Inscripta
Inscripta, now merged into Manus, developed proprietary MAD7™ gene-editing enzyme technology and licensed it to industrial biotechnology and synthetic biology enterprises for organism engineering and bioalternative biomanufacturing applications, targeting fossil-fuel replacement.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2015
- HeadquartersPleasanton, United States
- Headcount51–100
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Inscripta does
Inscripta is a life sciences technology company that develops digital genome engineering solutions centered on its proprietary MAD7™ gene editing enzyme. Founded in 2015 and based in Pleasanton, California, the company built a CRISPR-class editing platform positioned for industrial biotechnology applications rather than therapeutic use, enabling precision modifications in organisms used for biomanufacturing. The core commercial product is MAD7™, a novel gene-editing enzyme that is made available to enterprise customers through a dedicated licensing program operated under the MADzymes brand at madzymes.com.
The company historically generated revenue through two streams: licensing of its MAD7™ gene-editing technology to industrial biotechnology and synthetic biology firms, and the production and sale of bioalternative ingredients and materials derived from engineered organisms. Its go-to-market is enterprise field sales targeting industrial biotechnology customers seeking to replace fossil-derived inputs with biologically manufactured alternatives. Inscripta pursued a horizontal segmentation strategy across industrial biotech and synthetic biology segments, with primary use cases in organism engineering, strain development, and industrial fermentation. The company was venture-backed, having raised approximately $463M across nine rounds from investors including Fidelity, Counterpoint Global, D1 Capital, Durable Capital Partners, Paladin Capital Group, Foresite Capital, and Venrock.
In early 2024 Inscripta merged with Manus Bio and now operates under the Manus brand as a leader in industrial biomanufacturing focused on scaling bioalternatives to replace fossil-based ingredients, materials, and products. The combined entity integrates MAD7™ gene-editing capabilities with Manus Bio's organism engineering and biomanufacturing platform. CEO Sri Kosaraju departed for JPMorgan Chase around the time of the merger.
Inscripta firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Inscripta
- Website
- https://inscripta.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2015
- Operating status
- Acquired
- Headcount range
- 51–100 employees
- Short description
- Inscripta, now merged into Manus, developed proprietary MAD7™ gene-editing enzyme technology and licensed it to industrial biotechnology and synthetic biology enterprises for organism engineering and bioalternative biomanufacturing applications, targeting fossil-fuel replacement.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Inscripta industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Synthetic Biology / Gene Editing Tools
- NAICS
- Biological Product (except Diagnostic) Manufacturing (325414), Research and Development in Biotechnology (except Nanobiotechnology) (541714)
- SIC
- Biological Products, (No Disgnostic Substances) (2836), Patent Owners & Lessors (6794)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Synthetic Biology & Genetic Circuit Design Platforms (pathway engineering, chassis development) (HLAAAIAD)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Protein Engineering & Directed Evolution Platforms (enzyme/therapeutic protein optimization) (HLAAAIAC)
Keywords
Where Inscripta is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Pleasanton
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Markets served
Inscripta business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Gene Editing Licensing: Licensing of proprietary MAD7™ gene editing technology to industrial biotechnology companies for use in organism engineering and biomanufacturing applications.
- Biomanufacturing Products: Production and sale of bioalternative ingredients, materials, and products derived from engineered organisms through biomanufacturing processes.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels2 records
Inscripta product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Inscripta develops and licenses digital genome engineering solutions centered on its proprietary MAD7™ CRISPR gene editing enzyme, which industrial biotechnology firms use to engineer organisms for biomanufacturing. The company monetizes the technology primarily through licensing and has merged with Manus Bio to scale bioalternatives to fossil-derived ingredients and materials.
Product overview
Inscripta, now merged with Manus, operated as a synthetic biology company focused on gene editing technologies. The company's primary product offering was the MAD7™ gene editing system, which was made available through a licensing program. Following the merger, the MAD7™ licensing operations transitioned to madzymes.com, and the combined entity operates under the Manus brand to advance industrial biomanufacturing and bioalternative development.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- MAD7: MAD7 is Inscripta's CRISPR gene editor, now licensed through madzymes.com program
- MADzymes
Products and services
- MAD7™ Gene Editing Enzyme
Companies that use Inscripta
Customer profileSegments2 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Inscripta technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature1 record
Inscripta partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- Manus BiocoreInscripta merged with Manus Bio to create a leader in industrial biomanufacturing. The combined entity focuses on scaling biology to replace fossil-derived ingredients, materials, and products, delivering biomanufacturing benefits today. The merger accelerates the transition to bioalternatives through complementary technology platforms and organism engineering capabilities.
