Colossal Biosciences, Austin's de-extinction decacorn, keeps raising
The genetic-engineering company is past a $10 billion valuation as it pushes mammoth, dire wolf and bluebuck programs forward.
AUSTIN — Colossal Biosciences, the genetic-engineering company headquartered in Austin, has cemented its status as Texas' first 'decacorn,' carrying a valuation above $10 billion after raising hundreds of millions toward its de-extinction ambitions.
Colossal's work sits at the intersection of computational biology and heavy-duty genome engineering — editing and reconstructing the genetics of lost or vanishing species. The company points to concrete milestones, including the dire-wolf pups Romulus and Remus and ongoing woolly mammoth embryo development, with a calf targeted later this decade. In April 2026 it disclosed an effort to bring back the bluebuck, an antelope hunted to extinction roughly two centuries ago.
The cap table features names well beyond traditional biotech, including filmmaker Peter Jackson and veteran life-sciences investor Bob Nelsen, reflecting how the company has marketed its science as both conservation tool and cultural spectacle.
Why it matters
Colossal is the most valuable deep-tech company Austin has produced, and it leans heavily on AI and computational tooling to manage genomes at scale. Its trajectory shows that Austin's deep-tech reputation now extends well past chips and robots into the frontier of synthetic biology.
Reported by Next in Austin. Based on reporting from CultureMap Austin.
