Condon Devices Shuts Down
The closure indicates the competitive environment for funding, even for a growing field such as synthetic biology. An article in the latest edition of Nature cites observers as questioning Condon Devices’ dual strategy of providing synthetic DNA for research, while also pursuing synthetic biology R&D.
Boston, MA 4/2/09—The Boston Globe reported on April 2 that DNA synthesis and reagent firm Condon Devices has shut down due to an inability to raise new financing. According to the newspaper, Board members voted in late March to cease operations. No formal announcement was made by the company. Condon Devices’ investors included Alloy Ventures and Flagship Ventures. The company had raised $31 million in Series B funding, including an $11 million investment announced in March 2008. Last summer, the company streamlined operations to focus on product development partnerships for metabolic engineering. The company was founded in 2004.
