Knome is a company based in Cambridge, Massachusetts which works alongside leading geneticists, clinicians and bioinformaticians from Harvard and MIT to enable private individuals to obtain, understand, and share their genomic information in a manner that is both anonymous and secure. They are the first genomics company to offer complete genome sequencing and analysis for private individuals.

Personal genomics is still in the pioneering stage but the first individuals in history to have their complete genome sequenced has already occured. And to promote the new service Knome has put up for auction on ebay a kit with the starting price of US$67000, about 2/3 the normal US$100,000. The auction was organised by X PRIZE Foundation Chairman and CEO Peter Diamandis who said: “The ability to fully sequence human genomes and use that personal genetic information to predict disease susceptibility and guide proactive care has the power to transform our entire healthcare system.

Knome was co-founded in late 2007 by Harvard Medical School professor George Church to offer boutique whole-genome sequencing to wealthy clients. The initial price was $350,000, but that has fallen considerably in the past 12 months as the cost of next-generation sequencing services has plummeted. Knome contracts its sequencing operations to the Beijing Genomics Institute in Shenzen.