Omniome
Acquired7 known investors
San Diego DNA sequencing company behind the Sequencing by Binding short-read platform; acquired by Pacific Biosciences in 2021.
Also known as Omniome, Inc.
Investors · 7
Also in the syndicate · 1
Company profile
researched Aug 2026Omniome was a San Diego-based biotechnology company that developed a proprietary short-read DNA sequencing platform designed to deliver higher accuracy than conventional next-generation sequencing systems. Its core technology, marketed as Sequencing by Binding (SBB), was a chemistry developed specifically because clinical applications require accuracy levels that existing sequencing technologies struggle to achieve. The company positioned the platform as capable of higher sensitivity at lower cost, with intended applications in cancer diagnostics, single-cell analysis, and clinical sequencing more broadly.
The company was founded in 2013 and employed roughly 120 people at the time of its acquisition, with a headquarters in San Diego and, according to one aggregator, an additional location in Baltimore. It raised institutional venture capital across seed, Series A, Series B and Series C rounds, with total funding reported at approximately $127.6 million. In September 2021, Pacific Biosciences (Nasdaq: PACB) closed its acquisition of Omniome, combining Omniome's short-read technology with PacBio's SMRT long-read sequencing portfolio and establishing PacBio's San Diego site.
Founding story
Omniome was founded in 2013. Richard Shen, later company President, stated that the company was built on the belief that improvements in short-read accuracy are necessary for the expansion of NGS clinical testing applications and for confirmation of other technical approaches.
Business model
Omniome operated as a venture-backed instrument and consumables developer in the next-generation sequencing market, building a proprietary sequencing platform intended for commercial release to research and clinical customers. Sources describe the platform as still in development at the time of the acquisition, with PacBio stating it looked forward to releasing the product to customers in the near future.
Traction
Investors backed the company through multiple rounds totaling approximately $127.6 million, and it grew to roughly 120 employees by 2021. Its principal realized outcome was the September 2021 sale to Pacific Biosciences for approximately $316 million in cash plus about 9.4 million PACB shares, with additional milestone consideration of up to $200 million.
Latest developments
Pacific Biosciences closed its acquisition of Omniome on 20 September 2021, paying approximately $316 million in cash and about 9.4 million PACB shares at closing, with up to $200 million in further milestone-contingent consideration. PacBio simultaneously closed a $300 million private placement of approximately 11.2 million shares at $26.75 per share with a syndicate of life sciences investors in support of the transaction. PacBio said the Omniome team had continued platform development progress in the 60 days since the deal was announced.
▸Full profile — market position, technology, go-to-market, geography, history, risks & controversies
Market position
Omniome targeted the next-generation sequencing market as a challenger offering higher-accuracy short reads than competing systems. PacBio framed the acquisition as significantly expanding its market opportunity, particularly in the high-growth clinical segment.
Omniome's Sequencing by Binding chemistry was presented as having fundamental advantages over other sequencing technologies, with the potential for significant accuracy improvements over conventional NGS products, higher sensitivity, improved limit of detection, lower cost, and reduced computational burden. Following the acquisition, PacBio stated the combination made it the only company with both highly accurate long-read and short-read sequencing platforms.
Technology
The platform is based on Sequencing by Binding (SBB), a proprietary chemistry for short-read DNA sequencing developed to achieve accuracy levels needed for clinical applications. One aggregator reports 35 patents assigned to the company.
Go-to-market
The company described a mission of collaborating with the scientific community to deliver a short-read sequencing platform, and solicited collaboration and early-access data inquiries through its website prior to commercial launch.
Research and clinical genomics customers, with stated application areas including cancer diagnostics, single-cell applications, and clinical sequencing.
Geography
Headquartered in San Diego, California, with an additional location in Baltimore listed by one data aggregator. After the acquisition, Omniome employees continued to work from their existing offices, which became PacBio's San Diego presence alongside its Bay Area global headquarters.
History
Founded in 2013, Omniome raised an initial $1.0 million round in May 2014 and $6.6 million in seed funding in June 2014, followed by a Series A in January 2016, a $60 million Series B in July 2018 and a $60 million Series C in January 2020. Leadership changes in the company's final period included the appointment of Robert Wicke as Chief Executive Officer in November 2020, the promotion of Kelly Perez to Chief Operating Officer in December 2020, and the promotion of Richard Shen to President in May 2021. Pacific Biosciences announced the acquisition in July 2021 and closed it on 20 September 2021.
Risks & controversies
The sources do not report controversies. At the time of the acquisition the sequencing platform was still in development, and a portion of the deal consideration ($200 million) was contingent on achievement of a specified milestone, indicating remaining technical and commercial execution risk.
Compiled by commissioned research from 6 cited public sources — announcements, filings, and press listed under research sources below.
Key figures
latest reportedCompany-reported or press-reported figures, each dated to when it was claimed — not independently audited.
Timeline · 4
launches, deals, and filingsPacBio closed its acquisition of Omniome, adding a high-accuracy short-read sequencing platform to its long-read portfolio and establishing a PacBio presence in San Diego. Consideration at closing was approximately $316 million in cash (including adjustments for indebtedness and working capital) and approximately 9.4 million shares of PacBio common stock (8.8 million issued at close, 0.6 million attributable to replacement stock options), with an additional $200 million (about $100 million cash and the remainder in shares) payable to former Omniome equity holders upon achievement of a specified milestone. PacBio concurrently closed a $300 million PIPE of about 11.2 million shares at $26.75 per share in support of the transaction.
$316M source ↗
Dated company events from announcements, filings, and press; legal rows summarize public dockets and regulator releases.
In the news
▸Research sources · 6
primary sources listed
- DCVC | Omniomedcvc.com · web
6 public sources were cited for this profile; the first-party ones are listed here.
Frequently asked questions
- What does Omniome do?
- San Diego DNA sequencing company behind the Sequencing by Binding short-read platform; acquired by Pacific Biosciences in 2021.
- Who are Omniome's investors?
- Omniome's investors include ARCH Venture Partners, Decheng Capital, ALTITUDE LIFE SCIENCE VENTURES, Domain Associates, Hillhouse Capital, Nan Fung Life Sciences.