Founded in 2005, Synthetic Genomics Inc., a privately held company, develops biological solutions to increase the conversion and recovery rates of subsurface hydrocarbons. The company sponsors fundamental research at the J. Craig Venter Institute (JCVI), a non-profit organization with more than 400 scientists working on genomic research. It is working in three broad projects areas of next generation fuels and chemicals, microbial-enhanced hydrocarbon recovery and sustainable agricultural products. Synthetic Genomics Inc. has various scientific capabilities, such as environmental and plant genomics, microbiology, bioinformatics, genome engineering, analytical chemistry, fuel and biochemistry and assay development. In 2009, the company completed the Jatropha genome with Asiatic Center for Genome Technology (ACGT).