Cellares to eliminate about 100 positions after BMS ends partnership

Cellares Corporation plans to permanently eliminate about 100 positions effective Oct. 20, 2026, after Bristol Myers Squibb terminated a partnership alleging Cellares' automated Cell Shuttle system could not meet requirements to manufacture the CAR-T therapy Breyanzi. The layoffs were disclosed in a WARN Act filing sent to BioSpace by California’s Employment Development Department and were framed by Cellares as a response to the loss of the key contract. Cellares’ CEO noted staff reductions on LinkedIn but did not name the pharma partner or give details; the WARN filing lists a wide range of affected roles including senior staff across engineering, marketing, recruitment and software, as well as an alliance manager, a janitorial specialist and the VP of commercial operations. Cellares disputes BMS's characterization of its system and emphasized prior clinical GMP production using Cell Shuttle, while noting the company had raised $257 million earlier in its push toward commercial-scale production.

Cellares Corporation disclosed this layoff in an official WARN (Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification) notice recorded by the CA state workforce agency on August 21, 2026. The notice covers 100 employees in Veterans Boulevard South San Francisco, CA (San Mateo County), with the layoff effective October 20, 2026.

That is roughly 66.7% of the 150 people Cellares Corporation employs.