Sema4 Set to Go Public via $500M SPAC deal

Eric Schadt, Ph.D., Founder and CEO of Sema4

Sema4 Closes Transaction with CM Life Sciences, Debuts as Publicly Traded AI-driven Genomic & Clinical Data Platform Company

Sema4, a patient-centered health intelligence company leveraging AI and machine learning to derive data-driven insights, announced the completion of its business combination with CM Life Sciences (NASDAQ: CMLF), a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) sponsored by affiliates of Casdin Capital, LLC and Corvex Management LP. The resulting combined company, Sema4 Holdings Corp (“Sema4”), commenced trading of its shares of common stock and warrants on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the ticker symbols “SMFR” and “SMFRW” on July 23, 2021. The merger was approved by the stockholders of CM Life Sciences on July 21, 2021.

Eric Schadt, Ph.D., Founder and CEO of Sema4, and Sema4’s current executive team will continue to lead the combined company. Sema4 intends to use the influx of capital – approximately $500 million in cash proceeds – to support its organic operating needs and capitalize on inorganic opportunities to accelerate growth through the acquisition of complementary businesses. 

“The completion of our merger with CM Life Sciences, and being listed on Nasdaq as a publicly traded company, is a major milestone for Sema4 and our employees, partners, and patients,” said Dr. Schadt. “With the capital raised from this successful transaction, we are well positioned to help further close the gap between the practice of medicine and the availability of more clinically actionable guidance in order to improve the standard of care. We look forward to continuing to develop and scale our innovative health intelligence platform to enable health systems in delivering precision medicine as the standard of care.”

“With the merger now complete, Sema4 can really step on the gas and accelerate its powerful business model,” said Eli Casdin, former Chief Executive Officer of CM Life Sciences. “This is a unique company set to transform healthcare by leveraging genomic and clinical data with artificial intelligence and machine learning to deliver an enhanced understanding of disease and wellness.  I’m excited to be a partner with Eric and his extraordinary team as they embark on this next chapter as a public company.” 

“Sema4 is a unique business with a rarely seen combination of impressive scale, growth and innovation,” said Keith Meister, former Chairman of CM Life Sciences. “The additional capital from this transaction will help Sema4 further advance its relationships and partnerships with health systems and biopharmaceutical entities over the next several years. While there are many companies seeking to harness the potential of big data in healthcare, Sema4 has built a differentiated data ecosystem and platform driving personalized medicine and improved health outcomes.”

Following the business combination, the Sema4 Board of Directors includes several prominent executives previously unaffiliated with Sema4: Eli Casdin, Emily Leproust, Chief Executive Officer of Twist Biosciences (Nasdaq: TWST), Jason Ryan, most recently Chief Operating and Financial Officer of Magenta Therapeutics (Nasdaq: MGTA), and Nat Turner, co-founder of Flatiron Health (a Roche company). They join directors Dennis Charney, Michael Pellini, Joshua Ruch, Dr. Schadt, and Rachel Sherman.