Adaptive Biotechnologies
Facts
- HQ
- Seattle
- Sectors
- Biotech, Immune medicine, Diagnostics
- Founded
- 2009 Seattle business license
- Type
- Corporation Seattle business license
- Registered name
- Adaptive Biotechnologies Corporation Seattle business license
- Stage
- Public
Todd Bishop unveils GeekWire 200: Temporal Technologies tops Seattle-area startup rankings as Stoke Space climbs after ~$1B raise
Todd Bishop presents the latest GeekWire 200 ranking of top privately held Pacific Northwest tech startups, highlighting AI infrastructure gains and notable movers such as Temporal Technologies taking No. 1 and Stoke Space rising after a ~$1B raise.
Harell Data founded by Harlan Robins raises $15M to let data owners securely monetize AI training
Harlan Robins, co-founder and former CSO of Adaptive Biotechnologies, launched Harell Data with $15 million in funding to let proprietary data owners securely host datasets for AI model training and receive direct revenue shares instead of waiting for downstream royalties.
Adaptive Biotechnologies’ Spinout Digital Biotechnologies Raises $15M Series A to Develop Clinical DNA Sequencing Instrument
Digital Biotechnologies, a Seattle-based subsidiary of Adaptive Biotechnologies, has raised up to $15 million in a Series A round to develop a novel clinical DNA sequencing technology. Adaptive will retain nearly half ownership as Digital Biotechnologies aims to create a high-accuracy, rapid, low-cost sequencing instrument for clinical use.
Seattle Biotech Lumen Bioscience Raises $30M Series C Extension, Adds Microsoft Vet Jeff Raikes to Board
Seattle biotech startup Lumen Bioscience raised a $30 million Series C extension led by WestRiver Group, bringing total funding to $186.8 million to advance its oral biologic drugs. The company also added Microsoft veteran Jeff Raikes to its board and announced several leadership updates.
Wink Therapeutics Wins Seattle Pitch Event, Gains $50K-$100K Investment for RNA-Based Type 1 Diabetes Therapy
Wink Therapeutics, a Miami-based RNA biotech startup focused on Type 1 diabetes, won first place and $50,000-$100,000 investment at a Seattle pitch event hosted by Venture Black. The company uses RNA therapeutics to restore pancreatic beta cells and was founded by biotech veteran Warren Marcus.
Kevin Conroy Resigns from Adaptive Biotechnologies Board; Tagboard COO Tyler Singletary Steps Down; Ron Andrews Named TwinStrand CEO
Kevin Conroy resigned from the board of Adaptive Biotechnologies, and Tagboard's COO Tyler Singletary is stepping down. Additionally, Ron Andrews was named CEO of TwinStrand Biosciences, while David Meininger stepped down as CEO of Link Immunotherapeutics.
Seattle Tech Companies Cyemptive, Roku, Porch, and CalmWave Announce Key Executive and Board Appointments in 2024
Seattle-area tech companies made several executive and board changes, including Cyemptive appointing Ray McCay as chief revenue officer and Roku adding former Amazon exec Jeff Blackburn to its board. Other notable moves include Porch naming Alan Pickerill as lead independent director and CalmWave hiring Seth Falcon as VP of engineering.
GeekWire Names Adaptive Biotechnologies, Blink, Helion, Impinj, and Treasury4 as 2023 Workplace of the Year Finalists
The 2023 GeekWire Awards announced five finalists for Workplace of the Year—Adaptive Biotechnologies, Blink, Helion, Impinj, and Treasury4—highlighting their employee-friendly policies amid recent challenges. Winners will be revealed on May 18 following community voting and judge evaluations.
Allen Institute Names Helen Protheroe and Arden Yang to Executive Roles; Qumulo’s Aaron Passey Returns as Engineering Lead
The Allen Institute appointed Helen Protheroe as executive director of global partnerships and philanthropy and Arden Yang as vice president of innovation, while Aaron Passey returned to Qumulo as an engineering leader. Other notable tech leadership changes include Kevin Goldsmith becoming CTO of DistroKid, Samir Diwan joining Madrona Venture Labs, S. Skye Yoden stepping down from PATH, and Lindsie Goss joining Outpace Bio.
