Maxygen Inc. was established to commercially exploit its proprietary recombination-based technologies for creating genetic diversity, known as its Molecular Breeding directed evolution platform.

Dr. Zaffaroni has founded multiple companies including ALZA Corporation, DNAX Research Institute, Affymax, Affymetrix, Symyx Technologies, and Alexza.

[3] Maxygen has demonstrated that the MolecularBreeding directed evolution platform has commercial potential in a number of areas, including agriculture, veterinary medicine, enzyme/chemical processes, and human therapeutics.

To accelerate its development of improved biopharmaceuticals, Maxygen acquired the Danish company Profound Pharma A/S in 2000, created by Christian Karsten Hansen and Jan Møller Mikkelsen in 1999.

In 2008, the company sold its MAXY-VII candidate drug, a recombinant form of clotting factor VIIa, to Bayer HealthCare.

[4] The company's intention at the time was to seek a buyer for its MAXY-G34 candidate drug, a pegylated, granulocyte colony stimulating factor.

Chief Scientific Officer - Robert WhalenVice-President of Research - James English Tassos Gianakakos is a former Director of Business Development for Maxygen.