St. John’s-based entrepreneur Chris Gardner is doing a lot to foster and grow his community. He, in turn, will need community support if his biotechnology company Sequence Bio is to succeed.

Gardner and co-founder epidemiologist Tyler Wish aim to study the genetic profiles of 100,000 Newfoundlanders and Labradorians.

The company is developing systems that use machine-learning and artificial intelligence to analyze DNA data. That will, they hope, lead to the development of better and more personalized medicine.

Newfoundland’s population is important, according to Gardner, because the province has a rare — possibly unique — genetic grouping of families that have lived on the island for generations and who have distinct genetic markers.

“We will only succeed if the community believes we can do this ground-breaking research and that we work with the community to return benefits,” said Gardner, who is the company’s President and COO.

“Those who participate will eventually receive data that may benefit their future health care.”

Gardner has had his own genome sequenced.

“I’m going to be much more informed about my health,” he said. ”I can monitor for conditions I’m prone to. Without that information, I may not know about or may misinterpret symptoms.

“My DNA will also enable my doctors to understand which medicines and treatments might help me, and which might have adverse effects.”

Investors seem convinced. Recently, Silicon Valley venture capital firm Data Collective led a US$3 million (C$3.9 million) round of seed funding into the startup, which was formed in October 2013.

Sequence Announces US$3M Funding

The investment has enabled Sequence Bio to grow its staff from four to 15. The figure will rise to 20 by the end of the year.

The company is launching a pilot on the province’s north shore to test processes around gaining participant consent and other formalities.

“Over 1,000 people have already said they want to participate,” Gardner said. “When we’re ready to launch we’ll enroll them.”

Gardner is also the founder of St. John’s co-working space Common Ground, the shared office space for entrepreneurs, freelancers, and creatives.

The non-profit houses more than 100 members. A feasibility study is under way to explore how to grow to meet demand.

“Along with a group of other entrepreneurs, I felt that if everyone had a home 24/7, entrepreneurs could feed off of and help each other,” Gardner said. “Common Ground is a beacon and magnet for entrepreneurial energy in the city.”

He said that several companies in diverse fields have formed as a result of meetings that occurred at Common Ground.

Gardner is also the volunteer Executive Director of TedxStJohns, the local chapter of the Ted Talks series. The provincial Tedx is going into its sixth year. Volunteers organize an annual program of seminars that provide a platform for showcasing new concepts and talent.

“This past year, we decided to make the show about youth,” Gardner said. “You had to be a Newfoundland and Labradorian younger than 24 to speak. We were blown away by the number of applications and the ideas.

“One of the youth speakers was studying archaeology and genetics to see links between the diseases of the past and today.

“Another participant, a young woman in junior high who taught herself to code, has become an advocate for coding in schools.”

Gardner said he works to grow his community because he believes in what he calls “place-making”.

“We often think of solving problems at the macro level, which is incredibly important, but if all of us took care in our own communities, we’d accomplish so much at the micro level,” he said.

He estimates that for the next number of years, growing Sequence Bio will require shouldering a heavy workload, but he is prepared for that.

“I decided this is how to invest my energy,” he said. “I’ve always believed that improvements in healthcare would come at the intersection of data, technology, community and genetics.”