Element Biosciences has raised an additional $277 million in private financing to support commercialization of its benchtop DNA sequencer and an instrument launch as the company takes on market leader Illumina.
Founded in 2017, Element is part of the race to drive down the cost of DNA sequencing. It’s also pushing into multiomics, which includes RNA and protein data.
Molly HeThe haul brings Element’s fundraising total to $680 million. CEO Molly He said Element is in “no rush to become a public company.”
“Three years ago, we were approached by multiple investors who wanted to take Element public, under quite favorable terms as well, but we held off because Element is in this game for the long run. It’s important to us that certain conditions and business milestones are in place before we enter the public market,” He said in an emailed statement to Endpoints News.
Element released its benchtop sequencer in 2022, and the company is slated to launch an instrument that combines sequencing and the ability to map cell characteristics, or what’s known as cyto-profiling.