Ben Lamm Net Worth

Ben Lamm has an estimated net worth of $5.7 billion, according to Forbes Real-Time Billionaires, Ben Lamm profile (figures as of October 20, 2026). That is up from $3.7 billion in 2025.

Ben Lamm is a self-made entrepreneur in biotech and technology. He is best known for cofounded Colossal with Harvard geneticist George Church in 2021. The company set out to bring back the woolly mammoth and also works on the Tasmanian tiger and the dodo. That de-extinction mission made Lamm a public face of a new kind of biotech business built around genetic engineering, reproductive technology, and conservation goals.

Before Colossal, Lamm built companies across software and AI. Forbes says he founded or cofounded multiple companies before Colossal, and each was ultimately acquired. Those ventures included Simply Interactive, Chaotic Moon Studios, Team Chaos, Conversable, and Hypergiant, which Thrive Capital purchased in 2023. His wealth comes from biotech, but his career also runs through e-learning, mobile apps, gaming, conversational software, and machine learning.

How Ben Lamm built his wealth

Lamm’s fortune is closely tied to Colossal, the company he cofounded with George Church in 2021. Private investors valued Colossal at $11.5 billion in 2025. The business aims to use genetic engineering and reproductive technology for de-extinction and conservation work. Lamm has said governments that already fund conservation could pay Colossal to reintroduce extinct species or help keep endangered species from dying off.

He also made money through earlier exits. Forbes says every company he founded or cofounded before Colossal was ultimately acquired. Those businesses included Simply Interactive, Chaotic Moon Studios, Team Chaos, Conversable, and Hypergiant. In April 2026, he also spun Astromech out of Colossal. Private investors valued Astromech at $3.8 billion in August 2026, and the company uses AI to forecast evolutionary change.

Forbes net worth and valuation story

Forbes estimated Lamm’s net worth at $3.7 billion on the 2025 World's Billionaires List, then at $3.9 billion on the 2026 list. Those estimates rose as Colossal drew more investor attention around its de-extinction work. The company’s focus on the woolly mammoth, along with projects involving the Tasmanian tiger and the dodo, helped turn it into one of the most watched names in biotech.

By October 20, 2026, Forbes' real-time billionaires tracker put him at $5.7 billion. That jump came after investors placed large values on both Colossal and Astromech. Colossal reached an $11.5 billion private valuation in 2025, while Astromech hit $3.8 billion in August 2026 after its April spinout. Those valuations help explain why Forbes marked a much higher figure later in 2026.