A biotechnology startup that promises to resurrect woolly mammoths is one of the first de-extinction unicorns, with a valuation of over a billion dollars that it hopes to bring back a single lost species. Colossal Biosciences, a Dallas-based startup, is investing in a new round of investment this week that will help fund its effort to bring back the most famously extinct animal of all time, the dodo.
Reintroducing mammoths to Alaska or dodos to Mauritius sounds unrealistic, even silly, and has drawn skepticism from paleo-geneticists and other experts who worry that the effects of de-extinction would be unpredictable. Colossal has been able to draw support from investors, including celebrities, and on Tuesday announced another $150 million for a total of $225 million since 2021. The startup is valued at around 1.5 billion with the latest round of the company, according to a person familiar with the company.
For some investors, a live dodo is less important than the scientific breakthroughs generated in the push to de-extinction. Thomas Tull, a tech investor who produced the movie Jurassic World and made money investing in the scrubs company Figs, said along the lines of being able to bring back a species, we're going to learn things we can't learn in a wet lab. His United States Innovative Technology Fund led the latest round. When you do big things like this, who knows what you're going to discover along the way. This could be because of a conflict with your Adblocking or Security software. There is a list of allowed sites by jp and piano.io. If this does not resolve the issue or you are unable to add the domains to your allowlist, please see this FAQ. We apologize for the inconvenience.