Forum:How much are companies willing to pay for microbiome data?

Question

[maa4618]

We are building an innovative start-up called KNOME that operates in the field of sequenced microbiome data.

The start-up is known as KNOME and aims to act as a global marketplace where individuals, researchers, and pharmaceutical companies connect without compromising their privacy. We give our users full control over their sequenced microbiome data, including who has access to it and getting compensated for sharing it. This easily allows pharmaceutical companies to query the microbiome data they need in one platform to quickly produce better treatments. Furthermore, this will incentivize more people to get their microbiome sequenced, which enlarges the dataset. Additionally, our platform allows bulk buying of microbiome data.

This project started from a customer survey we conducted. We discovered that the main reason for individuals not undergoing sequencing was cost and fear of data exploitation. Additionally, last year 23andMe received $5 billion from pharmaceutical companies from selling their customer data and the customers were not compensated for this. At KNOME we believe this should not be the case and thereby we prioritize transparency.

I just want to ask how much pharmaceutical companies or any other companies are willing to pay for microbiome data and what are the current methods and resources of obtaining microbiome data?

Answer 1

[Asaf]

That's an interesting idea. I think that the main reason companies will want to buy your data is high quality metadata and/or the donors' DNA profiles. I guess that rare samples (i.e. interesting diseases) will be worth more as it will be harder for companies to recruit volunteers for such studies. Also, I assume companies will want exclusivity on some data. I have no idea how much they will be willing to pay, it really depends if it's a key data in a project or if it's a "nice to have" data.

[maa4618]

Thank you very much for the comment. I truly appreciate it. Yes, our goal is to produce the highest quality metadata, we can allow to use the best sequencing methods as people will be compensated anyway for providing better quality data (our assumption). Additionally, the more data someone provides that is reliable the more compensation they get, similar to the idea in Amazon how a trustworthy verified profile/seller will likely have more customers and get more income.

I understand that companies want the disease with rare data, but I also think that companies also want a "healthy" microbiome to act as a baseline or negative control.