Layoff
Nov 2022A third-party Chapter 11 case summary reports a 20% workforce reduction, approximately 105 employees, implemented in November 2022 as a cost-cutting measure.
SourceCompany research
Public company, workplace, funding, and market signals
Updated Aug 2, 2026
Overview
Synthego is a privately held biotechnology company providing scalable CRISPR/genome-engineering tools, reagents, manufacturing, technical support and regulatory assistance for life-science research and cell/gene-therapy development, from discovery through clinical applications. It was acquired out of Chapter 11 by funds managed by Perceptive Advisors in July 2025 and continues operating under the Synthego brand.
Primary product
The CRISPR Continuum/Halo platform: synthetic guide RNAs (gRNAs), CRISPR nucleases and editors, and research-grade, IND-enabling (INDe) and GMP products. Current highlighted products include eSpOT-ON Cas9, SpCas9, hfCas12Max and AccuBase CBE.
Founded
2012
Headquarters
Menlo Park, California, United States (public company data also identifies Redwood City as the operating/manufacturing base).
Team size
100–150 (third-party directories report approximately 135; a Chapter 11 case summary reported approximately 150 at filing)
Work style
Flexible
Industry
Biotechnology / life sciences
Sub-industry
CRISPR genome engineering, synthetic biology, molecular and clinical diagnostic reagents, and cell/gene-therapy manufacturing support
Offices
3565 Haven Avenue, Suite 1, Menlo Park, CA 94025, United States
3696 Haven Avenue, Suite A, Redwood City, CA 94063, United States
Business model
Direct sale of research-grade CRISPR reagents, gRNAs, nucleases and kits
IND-enabling and GMP-grade reagent supply
Custom product design/manufacturing and technical support
Licensing and commercialization of CRISPR enzymes
Enterprise and therapeutic-program partnerships
Funding
Stage
Private company; post-acquisition / growth-stage operating business (no current equity round publicly identified)
Total raised
$459.7M
Latest round
Series E · Feb 2022
Latest amount
$200M
Acquisition (Stalking Horse Asset Sale)
Jul 2025 · Perceptive Advisors
May 2025 · Perceptive Credit Holdings III
Feb 2022 · Perceptive Advisors
Aug 2020 · Wellington Management; RA Capital Management
Oct 2018 · Founders Fund
Dec 2016 · 8VC
Jul 2013
Aug 2012
Jul 2012
People & investors
Leadership
President and Chief Executive Officer
Chief Legal Officer
Chief Commercial Officer
Chief Operating Officer
Vice President, Global Sales
Vice President, Technology
Vice President, Marketing
Head of Safety / Director, Operations Engineering
Founders
Co-Founder
Michael Dabrowski
Co-founder; former President
Co-founder; former CEO; Board Director/advisor after March 2024
Investors
8VC
Alexandria Equities
AME Cloud Ventures
Chimera Abu Dhabi
Declaration Partners
Elements Capital
Founders Fund
GigaFund
Intel Capital
Jamie H Doudna Cate
Jennifer Doudna
Laurion Capital Management
Logos Capital
Menlo Ventures
Moore Strategic Ventures
OS Fund
Perceptive Advisors
Perceptive Credit Holdings III
RA Capital Management
SciFi VC
SoftBank Vision Fund 2
Wellington Management
WI Harper Group
ZhenFund
Work & culture
The company describes a purpose-driven, collaborative culture built around cross-functional work, servant leadership, engineering/scientific excellence and inclusion. Current job postings include onsite Redwood City laboratory roles, while third-party career data indicates remote work is available for some roles; policy is therefore role- and location-dependent rather than fully remote.
Work style
Flexible
Visa sponsorship
Limited
Compensation
Public signals are incomplete. H-1B labor-condition data indicates sponsorship activity, with reported median sponsored-role salary around $160,000 and a roughly $125,000–$175,000 range for 2021–2025 filings. Third-party benefits data reports 401(k), equity and healthcare benefits, but company-wide salary bands are not publicly established.
