Gene Modification as the Future
The first available gene therapies have shown that it is possible to modify a patient’s genetic information, making it possible to eliminate various types of diseases. Current treatment, known as ex vivo, however, still faces certain limitations related to which cells can be safely removed from a patient, modified in a laboratory and returned to the body. Gene editing, known as in vivo, seeks to overcome these limitations directly inside the patient’s body, allowing access even to organs that cannot be removed and modified in a laboratory, such as the brain, heart, lungs or even the eyes.
Key Factors for Investors
For investors, it will be crucial whether the long-term safety of this procedure can be demonstrated, regulatory approval obtained and health insurers convinced that the high price is justified by the resulting outcome. It is also important to take into account that genetic engineering is a relatively young science and that possible side effects of the individual methods available to scientists may only emerge over time. An example is the CRISPR method, which is one of the most promising and has enormous potential, but its potential side effects include genome destabilization, which in the long term increases the risk of cancer, making additional research essential.
Which Companies Are Worth Keeping an Eye On?
Among publicly traded companies that may currently be of interest to investors are undoubtedly CRISPR Therapeutics, which focuses on genetic diseases and oncology; Intellia Therapeutics, which focuses on genome editing (in vivo); Beam Therapeutics, which works on precise changes to DNA bases; and Prime Medicine, which targets more precise DNA modifications. Undoubtedly, the best example of large pharmaceutical companies being willing to pay for genetic editing technology is Verve Therapeutics, which was acquired by Eli Lilly last year. However, Verve shares are no longer separately publicly traded following the transaction. Providers of infrastructure, developers of AI tools for research and development, and asset managers that cooperate with the above-mentioned companies may also be interesting options for investors.
Genome Editing in Numbers
Although the value of the above-mentioned companies is currently moving mostly sideways on the stock market, the future potential is enormous. While the genetic editing market reached USD 10.31 million in 2025, its estimated value for 2026 is USD 13.2 billion. According to Grand View Research, it could reach as much as USD 39.8 billion by 2033. To put this into perspective, this represents an estimated annual growth rate of 17 percent. According to Fortune Business Insights, the CRISPR technology alone could account for 61.6 percent of the genetic editing market this year.
Pros and Cons
Like any technology and scientific advancement, genetic engineering and gene editing also raise numerous ethical questions for which it is difficult to find a clear-cut answer. However, this is certainly not about editing genes in order to change the appearance of a child, as it is often portrayed. The goal of scientists is to eliminate serious diseases that can significantly complicate patients’ lives or even be fatal, such as various types of cancer. In Japan, scientists even successfully removed the chromosome responsible for Down syndrome last year. Given the estimated growth rate of this market, an early entry by attentive investors could potentially result in interesting returns in the future.
