Colossal Biosciences Raises $200 Million at $10.2 Billion Valuation for De-Extinction Push
Updated
Updated · CNBC · Oct 10
Colossal Biosciences Raises $200 Million at $10.2 Billion Valuation for De-Extinction Push
1 articles · Updated · CNBC · Oct 10
Summary
$200 million in Series C funding lifted Colossal Biosciences to a $10.2 billion valuation, extending investor backing for its effort to revive extinct species including the woolly mammoth and dire wolf.
More than $435 million has now been raised since founding, as CEO Ben Lamm pitches de-extinction as a platform for conservation, genome engineering and human-health applications rather than a real-life "Jurassic Park."
Three wolf pups—Romulus, Remus and Khaleesi—were produced by reconstructing dire wolf DNA with AI, mapping it to gray wolves and implanting edited embryos into domestic dog surrogates.
Lamm said Colossal could deliver more revived species within one to two years, while its woolly mammoth program still targets a birth in the 2030s through edits to Asian elephant cells.
The broader pitch is that tools built for de-extinction could aid climate-focused conservation, crop development and disease research, with spinout Astromech already valued at $2 billion in March.