Benefits
Flexible Time Off
Five paid sick days
12 paid holidays
12 weeks fully paid gender-neutral parental leave
Medical, dental and vision plans; employer covers 90% of individual and 60% of dependent premiums
401(k) matching through ADP
Catered meals Tuesdays and Thursdays for onsite employees
Diversity Network Association (DNA)
Product & market
Pricing
Product- and specification-based pricing for catalog reagents, kits and enzymes; custom quotes for custom gRNAs, manufacturing, INDe/GMP programs, licensing and therapeutic support. Synthego publishes pricing guides and directs customers to sales for program-specific quotations.
Differentiators
- —Integrated discovery-to-clinic CRISPR product continuum
- —Research-grade products designed with clinical/GMP quality considerations
- —Automated, scalable manufacturing and quality control
- —U.S.-based guide-RNA manufacturing and custom modifications
- —Regulatory and technical support, including INDe documentation and traceability
- —High-fidelity editors intended to balance on-target activity and reduced off-target effects
- —Reported support for more than 12 CRISPR-therapy IND approvals
Technology
CRISPR/Cas genome editing
Synthetic chemically modified sgRNA/gRNA
High-fidelity Cas9 and Cas12 nucleases
Base editing
mRNA delivery
Automated liquid handling and manufacturing
Machine learning and workflow automation
GMP manufacturing and quality systems
PCR and molecular diagnostics
ICE CRISPR editing-analysis software
Python
Django
React
Docker
Snowflake
Git
Customers
Academic researchers and universities
Commercial biotechnology companies
Pharmaceutical and drug-development companies
Cell and gene-therapy developers
Diagnostic laboratories
Thousands of academic, commercial and drug-development customers; the company says it has supported more than 12 IND approvals
Competitors
Editas Medicine
eGenesis
Caribou Biosciences
Sangamo Therapeutics
Inscripta
Applied StemCell
Avidity Biosciences
Precision BioSciences
Scale & contact
Estimated revenue
Approximately $20M–$30M based on third-party company estimates; other aggregators estimate substantially higher revenue, so this is low-confidence and not company-reported.
Estimated monthly visits
87.6K
Signals & risks
Other
May 2025Synthego voluntarily filed Chapter 11 in Delaware to facilitate an asset sale and reduce debt; it obtained debtor-in-possession financing and said operations would continue.
SourceAcquisition
Jul 2025Funds managed by Perceptive Advisors completed the acquisition of substantially all Synthego assets after the Chapter 11 sale process; the transaction was announced July 21, 2025.
SourceOther
Mar 2024Synthego divested/spun out its Eclipse engineered-cell platform as EditCo Bio; co-founder Paul Dabrowski stepped down as Synthego CEO and Craig Christianson became CEO.
SourceLatest news
Synthego engineering/science blog · Jun 2026
Synthego described a limited mRNA Pilot Validation Program for AccuBase CBE, eSpOT-ON and hfCas12Max, emphasizing scalable production, analytical rigor and future GMP workflow continuity.
Synthego · Jul 2025
The Perceptive transaction closed July 18, 2025; Synthego retained its brand, leadership and Redwood City guide-RNA manufacturing operations.
Synthego · Jun 2025
The court-approved sale was positioned as providing a stronger balance sheet and resources for product expansion; Synthego said leadership, facilities and customer support would remain in place.
Synthego · May 2025
The company filed Chapter 11 and entered an agreement intended to sell the business to Perceptive Advisors while continuing operations.
Synthego · Jan 2025
Synthego expanded beyond CRISPR tools into molecular and clinical diagnostic reagents, including PCR, amplification and customized/lyophilized solutions, with biotechrabbit collaboration.
Jobs and careers at Synthego
1 job at Synthego
Laboratory Associate I, Pre-Clinical
On-site
Operations
Redwood City, CA
1w ago
On-site
Full-time