Scale indicators3 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Inscripta competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Ginkgo Bioworks: Ginkgo Bioworks operates a synthetic biology platform that engineers microorganisms for industrial biomanufacturing customers, directly comparable to Inscripta/Manus's integrated editing-plus-biomanufacturing model targeting bioalternative ingredients and materials.
- Codexis: Codexis engineers enzymes and develops bioprocessing solutions for industrial biotech customers producing sustainable products — directly analogous to Inscripta/Manus's proprietary enzyme (MAD7) plus biomanufacturing approach to bioalternatives.
- Caribou Biosciences: Caribou is a CRISPR gene-editing platform company developing cell therapies and licensing its editing technology — highly comparable to Inscripta's MAD7 enzyme licensing and cell-engineering focus.
- Synthego: Synthego provides CRISPR tools, reagents, and engineered cells to research and industrial customers, directly overlapping with Inscripta's MAD7 licensing distribution model through madzymes.com.
- Conagen: Conagen develops engineered microorganisms and biomanufacturing processes for sustainable ingredients, mirroring Inscripta/Manus's strain engineering plus fermentation model for bioalternatives.
Broad incumbents
- Amyris: Amyris is a pioneer in industrial biotechnology using engineered yeast fermentation to produce bioalternative ingredients at scale — broadly comparable to Manus's bioalternative product strategy but operating as a larger incumbent across multiple end-markets.
Emerging players
- Twist Bioscience: Twist Bioscience synthesizes DNA and offers synthetic biology tools that enable gene and organism engineering — overlapping with Inscripta's platform at the upstream tooling layer, though Twist is not a direct biomanufacturer.
- Cibus: Cibus develops gene-editing technologies for industrial applications in agriculture and food, sharing Inscripta's proprietary editing-enzyme approach but focused on plant trait development rather than fermentation-based bioalternatives.
Others
- Beam Therapeutics: Beam is a CRISPR-based editing platform company focused on therapeutic applications using base editing — technologically adjacent to MAD7-style editing but serving human therapeutics rather than industrial biotech customers.
- Editas Medicine: Editas is a CRISPR gene-editing company developing human therapeutics — shares the proprietary editing IP and licensing DNA with Inscripta but operates in a fundamentally different end-market (medicines vs. industrial bioalternatives).
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Inscripta social profiles
Digital presenceInscripta financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Inscripta leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles13 records
Inscripta funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds9 records
Investors14 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Inscripta M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A3 records
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Inscripta
What does Inscripta do?
Inscripta develops and licenses digital genome engineering solutions centered on its proprietary MAD7™ CRISPR gene editing enzyme, which industrial biotechnology firms use to engineer organisms for biomanufacturing. The company monetizes the technology primarily through licensing and has merged with Manus Bio to scale bioalternatives to fossil-derived ingredients and materials.
Is Inscripta a public or private company?
Inscripta is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently acquired.
When was Inscripta founded?
Inscripta was founded in 2015. It employs 51 to 100 people.
Where is Inscripta based?
Inscripta is headquartered in Pleasanton, United States, in the North America region.
How does Inscripta make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Gene Editing Licensing is the primary driver. The others are biomanufacturing Products.
Who are Inscripta's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Ginkgo Bioworks, Codexis, Caribou Biosciences, Synthego and Conagen. Amyris is listed as a broad incumbent. Emerging players are Twist Bioscience and Cibus. Others are Beam Therapeutics and Editas Medicine.
Does Inscripta have an API?
No public API is recorded for Inscripta.
What industry is Inscripta in?
Inscripta's product category is Synthetic Biology / Gene Editing Tools. Its primary akta.pro industry code is HLAAAIAD, Synthetic Biology & Genetic Circuit Design Platforms (pathway engineering, chassis development), with a secondary code of HLAAAIAC, Protein Engineering & Directed Evolution Platforms (enzyme/therapeutic protein optimization). Its NAICS code is 325414 and its SIC code is 2836.