Illumina names former Agilent exec as CEO, months after parting ways with deSouza

Illumina has picked Jacob Thaysen as its new CEO, roughly three months after the company parted ways with Francis deSouza amid a fight with an activist investor and struggling fortunes as it wrestles with antitrust authorities.

The appointment of Thaysen, most recently the president of Agilent Technologies’ life sciences and applied markets group, signals an attempt by the genetic testing company to put a leader with deep roots in genomics and life sciences at the helm. In a statement, Illumina highlighted Thaysen’s track record over the past five years at Agilent, noting how he “drove the division’s revenue and significantly improved its operating profit.”

DeSouza and Illumina parted ways in June following a campaign by activist investor Carl Icahn to oust him and replace several directors on Illumina’s board. While Icahn only won one seat, deSouza’s resignation appeared to be an acknowledgment by the company’s board that the San Diego-based company wasn’t on the right path.

Charles Dadswell

Illumina’s stock has been cut by almost a third since its 2021 peak, a slide that has coincided with the company’s battle with US and European antitrust regulators over its $7.1 billion acquisition of cancer-testing company Grail. Illumina made the deal in 2020, but antitrust regulators objected to the takeover — and then Illumina closed the transaction anyway.

The result was what has become a lengthy back-and-forth between the company and regulators that has kept Grail in a hold-separate agreement. In the meantime, Illumina has cut costs, lowered its 2023 financial outlook and has watched smaller rivals begin to gain ground.

Charles Dadswell, Illumina’s general counsel, has been serving as interim CEO since deSouza’s departure.

This is a developing story and will be updated.

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