Element Biosciences Nabs $175M Investment from Samsung
The financing is part of Element’s “upsized” Series E round and reportedly makes Samsung the company’s largest shareholder.
This story has been updated to include comments from Element Biosciences.
Element Biosciences has raised an “upsized” Series E financing round, including $175 million from Samsung Electronics.
Other investors in the round and the total amount raised were not disclosed. In a June 9 announcement, Element said it would use the funding to continue commercializing its genomic and multiomic products, expand globally, and advance its product roadmap.
The deal makes Samsung the largest shareholder in the San Diego-based sequencing startup, as reported by Jeon Ji-woo of The Korea Herald, and sets the companies up for closer integration.
“Samsung said it plans to combine Element’s genomic analysis capabilities with its own strengths in artificial intelligence, medical devices and digital health,” she wrote.
Element confirmed the size of Samsung’s stake, but declined to answer other questions about its financing plans.
In a social media post, Element CEO and Cofounder Molly He wrote:
“We’re building a #千里马 — a horse for the long run. Distance reveals strength. Time reveals heart. The data speaks. And we are just getting started.”
The decision to pursue multiple late funding rounds raises some interesting questions about Element’s path to an exit for its investors. At the time of its $277 million Series D financing round in 2024, the company seemed primed for an initial public offering; however, it has chosen not to go down that path, for now. Raising a Series E round doesn’t mean Element is any closer to an IPO, according to Canaccord Genuity Analyst Kyle Mikson.
“It is likely safer to stay private than go public, but the markets appear to be opening a bit recently for high quality companies,” he said. Investing in life sciences and healthcare companies is not typical for Samsung, he noted, although it also plans to invest $110 million in Grail.
Element is in the process of expanding its instrument menu and application capabilities. It recently announced Vitari, a high-throughput benchtop sequencer and noted it will be launching the Aviti Dx and tissue profiling on Aviti24.
“Element has made remarkable progress since our prior investment. Alongside their advancement in next-generation sequencing, they have made foundational innovations in multiomics and clinical workflows that will play a crucial role in the further development of groundbreaking research and clinical applications in precision medicine and personalized diagnostics,” TM Roh, President and Head of the Device eXperience (DX) Division at Samsung Electronics, said in a statement. “Samsung believes in the broad adoption of sequencing as a foundational pillar in precision medicine, and we are extremely confident in Element’s progress, vision, and team.”
The funding is subject to regulatory approval, Element noted. It has now raised at least $855 million.