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23andMe’s November 11, 2024 announcement ended further development of its in-house therapeutics programs, including two cancer-focused drug candidates, and announced more than 200 job cuts—about 40% of its workforce. It did not say that all cancer-related research was ending: the company’s Research Institute continues to describe genetics studies that include cancer research. The company later announced an agreement to sell substantially all its assets, but the available announcements do not establish what happened to each drug program.
What 23andMe announced in November 2024
On November 11, 2024, 23andMe said it would reduce its workforce by more than 200 employees, approximately 40% of its headcount, and discontinue further development of all therapeutics programs. The company said the restructuring was intended to focus on its consumer business and research partnerships. Read the company’s announcement.
The company projected more than $35 million in annualized cost savings and estimated up to $12 million in restructuring costs, largely for severance, transition, and termination-related expenses. These were estimates in the 2024 announcement, not confirmation that the savings were realized or the final costs incurred.
Which cancer programs were affected?
The announcement named two oncology drug-development programs:
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- 23ME-00610: A Phase 1/2a antibody program targeting CD200R1.
- 23ME-01473: A Phase 1 antibody program targeting ULBP6.
These were therapeutic development efforts: work to advance potential drugs through clinical development. The announcement said further development of all therapeutics programs would stop while the company pursued strategic alternatives for its clinical and preclinical assets.
Did 23andMe end all cancer research?
No. The 2024 announcement supports the narrower conclusion that 23andMe was halting further development of its in-house therapeutics pipeline, including the two named cancer-focused programs. That is not the same as ending every form of cancer-related research.
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23andMe’s Research Institute separately describes participant-powered genetics research, including cancer studies. Its current public pages report more than 11 million research-consented genotyped participants, more than 300 peer-reviewed publications, and a breast cancer cohort of 127,000. Those are figures published by the organization, not independently verified here. See 23andMe Research Institute.
Drug development, genetics research using participant data, and consumer genetic testing are distinct activities. The shutdown announcement addressed the therapeutics division; it did not state that the company’s broader research program or consumer testing service was ending.
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What was planned for the drug assets and clinical trials?
23andMe said it would explore licensing, asset sales, or other transactions for its clinical and preclinical assets. It also said it intended to wind down ongoing clinical trials as quickly as practical while that process continued. The announcement did not provide a definitive timeline or guarantee a transaction or other outcome.
In June 2025, the company announced an agreement to sell substantially all its assets, including its Personal Genome Service and Research Services businesses, to TTAM Research Institute for $305 million. That announced sale does not, by itself, establish the later disposition or clinical status of 23ME-00610, 23ME-01473, or any other individual therapeutic asset. Read the 2025 sale announcement.
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What this means for employees, customers, and research participants
Employees
The more-than-200 figure was the company’s announced headcount reduction in November 2024. It was approximately 40% of its workforce at that time, not a current 2026 layoff announcement.
Customers
The 2024 restructuring announcement focused on therapeutics development and the workforce reduction. It did not announce that consumer genetic testing would stop. The later 2025 agreement included the Personal Genome Service among the businesses covered by the proposed asset sale.
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Research participants
23andMe says research participation is voluntary, can be stopped by opting out, is reviewed by an Institutional Review Board, and uses de-identified data; it also says most research uses aggregate-level data. These are the company’s descriptions of its practices. Read the company’s research participation information.
Quick Recap
How to read the announcement accurately
- Confirmed in 2024: 23andMe announced a therapeutics-development shutdown, a workforce reduction of more than 200 employees, and plans to seek strategic alternatives for its clinical and preclinical assets.
- Not established by that announcement: That all cancer-related research ended, or what ultimately happened to each named drug asset.
- Later development: In 2025, 23andMe announced an agreement to sell substantially all its assets to TTAM Research Institute; that announcement does not resolve the individual programs’ status.
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