23andMe co-founder lashes out at CEO Wojcicki after bankruptcy filing, says board lacked oversight

23andMe co-founder lashes out at CEO Wojcicki after bankruptcy filing, says board lacked oversight


A view of 23andMe headquarters in Sunnyvale, California, United States on March 25, 2025. 

Tayfun Coskun | Anadolu | Getty Images

23andMe co-founder Linda Avey took to social media on Wednesday to express frustration about the fate of the once-thriving genetics testing company that spiraled into Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection this week.

Avey helped launch 23andMe in 2006 alongside Paul Cusenza and Anne Wojcicki, who resigned as CEO on Friday. The company went mainstream thanks to its popular at-home DNA testing kits, but struggled in recent years to generate recurring revenue, stand up viable therapeutics and research businesses and assuage privacy concerns.

“My time at the company was cut short in 2009, when my co-founder Anne convinced the board that she should run the company,” Avey wrote in a post on X. “And I must be honest, I was frustrated with the direction the company took after that point.”

23andMe, which reached a peak market cap of about $6 billion, was worth around $14 million as of market close on Wednesday.

“Without continued consumer-focused product development, and without governance, 23andMe lost its way, and society missed a key opportunity in furthering the idea of personalized health,” Avey wrote.

Last March, 23andMe’s independent directors formed a special committee to evaluate the company’s potential paths forward. All seven members resigned from the board in September and said they disagreed with Wojcicki about the “strategic direction for the company.”

“After my departure, she architected a majority vote for herself that eliminated board governance, even as it expanded over the following funding rounds,” Avey said. “For better or worse, the buck stopped with her. It came as no surprise when the board resigned last year.”

Wojcicki submitted multiple proposals to take the company private herself, but all were rejected, even after the company appointed new board members. The special committee “unanimously determined to reject” Wojcicki’s most recent proposal earlier this month.

If 23andMe’s Chapter 11 plan is approved by the court, the company will “actively solicit qualified bids” over a 45-day process. Wojcicki still plans to pursue the company as an independent bidder, she said in a post on X on Monday.

“There are many cautionary tales buried in the 23andMe story,” Avey said. “Striking a balance between the desire for founder control and board oversight is essential; otherwise, why have a board at all?”

23andMe didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

WATCH: The rise and fall of 23andMe

The rise and fall of 23andMe



Source

Europe stocks set to rise as investors look ahead to U.S.-China trade talks in Switzerland
World

Europe stocks set to rise as investors look ahead to U.S.-China trade talks in Switzerland

European stock market futures point to a positive start after the U.K. and U.S. confirmed a trade agreement, and investors look ahead to the U.S.-China trade negotiations set to begin this weekend. The pan-European Stoxx Europe 600 index is expected to open higher by 0.3%, according to futures data from FactSet. The U.K.’s FTSE 100 […]

Read More
CNBC Daily Open: London markets didn’t seem to view the U.K.-U.S. trade deal positively
World

CNBC Daily Open: London markets didn’t seem to view the U.K.-U.S. trade deal positively

Britain’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer speaks to employees at a car factory in the West Midlands, Britain, on May 8, 2025. Alberto Pezzali | Via Reuters The U.K. is the first country to seal a trade deal with the U.S. Cue the jubilations. And investors certainly did, giving the three major U.S. indexes back-to-back winning […]

Read More
Chinese chipmaker SMIC shares fall nearly 7% after earnings miss
World

Chinese chipmaker SMIC shares fall nearly 7% after earnings miss

A logo hangs on the building of the Beijing branch of Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation (SMIC) on December 4, 2020 in Beijing, China. Vcg | Visual China Group | Getty Images Shares of Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation, China’s largest contract chip maker, fell nearly 7% Friday after its first-quarter earnings missed estimates. After trading on […]

Read More