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§ Private Profile · Dallas
Biotechnology company using genetic engineering and synthetic biology for de-extinction of species and conservation.
Based in Dallas, Texas, Colossal Biosciences is a biotechnology company that develops genetic engineering and synthetic biology technologies to de-extinct species, protect endangered animals, and restore ecosystems. The enterprise utilizes CRISPR gene-editing tools to modify DNA for conservation efforts, such as its flagship project to resurrect the woolly mammoth and a recent initiative that produced three wolf pups in April 2025. As of February 2025, the organization has raised $435 million in total venture capital funding and achieved a valuation exceeding $1 billion. Its equity financing rounds have attracted investments from prominent backers including Thomas Tull, Tim Draper, Winklevoss Capital, and Tom Brady. The firm also advances broader genomics applications and recently launched a nonprofit conservation foundation to deploy its proprietary technologies. Colossal Biosciences was founded in 2021 by Ben Lamm and George Church.
Colossal Bioscience has raised $728.0M across 8 funding rounds.
Key people at Colossal Bioscience.
Colossal Bioscience was founded by Ben Lamm (Co-Founder) and George Churchm) (Co-Founder).
Colossal Bioscience has raised $728.0M in total across 8 funding rounds.
Colossal Bioscience has raised $728.0M across 8 funding rounds. Most recently, it raised $60.0M Colossal Biosciences - Series C in February 2026.
Key people at Colossal Bioscience.
Colossal Biosciences is a biotechnology company pioneering de-extinction and conservation through genetic engineering, using CRISPR and related technologies to restore extinct species like the woolly mammoth, thylacine, dodo, dire wolf, northern white rhinoceros, and moa.[1][2][4][5] It serves conservation biologists, ecosystems, and broader humanity by addressing biodiversity loss, habitat restoration, and future biological needs via wetware, software, hardware, genomic sequencing, gene editing, and reproductive tech.[1][2][5] The company solves critical problems like species extinction and ecosystem collapse, with strong growth including $435 million raised by January 2025 (valuation $10.2 billion, Texas' first decacorn), recent acquisitions, and targets like mammoth hybrids by 2028.[2][5]
Founded in 2021 by Harvard geneticist George Church—a pioneer in CRISPR and biotech—and entrepreneur Ben Lamm, Colossal emerged from Church's vision for genetic tools in conservation and Lamm's business expertise in tech and biotech ventures.[4][5][6] The idea crystallized around applying CRISPR for de-extinction, starting with the woolly mammoth, amid rising biodiversity concerns and advances in gene editing.[1][4][5] Early traction came from high-profile backing, including biotech investor Robert Nelsen of ARCH Venture Partners, and rapid funding: $200 million Series C in January 2025 pushed total capital to $435 million.[4][5] Pivotal moments include 2023 ecosystem reshaping announcements, October 2024's $50 million Colossal Foundation launch, August 2025's acquisition of University of Melbourne's TIGRR lab, and November 2025's ViaGen Pets buyout.[5]
Colossal rides the CRISPR and gene editing boom, tapping a $9.3 billion market (2024) projected to hit $40.1 billion by 2034 (15.7% CAGR), fueled by 3.9K+ global clinical trials and ecosystem restoration needs amid climate change.[2] Timing aligns with post-2020 biotech surges, biodiversity crises, and AI/genomics convergence, positioning it to reshape conservation biology like CRISPR did for medicine.[1][2][5] Market forces favoring it include investor appetite (decacorn status), talent from top labs, and expansions like international acquisitions, influencing the ecosystem by commercializing de-extinction tools for therapeutics/agriculture and inspiring "biology economies."[2][4][5]
Colossal's trajectory points to 2028 mammoth calves as a proof-of-concept milestone, with expansions into artificial wombs, more acquisitions, and therapeutic pivots leveraging its CRISPR IP.[2][5] Trends like multiplex editing growth, climate-driven conservation demand, and bio-manufacturing will accelerate progress, potentially evolving it from de-extinction specialist to genomics platform leader.[2] Its influence may grow by normalizing radical biotech for planetary repair, tying back to its core mission: restoring Earth's "ancestral heartbeat" through science.[1][4][6]
Colossal Bioscience was founded by Ben Lamm (Co-Founder) and George Churchm) (Co-Founder).
Colossal Bioscience has raised $728.0M in total across 8 funding rounds.
Colossal Bioscience's investors include United Arab Emirates, Bob Nelsen, Peter Jackson, U.S. Innovative Technology Fund, Eclipse Ventures, Intel Capital, Prime Movers Lab, Mark Walter, Victor L. Vescovo, Brandon Fugal, Fran Walsh, Giammaria Giuliani.
