The company

12 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2020

Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]

The Company

1. The company

Twist Bioscience Corporation (the Company) was incorporated in the state of Delaware on February 4, 2013. The Company is a synthetic biology company that has developed a disruptive DNA synthesis platform. DNA is used in many applications across different industries: industrial chemicals, academic, healthcare and food/agriculture.

The core of the Company’s platform is a proprietary technology that pioneers a new method of manufacturing synthetic DNA by “writing” DNA on a silicon chip. The Company has combined this technology with proprietary software, scalable commercial infrastructure and an e-commerce platform to create an integrated technology platform that enables the Company to achieve high levels of quality, precision, automation, and manufacturing throughput at a significantly lower cost than its competitors. The Company is leveraging its unique technology to manufacture a broad range of synthetic DNA-based products, including synthetic genes, tools for next generation sample preparation, and antibody libraries for drug discovery and development.

The Company has a limited operating history and its prospects are subject to risks, expenses and uncertainties frequently encountered by companies in this industry. These risks include, but are not limited to, the uncertainty of availability of additional financing, market acceptance of its products, the ability to retain and attract new customers, and the uncertainty of achieving future profitability.

The Company has generated net losses in all periods since inception. As of September 30, 2020, the Company had an accumulated deficit of $458.5 million and has not generated positive cash flows from operations since inception. Losses are expected to continue as the Company continues to invest in product development, manufacturing, and sales and marketing.

The Company has raised multiple rounds of debt and equity financing since its inception. In October 2018, the Company completed an initial public offering (IPO) of its common stock which raised proceeds of $69.6 million, after deducting underwriting discounts, commissions and offering expenses. In May 2019, the Company completed an underwritten public offering of its common stock with proceeds of $84.3 million, after deducting underwriting discounts and commissions and offering expenses. In December 2019 and January 2020, the Company entered into a sales agreement with Cowen and Company, LLC for an at-the-market offering (ATM) to sell its common stock with net proceeds of $48.0 million, after deducting underwriting discounts and commissions and offering expenses. In February 2020, the Company completed an underwritten public offering of its common stock with net proceeds of $140.2 million, after deducting underwriting discounts and commissions and offering expenses. In June 2020, the Company completed an underwriting public offering of its common stock with net proceeds of $107.4 million, after deducting underwriting discounts and commissions and offering expenses. Management believes that these proceeds combined with existing cash balances on hand will be sufficient to fund operations for at least one year from the issuance of these consolidated financial statements. However, the Company may need to obtain additional financing to fund operations beyond this period, and there can be no assurance that the Company will be successful in raising additional financing on terms which are acceptable to the Company.

If the Company requires but is unable to obtain additional funding, the Company could be forced to delay, reduce or eliminate some or all of its research and development programs, product portfolio expansion or commercialization efforts, which could adversely affect its business prospects, or the Company may be unable to continue operations.