Maureen Ezekwugo Named CEO of Oggvo; Chad Cohen Joins Capella Space as CFO and COO; GitHub Appoints Inbal Shani as Chief Product Officer
Maureen Ezekwugo became CEO of Seattle-based Oggvo, specializing in customer review software, while Chad Cohen joined Capella Space as CFO and COO. Microsoft-owned GitHub hired Inbal Shani as its new chief product officer, and Falkon added two executives after raising $16 million.
UW spinout AltPep raises $44.4M as its Alzheimer’s blood test earns FDA breakthrough designation
University of Washington spinout AltPep raised $44.4 million and is developing experimental blood tests to detect Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases early, plus treatments; its Alzheimer’s test received FDA breakthrough device designation. The three-year-old Seattle startup has 25 employees, raised $23.1M in a 2021 Series A, is hiring, and is pursuing partnerships and clinical-ready development.
Syndio Appoints Ritu Mohanka as EMEA Managing Director Amid $50M Expansion; Expedia and Freenome Announce Senior Leadership Hires
Ritu Mohanka was hired as managing director and head of EMEA at Syndio, which is expanding into the UK and EMEA after raising $50 million. Additionally, Expedia appointed Rob Torres as senior VP for global ads, and Lance Baldo joined Freenome as chief medical officer following his departure from Adaptive Biotechnologies.
Absci opens 77,400 sq ft HQ in Vancouver, Wash., three months after IPO valued company near $2 billion
Absci opened a 77,400 sq ft headquarters with a 9,150 sq ft courtyard in Vancouver, Wash., three months after its IPO that valued the company at nearly $2 billion; Gov. Jay Inslee attended the ribbon-cutting. The 200-employee biotech — founded in 2011 by CEO Sean McClain — provides drug discovery services using in silico models, synthetic biology and recent acquisitions Totient and Denovium to support its platform.
Alexandria Executive Chairman Joel Marcus Says Pandemic Is Shifting Biotech Toward Hubs Like Seattle as Investment Surges
Alexandria Real Estate Equities chairman Joel Marcus says the pandemic is accelerating biotech investment and changing industry geography, reinforcing hubs like Seattle where his company has extensive lab real estate, tenants, and venture investments.
Life Science Washington CEO Leslie Alexandre to retire after leading state’s biotech resurgence as 2021 IPOs raise hundreds of millions
Leslie Alexandre, president and CEO of Life Science Washington, is retiring after five years leading the group during a period of strong growth in Washington state's biotech sector that recovered from a 2016 slump. The region has seen several major biotech IPOs in 2021 (including Sana Biotechnology's $587M, Absci's $200M, and Icosavax's $180M+), growing research strength and recognition as an emerging biotech market.
Creative Destruction Lab to launch nine-month, equity-free Seattle accelerator with Microsoft and UW for 20–25 computational health startups this November
Creative Destruction Lab (CDL) is launching a Seattle hub this November at the University of Washington to run a nine-month, equity-free accelerator for 20–25 computational health startups in partnership with Microsoft and UW’s business, engineering, and computer science schools; UW students can shadow the program. The program is funded by founding members, enforces objective milestones with the possibility of booting nonperforming companies, and stems from UW’s Innovation Roundtable efforts led by Emer Dooley and others.
Amgen to buy Seattle startup Rodeo Therapeutics for $55M upfront, up to $666M more in milestones
Amgen agreed to acquire Seattle biotech Rodeo Therapeutics, which develops small-molecule therapies to repair and regrow tissues, for $55 million upfront plus up to $666 million in contingent payments. Rodeo, led by CEO Thong Le and founded by Sanford Markowitz, Stanton Gerson and Joseph Ready, has backing from investors including AbbVie, Lilly, Arch Venture Partners and Johnson & Johnson and had raised over $14 million.
