Advertisement
Canada markets closed

  • S&P/TSX

    22,011.72
    +139.76 (+0.64%)
     

  • S&P 500

    5,070.55
    +59.95 (+1.20%)
     

  • DOW

    38,503.69
    +263.71 (+0.69%)
     

  • CAD/USD

    0.7320
    +0.0018 (+0.25%)
     

  • CRUDE OIL

    83.40
    +0.04 (+0.05%)
     

  • Bitcoin CAD

    90,737.83
    -433.80 (-0.48%)
     

  • CMC Crypto 200

    1,426.91
    +12.15 (+0.86%)
     

  • GOLD FUTURES

    2,335.70
    -6.40 (-0.27%)
     

  • RUSSELL 2000

    2,002.64
    +35.17 (+1.79%)
     

  • 10-Yr Bond

    4.5980
    -0.0250 (-0.54%)
     

  • NASDAQ futures

    17,656.50
    +306.50 (+1.77%)
     

  • VOLATILITY

    15.69
    -1.25 (-7.38%)
     

  • FTSE

    8,044.81
    +20.94 (+0.26%)
     

  • NIKKEI 225

    37,552.16
    +113.55 (+0.30%)
     

  • CAD/EUR

    0.6836
    -0.0014 (-0.20%)
     

23andMe CEO: We see more opportunities in DNA partnerships

As 23andMe's partnership with GSK comes to an end, the DNA technology company sees other potential pharmaceutical collaborations down the line.

Brian Sozzi
·Executive Editor
Updated ·2 min read

23andMe co-founder and CEO Anne Wojcicki sees a much bigger presence for her DNA decoding company in the pharma space.

"The end of the GSK collaboration comes in July, and it opens up all kinds of doors for us to start to do more partnerships with more companies," Wojcicki told Yahoo Finance Live (video above) at the 2023 Milken Institute Global Conference.

Wojcicki declined to share details on potential future partners but added that the partnership with pharma giant GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) has "done extraordinarily well."

SAN FRANCISCO, CA - SEPTEMBER 05: 23andMe CEO Anne Wojcicki speaks onstage during Day 1 of TechCrunch Disrupt SF 2018 at Moscone Center on September 5, 2018 in San Francisco, California. (Photo by Steve Jennings/Getty Images for TechCrunch)
23andMe CEO Anne Wojcicki speaks onstage during Day 1 of TechCrunch Disrupt SF 2018 at Moscone Center on September 5, 2018, in San Francisco, California. (Photo by Steve Jennings/Getty Images for TechCrunch) (Steve Jennings via Getty Images)

23andMe inked a four-year exclusive deal with GSK in 2018, which was extended for another year in Jan. 2022. GSK also invested $300 million into 23andMe.

ADVERTISEMENT

As part of the collaboration, 23andMe shares DNA analysis gleaned from the kits consumers send to the company with GSK. The two then review the results and aim to develop new medicines built around DNA.

The partnership with GSK has yielded 50 developmental drug programs, Wojcicki said. A cancer drug is currently in a phase I study controlled by GSK.

Still, forming more partnerships with leading drugmakers could be a welcome catalyst for 23andMe stock.

23andMe went public in June 2021, tapping into the SPAC boom. The company merged with VG Acquisition Corp., a SPAC founded by billionaire businessman Richard Branson, with an agreement that valued 23andMe at $3.5 billion.

Today, 23andMe's market capitalization stands at about $900 million as the company has incurred heavy losses to further build out its business.

Wojcicki contended the company is just getting started.

"I look at the explosion of all these new technologies with gene therapy, with CRISPR, with RNA technologies, and understanding the human genome," Wojcicki said, "and I think what 23andMe can really bring to the table here is the understanding of the human genome."

Brian Sozzi is Yahoo Finance's Executive Editor. Follow Sozzi on Twitter @BrianSozzi and on LinkedIn. Tips on deals, mergers, activist situations or anything else? Email brian.sozzi@yahoofinance.com

Click here for the latest stock market news and in-depth analysis, including events that move stocks

Read the latest financial and business news from Yahoo Finance