Oxford, 29 November 2007 – The World Economic Forum today announced 39 visionary companies selected as Technology Pioneers 2008. Oxitec has been selected as one of these Technology Pioneers. The Technology Pioneers 2008 were nominated by the world’s leading technology experts, including venture capitalists, technology companies, academics and media. The final selection from 273 nominees was made by a panel of leading technology experts appointed by the World Economic Forum. Technology Pioneers 2008 are invited to participate in the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting 2008 that will be held in Davos, Switzerland, from 23-27 January and in the Annual Meeting of the New Champions that will be held in Tianjin, People’s Republic of China from 25-27 September 2008.

Oxitec has been selected as a World Economic Forum Technology Pioneer 2008 in recognition of the Company’s unique and proprietary technology for the control of major global insect pests that are damaging to public health and agriculture. Oxitec’s environment-friendly technology was developed at Oxford University and employs advances in genetics and molecular biology to improve the cost-effectiveness and safety of the Sterile Insect Technique (SIT), which is currently used for insect control. Being selected as a Technology Pioneer will enable Oxitec to meet with other leading technology experts from around the world to raise awareness of the Company’s technology.

Oxitec’s technology has already been evaluated independently in France and Malaysia with promising results for controlling the mosquito that is responsible for the spread of Dengue fever, an increasingly widespread disease that affects over 100 million people each year. Two more insect pest control products that are based on Oxitec’s technology are in advanced development with the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA).

Dr Luke Alphey, Oxitec’s Founder and Chief Scientist said “We are delighted to have been selected as a Technology Pioneer 2008 and are proud of the achievements at Oxitec.  The recognition as a Technology Pioneer, demonstrates that we have a technology that can be successfully applied in pest control with the potential to make a real difference to people’s lives, both in public health and agriculture globally.”

Technology Pioneers are companies that have been identified as developing and applying highly transformational and innovative technologies in the areas of energy, biotechnology and health, and information technology. To be selected as a Technology Pioneer, a company must be involved in the development of life-changing technology innovation and have the potential for long-term impact on business and society. In addition, it must demonstrate visionary leadership, show all the signs of being a long-standing market leader – and its technology must be proven. Previous Technology Pioneers have included Business Objects, Cambridge Silicon Radio, Corel Corporation, Encore Software, Google, Mozilla Corporation and Napster.

The companies’ products and services include identity management on the Internet, understanding of individuals’ genetic information, robotic radiosurgery, pollution control materials, low-cost remote diagnosis solutions, virtual interface technologies, wiki-based projects and next-generation business intelligence solutions.

Twenty-three of the Technology Pioneers 2008 are US-based companies. Israel and the United Kingdom each boast three; Sweden and Switzerland two each; Canada, France, Germany, India, the Netherlands and Russia, one each. Technology Pioneers are nominated in three main categories: Energy/Environment, Biotechnology/Health and Information Technology.

The entire list of Technology Pioneers and interviews with the CEOs of the selected companies can be found here: http://www.weforum.org/techpioneers/2008.

“This year the World Economic Forum received a record number of applications from companies around the world to become a Technology Pioneer. From a highly competitive field, we are extremely pleased to have a community that is using innovation and technology to dramatically affect the way society and business operate and doing so in a markedly collaborative manner. We are excited to welcome the Technology Pioneers class of 2008 to the larger community of the World Economic Forum and we are looking forward to the fruits that their collaboration will bring,” said Peter Torreele, Managing Director of the World Economic Forum.

The selection criteria include:

1)       Innovation. The company’s technology must be truly innovative. A new version or repackaging of an already well-accepted technological solution does not qualify as an innovation. The innovation should be recent – not more than two years old. The company should invest significantly in R&D.

2)       Potential Impact. The company’s technology must have the potential to have a substantial long-term impact on business and society in the future.

3)       Growth and Sustainability. The company should have all the signs of being a long-term market leader and should have well-formulated plans for future development and growth.

4)       Proof of Concept. The company must have a product on the market or have proven practical applications of the technology. Companies in “stealth” mode and companies with untested ideas or models will not qualify.

5)       Leadership. The company must have visionary leadership that plays a critical role in driving the company towards reaching its goals.

6)       Status. The company must not currently be a Member of the World Economic Forum. This criterion applies to the parent company – thus wholly-owned subsidiaries of large firms are not eligible.

About Oxitec:

Oxitec is developing and commercialising a proprietary technology for the control of significant insect pests that will be effective and environment-friendly. Oxitec’s technology has the potential to make a major contribution for both global health and agriculture by combating insects responsible for serious diseases such as dengue as well as agricultural damage. The proprietary technology has been developed at Oxford University and employs genetics and molecular biology to potentially enhance the cost-effectiveness and safety of the existing Sterile Insect Technique (SIT), and to extend SIT to a broader range of insect pests. The Company has generated product candidates for several insect pest control markets, and has advanced its lead candidate to the final testing phase of the development in the US. Based near Oxford, UK, the Company was founded in 2002 and is rapidly developing to become a world-leading provider of insect pest control programmes. Oxitec has received venture capital investment from Oxford Capital Partners, East Hill Management and The University of Oxford.

About Oxitec’s technology:

Oxitec’s technology is aimed to improve public health and agriculture – for example, one application is the control of mosquito-borne diseases such as dengue fever, which affects more than 100 million people every year.

The technology is a proprietary platform with the potential to enable effective and environment-friendly control of insects that carry human diseases and are agricultural pests. Developed at Oxford University, the technology employs advances in genetics and molecular biology to potentially improve the cost-effectiveness and safety of the Sterile Insect Technique (SIT), which has been used for more than 50 years for insect control and can be described as “birth control for insects”. SIT involves the release of a large number of sterile insects over a wide area to mate with wild pest insects. The progeny of wild females then do not develop, leading to a decline in the target pest population. Oxitec’s insects are bred to be “sterile” without the need for expensive irradiation used in conventional SIT. In addition, only male insects are released, which has been proved to be far more effective than mixed populations.

About the World Economic Forum:

The World Economic Forum is an independent international organization committed to improving the state of the world by engaging leaders in partnerships to shape global, regional and industry agendas.

Incorporated as a foundation in 1971, and based in Geneva, Switzerland, the World Economic Forum is impartial and not-for-profit; it is tied to no political, partisan or national interests. (www.weforum.org)

Notes to Editors:

·         Go to www.oxitec.com for more information on the company and its technology

·         Go to www.weforum.org/techpioneers/2008 for the entire list of Technology Pioneers and interviews with the CEOs of the selected companies. For more specific information, please e-mail: tech.pioneers@weforum.org.