American businesswoman Anne Wojcicki is the co-founder and CEO of genetic testing company 23andMe. She became a billionaire after the company went public in 2021 but since then, the company’s stock price has plunged and so has Wojcicki’s fortune.

Anne Wojcicki’s net worth is estimated at around $200 million in 2024.

Let’s dive into her career, net worth, and life story to see what insights we can learn from Wojcicki, once featured among the most powerful women in the world according to Forbes.

How Much Is Anne Wojcicki Worth in 2024?

  • Net Worth: Estimated at $200 million in 2024.
  • 23andMe Stake: Valued at $50 million despite market fluctuations.
  • Startup Investments: Contributions of $100 million.
  • Los Altos Investments: Investments worth $20 million in the community.
  • Personal Investments: Personal investments valued at $30 million.

Anne Wojcicki’s Net Worth Breakdown:

Anne Wojcicki is a successful entrepreneur with interests in both publicly traded and privately held assets.

This makes it impossible to arrive at her exact net worth.

However, we have been able to collect plenty of public information surrounding her various sources of income, investments, assets, and business ventures to build a solid estimate, which we break down here for you.

Asset or Income Source Contribution to Net Worth
23andMe stake $50 million
Startup investments $100 million
Los Altos Community investments $20 million
Personal investments $30 million
Total Net Worth $200 million

5 Fun Facts about Anne Wojcicki

  1. Family of Achievers: Sister Susan Wojcicki is the former CEO of YouTube.
  2. Health Focus: Co-founded 23andMe to provide accessible genetic testing.
  3. SPAC Wave: Took 23andMe public via a SPAC merger with Richard Branson’s VGAC.
  4. Celebrity Marriage: Was married to Google co-founder Sergey Brin.
  5. Diverse Ventures: Invested in startups like Eureka Health and Midi Health, focusing on healthcare.

Latest News & Controversies

In 2024, Anne Wojcicki, co-founder and CEO of 23andMe, faces significant challenges.

Despite her initial success, 23andMe’s stock has plummeted, putting it at risk of NASDAQ delisting. The company also faces multiple lawsuits due to a major 2023 data breach affecting millions of users. Further controversy arose in September 2024 when all independent board members of 23andMe resigned, citing differences in the company’s strategic direction.

These events have severely impacted both Wojcicki’s company and personal fortune.

Early Life & Education

Anne Wojcicki was born on July 28, 1973, in San Mateo County, California.

Her maternal grandparents were Russian Jewish immigrants. Her father, Stanley Wojcicki, was a Polish-born physics professor emeritus at Stanford University before his death in 2023, while her mother, Esther Wojcicki, is an educator and journalist.

anne wojcicki childhood
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She has two elder sisters, Janet Wojcicki and Susan Wojcicki. Janet is an anthropologist and epidemiologist while Susan Wojcicki is the former CEO of YouTube.

Anne Wojcicki attended Gunn High School in Palo Alto and subsequently received a bachelor of science in biology from Yale University in 1996. Wojcicki conducted molecular biology research at the University of California, San Diego, and the National Institutes of Health.

Anne Wojcicki Net Worth: Early Career

Wojcicki began her career as an analyst with Investor AB in 1996 and worked at the company for three years.

In 1999, she joined Ardley Partners as a healthcare investment analyst and worked at the company for one year. She then worked as a healthcare analyst with Andor Capital Management between 2001 and 2002 before moving to Passport Capital where she worked between 2004 and 2006.

After nearly a decade of corporate career, she decided to focus on biological research and quit her corporate job.

Anne Wojcicki’s Co-founding of 23andMe

In 2006, Anne Wojcicki co-founded 23andMe with biologist Linda Avey. Paul Cusenza, the chairman and CEO of Nodal Exchange and Nodal Clear, is the third co-founder of 23andMe. The company sells DNA test kits – currently priced at $89-$189 on its website.

It ships saliva collection kits to customers. The customer has to spit in them and then mail the kit back. In about three to four weeks, they get information about their ancestry and health risks, depending on which package they pay for.

The company aims to be a key player in the development of new drugs as it expands its massive database.

Anne Wojcicki Net Worth: Taking 23andMe Public

23andMe went public in June 2021 on the NASDAQ, riding the special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) wave. The company announced a merger with Richard Branson’s blank check company, VG Acquisition Corp. (VGAC), in February 2021 and completed the merger in June and trades under the ticker symbol ME.

23andMe raised $592 million in gross proceeds from the merger transaction. Meanwhile, the month after the merger, the stock price fell below the SPAC IPO price of $10. The price did go above that price level in October of that same year, but the price hasn’t crossed $10 again since November 2021.

23andme stock price
ME stock now risks being delisted from the NASDAQ because its price has fallen below $1, the minimum threshold set by the exchange. Boosting its stock back above $1 would be a herculean task as the stock has fallen 95% since it was listed.

The decline in 23andMe stock has also had a major impact on the fortunes of Wojcicki, who is the company’s co-founder and chief executive officer and holds around a fifth of the stake.

Controversies at 23andMe

The genetic research industry has been the center of several controversies. Specifically in terms of 23andMe, in 2013, the FDA asked it to stop marketing its health risk assessments to customers until the business could validate them. The ban was in force for almost two years.

