EXIT (2016):

* Investment Date & Round, Invested in Seed Series in July of 2011, then led Series A   and B (Invested $5.6M)
* Initial Premoney Valuation: $1M
* Acquisition: Purchased by Roche in 2016 before FDA Appv
* Exit Value: $79.5M; (Total Purchase Price of Company $425M)
​* Return Multiple: ~14x

GeneWEAVE detects antibiotic-resistant bacteria by genetically engineering bacteriophages to glow when they find antibiotic resistance in a bacteria’s genes. First target was MRSA (methicillin resistant staph aureus), but this technique will work on almost all antibiotic-resistant bacteria. MRSA is the worst problem doctors face at this time. The test works by using a nasal swab to capture some small amount of mucus from the nasal cavity and when it is placed in a small test tube, within minutes the tube begins to glow if antibiotic resistance is detected.

Ted Driscoll brought in longtime friend Steve Tablak, who became GeneWEAVE’s CEO and who ultimately scaled to exit. The idea was so powerful, and antibiotic resistance is such a growing problem, that Roche  bought the company before they had even commercialized the product or had FDA approval. GeneWEAVE had established with experimental trials that their technology worked, and the engineered bacteriophages cost only 6 cents to do a single test. All bacteria have bacteriophages that infect them, so harnessing a phage to do this diagnostic made very good sense.
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N.B. Ted Driscoll met the two young Founders, Diego Rey and Jason Springs, out of college when they were looking for seed funding. He was a Board Member from beginning to acquisition. ​