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Sam Altman-backed Startup Wants To Extend Human Lifespan By 10 Years

The San Francisco-based biotechnology startup Retro Biosciences is gearing up to raise $1 billion for its project to increase human lifespan. The startup is backed by OpenAI’s CEO Sam Altman.

By Naina Yadav
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Sam Altman-backed Startup Wants To Extend Human Lifespan

Sam Altman-backed Startup Wants To Extend Human Lifespan

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Founded in 2021 and based in San Francisco, Retro Biosciences is a biotech startup that operates in the human longevity space and aims to increase human lifespan.

As per Crunchbase, Retro Biosciences was founded by Joe Betts-LaCroix (although his LinkedIn profile says he's the CEO of the startup). 

After studying from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Harvard University, Joe Betts-LaCroix built a thriving career in the fields of product design, electronics, and automation. 

He also became an Advisory Board Member for several biotech startups. It was in May 2021 that Retro Biosciences started.

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RETRO BIOSCIENCES: DELAYING DEATH

By working on cellular reprogramming, autophagy, and plasma-inspired therapeutics, Retro Biosciences operates with the bold mission to add a decade to healthy human lifespan. 

The team develops therapies that aim to reverse age-related diseases.

As per its website, the startup aspires to be “a generational pharma company.”

Retro Biosciences, in partnership with OpenAI, has built a unique AI model. 

The startup claims this model makes proteins that have the capability to turn regular cells into stem cells. This process, according to the startup, can reverse the ageing process. 

It has also developed a potential treatment for Alzheimer's disease (one in which old people begin to lose memory). The same will be tested in Australia in 2025. 

Recently, Joe Betts-LaCroix told the Financial Times that his goal is to reduce human misery. 

He further explained that diseases like Alzheimer's currently have no cure. If someone gets them, no matter how rich or resourceful they are, nothing can be done.

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SAM ALTMAN, HUMAN LIFE, AND A LOT OF DOLLARS

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has backed the startup by previously providing it with an entire seed round of $180 million. 

With fresh plans of raising funding, Retro Biosciences now aims to raise another $1 billion for its mission to extend human lifespan by a decade. 

According to Financial Times, Retro Biosciences, for its series A funding round, is talking to various family offices, venture capitalists, and sovereign wealth funds. 

Sam Altman will also participate and invest more money in the startup. 

The biotech startup is also in talks with a United States “hyperscaler” data center. This will provide computing power to Retro Biosciences for operating and running the Artificial Intelligence-powered model it utilizes to innovate its treatments. 

According to Financial Times, the startup wants to utilize the fresh funding it receives to conduct clinical trials of three drugs it has developed.

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LONGEVITY STARTUPS

Retro Biosciences is not the first biotech startup to be operating in the space.

Google owns a drug discovery startup called Isomorphic Labs. It is slated to conduct trials of drugs that are designed by Artificial Intelligence. 

Then there's the Jeff Bezos-backed Altos Labs as well. Bezos also supports Unity Biotechnology along with Peter Thiel. 

All of these work towards extending the human lifespan, which means the number of years a human can live a healthy life.

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