Patrinos had been offering to bring Collins and Venter together in neutral territory. Over pizza and beer, the two find some common ground, but Venter is not optimistic that a collaboration is possible, mainly because Collins can't control his center directors. Collins and Venter meet for the second time at Patrinos'. They agree to coordinate their announcements but not to face the press together. The two agree to announce on the same day.
Issues still remain over joint publication.
Patrinos negotiates with Science for publication in September. Collins and Venter agree to announce on Monday, June 26. A private firm says it has beaten the feds in attempts to crack the human genetic code.