next-generation gene-editing therapies.