Bay Area biotech company Alector cuts dozens of jobs after drug reportedly flops

(KRON) — Bay Area biopharmaceutical company Alector, Inc. is cutting dozens of jobs after the reported flop of its most recent drug trial. According to a Worker Adjustment Retraining Notification (WARN) notice, the company is slashing 75 jobs at its South San Francisco headquarters.

The layoffs follow the recent flop of a phase III trial of the company’s dementia drug, according to a report in the biopharma industry publication, BioSpace. The company, which is partnered with global biopharma giant, GSK, found no clinical benefit to the drug for patients suffering from frontotemporal dementia, according to the report.

Following the disappointing trial result, the company saw its stock fall by 51%. The company had around 238 full-time employees at the end of 2024, according to its annual report. The job cuts, which are permanent, amount to about a third of the company’s overall headcount.