The PR event for the relaunch of the Archon Genomics X PRIZE was well attended with 200 VIPs, industry leaders, and media. Interviews were coordinated with major publications to announce the $10 million prize challenge to sequence 100 centenarian genomes. The announcement generated nearly 1 billion media impressions worldwide and over 340 news stories, achieving the objectives of raising awareness of the relaunched competition and new partnership with Medco.

1. What We Achieved
• Press event at New York Academy of Medicine was at-capacity, with
200 VIPs, industry leaders, media, X PRIZE Foundation donors and
centenarian spokespeople in attendance
• Secured broadcast news veteran, Miles O’Brien, to serve as the Master of
Ceremonies
• Garnered recorded statements from industry/governmental influencers to
enhance validity, including Dr. Margaret Hamburg, Commissioner of the
Food and Drug Administration
• Local artist commissioned to build three DNA structures using New York
City phone books for photo opportunity (building blocks of DNA contain more
than 6 billion characters – enough data to fill 200,000 phone book pages)
• Nearly 20 interviews for Dr. Craig Venter and Peter Diamandis (CEO of X
PRIZE) coordinated the week leading up to the announcement with
Associated Press, Reuters, The Economist, Los Angeles Times, New York
Times, Forbes, Fast Company, Scientific American, GenomeWeb, Third Age,
Xconomy, CNET, Discover Magazine, CNN Money, The Huffington Post and
Voice of America, among others.
Imagine the day when you and your doctor sit down to review a copy of your own personal
genome. Not only will this change the way healthcare is practiced, but it will transform patient
care and the way people think about their own health.
On October 26, 2011, the X PRIZE Foundation and Medco made a major announcement that
brought us one step closer to making this a reality.
• Generated nearly 1 billion media impressions worldwide
• More than 30 broadcast news segments including Associated Press TV and CNN American
Morning within 48 hours of announcement
• More than 340 news stories
• Nearly 400 mentions on discussion boards/forums
• To date, approximately 10,000 website/blog posts
• 5,000 mentions on international sites (all languages except English)
• 100% of articles were either “positive” or “neutral” in tone
• 75% of articles mentioned the prize by name – “Archon Genomics X PRIZE”
• 65% of articles mentioned Medco as a presenting sponsor
• Medco stock price increased immediately following the announcement
• Cultivated relationships with key opinion leaders in the genomics space, including J. Craig Venter
Institute, Boston University and Albert Einstein School of Medicine to extend message reach

2. “Thank you for putting such passion and
hard work into our launch event.
I could not be happier with the outcome!”
- Grant Campany, Senior Director, Archon Genomics X PRIZE
Challenges
• Prize was announced in 2006; therefore, some media would consider a re-launch “old news”
• Recent media coverage surrounding similar news, such as the Wellderly Study, combined with media
fatigue over genome sequencing
• Announcement coincided with Medco earnings call and an acquisition by Express Scripts; therefore,
Medco’s CEO was unavailable to participate in launch event and media interviews
• As a nonprofit, there were limited funds available for PR – the 3-month budget for this launch was set
at $55,000, including fees and OOPs
Primary Objectives
• Re-launch the new $10 million Archon Genomics X PRIZE, as the original announcement in 2006 did
not garner much media or participant interest
• Announce the newly formed partnership with Medco and launch the Medco 100 Over 100 Program
• Make complicated science easily understandable and relatable to all audiences through multi-
message platform segmented by target audiences
Strategic Approach
• Design a multimedia program to “broadcast” the launch event to both the public at large and other
key audiences and stakeholders
• Attract attention of these audiences by leveraging key media relationships to secure exclusives for
top-tier print, broadcast and online media
• Customize the story per media sector to ensure inclusion within business, health, technology, and
lifestyle sections
• Lead with third-party validation from Dr. J. Craig Venter, first scientist to map the human genome
and X PRIZE Foundation Scientific Advisory Co-Chair, to add industry credibility to the
announcement
• Leverage current news to communicate continued interest and importance in genome sequencing
• Educate the general public about genome sequencing to help mitigate their concerns about this
process while engaging the scientific community
Overview
Founded in 1995, the X PRIZE Foundation is the leading nonprofit organization
solving the world’s Grand Challenges by creating and managing large-scale,
high-profile, incentivized prize competitions that stimulate investment in
research and development worth far more than the prize itself. The $10 million
Archon Genomics X PRIZE was originally launched in October 2006. In the
following years, sequencing technology progressed through multiple platforms,
carving out niche research markets, each with its strengths and weaknesses.
Teams originally registered to compete were not yet able to meet the
requirements, leaving the Archon Genomics X PRIZE in stasis.
Recognizing that no single technology was serving medical/clinical
requirements, the Archon Genomics X PRIZE was revitalized in 2010 to be more
inclusive, relevant and robust. Part of this revitalization included the addition
of Medco as a presenting sponsor and the revision of the competition
guidelines.
The new Archon Genomics X PRIZE presented by Medco is an incentivized
prize competition, with $10 million to be awarded to the first team to rapidly,
accurately and economically sequence the whole human genome of 100
centenarians to a level of accuracy never before achieved.
“The 107-year-old Eberhardt of
Chester, N.J., played and taught
tennis until he was 94. He said
he's participating in the X Prize
project because he's interested in
science and technology.”