Ultima Genomics
| Type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Biotechnology |
| Founded | 2016 |
| Headquarters | , |
Key people | |
Number of employees | 350 |
| Website | ultimagenomics |
Ultima Genomics, Inc. is an American biotechnology company that develops and manufactures systems for high-throughput DNA sequencing.
History
[edit]Ultima Genomics was founded in 2016 by Gilad Almogy, an Israeli-born American engineer and former head of the display group at Applied Materials.[1] In May 2022, the company announced that it had raised $600 million in venture capital from investors including General Atlantic, Andreessen Horowitz, Khosla Ventures, Lightspeed, Playground Global, D1 Capital, and Founders Fund.[2] Together with the funding announcement, Ultima released sequencing data collected using the company's technology in pilot partnerships with researchers at the Broad Institute, Whitehead Institute, Baylor College of Medicine, Stanford University School of Medicine, and New York Genome Center.[2]
UG 100 platform
[edit]In 2024, Ultima launched the UG 100 sequencing platform, claiming it to be capable of sequencing 20,000 human genomes per year with variant calling accuracy matching or exceeding that of competitor Illumina's sequencing instruments.[3][4] The technology, which can perform a complete sequence in 20 hours, costs $100.[2] In 2001, the cost of sequencing a human genome according to the National Human Genome Research Institute was $95 million but this figure fell to $562 in 2021.[5]
The UG 100 replaces a traditional flow cell with a flat circular silicon wafer disk. During sequencing, the disk spins to dispense reagents while two fixed-position cameras continuously acquire data. A ≥300-base median-length run takes approximately 20 hours to complete.[6]
The UG 100's chemistry differs from traditional sequencing-by-synthesis methods in that only one nucleotide species is introduced per data capture cycle, or "flow," eliminating the need for base calling.[6] This flow-based readout results in a distribution of read lengths, with a median length of at least 300 bases, or approximately 250 bases after quality-control filtering. With yields of 10-12 billion reads per wafer, this translates to approximately 2.5-3.0 terabases of usable data per run.[6][7]
Partnerships
[edit]In 2025, Ultima announced it was partnering with Arc Institute to support Arc's virtual cell atlas and competition.[8]
References
[edit]- ↑ "Gilad Almogy". investmentreports.co.
- 1 2 3 "Ultima Genomics claims $100 full genome sequencing after stealth $600M raise". techcrunch.com. May 31, 2022.
- ↑ Almogy, Gilad; et al. (2022). "Cost-efficient whole genome-sequencing using novel mostly natural sequencing-by-synthesis chemistry and open fluidics platform". bioRxiv 10.1101/2022.05.29.493900.
- ↑ "Ultima Announces UG 100™ and Reveals Disruptive Cost and Accuracy Profile to Enable the Era of the $100 Genome and Beyond". businesswire.com.
- ↑ Primack, Dan (June 1, 2022). "Ultima Genomics raises $600 million to lower genome sequencing costs". Axios. Retrieved Jul 25, 2026.
- 1 2 3 "Ultima Genomics UG 100 Sequencing". genomics.umn.edu.
- ↑ "UG 100 Sequencing Platform". ultimagenomics.com.
- ↑ "Arc Institute launches its inaugural virtual cell competition using AI to solve one of biology's biggest challenges". June 26, 2025.
- Companies based in Fremont, California
- Technology companies based in the San Francisco Bay Area
- Biotechnology companies of the United States
- Biotechnology companies established in 2016
- American companies established in 2016
- Genomics companies
- Research support companies
- Health care companies based in California
- 2016 establishments in California