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Current Illumina Ventures portfolio:

Actym Therapeutics, an immuno-oncology company, is targeting intractable immune pathways in the tumor microenvironment. The company has developed a microbial-based immunotherapy platform called STACT (S. Typhimurium Attenuated Cancer Therapy) which, in preclinical studies, specifically enriches in many types of solid tumors and not in healthy tissue.

Alamar Biosciences is on a mission to transform the field of proteomics to enable the early detection of cancer and other diseases. The company’s two proprietary technology platforms, NULISATM and Attobody™, work seamlessly with the latest advances in genomics to achieve single-digit attomolar detection sensitivity, greatly surpassing the most sensitive protein detection technology on the market today. The Attobodies have picomolar affinity and built-in high specificity and have the potential to expand antibody therapeutics to many targets intractable with conventional antibodies.

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Arbor Biotechnologies is a life sciences company discovering and developing the next generation of genetic medicines based on wholly owned genomic editors discovered from its machine learning/AI driven discovery platform. Since its founding in 2016, Arbor has built the most extensive toolbox of proprietary genomic editors in the industry. Using the discovery platform, Arbor can discover, screen, and engineer novel editing enzymes and effectors that can then be tailored to the underlying cause of disease to result in potentially curative medicines for patients. As Arbor continues to advance its pipeline toward the clinic with an initial focus in liver and CNS disease, the Company has also partnered with Vertex Pharmaceuticals on several gene editing and ex vivo cell therapy programs to broaden the reach of its novel nuclease technology.

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Biota is the pioneer of industrial genomics with a purpose to commercialize Biology as a Data Business™. Since inception, Biota has created $400M in economic value and saved 1.2B gallons of water for several large customers in the energy, chemicals, agriculture, water, and mining industries. Biota provides genomic monitoring solutions that impact strategic decisions with improved ROIC, increased operating margin, and reduced risk. With global scale, Biota has discovered foundational innovations in microbiome science and measurement and developed innovative, enterprise-grade AI software.

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Cernostics is a leader in tissue-based diagnostic testing, providing diagnostic tests with deeper tissue insights, better patient outcomes and lower cost of care. Their mission is to quantify the complexity of the tissue system, providing physicians and patients with individualized, actionable information to improve outcomes and reduce the incidence and mortality of cancer.

Acquired by Castle Biosciences in October 2021

Cradle Genomics proprietary assay is based on the genetic analysis of fetal material that are quickly collected during a first trimester visit with no risk to the mother or developing fetus. Headquartered in San Diego with additional R&D operations in Detroit, Cradle Genomics is dedicated to the transformation of NIPT by offering the most comprehensive fetal genetic analysis and pregnancy health screening solutions at the earliest stages of pregnancy.

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Delfi Diagnostics is committed to developing high-performing, affordable blood tests for early detection of cancer across multiple tumor types. Leveraging recent advances in cancer biology and machine learning, DELFI's technology can achieve high performance from low-cost, widely available sequencing technology.

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DNA Script is a leading company in manufacturing de novo synthetic nucleic acids using an enzymatic technology. The company aims at accelerating innovation in life science and technology through rapid, affordable, and high-quality DNA synthesis. DNA Script's approach leverages nature's billions of years of evolution in synthesizing DNA to set a new standard for how DNA is made and accelerate the adoption of synthetic biology across diverse disciplines such as biopharma, sustainable chemistry and crop science.

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Harnessing the regulatory genome to create next-generation molecular therapies.

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Fluent BioSciences is a privately funded biotechnology company with a mission to accelerate the understanding of biology and disease through accessible, affordable, and scalable solutions for every laboratory from research to the clinic.  Fluent’s breakthrough Pre-templated Instant Partitions (PIPseq™) technology facilitates near-instantaneous self-assembly of individual cells or molecules into millions of uniform partitions without the need for complex instrumentation or expensive consumables. This powerful platform enables extremely sensitive and unbiased preparation of proteins and nucleic acids for a broad range of applications including single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq).

Genome Medical, Inc. is a network of clinical genetics experts integrating genomics into everyday health care. We enable patients and clinicians to navigate the rapidly evolving field of genomics to improve health, diagnose and prevent disease, and lower the cost of care. Our goal is to bridge the gap between genomic technology and medical practice by creating scalable, efficient models for lifelong genome-centered health care.

