Vancouver firm funds $10M prize to map human genome

A Vancouver company is funding a high-profile $10 million US competition to develop technology they hope will revolutionize medicine the rapid mapping of the genome.

Archon Minerals Limited of Vancouver is funding the contest by the non-profit U.S. foundation behind the competition to launch the first private rocket to reach space.

The X Prize Foundation, based in Santa Monica, Calif., on Wednesday announced the Archon X Prize for Genomics, aimed at spurring development of technology that will rapidly map the human genome. The genome of an organism is a complete DNA sequence of one set of chromosomes.

Two years ago, the X Prize Foundation awarded the $10 million Ansari X Prize to a team led by aircraft designer Burt Rutan and financed by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen for their SpaceShipOne, which reached space twice in a span of two weeks.

To win the genomics prize, a competitor must develop a technology that can successfully map 100 human genomes in 10 days.

The foundation hopes the competition will result in technology that will help improve personalized preventive medicine and spark new areas of medical research.

The foundation also stages the $2.5-million Wirefly X Prize Cup, an annual event aimed at promoting innovation in rocket design, and the Automotive X Prize to develop and sell energy-efficient cars people will buy.