Almaden Genomics Chief Scientific Officer Mark Knitomi (left) and Almaden Executive Chairman Tricia D'Cruz [Photos: Almaden Genomics]
Catalyze Dallas Holdings is making its first foray into the biotechnology space with the launch of its latest portfolio company.
A Dallas-based venture development firm specializing in commercializing technologies acquired from Fortune 100 companies has launched Almaden Genomics. The company's newly released platform aims to “democratize and accelerate bioinformatics by breaking down barriers in biotechnology research and development.” Almaden was part of IBM Research before becoming an independent company under the ownership of Catalyze Dallas.
“Personalized medicine, which takes a patient's genetic makeup into account in the development of drugs and treatments, is expected to grow dramatically, providing all of us with the opportunity for earlier care and better outcomes.” Catalyze said Tricia D'Cruz, co-founder and managing director. Dallas and Almaden's executive chairman said in a statement. “However, this process is iterative in nature, and code creation and maintenance significantly slows time to market.”
The possibilities are “so vast that they can change your life”
Almaden has developed a drag-and-drop workflow builder through its genomic workflow platform g.nome. It comes with a library of toolkits that help biotech and pharmaceutical researchers sequence large amounts of genomic data through a scalable and interoperable process. Almaden initially plans to target academic institutions and small to medium-sized biotech customers.
“The g.nome platform is an innovative approach to bioinformatics that we are launching after a highly successful customer pilot phase,” Mark Knitomi, Almaden's chief scientific officer, said in a statement. “The potential for medical innovation it can drive is vast and life-changing.”
Catalyze Dallas has brought in the original team of bioinformaticians, engineers, and industry experts who developed the technology behind Almaden at IBM Research, which will now operate as an independent company under the Catalyze Dallas umbrella. Stated. A Catalyze Dallas spokesperson said the company hopes to further grow Almaden by expanding all departments of its current team of less than 50 people.
Almaden builds Catalize Dallas portfolio
The way Catalyze Dallas funds its operations and portfolio companies, GenomeWeb points out that the company has already invested “millions of dollars” in Almaden, and that Catalyze Dallas has committed future growth funding rounds to the company. He added that he looks forward to providing it. DeCruz told the publication that Catalyze Dallas expects Almaden to reach $100 million in revenue within the next five years.
“Using g.nome, we solve large-scale bottlenecks in bioinformatics and speed up R&D with the ability to create and run pipelines. What could take up to six months in some cases is reduced to about an hour, allowing for rapid iteration and discovery,” said Mr. D. said Mr. Cruz.
Like Almaden, Catalyze Dallas' other portfolio companies aim to commercialize technologies developed elsewhere. For the other two businesses, their technology is provided by Lockheed Martin. Founded in 2016, Catalyze Dallas' Metro Aerospace brings 3D printed aerodynamic components developed by Lockheed to market. Another company, Alpine Advanced Materials, which he founded in 2019, manufactures custom-designed parts made from structural thermoplastic nanocomposites.
“Almaden is another example of how our proven model helps innovators make the most of their R&D investments. This combined access will accelerate time to market,” said D'Cruz.
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