Colossal Biosciences Inc. is an American company that uses biotechnology and genetic techniques to bring back to life several animals that are no longer alive, such as the woolly mammoth, the Tasmanian tiger, the dire wolf, the dodo, the moa, and the bluebuck. In 2023, the company announced its goal to create hybrid calves of the woolly mammoth by 2028 and to place them in their natural Arctic tundra habitat. It also started the Tasmanian Thylacine Advisory Committee, a research project focused on preparing Tasmanian tiger young to return to their original Tasmanian and Australian habitats after being raised in captivity for observation.

The company works on genetic technology and methods to help animals reproduce, which are used in conservation efforts to protect wildlife. It was started in 2021 by Harvard scientist George Church and business leader Ben Lamm. The company is located in Dallas, Texas.

History

In 2008, George Church spoke with The New York Times about his plan to create a mix of Asian elephants and mammoths by studying the woolly mammoth's DNA. In 2012, Church worked with others to develop the CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing tool, which allows scientists to change genetic information. This tool helped make the idea of creating a "mammophant" possible. In 2013, Church presented his ideas about Colossal at the National Geographic Society.

In 2015, Church and his team used CRISPR to copy mammoth genes into the DNA of an Asian elephant. That same year, the team inserted mammoth genes into elephant skin cells, focusing on 60 genes that scientists thought were important for traits like a high-domed skull, the ability to hold oxygen in cold weather, and fatty tissue. In 2017, the team successfully added 45 of these genes to an Asian elephant's genome.

In 2019, Ben Lamm, who is known for starting many companies, met with Church after reading about Church's plan to bring back extinct species. Colossal was officially started on September 13, 2021, with $15 million in funding led by Thomas Tull, Tim Draper, Tony Robbins, Winklevoss Capital Management, Breyer Capital, and Richard Garriott. Colossal plans to bring back the woolly mammoth and, with Dr. Paul Ling, work to create a synthetic version of a virus that harms young Asian elephants.

Colossal's mission is to protect endangered animals using gene-editing technology and use those animals to help ecosystems survive. The company's software for studying genomes could help improve disease treatments, genetic engineering, and biotechnology. Colossal hired experts like Michael Hofreiter, Fritz Vollrath, R. Alta Charo, and S. Matthew Liao for advice. Other advisors include scientists such as Carolyn Bertozzi, Austin Gallagher, Kenneth Lacovara, Helen Hobbs, David Haussler, Elazar Edelman, Joseph DeSimone, Erez Lieberman Aiden, Christopher E. Mason, and Doris Taylor. Colossal has over 170 scientists and 95 advisors who work in areas like genomics, paleontology, and conservation.

In October 2021, Colossal partnered with VGP to fund the sequencing of Asian, African bush, and African forest elephant genomes for research. These genomes were shared publicly in July 2022 and May 2023.

In March 2022, Colossal received $60 million in a Series A funding round led by Thomas Tull, increasing total funding to $75 million. Other investors included Untamed Planet, Animoca Brands, Breyer Capital, Animal Capital, Arch Ventures, Paris Hilton, Bold Capital, First Light Capital Group, Boost VC, Jazz Ventures, Builders VC, Green Sands Equity, Draper Associates, and Charles Hoskinson.

In September 2022, Colossal launched Form Bio, a software platform, with $30 million in funding. Lamm said Colossal operates like a software company and will earn money from its technologies. Form Bio's software helps scientists manage large data sets using artificial intelligence.

In January 2023, Colossal raised $150 million in a Series B funding round, increasing its value to over $1 billion. That same month, Colossal started its Conservation Advisory Board with members like Forrest Galante, Iain Douglas-Hamilton, Mead Treadwell, and Aurelia Skipwith.

In October 2024, Colossal announced $50 million in funding for the Colossal Foundation.

In January 2025, Colossal secured $200 million in Series C funding, raising its total value to $10.2 billion and becoming Texas' first decacorn. With this money, Colossal plans to expand work on artificial wombs and de-extinction. As of January 2025, Colossal has raised $435 million since its start.

In August 2025, Colossal announced Colossal Australia, its first expansion outside the United States, by acquiring the Thylacine Integrated Genomics Restoration Research Lab (TIGRR) at the University of Melbourne. The lab is led by Andrew Pask, Colossal's chief biology officer.

In November 2025, Colossal announced it had acquired the animal cloning company ViaGen Pets.

Science and development

Because the woolly mammoth and Asian elephant share 99.6% of the same DNA, Colossal aimed to create a substitute species by changing important mammoth genes in the Asian elephant’s DNA. Key mammoth traits include a 10-centimeter layer of fat that helps keep warm, five types of shaggy hair, and smaller ears to help the hybrid survive cold weather.

Colossal’s lab uses CRISPR/Cas9 along with other tools to change the DNA of Asian elephants. Scientists used 65 different mammoth genomes from about 700,000 years ago to build a complete ancient DNA genome. The company plans to study both elephant and mammoth DNA to find important genes that can help create a diverse population. This process aims to avoid unexpected genetic changes in the hybrid herd. Colossal set a goal to grow a woolly mammoth calf by 2028.

The company plans to use African and Asian elephants as surrogate mothers and create artificial wombs lined with uterine tissue as an alternative to natural pregnancy. In 2021, scientists planned to make embryos by taking skin cells from Asian elephants and changing them into cells that can become any type of cell, which carry mammoth DNA. Scientists will use these cells and another method called somatic cell nuclear transfer in the process.

