23andMe Research Institute is an American personal genomics and biotechnology nonprofit public benefit company based in Palo Alto, California. It provides a direct-to-consumer genetic testing service in which customers submit a saliva sample that is laboratory analysed using single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) genotyping to generate reports on the customer's ancestry and genetic predispositions to health-related conditions. The company's name is derived from the 23 pairs of chromosomes in a diploid human cell.
Founded in 2006, 23andMe was the first company to offer autosomal DNA testing for ancestry, an approach now used across the industry. Its saliva-based genetic testing service was named "Invention of the Year" by Time in 2008. The company had an early confrontational relationship with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) over its health-related tests, which were suspended in the US from late 2013 until October 2015, when the FDA began granting approvals for specific carrier status and genetic risk reports. Products including both ancestry and health-related components have been available in Canada since October 2014 and in the UK since December 2014.
23andMe went public in 2021 through a merger with a special-purpose acquisition company (SPAC), reaching a peak market capitalisation of approximately US$6 billion. By 2024, its valuation had fallen to roughly 2% of that peak. In March 2025, the company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and CEO Anne Wojcicki resigned. The attorney general of California issued a consumer alert due to privacy concerns surrounding the sensitive genetic data held by the company.
Following a contested bankruptcy auction, TTAM Research Institute—a nonprofit public benefit corporation founded by Wojcicki—outbid Regeneron Pharmaceuticals and acquired substantially all of 23andMe's assets for $305 million. TTAM completed the purchase on July 14, 2025, and the company continues to operate as a nonprofit under TTAM's ownership.
As of February 2024, 23andMe had genotyped more than 14 million individuals, and its research database has contributed to hundreds of peer-reviewed publications across areas including Parkinson's disease, depression, COVID-19, autoimmune diseases, and pharmacogenomics.
History
Founding and early growth (2006–2017) Linda Avey, Paul Cusenza, and Anne Wojcicki founded 23andMe in 2006 to offer genetic testing and interpretation to individuals. Investment documents from 2007 suggest that 23andMe also intended to develop a database for research purposes. In 2007, Google invested $3.9 million in the company, along with Genentech, New Enterprise Associates, and Mohr Davidow Ventures. Wojcicki and Google co-founder Sergey Brin were married at the time.
Cusenza left the company in 2007 and Avey departed in 2009.
In 2012, 23andMe raised $50 million in a Series D venture round, nearly doubling its total capital of $52.6 million. In 2015, a $115 million Series E round brought total capital to $241 million. By late 2017, the company had raised approximately $250 million at a $1.75 billion valuation.
GlaxoSmithKline partnership (2018–2023) On July 25, 2018, 23andMe announced a partnership with GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) in which GSK would use data from consenting customers to support drug development, investing $300 million in the company. In January 2022, the partnership was extended until July 2023 with an additional $50 million payment. In July 2020, the partnership produced its first clinical trial: a jointly developed cancer therapy.
Going public and Lemonaid acquisition (2020–2021) The company was based in Mountain View, California, initially in North Bayshore and then downtown, until 2019, when it moved to larger headquarters in Sunnyvale. In January 2020, 23andMe laid off about 100 employees in its consumer testing division.
In December 2020, the company raised approximately $82.5 million in a Series F round, bringing total funding to over $850 million. In February 2021, 23andMe announced a merger with Sir Richard Branson's special-purpose acquisition company, VG Acquisition Corp, in a $3.5 billion transaction. The merger closed in June 2021; the combined entity, renamed 23andMe Holding Co., began trading on the Nasdaq under the ticker symbol "ME".
In October 2021, 23andMe acquired Lemonaid Health, a telehealth company, for $400 million, with the deal closing in November.
Decline and bankruptcy (2022–2025) After reaching a market capitalization of approximately $6 billion following its public listing, 23andMe's valuation fell sharply; by early 2024 it stood at roughly 2% of its peak. Contributing factors included the company's persistent lack of profitability and the absence of recurring revenue from its one-time DNA test kits.
Wojcicki made several attempts to take the company private. An initial bid of $2.53 per share in February 2024 did not proceed. In July 2024, she offered 40 cents per share for all outstanding shares not already owned by her, but a special committee of the board rejected the proposal. In September 2024, all seven independent board members resigned. The company subsequently filed with the SEC indicating it was no longer open to third-party acquisition offers. Users attempting to delete their genetic data discovered that the company retained it for three years to comply with legal obligations. Further layoffs followed in November 2024.
In January 2025, 23andMe disclosed it needed additional liquidity and was exploring strategic alternatives including a potential sale. Wojcicki made a third offer of 41 cents per share in March 2025. On March 23, 2025, 23andMe filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection as part of a plan to sell its assets, listing assets and liabilities each between $100 million and $500 million. Wojcicki stepped down as CEO and was replaced by CFO Joe Selsavage. Trading in the company's shares was suspended on March 31 and the stock was delisted from Nasdaq, subsequently trading over-the-counter.
