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On Sunday, 23andMe, the American biotechnology and personal genomics company co-founded by Yale alum Anne Wojcicki ’96 and known for pioneering autosomal DNA testing for ancestry, announced it had filed for bankruptcy. 

In a statement, the company stated that it had filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy “after a thorough evaluation of strategic alternatives,” with the intent “to facilitate a sale process to maximize the value of its business.” The company also announced that Wojcicki was resigning from her position as its CEO.

“We believe in the value of our people and our assets and hope that this process allows our mission of helping people access, understand and benefit from the human genome to live on for the benefit of customers and patients,” Mark Jensen, chair and member of the special committee of the 23andMe board of directors, said in a statement.

Wojcicki founded 23andMe in 2006, offering saliva-based genetic tests to consumers. In 2008, the company’s groundbreaking product was named the “Invention of the Year” by Time. The company finally went public in 2021, at one point reaching a market value of $6 billion and selling shares for more than $200 each.

Now, however, 23andMe has become a penny stock.

The company has long struggled due to its one-time-purchase business model, as most people who buy DNA tests do not make additional purchases. Additionally, the company was the victim of a large-scale data breach in 2023 that affected nearly 7 million profiles and specifically targeted users of Chinese and Ashkenazi Jewish heritage. It subsequently faced a class-action lawsuit for failing to properly notify its customers about the attack.

In September, seven independent directors of the company’s board resigned. Then in November, the company reduced its workforce by 40 percent, firing 200 employees in an effort to save money. 

Wojcicki still thinks the company is worth saving. 

“Nineteen years ago, when I co-founded 23andMe, the direct to consumer industry did not exist and most people had no idea why they would ever want to see their genome,” Wojcicki posted on social media. “So much has changed. There is now a thriving direct to consumer industry and over 15 million people are now 23andMe customers.”

Wojcicki also posted that she resigned from her CEO position to independently bid for the company.

While at Yale, Wojcicki studied biology and worked in the lab of Professor Emeritus of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology Sidney Altman. She served as an aide in Jonathan Edwards College and played varsity women’s ice hockey. 

After graduation, Wojcicki worked as a healthcare investment analyst, but found the healthcare system disappointing and unsettling. During this period of frustration, Wojcicki recounted being inspired by a group called ACT-UP, or the AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power, a group that demanded that patients play a greater role in their own healthcare decisions.

“I started to realize that if you really wanted to understand the human genome and to have a different type of healthcare system, you had to have it driven by the people and for the people,” Wojcicki said. “23andMe came out of this idea that we’re going to empower people by giving them access to their genetic information and we’re going to crowdsource research.”

She also has a long history of giving back to Yale and supporting its alums.

In 2010, Wojcicki spoke at Jonathan Edwards before an audience of 40 students and faculty members about the creation of 23andMe, as well as “her desire to make a difference in health care, [and]… improve understanding of genetic diseases and … the development of personalized medicine.” 

In 2012, Wojcicki and other entrepreneurs, including Mark Zuckerberg, Priscilla Chan, Sergey Brin and Art Levinson, established the Breakthrough Prize, which honors individuals who have made scientific advances to fundamental physics, life sciences or mathematics. Sterling Professor of Computer Science Daniel Spielman ’92 and Professor Emeritus of Genetics Arthur Horwich both received the award, which includes a $3 million prize.

In 2020, Wojcicki participated in the School of Management’s Gordon Grand Fellowship Lecture series, speaking with former University President Peter Salovey about her experiences at Yale, views on science, and the founding of 23andMe. Wojcicki encouraged the three hundred attendees to be curious, recounting how she “followed her physics professor around to ask questions.” Salovey ended the discussion by referring to Wojcicki as “a treasured Yale alumna.”

In 2022, the Yale College Office of Development partnered with Wojcicki to expand the STARS program, which supports students who come from socioeconomically disadvantaged backgrounds in the sciences, engineering, and mathematics. Wojcicki made a “significant investment” in the program, allowing it to double its reach.

23andMe is based in San Francisco.