Science startup Colossal is taking its de-extinction Down Under with the launch of Colossal Australia, the company announced Wednesday.
The Dallas-based "decacorn", which endeavors to bring back the woolly mammoth and other extinct species, is expanding through a partnership with the University of Melbourne.
As part of the expansion, highly awarded Australian scientist Andrew Pask has been tapped as Colossal's new chief biology officer. Pask leads the Thylacine Integrated Genomics Restoration Research Lab (TIGRR) at the University of Melbourne, which will now become part of Colossal Australia and focus fully on Colossal initiatives.
"Australia's incredible biodiversity offers unique opportunities for innovation in de-extinction and biological research," said CEO and co-founder Ben Lamm in a statement.
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"Having a presence there will help Colossal achieve our goals of de-extincting the thylacine and working to restore and protect endangered species on the continent."
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TIGRR has historically received funding from Colossal, and Pask has served as an adviser to the company since 2022.
The thylacine, a marsupial known colloquially as the Tasmanian tiger or wolf, has been extinct since the early 20th century, and is one of Colossal's main de-extinction projects alongside the mammoth and dodo bird.
In his new role, Pask will report to chief science officer Beth Shapiro and oversee Colossal Australia, global embryology and all external development systems. Colossal has been developing an artificial uterus device to culture fertilized single-cell marsupial embryos.
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"This is an extraordinary opportunity to help shape the future of de-extinction and species preservation science," Pask said.
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"I'm thrilled to help lead this team at the forefront of de-extinction research, not just to bring back lost species, but to apply those technologies in real time to save those still with us."
Shapiro added that Pask "brings an unmatched understanding of the biological systems that we're working to restore, as well as the creativity necessary to drive real-world impact while solving some of the hardest problems in biology today."
The expansion into Australia is just the latest in a busy 2025 for Colossal. In January, Colossal became Texas' first startup valued at over $10 billion. In March, it announced the birth of "woolly mice," genetically engineered mice that expressed certain key mammoth traits, including long golden fur.
April brought the announcement of a litter of dire wolves, an extinct species of wolf that Colossal had secretly been working on resurrecting.
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Aside from its main de-extinction projects, Colossal is also actively involved in conservation and species preservation.
Earlier this month, the charitable arm of the company, the Colossal Foundation, announced a collaboration with nonprofit Re:wild. A planned Species Reintroduction Fund will dedicate $250,000 annually toward the rewilding of threatened species worldwide.
"The Colossal Foundation is committed to making extinction a thing of the past, the best way to do that is to stop extinction before it starts," Lamm said.
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"Now we are doing even more to mobilize resources and expertise to restore wildlife populations on the brink of disappearing all over the globe."