23andMe cuts 40% of its workforce and discontinues therapeutics division

abcnews.go.com:

23andMe is laying off 40% of its workforce, or more than 200 employees, and discontinuing its therapeutics division as the struggling genetic testing company attempts to slash costs

NEW YORK — NEW YORK (AP) — 23andMe is laying off 40% of its workforce, or more than 200 employees, and discontinuing its therapeutics division as the struggling genetic testing company attempts to slash costs.

The latest restructuring efforts were announced by 23andMe on Monday. The company said it plans to wind down ongoing clinical trials “as quickly as practical” — and that it was currently evaluating “strategic alternatives” for assets related to its drug development and research programs, which include studies on potential cancer treatments.

In a prepared statement, 23andMe CEO and co-founder Anne Wojcicki said the company was «taking these difficult but necessary actions” as it focuses on “the long-term success of our core consumer business and research partnerships.”

The restructuring arrives during a period of turmoil at California-based 23andMe, which has recently included a high-profile data breach, several rounds of previous layoffs and piling losses that plunged the company's stock over recent years.

Back in September, all of 23andMe’s independent directors also resigned from its board — in a rare move that followed drawn-out negotiations with Wojcicki, who has been trying to take the company private. The seven resigning directors said they had yet to receive an adequate transaction proposal from the chief executive and cited a “clear” difference of opinion on 23andMe’s future.

At the time, Wojcicki said she was “surprised and disappointed” by the resignations but maintained that taking 23andMe private and “outside of the