# Tom Adams

> Tom Adams is the co-founder and CEO of Pairwise, a Durham, North Carolina biotechnology company using CRISPR-based tools to develop and license new crop traits. A plant scientist by training, former Texas A&M faculty member, and former Monsanto biotechnology executive, Adams has steered Pairwise from a consumer-greens experiment toward a partnership-led model spanning berries, row crops, perennial fruit, ornamentals, and research platforms.

- **Role:** Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer at Pairwise
- **Organizations:** Pairwise, Monsanto, Texas A&M University
- **Education:** PhD in microbiology and plant science, Michigan State University, BS in botany and plant pathology, Oregon State University
- **Known for:** Co-founded Pairwise and built a team around applying CRISPR and other editing methods to food and agriculture., Led Pairwise through the launch of Conscious Greens, which the company described as the first CRISPR food introduced in North America., Oversaw development of a blackberry combining unobtrusive soft seeds with thornless and compact plant traits.

## Career timeline

- **Before 1998** — Served as an associate professor in the Department of Biology at Texas A&M University.
- **1998-2018** — Held a series of technology leadership roles during a 20-year Monsanto career, culminating as Vice President of Global Biotechnology.
- **2013-2014** — While at Monsanto, recognized CRISPR's potential for plant breeding and began exploring a company with a broader crop focus.
- **2017** — Co-founded Pairwise with Haven Baker and scientific co-founders Feng Zhang, David Liu, and J. Keith Joung.
- **2018** — Became Pairwise CEO in April; the company announced a $25 million Series A and a major five-year Bayer collaboration.
- **2023** — Pairwise launched Conscious Greens, described by the company as the first CRISPR food introduced in North America.
- **2024** — Pairwise announced a seedless blackberry, licensed edited greens to Bayer, and raised $40 million alongside a five-year Corteva collaboration.
- **2025** — Pairwise and Sun World formed a joint venture to develop a pitless cherry; edited blackberries reached limited commercial sale in Colombia.
- **2026** — Pairwise expanded Fulcrum licenses to organizations including Wild Bioscience, CSIRO, and Ball Horticultural as Adams argued for broader access to gene editing.

## Achievements

- Co-founded Pairwise and built a team around applying CRISPR and other editing methods to food and agriculture.
- Led Pairwise through the launch of Conscious Greens, which the company described as the first CRISPR food introduced in North America.
- Oversaw development of a blackberry combining unobtrusive soft seeds with thornless and compact plant traits.
- Established major collaborations and licenses with Bayer, Corteva, Sun World, CSIRO, Wild Bioscience, Solis Agrosciences, and Ball Horticultural.
- Helped shift Pairwise from a direct consumer-brand experiment toward a platform, licensing, and partnership model.
- Led the company through a $40 million financing round in 2024, bringing announced fundraising at that point to $155 million.

## Latest updates

- **2026-08** — A WIRED profile featured Adams and Pairwise's work on seedless blackberries and compact cherry plants; Adams described the technology as the crest of a coming wave.
- **2026-06** — In a Seed World video interview, Adams argued for broader access to gene editing and discussed consumer trust, specialty crops, and production challenges.
- **2026-04** — Pairwise licensed its Fulcrum platform to CSIRO across plants, livestock, aquaculture, and microbes, and separately to Ball Horticultural for ornamental crops.
- **2026-02** — Pairwise licensed Fulcrum tools to Wild Bioscience to support AI-driven development of resilient crop traits.
- **2026-01** — Pairwise reported the first limited commercial sales of edited blackberries in Colombia and outlined pre-commercial grower trials for 2026.

## Links

- Website: https://www.pairwise.com
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tom-adams-b70a944
- Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/PairwisePL
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/pairwisePL/

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/tom-adams
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-09-27