Kallyope is focused on the identification of new therapeutic and consumer opportunities involving the gut-brain axis, the information highway between our gut and our brain. Founded and headquartered in New York City, Kallyope is integrating cutting-edge technologies including single cell sequencing, optogenetics, neural imaging and bioinformatics into a platform that will decode and translate gut-brain circuits, changing the way we think about food, nutrition, and human physiology.

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LetsGetChecked is a leading health insights company that allows consumers direct access to a wide range of testing options and clinical services from home. Founded in 2015, the company empowers people to take an active role in their health to live longer, happier lives. By combining health data and diagnostic results, LetsGetChecked provides rich health insights to enable better healthcare decision making.

Luna DNA is the first genomic and medical research database owned by its community. A Public Benefit Corporation, Luna DNA enables people to share their health data for medical research for the greater good of the community. 

NanoCellect develops microfluidic technology for cell based assays. NanoCellect’s WOLF cell sorter and N1 single cell plate dispenser allows researchers to perform antibody discovery, cell line development, genomic sample preparation and CRISPR genomic editing faster, safer, and without contamination.

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Pattern Bioscience is an in vitro diagnostics company founded to help combat the problem of antibiotic resistance. Pattern’s next-generation clinical microbiology platform, Digital Culture™, is based on its patented phenotypic single-cell technology that can rapidly identify pathogens and determine their antibiotic response without the need for traditional time-consuming culture steps, delivering more reliable diagnoses days faster than the current standard of care.

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Pluton drives agriculture carbon-negative by leveraging Micromining™ and cutting-edge genomic technologies to utilize beneficial microbes and their natural products.

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Protillion Biosciences is commercializing a disruptive technology for therapeutic antibody discovery.  While current state-of-the-art techniques for antibody discovery and optimization take months of laborious laboratory procedures executed by highly-skilled practitioners, Protillion's high throughput instrument is capable of characterizing the binding affinity of up to 10^6 antibody variants in a 2-day automated run. Our unique approach enables identification of better antibody candidates, an order of magnitude faster.

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Rebus Biosystems is a life science technology company building innovative tools to enable spatial omics without compromise. The company’s automated spatial omics solution, which provides subcellular resolution of biological molecules directly in and across large tissue sections, is enabled by the combination of patented Synthetic Aperture Optics with custom microfluidics and image processing. 

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RedShiftBio is a forward-thinking technology company providing a novel life sciences platform for reliable and accurate detection of pivotal changes in molecular structure that affect the critical quality attributes governing the safety, efficacy, and stability of biomolecules and their raw materials. The company has developed a powerful new analytical technique, Microfluidic Modulation Spectroscopy, that provides in-depth structural information in a single automated analysis

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Ribometrix is a platform therapeutics company discovering small molecule drugs that target functional 3D RNA structures to treat human diseases.

Serimmune reveals the compositions of functional immune repertoires, creating new opportunities for therapeutic and diagnostic development. Serimmune maps the distinct antibodies within a repertoire to antigens associated with infections, allergens, microbiome organisms, autoimmune diseases, and cancers.

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Sherlock Biosciences is developing products that will empower people to access answers and have more control over their health decisions. Through our engineering biology tools, CRISPR-based SHERLOCK™ and synthetic biology-based INSPECTR™, we are bringing together the accuracy of PCR with the convenience and simplicity of antigen tests for molecular diagnostics at the point-of-need. SHERLOCK and INSPECTR can be used in virtually any setting without complex instrumentation, making it well suited for use in the home and in low resource settings, opening up a wide range of potential applications in areas including infectious disease, early detection of cancer, treatment monitoring, and precision medicine. In 2020 the company made history with the first FDA-authorized use of CRISPR technology.

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SonoThera is developing an ultrasound-guided, nonviral gene therapy platform and treatments designed to provide patients with the next generation of safe and effective genetic medicines. The platform utilizes sonoporation, a microbubble-mediated biophysical process to non-invasively deliver nucleic acid payloads of diverse formats and sizes, selectively targeting a wide range of organs within the body.

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IPO in October 2020 (NYSE: SQZ). SQZ Biotechnologies is a cell therapy company developing novel treatments for multiple therapeutic areas. The SQZ platform directly engineers complex cell functions without affecting cell health, with a simple and scalable process.  The therapeutic platform can bring cell therapies into indications where new and innovative treatments are needed the most.

