It was only a matter of time before someone launched a dating site that looks for potential matches based on DNA compatibility. That time is apparently today with the launch of GenePartner (ok, it’s not the first, but it’s the cheapest).
The Switzerland-based company says they can use a $199 DNA test (compare to $1,000 for 23andMe) to help you find your perfect match, statistically speaking. They’ve analyzed “hundreds of couples” and have determined the genetic patterns found in successful relationships. Based on their algorithm and your DNA, they’ll determine the probability for a satisfying and long-lasting relationship between two people (color me skeptical).
What about romance? Chemistry? That certain je ne sais quoi when you meet someone and get a tingling sensation in your stomach? Forget it. The future of dating is DNA tests and buccal swabs, so get used to it:
A brush for collecting your DNA sample from your saliva – called a buccal swab kit – will be sent to your address. Following the simple instructions included with the kit you will gently collect the DNA from the inside of your cheek. Use the addressed envelope supplied for returning the brushes.
GenePartner is looking to partner with dating sites and have those services encourage users to see if they’re a DNA match.
Will they be able to avoid tough emerging U.S. laws around genetic testing? Well, they’re in Switzerland. My guess is they’re not going to be too worried about California and other state laws prohibiting their service.
California’s Department of Public Health has issued cease and desist letters to 13 genetic testing startups - most notably 23andMe, which Michael tried out earlier this year. The C&D’s are mandating that the labs demonstrate that they have been certified by both the state and federal government, and, perhaps more importantly, that all genetic tests were ordered by a patient’s doctor, which is required by state law. 23andMe is going to have a little trouble with that one - Michael was never asked to consult his doctor before ordering his test results.
California isn’t the first state to take the genetics companies to task - earlier this year New York cracked down on the sites with similar complaints.
But what’s the big deal? Required state and federal certifications seem obvious given the sensitivity and personal nature of the data. But what about the mandated doctor’s note? It’s my DNA - shouldn’t I be able to read about it whenever I want?
Maybe not. The problem with this kind of casual DNA testing is that it almost trivializes the importance of genetic information. 23andMe considers itself as something of a novelty, providing lots of fascinating information that it says isn’t to be used to diagnose medical conditions.
Of course, the site still provides some probabilities of getting certain diseases. And while none of these sites are going to offer any life-shattering information (e.g. “You will die before you hit 30″), many health care professionals worry that any amount of genetic information could be misinterpreted. What happens when a patient finds out they have a lower-than-average risk of heart failure that leads them to neglect regular checkups? Then again, it’s my information - shouldn’t I be free to (mis)interpret it as I see fit?
The fact of the matter is that genetic testing will be commonplace within the next decade, and the outcome of these cases will be setting important precedents. New York and California may be misguided in their efforts to mandate a doctor’s approval, but we should remember that these are two unusually progressive states that don’t seem keen on hampering citizens’ rights. Regardless of the eventual outcome of these cases, there’s one important message we should take from their hesitation: tread lightly.
I purchased a $1,000 23andMe DNA test back in December, spit in the tube when the kit arrived and, just a few weeks later got the results back. Yeah, its too bad I didn’t wait a month when I could have gotten a kit for free, but a lucky reader was able to get one instead.
I promised to post the results so people can get an idea of what 23andMe is offering (without paying that fee), and here they are. Also, as of last week 23andMe started allowing users to create free demo accounts. if you create one, add my username, TechCrunch, as a friend and I can share the data with you directly.
At a dinner last night at the World Economic Forum in Davos, 23andMe founders Linda Avey and Anne Wojcicki announced that they are providing 1,000 free 23andMe personal DNA testing kits to conference attendees. Damn, I thought, I already paid $1,000 (more) for my kit (so much for the benefits of being an early adopter). Rumor is the company is also sending 100 free kits to attendees of the TED conference.
Anyway, after long minutes of negotiation regarding a refund since I could now get a kit for free, Linda and Anne agreed to give one more kit out, to give to a lucky TechCrunch reader. Just tell me in the comments why knowing your genetic background is important to you, and we’ll choose a winner. We’ll stop comments after 24 hours and choose then.
The company won’t say how many kits have been purchased, other than commenting that sales are “way above expectations.” Yesterday the company started selling kits in Europe and Canada. And they just recently launched their corporate blog, fittingly called “The Spittoon.”
I just recently got my 23andMe test results back. I’ll be posting highlights next week.
23andMe, the consumer genetics testing company founded by Sergey Brin’s wife Anne Wojcicki, is now available in Europe and Canada.
The service, which launched in November enables customers to search and discover whether their genes make them more predisposed to certain outcomes, such as cancer or other illnesses.
Michael signed up for a 23andme kit in December. You can read his experience with the service so far here and here.
No word as yet as to when the service will be available outside of Europe and North America. The full list of countries where 23andMe is now available: Albania, Andorra, Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Canada, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Malta, Moldova, Monaco, Montenegro, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, San Marino, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine, the United Kingdom, the United States and Vatican City State.
I spent a few minutes reading the directions and then did as I was told - I spent 5 minutes or so spitting into the provided tube, mixing in a chemical that comes with the kit, and sealing it up for shipment. In 4-6 weeks, they say, I’ll get the results back and will know a little more about my essential me-ness.
It’s clear that the concerns I brought up in the last post about taking a sample from someone without their knowledge won’t work that well with 23andMe. The volume of spit required to complete the test is just too much not to raise someone’s suspicions.
And as luck would have it, I ran into co-founder Anne Wojcicki at a holiday party just a couple of hours after the spitting session. She said the 4-6 week window was the longest it would take to get back results, and that some people get them back in just a week or two. I asked her if she could do me a favor and make sure mine got done quickly. She politely declined, saying something about how their privacy protections make it impossible for her to single my sample out.
