Anne Wojcicki
Born 1973 · Age 52
American entrepreneur, co-founder and former CEO of personal genomics company 23andMe. Yale-educated biologist who moved from healthcare investment to consumer genomics; led major partnerships, a SPAC public listing and later faced company valuation collapse and bankruptcy proceedings.
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Life & Career Timeline
Born in Palo Alto / San Mateo County, California
Anne E. Wojcicki was born in Palo Alto / San Mateo County, California, youngest of three sisters to Esther and Stanley Wojcicki.
Learned figure skating
At age 14 Wojcicki learned how to figure skate; she later started playing ice hockey.
Edited Gunn High School newspaper; won sports-writing scholarship
Attended Gunn High School in Palo Alto; edited The Oracle and won a scholarship for sports stories.
Molecular biology research at NIH and UC San Diego
Conducted molecular biology research at the National Institutes of Health and at UC San Diego (work performed while a student/early career researcher).
Graduated Yale University (B.S. in Biology)
Received a Bachelor of Science in biology from Yale University; played varsity women's ice hockey while enrolled.
Joined healthcare investment / consulting (Passport Capital, Investor AB)
After graduating, Wojcicki worked as a healthcare consultant at Passport Capital and at Investor AB, and as a healthcare investment analyst overseeing biotech investments.
Left healthcare investment analyst role after ~4 years
After four years as a healthcare investment analyst, she became disillusioned with Wall Street's approach to health care and decided to pursue building a consumer genomics company.
Purchased commercial properties in downtown Los Altos (approx.)
Approx. 2005: Wojcicki and then-husband Sergey Brin bought at least half a dozen commercial properties in downtown Los Altos under Passerelle Investment Company.
Co-founded 23andMe
Co-founded 23andMe with Linda Avey and Paul Cusenza to provide direct-to-consumer genetic testing (saliva kits) and empower individuals with access to genetic information.
Married Sergey Brin
Married Google co-founder Sergey Brin (wedding in May 2007).
Birth of first child (son)
Wojcicki and Sergey Brin had a son born in 2008.
23andMe genome test kit named Time's Invention of the Year
Time magazine named 23andMe's personal genome test kit 'Invention of the Year' (2008), raising the company's profile.
Donated $1 million to Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society
Wojcicki and Sergey Brin donated $1 million to support the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society (HIAS).
Birth of second child (daughter)
Wojcicki and Sergey Brin had a daughter born in late 2011.
Co-founder & board member – Breakthrough Prize (role)
Wojcicki is a co-founder and board member of the Breakthrough Prize in science (organization aimed at recognizing major advances).
Separated from Sergey Brin
Wojcicki and Sergey Brin separated in 2013 after several years of marriage.
FDA regulatory review begins (2013–2015)
From about 2013 to 2015 23andMe underwent regulatory review by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration; during reviews access was limited to ancestry results.
Named 'The Most Daring CEO in America' by Fast Company
Fast Company dubbed Anne Wojcicki 'The Most Daring CEO in America' (October 2013 cover story).
Divorced Sergey Brin (legal divorce)
Wojcicki and Sergey Brin's legal divorce was finalized in 2015.
FDA approval for health-related genetic tests (including >30 autosomal recessive disorders)
Beginning in 2015 the FDA started approving some of 23andMe's health-related tests, including a 2015 approval to market a test detecting more than 30 autosomal recessive disorders.
Passerelle Investment Co. renamed Los Altos Community Investments
The couple's real-estate firm was renamed in 2016 to Los Altos Community Investments with a tighter focus on commercial real-estate development.
23andMe had genotyped over 1 million customers
By 2016 researchers at 23andMe had genotyped more than one million people worldwide, a major community milestone for research power.
Released ResearchKit research module
Released 23andMe's first research-focused module developed with Apple's ResearchKit, enabling researchers to collect data from consenting 23andMe customers.
23andMe community growth target and research opt-in rates reported
23andMe publicly stated goals of 1M, 10M users; Stanford reported that the company had grown to a large community (Stanford noted 12M users and ~80% opt-in to research in later reporting).
Member of Xconomists (editorial/advisory role)
Wojcicki is listed as a member of Xconomists, an ad hoc editorial advisory team for Xconomy (date of membership archived by 2018).
GlaxoSmithKline collaboration / investment announced
In July 2018 23andMe entered a four-year collaboration with GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) to develop new medicines; worth $300 million and giving GSK rights to some discovery programs.
Birth of third child via sperm donation
In July 2019 Wojcicki gave birth to her third child, a daughter, conceived via sperm donation.
Ranked #93 on Forbes' World's 100 Most Powerful Women
Wojcicki was ranked 93rd on Forbes' 2020 list of the World's 100 Most Powerful Women.
SPAC raise reported to be nearly $600M
When taking 23andMe public via SPAC, reporting indicated the SPAC raised nearly $600 million for the transaction.
23andMe went public via SPAC merger (took company public)
23andMe took the company public in 2021 through a merger with a special-purpose acquisition company (SPAC); merger reportedly raised nearly $600M and gave 23andMe a peak valuation around $6 billion.
Dubbed 'newest self-made billionaire' by Forbes after SPAC
Following the 2021 SPAC public listing Forbes called Anne Wojcicki the 'newest self-made billionaire' based on her stake and the company's valuation.
Joined board of Cazoo
Wojcicki joined the board of the UK online car-dealer Cazoo in August 2021.
Opened State Street Market food hall in downtown Los Altos
Los Altos Community Investments opened a food hall called State Street Market and related retail/community initiatives (Sept 2021).
Joined The Giving Pledge
Wojcicki signed The Giving Pledge in 2022, committing to donate most of her wealth.
Major data breach exposed ~6.9M customers' DNA (reported)
In 2023 a data breach reportedly exposed genetic/personal data for approximately 6.9 million customers; this became a major legal and reputational issue for 23andMe.
Business press reports significant net worth decline after stock collapse
After the post-SPAC stock collapse and subsequent company challenges, press reported Wojcicki's net worth had fallen substantially from the 2021 'billionaire' designation to later estimates ($270M reported, then ~$150M in later reporting).
Agreed $30M settlement for data-breach-related lawsuit (reported 2024)
A settlement of roughly $30 million was reported in 2024 related to claims over a 2023 data breach exposing millions of customers' DNA data.
Company valuation fell dramatically (to ~2% of $6B peak)
Reporting in 2024 noted 23andMe's valuation had fallen to roughly 2% of its $6 billion peak valuation, leading to major governance and liquidity challenges.
Take-private buyout offer rejected by 23andMe board
Wojcicki made a buyout offer to take 23andMe private; the company's board rejected her proposal (reported Aug 2024).
Company board resignations
Following the failed take-private effort, all seven independent directors of 23andMe resigned (reported Sept 18, 2024).
23andMe filed Chapter 11; Wojcicki resigned as CEO
23andMe filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy (March 24, 2025); Anne Wojcicki resigned as CEO effective immediately but remained on the company's board.
Regained control of 23andMe via asset purchase ($305M deal)
On June 13, 2025 Wojcicki bought back nearly all of 23andMe's assets through a reported $305 million deal, regaining control of the company's assets.
Key Achievement Ages
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