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Stilla Technologies is the multiplex digital PCR company transforming complex genomic data into actionable insights across a wide range of research and clinical applications including cancer and liquid biopsy studies, cell and gene therapies, infectious disease detection, and food and environmental testing. Stilla’s groundbreaking Crystal Digital PCR™ solution, the naica® system, is the industry’s first digital PCR system featuring six fluorescent channels, providing biomedical researchers and clinicians the highest multiplexing and detection capacity available on the market. Stilla has U.S. headquarters in Boston, MA, European headquarters in Paris, France, and strategic distribution and business partnerships in China and throughout EMEA. 

IPO in October 2018 (NASDAQ: TWST). At Twist Bioscience, our expertise is accelerating science and innovation by leveraging our proprietary semiconductor-based synthetic DNA manufacturing process featuring a 10,000-well silicon platform to deliver cost-effective, rapid, high-quality and high throughput gene production, to expedite the design, build, test cycle to enable personalized medicines, pharmaceuticals, industrial chemicals, improved agriculture production, diagnostics, biodetection and data storage.

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A leader in B cell medicines, Walking Fish Therapeutics has made critical advances in engineering technologies to rapidly advance cell-based therapeutics to treat serious diseases, concentrating on oncology, rare disease, regenerative medicine, autoimmune disease, and recombinant antibody production.

Investments made by Illumina, Inc. prior to the launch of Illumina Ventures:

23andMe, Inc. is the leading personal genetics company. Founded in 2006, the mission of the company is to help people access, understand and benefit from the human genome. 23andMe offers the first and only genetic service available directly to consumers that includes reports that meet FDA standards. More than one million customers worldwide have been genotyped by 23andMe, with over 80 percent consented to participate in research.

Ariosa Diagnostics, Inc. is a leading global molecular diagnostics company committed to improving overall patient care by developing and delivering innovative, affordable, and widely-accessible testing services through its CLIA laboratory. Ariosa has developed leading-edge technologies to perform a directed analysis of cell-free DNA in blood.

 

Ariosa was acquired by Roche in 2015.

Baebies provides timely, inexpensive and flexible testing for a wide range of pediatric diseases, particularly through newborn screening. We are bringing new technology, new tests, and new hope to children and their parents worldwide. At Baebies, we believe everyone deserves a healthy start.  

Boreal Genomics develops novel tools for cancer diagnostics and life sciences research based on a platform for enrichment and purification of nucleic acids licensed from the University of British Columbia in 2007. Boreal has commercialized two products, one for purification of highly contaminated DNA samples with applications in environmental metagenomics and forensics, and the second for enrichment of circulating tumor DNA in the rapidly growing “liquid biopsy” field for therapy selection, monitoring, and early detection of cancer.

CareDx, Inc. is a molecular diagnostics company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of clinically differentiated, high-value diagnostic surveillance solutions for transplant patients. The company has commercialized AlloMap®, a gene expression test that aids clinicians in caring for heart transplant patients. The company also develops AlloSure, a donor-derived cellfree DNA based surveillance solution for Kidney Transplant patients.

 

CareDx had a successful IPO in 2015.

Counsyl is a health technology company that offers DNA testing for diseases that can impact men, women and their children. The Counsyl philosophy is simple: screen for diseases where advanced knowledge makes a difference in health outcomes, whether it’s changing a behavior, pursuing preventative measures, or simply preparing for what lies ahead.

Headquartered in Reykjavik, Iceland, deCODE is a global leader in analyzing and understanding the human genome. Using their unique expertise and population resources, deCODE has discovered key genetic risk factors for dozens of common diseases ranging from cardiovascular disease to cancer.

 

deCODE genetics was acquired by Amgen in 2012.

Desktop Genetics is a UK-based software company building a CRISPR AI that enables scientists to modify any cell, in any species by designing and executing personalized CRISPR genome editing, right from their desktop.

Desktop Genetics was acquired by Celixir in 2018.

GenoLogics is a leading provider of laboratory information management system (LIMS) software specifically designed for use with genomics technologies in regulated and unregulated labs. Clarity LIMS offers quick implementation, an intuitive role-optimized interface, and features that make it an invaluable investment for labs that are regulated and utilizing NGS and other genomics technologies.