SPACs Let Founders Reach Public Markets Faster and Keep Larger Equity Stakes, Say Startup Observers
The article explains how SPACs (special purpose acquisition companies) let founders and early employees reach liquidity faster and often retain larger ownership stakes than through later-stage VC or private equity rounds. Using examples like Sana Biotechnology and Seattle entrepreneur Sujal Patel, it argues SPACs can preserve founders' equity by bypassing dilutive funding rounds.
Notch Therapeutics raises $85M Series A (total $91M) to fund stem cell–derived T cell therapies and open Seattle lab
Notch Therapeutics raised an $85 million Series A, bringing total funding to $91 million, to advance stem cell–derived T cell immunotherapies and expand with a new Seattle research lab. The 2018-founded biotech plans to grow from 35 to about 100 employees by end of 2022 and is collaborating with Allogene Therapeutics on treatments for blood cancers.
Ensoma launches in Boston with $70M Series A to commercialize Engenious gene‑editing adenoviral vectors developed by Fred Hutch and UW researchers
Boston-based biotech spinout Ensoma launched, announcing a $70 million Series A to commercialize Engenious adenoviral vectors developed by Drs. Hans-Peter Kiem (Fred Hutch) and André Lieber (UW) that aim to deliver single‑injection gene therapies without stem cell harvest or chemotherapy.
AltPep, UW spinout led by Valerie Daggett, raises $23.1M Series A to develop early-detection and therapeutics for Alzheimer’s
Seattle biotech AltPep, spun out of the University of Washington in 2019 and led by founder/CEO Valerie Daggett, raised $23.1 million in a Series A to develop detection tools and preclinical therapies for Alzheimer’s and other amyloid protein diseases. The company’s technology, based on UW-licensed research into alpha-sheet protein structures, will support early detection efforts and expansion into a new 7,500 sq ft Seattle lab.
Two Screens for Teachers raises support as founders seek $23M to supply 250,000 pandemic-strained educators; teen Avi Schiffmann built a widely used COVID-19 tracker
A roundup of positive tech, science, and education stories from 2020 highlights initiatives that helped during the pandemic, including Two Screens for Teachers providing monitors to school districts and a high school student, Avi Schiffmann, building a widely used COVID-19 tracker.
Umoja Biopharma raises $53M Series A to develop in vivo CAR T-cell immunotherapies for adult and pediatric tumors
Seattle-based Umoja Biopharma raised $53 million in a Series A to advance its preclinical in vivo CAR T-cell immunotherapy platform for blood and organ tumors in adult and pediatric patients, aiming to generate cancer-fighting cells inside the body. The company was founded last year by CEO Andy Scharenberg and collaborators from Seattle Children’s Research Institute and Purdue University, with MPM Capital and Qiming Venture Partners USA leading the round.
Athira Pharma prices IPO at $17, sells 12M shares to raise $204M; will trade as ATHA on Nasdaq
Seattle biotech Athira Pharma priced its IPO at $17 per share, selling 12 million shares to raise at least $204 million and will begin trading on Nasdaq under ticker ATHA; the company is developing NDX-1017 for neurodegenerative diseases and has no commercial products yet. Founded in 2011 and led by CEO Dr. Leen Kawas, Athira reported net losses in 2019 and H1 2020 and has raised over $100 million privately, including an $85 million Series B.
Lumen Bioscience raises $16M Series B to scale Spirulina platform for orally delivered antibodies; total funding $68M
Lumen Bioscience raised $16 million in a Series B to advance its Spirulina-based platform that produces orally delivered antibodies and biologics for GI diseases, claiming dramatically lower costs and three clinical programs. The Seattle startup, co‑founded in 2017 by CEO Brian Finrow and CSO Jim Roberts, has partnerships with the Gates Foundation, NIH and others and has raised $68 million to date.