I also asked Anne how many kits have been purchased. I ran the question by her perfectly - I asked a string of easy questions that she answered quickly and then I snuck that one in (this almost always works when trying to get sensitive information out of entrepreneurs), but she was on the ball and her media training clicked in. No answer.
23andMe is also a very expensive social network. Account holders can share their genetic information with friends (or anyone really) and compare that information with respect to inherited traits, ancestry and global similarity.
I’ll post again when the test results come in. More photos from the test are here.
Side note: I also ran into photographer Lane Hartwell at the party last night. Boy was that an uncomfortable conversation.
Tonight I bit the bullet and bought a DNA test from 23andMe’s new Personal Genome Service. This wasn’t an easy thing to do. Quite frankly I fear what may be disclosed to me after spitting in that plastic cup and sending it off for analysis.
On the one hand, I can’t wait to find out interesting things about myself, like:
Do your genes help you sprint faster?
How well can you taste bitter foods?
Do you share maternal ancestry with outlaw Jesse James?
Are you more similar to Mayans or Basques?
But I’ll also get all kinds of information about genetic diseases I might be more or less likely to get over time. Do I really want to know?
The massive terms and conditions agreement didn’t help to calm me. The section called “Risks” mentioned a number of things that I hadn’t thought of - like the fact that my dad may not actually be my dad. And that the information I receive may alter my life and worldview.
But what really worries me is that last sentence above, about social, legal or economic implications of discovering this information. What if this information becomes public? What if I can’t get health care because of the results? Call me a luddite, but this is a whole new class of private information that previous generations didn’t have to deal with. Our laws are waaaaay behind the curve here when it comes to protecting us.
The kit comes soon. After I spit and send it back, the analysis starts and in 4-6 short weeks I’ll be able to, as New York Times writer Amy Harmon said, “Google my DNA.”
23andMe has strong security features in place to keep my information fairly secure. But there’s a big hole in the plan - what if I simply send in someone else’s spit? What if it’s someone I’m thinking about marrying? What if someone does that to me? There’s no way to stop people from spending $1,000 and getting a full genetic download of ME, in all my flawed glory.
Anyway, no time to worry about that now. The future is coming, and I want to know. I just hope that there isn’t something horrifically genetically wrong with me that sends me to a futuristic version of a leper colony should anyone find out. Look for updates here - if I go strangely quiet, you’ll know somethings up.
And if a stranger (or loved one) asks you to spit in a cup, you’ll know to be more than a little suspicious.
By the way, if you want a play-by-play of someone who’s going to blog about his experience with 23andMe, check out former TechCrunch Intern Andrew Meyer’s new blog post “Help Me Decode My Genome by Christmas.” He’s asking for donations to get to the $1,000, and he promises to track his experience on his blog. Help him out, or just lurk for free and find out if Andrew has good marriage material.
23andMe, the genetics company founded by Sergey Brin’s wife Anne Wojcicki will launch Monday with a service that will bring science fiction into reality.
23andMe will offer a genetic screening service for $999. The short story is that 23andMe will administer a test (presumably a swab or saliva test) that will take your DNA and screen it. In return you will be told your genetic history including whether you are likely to suffer from a range of diseases or similar life altering events, including heart disease.
I cant help but think of the 1997 Ethan Hawke/ Uma Thurman movie Gattaca where “during this time society analyzes your DNA and determines where you belong in life;” 23andme is the first step towards that vision. If you thought Google’s already considerable power was of concern, consider that Google invested $3.9 million in the company in May; I’m not suggesting that Google is about to commence an index of the planet’s DNA, but well…no one really knows why Google invested in the company aside from Brin’s marital relationship.
I’m sure we all want to know what diseases we might end up with in the future, and in the development of human knowledge the accessibility of 23andMe’s product is a step forward..but I still can’t help but feel a little concerned.
The below video is an interview 23andMe’s founders Linda Avey and Anne Wojcicki did with Wired. And the NYT has a first-person account of using the service this morning.
Here’s an odd story. Google just took a $3.9 million stake in a biotech company called 23andMe Inc. The company was co-founded by Anne Wojcicki, who married Google co-founder Sergey Brin earlier this month. Other investors in the round include Genentech, MDV-Mohr Davidow Ventures and New Enterprise Associates. Brin had personally loaned the company $2.6 million prior to the round. This debt was repaid after the Google investment.
The company is going to help people take DNA tests to get more information on their genetic health. The company will try to keep costs low and get information back to users as quickly as possible. We’re hearing this is a long, long way from launching.
23andMe is a privately held company developing new ways to help you make sense of your own genetic information.
Even though your body contains trillions of copies of your genome, you’ve likely never read any of it. Our goal is to connect you to the 23 paired volumes of your own genetic blueprint (plus your mitochondrial DNA), bringing you personal insight into ancestry, genealogy, and inherited traits. By connecting you to others, we can also help put your genome into the larger context of human commonality and diversity.
Toward this goal, we are building on recent advances in DNA analysis technologies to enable broad, secure, and private access to trustworthy and accurate individual genetic information. Combined with educational and scientific resources with which to interpret and understand it, your genome will soon become personal in a whole new way.
So what’s the connection with Google? No idea, yet, but these companies are now firmly in bed with each other (pun intended).
It was only a matter of time before someone launched a dating site that looks for potential matches based on DNA compatibility. That time is apparently today with the launch of GenePartner (ok, it’s not the first, but it’s the cheapest). 
I spent a few minutes reading the directions and then did as I was told - I spent 5 minutes or so spitting into the provided tube, mixing in a chemical that comes with the kit, and sealing it up for shipment. In 4-6 weeks, they say, I’ll get the results back and will know a little more about my essential me-ness.
