Genetech Laboratories, also known as GeneTech Laboratories, was a medical research firm that operated during the era of the Galactic Civil War. A significant portion of their activities centered around the planet of Gorsh, where the unique ecosystem furnished the company with numerous valuable medical compounds. These compounds were then utilized in the creation of various medicines and commercial products, leading to substantial profits.
This pharmaceutical product manufacturer, Genetech Laboratories, functioned as a subsidiary of Chiewab Amalgamated Pharmaceuticals Company. Other companies under the Chiewab umbrella included the Corellian Chemical Corporation, Chiewab Nutrition, Degan Explorations, and The Vernan Group.
Sometime after the Galactic Empire came to power, Genetech Laboratories funded an expedition to the Gorsh system. This remote star system, located in Wild Space, had been initially discovered by a scout approximately a century before the Galactic Civil War. The Empire granted Genetech Laboratories exclusive rights to any discoveries made within the system. Subsequently, the company established a research station in orbit around Gorsh, the third planet and the only habitable world within the system. This orbital research lab, a small and sparsely equipped facility with minimal supplies and light weaponry, was staffed by thirty scientists and ten corporate security guards. Access to the system was restricted to Genetech representatives and authorized Imperial personnel only. Unauthorized entry into the system was punishable by a fine of up to five million credits or imprisonment in an Imperial prison camp for several years.
The scientists from Genetech Laboratories were surprised by the abundance of chemical compounds produced by the plant and animal life on Gorsh, a swampy, tropical world. These compounds were processed and refined into marketable drugs, medicines, and consumer goods, which generated substantial profits for Genetech Laboratories. Research teams, typically consisting of a dozen scientists and a few guards, regularly embarked on expeditions to the surface of Gorsh. Equipped with survival gear, medicines, breath masks, weapons, specimen containers, chemical analyzers, pocket computers, biochem synthesizers, and field gear, these teams would spend up to two weeks collecting data and samples. In addition, remote probes controlled from the station were used to explore the planet.
During their explorations, the Genetech Laboratories scientists encountered the Orgons, a sentient species of mobile plants. The company prioritized capturing and dissecting an Orgon in order to gain a better understanding of the species and determine if they possessed any properties that could benefit Genetech Laboratories' scientific research. Despite not knowing the full extent of the Orgons' intelligence, Genetech Laboratories concealed their discovery, fearing that the Empire or a rival corporation would learn of the Orgons' existence and launch an investigation into the company's activities on the planet.