23andMe and the rest of D2C

Hey there,

A couple of weeks ago, we celebrated National Women’s Health Week — which was a good time to reflect on the growing investment activity in this emerging space. Check out our report here if you would like a refresher. 

At nearly the midpoint of 2019, we’ve already seen a fair amount of deals here. From fertility startups like Kindbody and Extend Fertility to women’s health vitamin company Ritual, this year has seen a surge in investor interest. 


Speaking of women’s health, I recently had the chance to attend a Pitch Day event where 5 finalist startups competed in front of judges for various prizes. 

It gave me a front row seat into how new solutions are finally starting to be pursued in women’s health. From supplemental insurance policies for fertility issues to personalized virtual care platforms, these new startups are tackling the gaps in women’s health that have largely been ignored.

It'll be interesting to see how the next half of the year shakes out.

Before moving onto D2C genomics, we have a quick announcement about the Future of Health. 

Future of Health themes

Our Future of Health Conference (October 2-3, 2019) will focus on the consumer health journey and the key trends driving its future.  

Here are a few topics we'll cover:  

• consumerization of healthcare
• the future of aging
• big tech's impact on healthcare

Be sure to register this week as prices go up June 1! 



Consumerization of genomics 

Direct-to-consumer (D2C) DNA testing kits have been getting popular in recent years, buoyed by growing consumer interest in ancestry insights. 

As a result, synergies between these D2C companies and those of other industries are also starting to take hold. For example, last week 23andMe announced that it’s partnering with travel tech company AirBnB for heritage tourism.

It’s one of the many ways in which these companies are able to extend its product offerings and create more value for its customers. 

And 23andMe, in particular, has had great success here — especially in healthcare — having genotyped over 5M customers. This translates to troves of valuable genomic data that both its pharma clients and its in-house research team can use for finding new drug targets and moving towards personalized medicine. 

Its partnerships confirm the company’s bigger ambitions in healthcare. The company landed a $300M investment from British pharma giant GSK last July. This inked their 4-year collaboration to use genetic insights to create new medicines. 

Because even though 23andMe’s most popular product is consumer-facing, its long-term ambitions have always been about healthcare. Since the beginning, its services were poised to disrupt how different stakeholders approach healthcare — whether you’re a patient, a provider, or a pharma company.

But, it’s not all uphill for these D2C genomics companies.

Last week, Illumina-backed Helix announced it was shutting down 2 offices and pivoting to a new strategy focused on population health. Helix originally wanted to be the “app store for DNA” but is now no longer pursuing this mission. The company also revealed earlier this month that it was no longer targeting consumers but rather healthcare providers.

Which begs the question — what allowed 23andMe to be able to successfully tap into this market? And how has it maintained its dominance in a market that's increasingly becoming crowded with other D2C players? 

Stay tuned for more on the consumerization of genomics and 23andMe.

P.S. Tired of incremental innovation efforts? Learn how ING refined their innovation process to go after new business models (read the full case study here). No matter what industry, CBI Councils connects you with the best corporate innovators and thinkers. Find out more here.
 

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