A new startup aims to offer direct-to-consumer genetic testing users additional analyses of their genetic data and appeal to a younger cohort, TechCrunch reports.
The startup, called Nucleus Genomics, was founded by Kian Sadeghi, who dropped out of the University of Pennsylvania during the pandemic to work on the company full time, it adds. According to TechCrunch, Nucleus's idea is that users of DTC services like 23andMe or Ancestry can upload their data to Nucleus, which will then apply its own set of algorithms to generate polygenic risk scores, which the company is still developing. Users who upload their data, it adds, will be able to choose to further share their information with drug companies and possibly earn a "dividend payment."
Sadeghi tells TechCrunch that they plan to better appeal to a younger crowd. "We can tap into a brand-new audience and introduce an entire generation to genetic testing, just as you could say Robinhood introduced an entire generation to the stock market," he tells it.
TechCrunch notes that Nucleus announced a $3.5 million seed round on Tuesday and is to launch around January 2022.