There is an important lesson here: if you can get just one high-profile person to back you, your business idea -- no matter how silly or impractical -- will make a splash.
The stated goal of 23andMe -- "personal genomics" -- has been a holy grail of just about every geneticist and molecular biologist since the advent of DNA sequencing. There are thousands of brilliant, experienced scientists who have been working on the (substantial) technical problems for years...and yet, an investor and a sales rep for Affymetrix are going to make it work?
No...the only reason that 23andMe has traction is because one of the co-founders is married to Sergey, and because Esther Dyson is on the board. Beyond that, they've tackled a problem that is so big, they don't even know how out-gunned they actually are.
Affordable DNA analysis could be a very sellable product. I had my DNA analyzed before as part of a medical examination. (I believe what happened was they tested for certain sequences that confer certain allergies or a likelihood of developing some diseases). It wasn't cheap, not complete, nor timely. If this is what 23andme is doing, and it's cheap enough like OTC drugs, that's pretty cool.
The problem isn't the concept -- the problem is their ability to execute on the concept.
As I said above, "affordable DNA analysis" has been a holy grail for almost as long as DNA sequencing has existed. Literally everyone in the field of genomics is working toward it; there's even steady research progress.
Unfortunately, saying that you're going to start a company to create "affordable genomics", or whatnot, is a bit like saying that you're going to start a company to sell affordable hydrogen-powered cars. The technology is maybe-kinda-sorta-almost there, and the field is potentially lucrative, but the reason that no one is really doing it is because the technical, social and legal hurdles are still overwhelming. And once they're not overwhelming, the field will be flooded with competition from big, established players (i.e. don't you think that ABI, Affymetrix, Merck, Pfizer, SKB, Amgen, Celera, etc. don't want to be in this area, too?)
Even with all of that, I wouldn't discount 23andMe, but for the fact that the company was founded by two people with absolutely no experience in the field. They have George Church as an "advisor", and he's a big name...but he's also a big enough name that he would be starting his own company, if there was a technology worth serious investment (most likely, 23andMe paid him a nice little sum of money so that they could throw his name around).
Basically, this is a company with high-profile investment and a "wouldn't-it-be-great-if" business plan. I can propose brilliant, high-concept ideas, too; unfortunately, I'm not married to Sergey Brin....
If 23andme brings their product to market in the next year, it's going to cost at least $1,000. But the cost will certainly go down over time. And it's so expensive because they are testing for a lot of things at once. If all you want is a test for one specific mutation, it can be extremely cheap.
There is an important lesson here: if you can get just one high-profile person to back you, your business idea -- no matter how silly or impractical -- will make a splash.
And people wonder why there's so much interest in applying to YC.
One has a BA in biology, the other a BS. Aside from the people they know, their primary qualifications are that they worked in pharmaceutical sales and investment.
This is a field involving cutting-edge research in biology, biochemistry, computer science and mathematics. There's a reason that drug companies have doctorates in their top executive positions....
No, there's nothing to this field. The people doing the research have to be qualified, but all 23andme is doing is marketing and sales. They buy chips from www.illumina.com and resell them with service for twice as much money.
Personal genomics isn't affordable yet, but it will be in five years. By bringing a product to market now, they're situating themselves to be able to capitalize on the rapidly decreasing price of genetic sequencing.
The stated goal of 23andMe -- "personal genomics" -- has been a holy grail of just about every geneticist and molecular biologist since the advent of DNA sequencing. There are thousands of brilliant, experienced scientists who have been working on the (substantial) technical problems for years...and yet, an investor and a sales rep for Affymetrix are going to make it work?
No...the only reason that 23andMe has traction is because one of the co-founders is married to Sergey, and because Esther Dyson is on the board. Beyond that, they've tackled a problem that is so big, they don't even know how out-gunned they actually are.