Cambrian Genomics

Cambrian Genomics was a biotechnology company based in San Francisco that pursued an unusually ambitious approach to synthetic biology: using lasers to manipulate and reproduce selected DNA sequences. Founded by Austen Heinz, the company presented DNA synthesis as a programmable manufacturing process and argued that increasingly accessible biological tools could allow customers to design new organisms by modifying genetic codes on a computer. The company’s technology combined commercially available genome-sequencing equipment with a sequencing system developed by Heinz. Unlike conventional sequencing processes that destroy the biological material being read, Cambrian Genomics said its system could recover the underlying DNA. It then used laser-pulse catapulting to eject copies of DNA. Customers could amplify those sequences through polymerase chain reaction and introduce the resulting synthetic DNA into cells. The company promoted the platform as a way to produce genetic material for research and, more broadly, to make biological design more accessible. Cambrian Genomics reported work for large life-sciences companies including Roche, GlaxoSmithKline, and Thermo Fisher Scientific. It also attracted prominent technology and venture investors, among them Peter Thiel, Bre Pettis of MakerBot, Bryan Johnson of Braintree, Jeff Hammerbacher of Cloudera, Carl Bass and Jeff Kowalski of Autodesk, and Dave Friedberg of the Climate Corporation. In 2014, the company raised a reported $10 million funding round aimed at expanding DNA-printing work for industrial chemical and agricultural customers. Its most visible public-facing project was Glowing Plant, an effort to create genetically modified plants that emitted light. The project used Kickstarter and raised approximately $500,000 in 2013, making it an early example of a biotechnology venture using crowdfunding to build public interest and finance development. The project also illustrated the gap between the company’s expansive synthetic-biology vision and the practical difficulty of engineering plants that produce commercially meaningful levels of light. After Heinz died by suicide on May 24, 2015, at age 31, the company continued attempting to develop revenue-generating applications for bioluminescence and DNA synthesis. In December 2017, Cambrian Genomics informed recipients by email that it had exhausted its remaining bioluminescence-related commercial ideas and was ceasing operations. The company is therefore a defunct biotechnology venture rather than an active consumer genetics or laboratory-services brand.

Cambrian Genomics emerged in San Francisco during a period when synthetic biology companies were attempting to reduce the cost and complexity of reading, writing, and editing DNA. Its founder, Austen Heinz, pursued a method that combined sequencing with laser manipulation. The company used commercially available genome sequencers alongside a sequencer built by Heinz, which was described as capable of recovering the DNA being analyzed instead of destroying it during the sequencing process. The company’s central technical concept was laser-pulse catapulting. After identifying genetic material, Cambrian Genomics used laser pulses to eject copies of DNA. Those copies could then be amplified with polymerase chain reaction and inserted into cells by customers. This approach supported the company’s claim that it could print or manufacture genetic material for a wide range of biological applications. Cambrian Genomics said it had produced DNA for major pharmaceutical and life-sciences companies, including Roche, GlaxoSmithKline, and Thermo Fisher Scientific. Rather than limiting the platform to laboratory supply, Cambrian Genomics promoted a broader vision in which customers could use computer-based tools to alter the genetic codes of plants and animals and design new biological forms. That positioning helped distinguish the company from conventional contract laboratories, although the practical and regulatory challenges of creating and commercializing engineered organisms remained substantial. The company became particularly visible through Glowing Plant, a project to produce genetically modified plants capable of emitting light. The effort received approximately $500,000 through Kickstarter in 2013. Glowing Plant connected Cambrian Genomics’ DNA-synthesis ambitions with a consumer-facing demonstration, but it also exposed the technical difficulty of generating strong, reliable bioluminescence in plants. The project’s public profile made the company part of wider discussions about crowdfunding, do-it-yourself biology, genetic engineering, and public access to biotechnology. Cambrian Genomics also sought industrial applications. In 2014 it raised a reported $10 million round intended to fund DNA-printing work for customers in industrial chemicals and agriculture. Investor support reportedly included Peter Thiel, Bre Pettis, Bryan Johnson, Jeff Hammerbacher, Carl Bass, Jeff Kowalski, Dave Friedberg, and venture-capital firms. These relationships reflected the company’s position between biotechnology and the technology-startup world. Austen Heinz died by suicide on May 24, 2015, at the age of 31. The loss of the founder affected the company during a period when it was still searching for dependable commercial applications. Cambrian Genomics continued exploring bioluminescence and other ways to generate revenue, but the company later concluded that its remaining bioluminescence ideas were not producing viable income. In an email sent in December 2017, it announced that it had exhausted those avenues and was ceasing operations. No active successor brand or parent company is identified in the available reference material.

