Key Takeaways
- • NeoGenesis Capital has launched as a venture capital firm focused on programmable biology at the intersection of superintelligence and synthetic biology, and has announced the initial close of its first fund.
- • Founded by Dr. Peter H. Diamandis (Founder and Executive Chairman of XPRIZE) and Dr. Yianni Psaltis (Managing Partner, doctorate in cancer biology from Georgetown University).
- • The firm plans to invest in Colossal Biosciences and companies built on or incubated from its programmable biology platform, spanning longevity, fertility, agriculture, environmental remediation, pandemic prevention, and AI-native genetic design.
- • The size of the first fund and the amount raised at the initial close were not disclosed.
- • Oliver Trevena, an entrepreneur, investor and co-founder of Caliwater, was appointed Head of Culture.
Summary
NeoGenesis Capital has launched as a venture capital firm focused on programmable biology and has announced the initial close of its first fund. The firm was founded by Peter H. Diamandis, M.D., and Yianni Psaltis, Ph.D. Psaltis serves as Managing Partner, and Diamandis, who is Founder and Executive Chairman of XPRIZE, was an early investor in Colossal Biosciences. The size of the fund and the amount raised at the initial close were not disclosed.
The firm's investment thesis holds that advances in artificial intelligence and synthetic biology are making biological systems increasingly programmable. NeoGenesis plans to invest in Colossal Biosciences, founded by Ben Lamm and Harvard geneticist George Church, as well as companies developed on or incubated from Colossal's platform. Colossal combines genomic analysis, AI-driven modeling, multiplex gene editing, organism development and biological scaling, and is best known for its de-extinction initiatives, including projects involving the dire wolf and woolly mouse and a large biobank of endangered-species DNA.
Target applications include drought- and disease-resistant crops, pathogen monitoring, enzymes capable of breaking down microplastics, artificial womb technologies for conservation, and other programmable biology products. The firm is also targeting longevity, fertility, environmental remediation and pandemic prevention.
The firm has appointed Oliver Trevena as Head of Culture. Trevena, an entrepreneur, investor, actor and producer who has helped develop more than 30 brands and co-founded beverage company Caliwater, will focus on NeoGenesis' cultural identity and strategic relationships.
The firm's investment thesis holds that advances in artificial intelligence and synthetic biology are making biological systems increasingly programmable. NeoGenesis plans to invest in Colossal Biosciences, founded by Ben Lamm and Harvard geneticist George Church, as well as companies developed on or incubated from Colossal's platform. Colossal combines genomic analysis, AI-driven modeling, multiplex gene editing, organism development and biological scaling, and is best known for its de-extinction initiatives, including projects involving the dire wolf and woolly mouse and a large biobank of endangered-species DNA.
Target applications include drought- and disease-resistant crops, pathogen monitoring, enzymes capable of breaking down microplastics, artificial womb technologies for conservation, and other programmable biology products. The firm is also targeting longevity, fertility, environmental remediation and pandemic prevention.
The firm has appointed Oliver Trevena as Head of Culture. Trevena, an entrepreneur, investor, actor and producer who has helped develop more than 30 brands and co-founded beverage company Caliwater, will focus on NeoGenesis' cultural identity and strategic relationships.
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