Ginkgo Bioworks To Go Public In $17.5 Billion Deal With Former Hollywood Exec Harry Sloan’s SPAC

Synthetic biology pioneer Ginkgo Bioworks agreed to go public today in a USD17.5 billion SPAC deal. The Boston-based company will merge with Soaring Eagle Acquisition Corp., a blank-check firm founded by former Hollywood exec Harry Sloan in a giant deal for SPAC companies on Nasdaq.

Ginkgo Bioworks was founded in 2008 by Kelly, an MIT Ph.D., three classmates—Reshma Shetty, Barry Canton and Austin Che—and their professor Tom Knight. Their vision was to create better tools for biology, allowing them to reinvent the way we make everything from fertilizers to industrial products.

“It’s a really fun time now, actually. Covid-19 has had a weird effect on biology awareness. Proteins are on the cover of The New York Times. I was on ‘60 Minutes.’ My parents know what PCR is now. I think it’s a really good moment to bring more of this into people’s lives.” says Ginkgo co-founder and CEO Jason Kelly

Source: Forbes.com