Amyris, Inc., founded in 2003, is a synthetic
biotechnology
Biotechnology is a multidisciplinary field that involves the integration of natural sciences and Engineering Science, engineering sciences in order to achieve the application of organisms and parts thereof for products and services. Specialists ...
company headquartered in
Emeryville, California
Emeryville is a city located in northwest Alameda County, California, in the United States. It lies in a corridor between the cities of Berkeley, California, Berkeley and Oakland, California, Oakland, with a border on the shore of San Francisc ...
. Amyris serves the specialty and performance chemicals, flavors and fragrances, cosmetics ingredients, pharmaceuticals, and
nutraceuticals markets.
In January 2016, the company received an investment from the
Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
The Gates Foundation is an American private foundation founded by Bill Gates and Melinda French Gates. Based in Seattle, Washington, it was launched in 2000 and is reported to be the third largest charitable foundation in the world, holding $ ...
's Strategic Innovation Fund to support the development of
antimalarial medication
Antimalarial medications or simply antimalarials are a type of antiparasitic chemical agent, often natural product, naturally derived, that can be used to treat or to prevent malaria, in the latter case, most often aiming at two susceptible target ...
based on semi-synthetic
artemisinin. In April 2019, the company raised $34-million in private placement of its common stock and warrants.
In 2020, Amyris received
Bonsucro's Chain of Custody Certification, ensuring that the sustainability claims along the sugarcane supply chain are traceable from farmer to end user. During the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
, the company collaborated with the
Infectious Disease Research Institute (IDRI) to advance a novel
ribonucleic acid (RNA) vaccine platform, including accelerating the development of a
COVID-19 vaccine.
On August 9, 2023, Amyris filed for
Chapter 11 bankruptcy
Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code ( Title 11 of the United States Code) permits reorganization under the bankruptcy laws of the United States. Such reorganization, known as Chapter 11 bankruptcy, is available to every business, w ...
protection and announced it will shut down its consumer brands amongst selling itself.
The company was delisted from Nasdaq and added to the
OTC Markets. On May 7, 2024, the company emerged from bankruptcy. A new CEO, Kathy Fortmann, was installed and is today at the helm of the company where she is leading the 2030 strategy, which is focused on B2B customers.
References
External links
Official website{{Authority control
Companies based in Emeryville, California
Biotechnology companies of the United States
Biotechnology companies established in 2003
Companies that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2023
Companies formerly listed on the Nasdaq
2003 establishments in California
American companies established in 2003