Paris-based DNA Script announced it raised $38.5 million in Series B funding led by new investor LSP. And new investor BPIFrance joined the round along with existing shareholders Sofinnova Partners, Kurma Partners, Idinvest Partners, Illumina Ventures, and M Ventures (the investment arm of Merck KGaA). Sofinnova Partners was the first institutional investor in DNA Script in 2016.
What does DNA Script do? Launched in 2014 by CEO Thomas Ybert, COO Sylvain Gariel, and CTO Xavier Godron, DNA Script is considered the world’s leading company in manufacturing synthetic nucleic acids using enzymatic technology. And the company is aiming to accelerate innovation in life sciences and technology delivering rapid, affordable, and high-quality DNA. DNA Script’s revolutionary approach leverages billions of years of nature’s evolution in synthesizing DNA to enable genome-scale synthesis.
“We are excited that DNA Script, which we have backed from its first round of financing, was able to raise such a significant round. The company continues to deliver on its plan, and is now funded by a group of like-minded investors who support the team’s vision of creating a business that enables new applications for synthetic DNA and RNA in areas including drug discovery and development, agriculture, and industrial and food technologies,” said Josko Bobanovic of Sofinnova Partners.
DNA Script also offers a novel biochemical process for DNA and RNA synthesis, which is a fundamental tool used in biology research. At a recent conference, DNA Script presented its ability to synthesize 200nt of DNA with remarkable accuracy. This innovation can be used in numerous applications, including electronic data storage by leveraging unprecedented capabilities of the molecule to store information.
“In less than two years since our last financing round, the DNA Script team has developed enzymatic synthesis technology at an incredibly fast pace and extended the company’s lead in this exciting and quickly expanding sector. As we announced earlier this year at the AGBT General Meeting, DNA Script was the first company to enzymatically synthesize a 200mer oligo de novo with an average coupling efficiency that rivals the best organic chemical processes in use today,” added DNA Script CEO and co-founder Thomas Ybert. “Our technology is now reliable enough for its first commercial applications, which we believe will deliver the promise of same-day results to researchers everywhere, with DNA synthesis that can be completed in just a few hours.”
With this round of funding, DNA Script is going to further develop its unique enzymatic technology and nucleotide chemistry platform along with delivering the promise of same-day results.
“We are thrilled to lead this round with the participation of such a respected group of founders and investors. We see DNA Script as the clear leader in this nascent field,” explained LSP managing partner Joachim Rothe and new DNA Script board member. “The progress made by DNA Script in only two years is amazing, and we believe the company will shift the current DNA synthesis paradigm, not only in the research market but also in the broader pharma business — for personalized therapies and diagnostics in particular.”