Now, the company is facing over 30 lawsuits after a data breach in 2023 led to the data breach of nearly 7 million customers. Speaking with Wired, Wojcicki did not comment much on the breach and directed instead to a company blog, citing the ongoing legal process.

She said, “We did introduce two-factor authentication pretty quickly and had all of our customers reset their password. We’re 17 years old, data privacy and security has always been a really high priority and remains a high priority for the company and something that we are going to invest even more into.”

In an interview with CNBC, she expanded on how the company addressed the steps taken to secure customer accounts in the weeks since the attack:

She said to Wired, “We did introduce two-factor authentication pretty quickly and had all of our customers reset their password.

We’re 17 years old, data privacy and security has always been a really high priority and remains a high priority for the company and something that we are going to invest even more into.”

Meanwhile, the data breach only added to the woes of investors in $ME stocks and it is down sharply in 2024 even as the markets are scaling new highs.

Along with company-specific factors like the data breach and continued losses, 23andMe is also battling with pessimism towards growth stocks amid high interest rates.

Anne Wojcicki’s Life Outside of 23andMe

Anne Wojcicki married Google co-founder Sergey Brin in May 2007, and they have a great “how I met your mother” story to tell their kids.

Anne’s sister, Susan (the former CEO of YouTube), rented her garage to Larry Page and Sergey Brin during the founding of Google. Anne met Brin through her sister, who went on to become YouTube’s CEO between 2014 and 2023.

After six years of marriage, Wojcicki and Brin separated in 2013 and amicably divorced in 2015.

However, we don’t have public details of the divorce settlement between Wojcicki and Brin, whose current net worth is above $100 billion, making him among the richest people in the world. With a prenup in place, it is unlikely the details of the settlement will ever become public.

Wojcicki has two children with her ex-husband Brin, a daughter and a son. She also gave birth to a third child post-separation with Brin through sperm donation.

After her divorce, Wojcicki dated former professional baseball player Alex Rodriguez, but they separated after only about a year.

Anne Wojcicki Net Worth: Other Business Ventures

Along with 23andMe, Anne Wojcicki has other business ventures that contribute to her net worth.

She launched Bumble Restaurant, a popular farm-to-fork restaurant in Los Altos in 2011, but the cafe subsequently closed in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Along with Brin, she also started Passerelle Investment Company, which changed its name in 2016 to Los Altos Community Investments (LACI). It owns 15 properties in downtown Los Altos which it has rented to around 25 tenants.

los altos community investments
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In 2021, Wojicicki also joined the board of Cazoo, a London-based online used car retailer. However, she quit the troubled company in 2023.

“Ms Wojcicki is stepping down for personal reasons and the decision was not due to any disagreement with the Company regarding its business, finance, accounting and/or any other matters,” said Cazoo.

Cazoo had also gone public through the SPAC reverse merger route. While SPAC transactions soared in 2020 and 2021, they have since dried up as investors have grown wary of these blank check companies.

Nearly all the companies that went public through a SPAC reverse merger trade have seen a slide in their stock prices over the last two years.

Anne Wojcicki Net Worth: Personal Investments

Anne Wojcicki has invested in 48 startup companies according to Crunchbase. The most recent investment was Ezra AI in February 2024.

Here is a brief list of some of the other companies where the American entrepreneur has invested:

  • Eureka Health
  • Helium Health
  • Detect
  • Midi Health
  • Prevuno

Given her previous background in overseeing investments at biotechnology companies, most of her portfolio companies also happen to be in the healthcare sector. Many of her portfolio companies have been founded by females.

In 2021, the former healthcare consultant also invested in the Fund III of the Female Founders Fund, aiming to provide seed capital for companies founded by females.

Anne Wojcicki’s Awards and Accolades

Anne Wojcicki has won several awards and accolades. These include:

  • In 2008, the retail saliva genetic test developed by 23andMe was named Time magazine’s Invention of the Year.
  • In 2013, Fast Company named Anne Wojcicki The Most Daring CEO.
  • She was featured on Forbes’ World’s 100 Most Powerful List in 2020.
  • In 2020, Comparably included Anne Wojcicki on a list of the best CEOs based on employee reviews.

Wojcicki was also a guest on Shark Tank in 2019. Her episode featured other Sharks including Daymond John and Mark Cuban.

What Can We Learn from Anne Wojcicki’s Life?

Anne Wojcicki is an inspiring entrepreneur with many lessons to teach us. One of her greatest powers is her trust and confidence in herself. She’s quoted as saying:

It’s helpful for people to realize the world is often wrong

She added, “I remind people at 23andMe that when we started the company, gay marriage was illegal. Society changes, new ideas come, the world changes.”

During an entrepreneurial journey, there will always be people trying to pull you down and try to squeeze money or favors out of you. Wojcicki cautions to watch out for such people and avoid them like the plague.

The 23andMe CEO has also said, “I don’t have an MD… but what I did have was people who believed in me, who thought it was a good idea.”

Her determination helped 23andMe survive the FDA ban more than a decade ago.

Now, the company is facing yet another challenge after the data breach but Wojcicki is confident that the company is going to bounce back.

Successful entrepreneurs tend to have this skill of optimism as almost all of them go through hard phases just as Wojcicki and 23andMe are currently undergoing.