Element Biosciences logs 100 DNA sequencer orders as it gains momentum in a competitive market

Element Biosciences has reported 100 commercial orders of its benchtop DNA sequencer, a figure that outside observers called solid progress as the startup competes for customers in a market dominated by Illumina.

Molly He

Molly He, Element’s CEO, said the majority of the orders have already been shipped, and Element plans to get the rest out by the end of the year. Element has customers in the US and 13 other countries.

“This is only the beginning,” He said.

She said Element’s sequencer, called AVITI, is catching on with labs big and small. Some labs buy multiple machines and deploy them in different locations to be closer to customers, a decentralized approach that’s particularly suited to China.

“Customers in China really see the advantage of the AVITI system in a decentralized model to really serve into clinical research,” He said. But she also acknowledged this is a difficult market because of competitive pressures, increased price sensitivity and geopolitics.

Illumina, for instance, has said its growth in China is coming in below expectations in 2023.

Element, which has raised $400 million from investors including Venrock, Foresite Capital and Fidelity, launched its DNA sequencer nearly a year and a half ago. The privately-held company estimates that it has captured about 15% of the mid-throughput market that caters to labs with a variety of needs. In contrast, Illumina’s high-throughput flagship product, Novaseq X, is used by customers that deal in large volumes of genomes.

Dawn Barry, co-founder of the startup LunaDNA that connects researchers and patient communities, said Element appears to be making good progress in what’s been a tough market.

“A lot of buyers have been very conservative in using their cash in upgrading or buying new equipment,” said Barry, a former Illumina executive.

Shawn Baker, a genomics consultant and former Illumina employee, said Element’s momentum doesn’t appear to be a “material loss to Illumina.” But Element can point to its orders in trying to attract more customers.

“It’s sort of like a network effect. The more placements that are out there, the more comfortable the next customer will be in buying the machine,” Baker said. “They’ll be more likely to know someone with one or seen a publication using one.”

Illumina, despite upstarts gaining ground, is still by far the largest DNA sequencing company, recently posting $1.18 billion in quarterly revenue.

But Element has joined Illumina in the race to drive down the cost of DNA sequencing. Element earlier this year said it can read a person’s genetic code for as little as $200 with its sequencing machines. The feat requires pairing multiple Element sequencers, a trio of which costs $747,000.

The company has touted the accuracy of its machine, most recently pointing to a preprint that says the technology particularly excels at processing repeat lines of genetic code that give other DNA sequencers trouble.

The company, He noted, next plans to release more products, but declined to provide details.

“We have a very exciting future product roadmap and also continue to expand our commercial footprint,” she said.

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