 

Genologics was acquired by Illumina in 2015.

Helixis developed and manufactured a low cost, high performance realtime PCR instrument based on a technology developed at Caltech by Nobel Laureate David Baltimore. 

 

Helixis was acquired by Illumina in 2010.

Human Longevity, Inc. (HLI), is creating the world’s largest and most comprehensive database of whole genome, phenotype and clinical data, and by applying large scale computing and machine learning to this data, HLI is making novel discoveries which will revolutionize the practice of medicine. HLI’s business also includes the HLI Health Nucleus™, a genomic powered clinical research center which uses whole genome sequence analysis, advanced clinical imaging and innovative machine learning, along with curated personal health information, to deliver the most complete picture of individual health.

Sequenta was a biotech company dedicated to the discovery and development of clinical diagnostics based on a revolutionary new platform for understanding immune system status. A profound reduction in the cost of DNA sequencing enabled the company to develop brand new approaches to measuring the most variable part of the human genome: the immune cell receptor genes.

 

Sequenta was acquired by Adaptive Biotechnologies in 2015.

SpeeDx is an innovative Molecular Diagnostics company with class leading multiplexing technology. From highly multiplexed detection assays for Infectious diseases to characterizing SNPs related to antibiotic resistance, SpeeDx is pushing the limits of qPCR and creating more actionable information for laboratories and clinicians alike.

5/24/2023

Led by Illumina Ventures and RA Capital to discover and deploy microbes that will fight climate change. 

 

Illumina Ventures’ Charles Lin, PhD, who has joined Pluton’s Board of Directors, expressed his excitement about the fund’s first AgBio investment, “In the past two decades, we have witnessed how genomics revolutionized the landscape of human diagnostics and therapeutics. We expect genomics to also enable breakthroughs in agriculture. Pluton’s Micromining™ approach, combining genomics with rigorous data science, can unlock the potential of soil microbes for more sustainable agriculture and beyond.”

5/3/2023

Diagnostic tests are vital, but the current system can be challenging. Blood draw sites are often inconvenient, and patients can wait days for results. In addition, people testing for sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), and other potentially sensitive conditions, may opt-out over privacy concerns. 

Sherlock Biosciences is working to address these issues by changing how people access diagnostics. The company is developing a suite of sophisticated home tests that provide instant and accurate results.  

4/13/2023

Proteomics firm Alamar Biosciences is preparing its NULISA (NUcleic acid-Linked Immuno-Sandwich Assay) platform for an early-access release later this year and a broad commercial launch in 2024.

The NULISA system is based on the proximity ligation assay (PLA) originally commercialized by Olink Bioscience, the forerunner of Olink. PLA uses pairs of antibodies attached to unique DNA sequences to detect proteins of interest. When the antibodies bind to their targets, the attached DNA strands are brought into proximity and ligated, forming a new template that can then be amplified by rolling circle amplification.

2/15/2023

RedShiftBio has created a platform that combines microfluidic modulation spectroscopy (MMS) and quantum cascade lasers to generate precise, ultra-sensitive molecular structure measurements.

“We are helping our customers see things they simply could not see before because it was too challenging or they didn't have the sensitivity or resolution,” said CEO Julien Bradley. “This technology opens doors in both drug development and academic research, giving labs a much better discovery tool.”

1/24/2023

Illumina Ventures, a genomics and precision health focused venture firm, today announced additions to its investment team. Abhijit “Ron” Mazumder, PhD, MBA, joins as a Partner and Lisa Alderson, MBA as an Entrepreneur in Residence.

12/20/2022

Biotech firm Protillion Biosciences said Monday it has closed an $18 million Series A financing round funded by Arch Venture Partners and Illumina Ventures.

The Burlingame, California-based company said it will use the funds to drive development of its technology for identifying and optimizing new protein therapeutics. The technology can characterize the binding affinity of around 1 million antibody variants in two-day automated experiments, according to the firm, providing antibody binding information with amino acid-level resolution at high throughput.

12/5/2022

SonoThera™, a biotechnology company dedicated to treating the root cause of human diseases through genetic therapy, today announced completion of its $60.75M Series A financing round. The financing will support the continued development of SonoThera’s ultrasound-guided, nonviral, gene therapy platform and treatments, designed to provide patients with genetic medicines.