California Attorney General Rob Bonta issued a consumer privacy alert reminding Californian users of their right to request deletion of their genetic data.
TTAM acquisition (2025) The initial bankruptcy auction was won by Regeneron Pharmaceuticals for $256 million. As part of that agreement, Regeneron would have acquired all units of 23andMe except its telehealth service Lemonaid Health. However, the bankruptcy court reopened the auction after Wojcicki argued that her nonprofit, TTAM Research Institute, had been unfairly excluded from the bidding process. In the final round, TTAM submitted a winning bid of $305 million. 23andMe had separately announced it would cease being a public company and deregister from the SEC effective June 6, 2025.
TTAM completed the acquisition of substantially all of 23andMe's assets—including the Personal Genome Service, Research Services, and Lemonaid Health—on July 14, 2025. TTAM committed to honouring 23andMe's existing privacy policies, establishing a Consumer Privacy Advisory Board, and restricting future sale or transfer of genetic data unless any new owner adopted equivalent privacy protections.
Technology
23andMe began offering direct-to-consumer genetic testing in November 2007. Customers submit a saliva sample from which DNA is extracted and amplified. The amplified DNA is applied to a glass microarray chip manufactured by Illumina, which contains microscopic beads, each bearing a gene probe complementary to a specific genetic variant. Where the customer's DNA matches a probe, the sequences hybridise and a fluorescent label indicates the variant is present. The platform tests hundreds of thousands of variants out of the approximately 10 to 30 million present in the human genome, and the results are compiled into reports informing the customer about variants associated with conditions such as Parkinson's disease, celiac disease, and Alzheimer's disease.Madara, Jason. "The extraction process: meet 23andme's Anne Wojcicki", WIRED UK, March 6, 2017. Retrieved April 17, 2018. In 2008, when the company was offering estimates of predisposition for more than 90 traits and conditions, Time magazine named the product "Invention of the Year".
Customers can download their uninterpreted raw genetic data and view results by chromosome, including mitochondrial DNA, to compare their variants with common population frequencies. Ancestry customers have access to genealogical DNA test tools, including a relative-matching database, and can view their mitochondrial haplogroup (maternal lineage) and, if male or if a patrilineal relative has been tested, their Y chromosome haplogroup (paternal lineage). US customers who received health-related results before November 22, 2013, retain online access to assessments of inherited traits and genetic disorder risks. Health-related results for US customers who purchased the test from November 22, 2013, were suspended until late 2015 while undergoing FDA regulatory review. Customers in Canada and the United Kingdom have access to some, but not all, health-related results.
23andMe is commonly used by donor-conceived people to find biological siblings and, in some cases, their sperm donor or egg donor.
Instrument and chip versions Until 2010, Illumina sold its genotyping instruments labelled "for research use only"; in early 2010, Illumina obtained FDA approval for its BeadXpress system for clinical use.
Product history and pricing
Product tiers In late 2009, 23andMe briefly split its service into three products—an Ancestry Edition, a Health Edition, and a Complete Edition—but recombined them a year later. A monthly subscription for research-based updates, introduced in late 2010, proved unpopular and was eliminated in mid-2012.
From November 22, 2013, to October 21, 2015, 23andMe sold only raw genetic data and ancestry-related results in the US due to FDA restrictions, after which it resumed providing health information in the form of carrier status and wellness reports.
Pricing The US price declined from $999 at launch in 2007 to $399 in 2008 and to $99 in 2012, effectively serving as a loss leader to build the customer database. In October 2015, the price was raised to $199. In September 2016, an ancestry-only version was reintroduced at $99 with an optional $125 health upgrade. The product launched in Canada in October 2014 at and in the United Kingdom in December 2014 at £125.
Ancestry and diversity initiatives In February 2018, 23andMe enhanced its ancestry reporting to provide country-level rather than region-level estimates, adding 120 new regions. Acknowledging gaps in genomic data for Asia and Africa, the company launched the African Genetics Program in October 2016 (supported by a National Institutes of Health grant) to recruit sub-Saharan African participants.Hayden, Erika Check. "The rise and fall and rise again of 23andMe", Nature, October 11, 2017. Retrieved April 21, 2018. This was expanded into the Global Genetics Program in February 2018, targeting 61 underrepresented countries, and the Populations Collaboration Program in April 2018, establishing formal research partnerships.Zhang, Sarah. "23andMe Wants Its DNA Data to Be Less White", The Atlantic, April 23, 2018.
23andMe+ and Lemonaid Health In October 2020, 23andMe launched "23andMe+", a subscription service priced at $29 per year, offering additional health and pharmacogenetic reports to Health + Ancestry customers genotyped on version 5 of its microarray chip. In late 2021, the company completed its $400 million acquisition of Lemonaid Health, a telehealth company.
FDA regulation
The emergence of direct-to-consumer genetic testing raised questions about whether results could be meaningfully interpreted and whether they might lead to genetic discrimination. The regulatory environment for genetic testing companies remained uncertain, with anticipated risk-based frameworks slow to materialise.
State regulators