23andMe, the enterprise whose mail-in self-testing units got here to be recognized with DNA screening, is filing for bankruptcy amidst lowering gross sales 4 years after it went public. Anne Wojcicki, that co-founded 23andMe in 2006, is tipping down as chief govt officer as the company tries to find a buyer.
In January, 23andMe said it was trying out options for a sale amidst lowering want for its merchandise and the after results of a big data violation in 2023. In 2024, the enterprise consented to a financial negotiation for the violation, which impacted 6.9 million people. The enterprise had really likewise revealed discharges ofabout 40% of its workforce in late 2024 Recently, the enterprise’s provide dipped below a dollar, putting it prone to being delisted from the NASDAQ.
In a note to customers, the enterprise claimed completely nothing is presently altering regarding the methodology it outlets, takes care of or secures shopper data which the enterprise continues to be open for service and advertising DNA units. “Through this process, we will seek to find a partner who shares our commitment to customer data privacy and allows our mission of helping people access, understand and benefit from the human genome to live on,” the enterprise claimed in its weblog submit.
At its prime, 23andMe got here to be the best-known title within the arising location of DNA self-testing, with people paying $99 for units that supplied understandings proper into their hereditary make-up, potential family members and origins. But the enterprise’s power decreased just lately after its $3.5 billion public providing in 2021.
People which have really made use of 23andMe and are fearful regarding what might happen to their data in a sale have options: They can obtain their particulars after that erase their account, along with ask the enterprise to discard their DNA product together with erasing the data. Doing so will definitely preserve DNA particulars from being made use of in future examine, but it can’t be eradicated from examine that has really at present been finished.
