Ginkgo Bioworks announced a five‑year collaboration with the Institute for Genomic Biology at the University of Illinois Urbana‑Champaign, funded by the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA‑H). The partnership, called MIGHTY (Microbe/phage Investigation for Generalized Health TherapY), will focus on developing phage‑based treatments for oral health by leveraging Ginkgo’s EncapS high‑throughput screening platform.
ARPA‑H has committed up to $28 million (reported as $29 million in some sources) to the MIGHTY project, making it one of the largest single‑grant investments in phage therapy. The project will initially target the oral microbiome, with a planned expansion to gut and metabolic disease areas as the platform matures.
Ginkgo will use EncapS to screen thousands of phage‑host interactions, enabling identification of phages that selectively target harmful bacteria while sparing commensal microbes. The AI‑driven, automated platform accelerates discovery and reduces the time required to move promising candidates into preclinical development.
Strategically, the deal expands Ginkgo’s presence in microbiome therapeutics and strengthens its ARPA‑H portfolio. It aligns with the company’s broader strategy to monetize its core automation and data‑science capabilities across new therapeutic areas, positioning it to capture a share of the growing precision‑medicine market.
Ginkgo reported Q3 2025 revenue of $39 million, a 56% decline YoY, and a GAAP net loss of $81 million. The partnership represents a significant R&D investment, but the ARPA‑H grant offsets costs and provides a stable funding source amid broader financial challenges.
Jesse Dill, Ginkgo’s Government Business Development Lead, said the collaboration “offers a unique opportunity to apply our screening platform to a complex microbiome problem and accelerate the development of precision phage therapies.” Dr. Asma Hatoum‑Aslan of UIUC highlighted the platform’s scale and its potential to transform oral infection treatment.
While the partnership signals growth in Ginkgo’s therapeutic pipeline, the company’s ongoing revenue decline and net loss underscore the need for successful commercialization of new projects. The ARPA‑H grant mitigates short‑term cash pressure but does not eliminate the long‑term need for profitable product launches.
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