space. Later that year, Swanson also secured a partnership with Eli Lily; Genentech would receive $50,000 a month to pursue the human insulin project. By August 1978, the Genentech scientists were able to synthesize human insulin, and in that same month, Swanson and colleagues negotiated a multimillion-dollar contract with Eli Lilly. The big company-small company relationship they developed became the eventual template for other biotechnology start ups. While there was still plenty of work to be done on the human insulin synthesis, the new stream of revenues and the significant amount of media coverage meant that Genentech could pursue other research projects. By 1979, Genentech had projects on interferons, animal growth hormones, hepatitis B vaccines, and the hormone thymosin. By 1980, Swanson decided that they should raise money by making Genentech public. This was due to a variety of factors. Genentech needed more money to continue its development, and Swanson believed that the public interest in the technology should be capitalized on. The initial public offering took place on October 14, 1980, and it was the largest IPO ever, at that moment in history, with Genentech raising 35 million dollars. A trip to Europe in September 1980 to raise interest from European investors before the IPO also served as his honeymoon. From here on, Swanson would focus on pursuing his vision of Genentech as a self sustainable biotechnology company, not a contract research operation. He believed that recombinant growth hormones had a large market in the United States, and that they would be key for Genentech's corporate evolution. By October 18, 1985, the FDA approved the human growth hormone, developed almost entirely by Genentech, for sale in the United States, under the commercial name Protropin. In just two decades, Protropin sales exceeded $2 billion. Genentech had been able to manufacture, receive federal approval for, and market its own product, marking the successful execution of Swanson's plan to form out of Genentech a self sustainable biotech firm. Swanson left his position as CEO in 1990, taking on the position of chairman until his retirement from Genentech in 1996. Legacy Robert Swanson's legacy can still be found to this day through the company he cofounded and led. Genentech is still producing drugs and treatments to this day, and some of his policies, such as allowing company scientists to publish, are still in place. Genentech scored many firsts under Swanson's leadership, such as