Lead investor ARCH Venture Partners was joined by investors Illumina Ventures, Johnson & Johnson Innovation – JJDC, Inc., Vertex Ventures HC, and Medical Excellence Capital. 

11/9/2022

“Fluent’s technology eliminates the need for complex, expensive instrumentation and microfluidic consumables,” said Wouter Meuleman, Partner at Illumina Ventures. “PIPseq is a simple, scalable workflow that can enable single cell sequencing in every lab for many applications while reducing costs and increasing accessibility.” 

8/11/2022

“This idea that we could infuse these long-lasting, therapeutic protein factories into patients captured our imagination,” said Alexis Ji, Venture Partner at Illumina Ventures. “Rather than patients going to the clinic over and over, the treatment is always there. This creates the potential to offer functional cures for serious diseases.”

8/4/2022

Illumina Ventures announced the addition of four new members to its European team. Arnaud Autret, PhD, MSc, will be Principal and Head of European Operations, William Byrne, PhD, be an Associate – Europe, and Ronan Byrne and Ivan Coulter, PhD, BSc, will serve as Venture Advisors – Europe. 

5/24/2022

Illumina Ventures, today announced the promotion of Malek Faham, MD, PhD, to Chief Scientist having previously served as both a Venture Partner and Entrepreneur in Residence (EIR). In addition, Charles Lin, PhD, has joined the team as a Principal, and Dave Johnson, PhD, has joined as an Entrepreneur in Residence.

3/18/2022

Sherlock Biosciences, a company engineering biology to bring next-generation diagnostics to the point-of-need, today announced it has raised $80 million in a Series B financing. The round was led by Novalis LifeSciences and included new investors Illumina Ventures, Albany Capital and Catalio Capital Management, among others. They joined Northpond Ventures, Good Ventures, and other existing investors, bringing $111 million in total funding raised to date.

2/15/2022

Kallyope, Inc., a leading biotechnology company focused on identifying and developing therapeutics involving the gut-brain axis, today announced the closing of a $236 million Series D financing co-led by Mubadala Investment Company and The Column Group, along with participation from other new and existing investors (including Illumina Ventures). The funds will be used to advance the company’s pioneering drug discovery platform, clinical trials, and pipeline of multiple programs across a broad range of therapeutic areas.

12/15/2021

“While most liquid biopsy efforts focus on circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA), Alamar is taking a different path, looking for circulating cancer-associated protein biomarkers,” said Nick Naclerio, Ph.D., Founding Partner of Illumina Ventures. “This is mostly undiscovered territory and could ultimately lead to highly sensitive diagnostics that find cancer and other diseases early when they are most treatable.”

11/23/2021

Stilla Technologies announced on Tuesday it has raised €31.3 million ($35.2 million) in new funding. The Paris-based firm will use the funds to expand its global commercial presence and develop its next-generation digital PCR platform.

Nick Naclerio, founding partner at Illumina Ventures, said the team sees "incredible promise" in Stilla's platform to "accelerate the utilization of genomics data in routine translational research and clinical settings."

11/9/2021

Arbor Biotechnologies, a biotechnology company discovering and developing the next generation of genetic medicines, today announced the
completion of an oversubscribed and up-sized $215 million Series B financing. Including this round, the Company has raised over $300 million to date. 

10/26/2021

DNA Script, a pioneer in Enzymatic DNA Synthesis (EDS) and DNA printing on demand, today announced it has raised $165 million in a Series C financing led by Coatue Management and Catalio Capital Management. The new funds will be used to accelerate expansion and commercialization of the company’s revolutionary SYNTAX Platform and broaden the portfolio of products powered by EDS.

10/19/2021

Castle Biosciences, Inc. (Nasdaq: CSTL), applying innovative diagnostics to transform disease management and improve patient outcomes, today announced it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Cernostics, Inc. (Cernostics), an Illumina Ventures company. Cernostics specializes in spatial biology and artificial intelligence-driven image analysis of tissue biopsies. Its TissueCypher® Barrett’s Esophagus Assay is the first precision medicine test designed to predict future development of high-grade dysplasia (HGD) and/or esophageal cancer in patients with Barrett’s esophagus (BE).

