# J. Craig Venter

> J. Craig Venter (1946-2026) was an American biologist, entrepreneur and author. His teams helped produce a draft human genome, published his individual diploid genome, surveyed marine microbial DNA and constructed a bacterial cell controlled by a chemically synthesized genome. He founded TIGR and the J. Craig Venter Institute, led Celera Genomics and co-founded Human Longevity, Inc.

- **Role:** Biologist, genomics researcher, entrepreneur and author
- **Organizations:** J. Craig Venter Institute, The Institute for Genomic Research (TIGR), Celera Genomics, Synthetic Genomics, Inc. (now Viridos), Human Longevity, Inc., SGI DNA (now Telesis Bio), Diploid Genomics, Inc., National Institutes of Health, State University of New York at Buffalo, University of California San Diego
- **From:** Salt Lake City, United States
- **Nationality:** American
- **Education:** BS in biochemistry, University of California San Diego, PhD in physiology and pharmacology, University of California San Diego
- **Known for:** Helped develop expressed sequence tags for rapid gene discovery., Co-led the first complete genome sequence of a free-living organism in 1995., Led Celera’s contribution to the draft human genome.

## Career timeline

- **1967-1968** — Served as a U.S. Navy corpsman in Vietnam.
- **1972** — Completed his undergraduate degree at UC San Diego.
- **1975** — Earned his doctorate and began an academic appointment in Buffalo.
- **1984** — Moved to the National Institutes of Health.
- **1991** — Co-authored the expressed sequence tag paper, introducing a rapid gene-discovery strategy.
- **1992** — Founded The Institute for Genomic Research.
- **1995** — TIGR collaborators published the complete Haemophilus influenzae Rd genome.
- **1998** — Founded Celera Genomics to pursue human genome sequencing.
- **2000** — Joined Francis Collins and President Bill Clinton at the June 26 announcement of working drafts of the human genome.
- **2001** — Celera’s human genome sequence and analysis appeared in Science.
- **2004-2006** — Sorcerer II completed the Global Ocean Sampling circumnavigation.
- **2006** — Merged several nonprofit research organizations into the J. Craig Venter Institute.
- **2007** — Published his individual diploid genome; released A Life Decoded.
- **2010** — JCVI announced a self-replicating bacterial cell controlled by a synthetic genome.
- **2013** — Published Life at the Speed of Light.
- **2014** — Public launch of Human Longevity, Inc., with co-founders Peter Diamandis and Robert Hariri.
- **2016** — Collaborators published JCVI-syn3.0, a minimal bacterial genome with 473 genes.
- **2018** — Announced his departure from Human Longevity’s executive work to focus on JCVI.
- **2023** — Published The Voyage of Sorcerer II with David Ewing Duncan.
- **2026** — Died in San Diego on April 29, aged 79.

## Achievements

- Helped develop expressed sequence tags for rapid gene discovery.
- Co-led the first complete genome sequence of a free-living organism in 1995.
- Led Celera’s contribution to the draft human genome.
- His individual diploid genome was published in 2007.
- His teams constructed a self-replicating cell controlled by a chemically synthesized genome in 2010.
- Co-authored the 2016 minimal-genome experiment with 473 genes.
- Led marine expeditions that uncovered millions of previously unreported genes.
- Received the 2002 Gairdner International Award and the 2008 U.S. National Medal of Science.

## Latest updates

- **2026-04** — JCVI announced his death on April 29, 2026, in San Diego at age 79.
- **2025-11** — Authored a Nature obituary of long-time collaborator Hamilton Smith, published November 10.
- **2023-09** — Discussed The Voyage of Sorcerer II in a Nature interview published September 18.

## Links

- Website: https://www.jcvi.org/about/j-craig-venter

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Last updated: 2026-10-14