23andMe Wants to Take Its DNA Tests Mass-Market

"On Sept. 30, it will launch a massive open online course on human genetics titled 'Tales from the Genome,' with Udacity.
More important, perhaps, 23andMe is about to announce a private-sector partnership that could be a model for bringing millions more consumers on board. 'The most important thing right now is scale,' says Page. 'Once we get that, then the business model will follow.' Opportunities could range from new areas of research to services aimed at communities that form around particular traits or ancestry.
23andMe, named after the 23 pairs of chromosomes that each person carries, has some natural advantages in the race to establish the leading direct-to-consumer genomics firm. The firm pioneered the use of crowdsourced genetic data for research on diseases such as Parkinson’s, myeloproliferative neoplasms, and sarcoma. Another is the high profile of its chief executive officer and co-founder, Anne Wojcicki. A biologist turned businesswoman, Wojcicki recently separated from her husband, Google (GOOG) co-founder Sergey Brin, who’s invested millions in the company."

400,000 individuals w/ #genomic data RT @GholsonLyon @23andMe Wants to Take Its DNA Tests Mass-Market http://t.co/AzKHu3gODi
— Eric Topol (@EricTopol) September 28, 2013