10/18/2021

RedShift BioAnalytics Inc. (RedShiftBioⓇ), a company providing next-generation platform technology enabling measurement of previously undetectable structure changes in biomolecules, announced today the closing of its Series E Preferred Stock financing. The $20 million financing was led by Illumina Ventures and joined by all of the company’s current major investors, including Technology Venture Partners and Waters Corporation. “RedShiftBio has made great strides in developing and launching its novel platform technology, and this financing will position the company very strongly to execute against the sizeable market opportunity for MMS in the field of structural biology,” said Wouter Meuleman, Partner of Illumina Ventures.

10/6/2021

National Venture Capital Association interviews Nick Naclerio, Founding Partner at Illumina Ventures, to learn more about the firm...
Illumina Ventures invests in early-stage life science companies with a particular focus on genomics and precision health. Our team and our unique relationship with Illumina, Inc. (NASDAQ: ILMN) is what sets us apart from other firms. Our members have been both investors and entrepreneurs in genomics for more than 20 years, so we bring a deep understanding of technologies and markets.

10/4/2021

In honor of the 40th anniversary of Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News, industry leaders in biotech and life sciences give their insights about the emergence of their industries over the last 40 years and what the future holds. Several of our portfolio companies are included in the piece: Sylvain Gariel (co-founder and CEO of DNA Script), Noah Nasser (CEO of Serimmune Inc.), and Emily Leproust (founder and CEO of Twist Bioscience).

9/20/2021

Illumina Ventures, an independently managed, healthcare-focused venture firm, announced today the closing of its second investment fund with total commitments of $325 million, bringing its total capital under management to $560 million. The latest fund is anchored by Illumina, Inc. (Nasdaq: ILMN), with the majority of the total committed capital from other strategic and financial investors, including the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund (ISIF). The fund will support early-stage companies that are pioneering breakthroughs in life science tools, clinical diagnostics, therapeutics platforms, digital health, and other applications of genomics.

9/13/2021

Walking Fish Therapeutics, a leader in B cell engineering, today announced the close of $50M Series A financing— led by investors including Emerson Collective, Illumina Ventures and Quan Capital— to develop B cell  therapeutics for oncology, rare disease, regenerative medicine, autoimmune disease, and recombinant antibody production. “Walking Fish’s financial backing, combined with its high-caliber leadership team, positions it well for success in pioneering B cell engineering,” said Alexis Ji, Ph.D., Partner at Illumina Ventures. “We believe the company has the potential to take the protein and cell therapeutics field to a new plane.”

9/8/2021

Alamar Biosciences, Inc., a precision
proteomics company that brings both ultra-high sensitivity and massively parallel scale to proteomic analysis, announced today that it has closed its $80 million Series B financing round,
bringing its total funding to $110 million. “Alamar has made great strides in developing its novel technologies. This financing will position Alamar to complete the development of its platform and will help position the company for its commercial launch,” said Nick Naclerio, Founding Partner of Illumina Ventures.

8/30/2021

Today, we are proud to announce that we have raised $60 million in a Series C financing — just more than a year after our Series B close. In addition, we have acquired GeneMatters, a leading telehealth genetic counseling and software solutions company, and we welcome their team to the Genome Medical family.

8/17/2021

“We’ve been impressed by Actym’s STACT platform because it’s both systemic and localized,” said Alexis Ji, Ph.D., Partner at Illumina Ventures. “In other words, it’s administered systemically, which is ideal to tackle metastases, but homes in on tumors and avoids healthy tissues, to minimize side effects. Potentially, this approach could increase both efficacy and safety.”

7/20/2021

“Kallyope is leveraging many of the same sophisticated technologies being used to map neural circuits in the brain to understand the cross-talk between the gut and the brain,” said Nick Naclerio, Ph.D., Founding Partner at Illumina Ventures. “The goal is to develop a comprehensive understanding of gut-brain circuits and target those for therapeutic advantage.”

6/17/2021

“This technology is an incredible tool,” said Illumina Ventures partner, Tom Willis, PhD. “By enabling researchers to study cellular and molecular interactions in their native contexts while delivering tens of millions of data points from hundreds of thousands of cells in a matter of days, the Rebus Esper spatial omics platform is ushering in a new era of biology.”

