Agilent Technologies Announces Twist Bioscience Agrees to Pay $22.5 Million Settlement in IP Litigation

Agilent Technologies Announces Twist Bioscience Agrees to Pay $22.5 Million Settlement in IP Litigation

SANTA CLARA, California, February 06, 2020

Agilent Technologies Inc. (NYSE: A) today announced it has reached an agreement with Twist Bioscience under which Twist has agreed to pay Agilent a sum of $22.5 million to settle Agilent’s claims against Twist, as well as current and former Twist employees Emily Leproust, Siyuan Chen, and Solange Glaize. The claims included trade secret misappropriation claims against Twist, Dr. Leproust, Dr. Chen and Ms. Glaize, breach of contract claims against Dr. Leproust, Dr. Chen and Ms. Glaize, and breach of duty of loyalty claims against Dr. Leproust. The settlement agreement provides a license to Twist for discrete aspects of Agilent’s oligo-synthesis technology and successfully resolves all outstanding litigation between all parties.

“This settlement vindicates Agilent’s deep commitment to protecting our intellectual property,” said Simone Schiller, associate vice president and managing counsel for Global Litigation at Agilent. “Agilent is in the business of innovation and driving technology forward the right way is central to what we do. From the outset, our goal has been to protect our proprietary technology and the hard work of the many scientists and engineers who built it. This settlement accomplishes that.”

The promise and potential applications of synthetic biology are world-changing, from manufacturing chemicals and biofuels to providing breakthroughs in detecting and treating diseases. Agilent is extremely proud of its R&D track record, and of the important contributions the company is making through its pioneering oligo-synthesis technology. This leading technology enables Agilent customers to make new and wide-ranging scientific discoveries, including groundbreaking research and development aimed at improving health and saving lives. Agilent welcomes competition on its merits and looks forward to continuing to drive innovation in this exciting new area. Agilent’s goal is, and remains, the advancement of science.