1. 2017Operations cease

   The company announced in December that it had exhausted its remaining bioluminescence-related revenue ideas and was ending operations.

   Source
2. 2015Death of founder Austen Heinz

   Founder Austen Heinz died by suicide on May 24, 2015, at age 31.

   Source
3. 2014Industrial and agricultural funding round

   Cambrian Genomics raised a reported $10 million round intended to expand DNA-printing work for industrial chemical and agricultural customers.

   Source
4. 2013Glowing Plant crowdfunding campaign

   The Glowing Plant project raised approximately $500,000 through Kickstarter to support genetically modified plants intended to emit light.

   Source

Cambrian Genomics positioned itself at the intersection of synthetic biology, genetic engineering, and advanced laboratory instrumentation. Its brand promise centered on treating DNA as programmable, manufacturable material and making biological design more accessible to companies and, through Glowing Plant, to the public.

• Laser-based DNA synthesis platformSynthetic biology technology

  Cambrian Genomics developed a laser-based system for manipulating selected DNA sequences. Its process combined sequencing, recovery of underlying DNA, and laser-pulse catapulting to eject copies of genetic material. Customers could use polymerase chain reaction to amplify the resulting DNA and introduce it into cells. The company presented this platform as a programmable way to manufacture genetic material for pharmaceutical, industrial, agricultural, and research applications.

• Glowing PlantGenetically modified plant project2013

  Glowing Plant was Cambrian Genomics’ best-known public project. It sought to create genetically modified plants that emitted light and used Kickstarter to raise approximately $500,000 in 2013. The project served as a consumer-facing demonstration of synthetic biology, but the company encountered difficulty making the plants produce significant amounts of light.

• Custom synthetic DNA servicesBiotechnology services

  The company supplied or produced genetic material for corporate and research customers, reportedly including Roche, GlaxoSmithKline, and Thermo Fisher Scientific. Its stated customer proposition was to enable the design and production of new DNA sequences that could be amplified and used in biological systems.

• 2013Glowing Plant Kickstarter

  United States · Online crowdfunding

  Cambrian Genomics supported the Glowing Plant project, which sought to make genetically modified plants that emitted light. The Kickstarter campaign raised approximately $500,000 and brought synthetic biology into a consumer crowdfunding setting.

  Outcome. The campaign generated substantial attention and funding, but the company struggled to achieve significant plant luminescence and later discontinued its bioluminescence-related commercial efforts.

  Source

• 2017Cease operations after abandoning bioluminescence revenue ideasStrategy

  The company reported that its remaining efforts to generate revenue from bioluminescence were not producing viable business opportunities.

  What changed. In December 2017, Cambrian Genomics announced by email that it had exhausted those ideas and was ceasing operations.

  Aftermath. Cambrian Genomics became a defunct biotechnology company. No successor operation is identified in the available reference material.

  Source
• 2014Expand DNA printing toward industrial and agricultural customersStrategy

  Cambrian Genomics sought applications beyond research and pharmaceutical customers, focusing part of its business development on industrial chemicals and agriculture.

  What changed. The company raised a reported $10 million funding round intended to support DNA-printing work for those industries.

  Aftermath. The available reference material does not document the commercial results of this expansion. The company ultimately ceased operations in 2017.

  Funding raised. $10 million (2014 funding round)

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• 2017Cambrian Genomics ceases operations

  In December 2017, the company said by email that it had exhausted its remaining money-earning ideas related to bioluminescence and was ending operations.

  Bankruptcy
  Source
• 2015Founder Austen Heinz dies at age 31

  Founder Austen Heinz died by suicide on May 24, 2015. The event was a major leadership disruption for the young company.

  Leadership change
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• 2014Cambrian Genomics raises $10 million for industrial and agricultural DNA printing

  The company raised a reported $10 million funding round intended to expand DNA-printing work for customers in industrial chemicals and agriculture.

  Other
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• 2013Glowing Plant Kickstarter raises approximately $500,000

  Cambrian Genomics produced genetic material for the Glowing Plant project, which used crowdfunding to support the development of genetically modified plants intended to emit light.

  CampaignProduct launch
  Source
• Cambrian Genomics develops laser-based DNA synthesis technology

  The company developed a system that combined genome sequencing, DNA recovery, and laser-pulse catapulting to produce copies of selected genetic material for customers.

  Product launch
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1. Cambrian Genomics