6/7/2021

Virtual health-care startup LetsGetChecked has raised $150 million in new financing to expand its business after seeing a boom in demand for its services during the pandemic. The funding round, which was led by Casdin Capital, valued the startup at more than $1 billion, Chief Executive Officer Peter Foley said in an interview. Other investors included CommonFund Capital, Illumina Ventures, Optum Ventures, and professional golfer Rory McIlroy through his investment firm Symphony Ventures, the company said in a statement.

5/13/2021

“The pandemic has accelerated the development of LetsGetChecked and the telehealth field by at least 3-5 years,” says Nick Naclerio, Ph.D., Founding Partner at Illumina Ventures.

“We anticipated some tailwinds from COVID-19 testing. But we were blown away by the speed at which the company managed to scale to the challenge.”

1/12/2021

Delfi Diagnostics, Inc., a pioneering developer of a new class of high performance, affordable liquid biopsy tests for early cancer detection, has raised $100 million in Series A funding. {Illumina Ventures participated in the round.} Delfi plans to use this round of funds to expand its team of cancer researchers and machine learning experts and to validate its novel next-generation liquid biopsy technology through multiple prospective clinical studies. 

12/15/2020

“SQZ has developed an approach to cell therapy manufacturing that could have a major impact on the industry,” said Alexis Ji, Partner at Illumina Ventures. “We are excited about the prospects of creating cell therapies that are less expensive and can be delivered to patients much more rapidly.”

11/19/2020

Rebus Biosystems, Inc., a life science technology company building innovative tools to enable spatial omics without compromise, today announced the closing of a $20 million Series B financing round, led by Illumina Ventures...“We are excited to support Rebus Biosystems’ mission to bring powerful new spatial omics tools and assays to market,” said Tom Willis, Partner at Illumina Ventures. “The ability of its technology to increase throughput, without compromising biological fidelity, will offer spatial analysis to researchers throughout the scientific community.”  

10/30/2020

​Cell therapy and technologies company SQZ Biotechnologies began trading on the NYSE today. Armon Sharei, CEO of SQZ Biotechnologies, joins Yahoo Finance's Zack Guzman and Anjalee Khemlani to discuss.

10/21/2020

“Pattern’s next-gen clinical microbiology platform will set new standards in antibiotic susceptibility testing,” says Nick Naclerio, Illumina Ventures Founding Partner. In our latest Portfolio Company Spotlight, learn how Pattern Bioscience is revolutionizing bacterial diagnosis to fight antibiotic resistance by transforming pathogen identification and antibody susceptibility testing within acute care settings, to optimize decision making for deadly infections such as pneumonia and sepsis.

9/30/2020

Endpoints: Encoded Therapeutics named to The Endpoints 11

The Endpoints 11: Here are some of the most promising startups in biotech. And Covid-19 isn't going to stop them..."The idea driving Encoded’s team revolves around the destructive role that mutations in the SCN1A gene have on GABAergic neurons, which in turn are a likely driver of SCN1A-positive Dravet syndrome."

9/10/2020

Company Spotlight: September 2020 - DNA Script

“The results DNA Script has already obtained in making functional DNA today is impressive, but even more inspiring is the company’s vision of a tomorrow with manufacturing platforms focused upon massively parallel synthesis of longer, high-fidelity nucleic acids — a vision that holds great promise for completely transforming the molecular and synthetic biology solutions market while enabling the data-intensive technology of tomorrow,” said Nick Naclerio, founding partner at Illumina Ventures. 

8/11/2020

Illumina Ventures, an independently-managed, healthcare-focused venture firm in a strategic partnership with Illumina, Inc., today announced the promotion of Wouter Meuleman to Partner. Wouter was part of the founding team at Illumina Ventures, initially seconded from Illumina Inc., and later joined full-time in the role of Principal. He led investments in Biota Technology, Inc., Delfi Genomics, Inc., Fluent Biosciences Inc., and Ribometrix; and played a pivotal role in identifying and evaluating numerous other investments. 

7/13/2020

Pattern Raises Additional $9M to Fast-track New Technology for the Fight Against Antibiotic Resistance

Pattern Bioscience, Inc. announced $9M in additional funding to accelerate the development and clinical validation of its Digital CultureTM rapid bacterial identification and susceptibility testing (ID/AST) technology. Illumina Ventures led the Series B-1 funding. As part of the transaction, Nick Naclerio, Founding Partner of Illumina Ventures, will join Pattern’s Board of Directors.

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