Creates one of the deepest and most advanced ag biological discovery and development platforms as well as a rich resource for the development of AI models for biological R&D.
A leading platform for cell programming and biosecurity is being built by Ginkgo Bioworks. AgBiome’s platform assets, including 115,000 fully sequenced and isolated strains, 500 million gene sequences, relevant functional data and metadata, and AgBiome’s development pipeline, will be acquired by Ginkgo Bioworks.
As part of Ginkgo’s acquisition of a Bayer agricultural biologicals R&D facility in 2022, these assets will be integrated into Ginkgo Ag Biologicals Services, which will expand Ginkgo’s proprietary metagenomics database. The combined platform is one of the most advanced and comprehensive ag biological discovery and development platforms, along with a rich resource for developing AI models for biological research.
AgBiome has worked on developing an extensive collection of biological products and technologies through its Genesis Discovery Platform since its founding in 2012. AgBiome has successfully commercialized multiple biological products, including the Howler and Theia product lines, which were not acquired. Over 8,000 geographically diverse environmental samples have been used by AgBiome to build a massive microbial strain library.
The isolates have been fully sequenced, resulting in a library of over 500 million unique gene sequences. A robust product concept pipeline, including a dozen product candidates with greenhouse or field validation, is also included as part of the acquisition — these validated assets provide a solid foundation for future collaborative programs, as well as a diverse resource of metagenomic data for genomic mining and artificial intelligence modeling.
