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Unlocking four billion years of evolution to cure genetic disease

Seemingly random pill-shaped particles, signifying genetic material sourced from natural environments, emerge from the ground and coalese to form a DNA strand.

The world’s natural environments hold the keys to genetic medicines

At Metageno­mi, we’re trans­form­ing nov­el gene edit­ing tools into life-sav­ing, poten­tial­ly cura­tive, genet­ic medicines.

As pio­neers of metage­nomics — the study of genet­ic mate­r­i­al recov­ered from organ­isms found in the world’s nat­ur­al micro­bial envi­ron­ments — we ven­ture into microbe-rich ecosys­tems to uncov­er, col­lect, ana­lyze, and trans­late the intri­cate genet­ic code of pre­vi­ous­ly unknown life. These high­ly diverse organ­isms have devel­oped viral defense mech­a­nisms through­out evo­lu­tion — the foun­da­tion of CRISPR gene edit­ing. Today, we’ve formed the largest library of nov­el CRISPR nucle­as­es, which we’re engi­neer­ing to devel­op a tool­box of pre­ci­sion gene edit­ing tools with the vision to cure disease.

From the banks of marshes and sulfur pools in Yellowstone to former volcanic land and deep sea vents, Metagenomi ventures out into less-trodden natural environments to source undiscovered genetic material—and then brings it into their lab to sequence and engineer into genetic medicines.

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Sprawling moss-covered lava fields on an overcast day.
A collection of marine invertebrates in a tide pool between two large rock formations.
A macro-view of a delicate mushroom growing from the side of a moss-covered, wet mound of soil.
A macro-view of a cream and burnt-orange colored salt formation.
Grey mud pits with volcanic activity.
A hand holds a test tube of a water sample out in the field.
Golden marsh grass lines a tide pool.
A diver walks through a bay of shallow water to collect samples on a sunny day.
Microbial mats in geothermal pools in Yellowstone National Park.
A macro-view of a small piece of moss on wet tree bark.
Clouds and mist between Evergreen tree-lined mountains.
A close-up of a mature woman smiling while enjoying a sunset on the beach.
Various colored lichen on flat rocks.
A scientist wearing blue gloves collect test tubes of plant cells for lab testing.
Salt flakes from a salt pool cover someones palm.
The large-rooted base of a sizable tree.
A scientist wearing protective gloves pours an unknown liquid into a test tube.
Bright orange moss covers a stone wall.
Green grass and white blooming Dandelion in a field at the base of a mountain range.

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Discovery platform

An AI-enabled dis­cov­ery process

Illustration Mobile Sampling on Dark

Pro­pri­etary sampling

Our scientists collect samples from diverse climates and geographies—including high-altitude and high-temperature environments to deep sea vents below the ocean. This process allows us to identify previously unknown CRISPR gene editing systems with various novel characteristics, notably with much larger targeting ability and smaller size.

Illustration Mobile Screening on Dark

High-speed screen­ing & sequencing

We have identified and filed on over 20,000 novel systems from over 180 novel nuclease families in the type II and type V nuclease space—as well as over 3 million reverse transcriptases—by leveraging high-throughput screening, AI-based cloud computing, and proprietary algorithms. Our continuous feedback loop between our growing metagenomics database and pre-clinical data allows us to quickly identify novel systems that are naturally optimized to be highly efficient.

Illustration Mobile Identification on Dark

Iden­ti­fi­ca­tion & engineering

We have engineered a broad toolbox of next-generation gene editing systems—including next-generation nucleases, base editors, prime editors, and CRISPR transposases (CASTs) that offer the ability to address a wide variety of genetic diseases. From single point mutations to large gene corrections, we’re unlocking the ability to precisely and safely address any target in the human genome.

Extracting the most efficient genetic engineering systems from previously unknown organisms

Metagenomi has discovered and filed a vast array of active editing systems using advanced AI-based cloud computing—rapidly identifying and enhancing natural enzyme systems for translation into therapeutic applications.

375 trillion
Base pairs sequenced
5.5 billion
Predicted proteins
124 million
Cas associated proteins
1.4 million
Predicted CRISPR loci
20,000+
Editing systems identified

Gene editing toolbox

We’ve cre­at­ed the largest metage­nomics library of next-gen­er­a­tion CRISPR sys­tems, engi­neered to cure genet­ic disease

Black circles denote points on various blue-and-purple levers.

Diverse tool­box

Individualized gene editing tools collectively enable broad therapeutic areas

Various points are outlined in black but are trailed by a fading color to imply speed visually.

High speed development

Validated modules for quick screening and short optimization period

A large black circle houses two smaller black circles to compare their respective sizes.

Ultra-small edit­ing systems

Our ultra-small tools enable novel delivery modalities for in vivo gene editing, optimizing both viral and non-viral delivery systems as well as manufacturing processes. 

Black circles highlight blue, viable data points.

High speci­fici­ty

Ability to target any codon in the human genome with high precision and efficiency

Pill shapes filter through options to best fit an open, black-outlined pill shape.

Mod­u­lar engineering

Chimeras enable access to untargetable sites for precision repairs

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MG whol­ly-owned IP

Diverse enzymes with novel IP and unique characteristics based on proprietary library

Pipeline

In vivo

Combined with a variety of delivery technologies, our gene editing systems fuel an internal and partnered pipeline of novel in vivo genetic medicines

  1. Research
  2. Lead Opti­miza­tion
  3. IND-enabling
  4. Clin­i­cal

    • An illustrated depiction of a human liver, targeting Undisclosed Metabolic Disease Target, Lead optimization 75% completed, in partnership with Moderna

    • An illustrated depiction of a human liver, targeting Hemophilia A, Lead optimization 75% completed

    • An illustrated depiction of a human liver, targeting Undisclosed Disease Target, Research 75% completed

    • An illustrated depiction of a human liver, targeting Undisclosed Cardiovascular Disease Target 1, Research 75% completed

    • An illustrated depiction of a human liver, targeting Undisclosed Cardiovascular Disease Target 2, Research 50% completed

    • An illustrated depiction of a human brain, targeting Undisclosed CNS Disease Target, Research 50% completed

    • An illustrated depiction of a human lung, targeting Cystic Fibrosis, Research 25% completed, in partnership with Cystic Fibrosis Foundation

Ex vivo

With the mission to revolutionize and expand access to gene editing technologies, we apply our gene editing technologies for use in the development of immuno-oncology programs developed by field experts

  1. Research
  2. Lead Opti­miza­tion
  3. IND-enabling
  4. Clin­i­cal

    • An illustrated depiction of a human cell, targeting Immuno-oncology (TCR), Lead optimization 25% completed, in partnership with Affini-T

    • An illustrated depiction of a human cell, targeting Immuno-oncology (Modular CAR-T), Research 50% completed

About us

Unearthing a par­a­digm shift in health as we know it

Learn about how our curios­i­ty led us to dou­ble our col­lec­tive knowl­edge of oth­er­wise unknown organ­isms since Metageno­mi was found­ed — knowl­edge that we’re har­ness­ing to devel­op gene edit­ing therapies.

Get to know us

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