In July 2022, VGP and Colossal completed the full genetic code of the Asian elephant. This was the first time a mammal’s genome was fully sequenced in such detail since the Human Genome Project in the early 2000s.

In August 2022, Colossal announced a project to bring back a version of the Tasmanian tiger, or thylacine. Scientists hope to reintroduce the substitute species to areas in Tasmania and Australia, which could help restore ecosystems that have lost biodiversity. A successful thylacine substitute could also help save other marsupials. Colossal partnered with the University of Melbourne, led by Andrew Pask. The Tasmanian Thylacine Advisory Committee was created in December 2023.

In January 2023, Colossal formed a group focused on rebuilding the DNA of the dodo bird, which went extinct in the 1600s. The group, led by Beth Shapiro, plans to create hybrids with traits similar to the dodo and reintroduce them to their habitats. Scientists will use cells from the dodo’s closest living relative, the Nicobar pigeon, to make hybrid embryos.

In April 2024, a startup called Breaking, developed inside Colossal, discovered a microbe named X-32 that can break down plastics into carbon dioxide, water, and biomass in as little as 22 months.

In 2024, Colossal successfully created the first elephant and dunnart induced pluripotent stem cells.

In October 2024, Colossal rebuilt a 99.9% accurate genome of the thylacine using a 110-year-old fossilized skull. This is the most complete ancient genome of any species. Three months later, in January 2025, the company completed the thylacine genome and made a prototype for an artificial uterus to grow embryos halfway through pregnancy.

In March 2025, Colossal created gene-edited “woolly mice” with traits inspired by woolly mammoths. The mice have long, shaggy fur and were made using a mix of mammoth

Conservation

In October 2022, Colossal announced it was working on a vaccine for elephant endotheliotropic herpesvirus (EEHV) with the Baylor College of Medicine.

In May 2023, Colossal partnered with the Vertebrate Genomes Project to create the first high-quality reference genome of an African elephant. This work is part of a long-term effort to protect endangered elephants.

In September 2023, Colossal joined BioRescue to help save the northern white rhino from extinction. Scientists are using reproduction and stem cell technology because only two infertile female northern white rhinos remain.

In October 2023, Colossal and Zoos Victoria started a project to preserve the Victorian Grassland Earless Dragon and sequence its genome.

In November 2023, Colossal partnered with Save the Elephants to track African elephants in the Samburu National Reserve. Save the Elephants has already used drones with high-resolution infrared cameras to monitor over 900 elephants. Colossal plans to use pose estimation to create algorithms that label elephants and identify their social behaviors automatically.

In November 2023, Colossal also began working with the Mauritian Wildlife Foundation. The company plans to restore ecosystems by removing invasive species, planting native plants, and raising community awareness. Colossal also aims to help rewild the dodo bird and genetically rescue the pink pigeon.

In March 2024, Colossal and Re:wild launched a "10-year conservation strategy" to save species near extinction, find lost species, and restore habitats for recovery and rewilding.

In May 2024, Colossal and the University of Melbourne successfully engineered cane toad toxin resistance in marsupial cells. This work supports conservation efforts for the northern quoll.

In July 2024, the first-ever mRNA vaccine for EEHV, developed by Colossal, the Houston Zoo, and the Baylor College of Medicine, was given to an elephant.

In October 2024, Colossal launched the Colossal Foundation, a non-profit group that uses its science and technology to support conservation. The foundation includes the Colossal Biovault, a global biobanking initiative that stores tissue samples of endangered species. The Biovault’s first projects focused on species like the Sumatran rhinoceros, red wolf, northern quoll, northern white rhinoceros, pink pigeon, and others. Colossal also plans to biobank the "top 100 most imperilled" species, though this list has not been shared publicly.

In December 2024, Colossal and the University of Melbourne began research to engineer immunity to chytridiomycosis, a deadly fungal disease that has caused many amphibian extinctions, including the golden toad and Rabbs' fringe-limbed tree frog.

In April 2025, Colossal announced the birth of two cloned red wolf litters from three genetic lines. The litters included three male pups (Blaze, Cinder, and Ash) and one female (Hope). Joseph Hinton from the Wolf Conservation Center in New York said the wolves were likely derived from coyotes captured in southwest Louisiana for the Gulf Coast Canid Project. In the same month, Colossal and IPB University announced plans to use assisted reproduction technology, similar to methods used in their dire wolf project, to help save the Sumatran rhinoceros from extinction.

Reception

In 2022, Colossal was listed as one of the World Economic Forum's Technology Pioneers and was awarded Genomics Innovation of the Year by the BioTech Breakthrough Awards. Colossal was included in Time's 100 Most Influential Companies 2023 list. In 2025, Colossal was voted one of the best places to work in Dallas, Texas, U.S., by Builtin.

The company's goal of bringing back extinct species has been criticized by some scientists and conservationists. They argue that the process is not reliable because ancient DNA is often poorly preserved and incomplete. These critics believe resources should instead be used to protect living ecosystems and wildlife. Professor Jeremy Austin, an expert in ancient DNA, stated that Colossal's work focuses more on gaining media attention than conducting meaningful scientific research.

In July 2025, New Scientist reported that some scientists who have criticized Colossal's work have faced a coordinated campaign. Researchers such as Vincent Lynch, Flint Dibble, Victoria Herridge, and Nic Rawlence said they were targeted by AI-generated blog posts that questioned their qualifications and reasons for opposing Colossal. Some content creators also received false YouTube copyright claims. Colossal responded by stating that neither the company nor its investors were involved in creating negative stories about critics.