PacBio Announces Advances To Lower Genome Cost and Expand Multiomic Capabilities

PacBio (NASDAQ: PACB), developer of advanced sequencing technologies, has announced innovations to its Revio and Vega platforms designed to lower sequencing costs, add new multiomic capabilities, and expand support for regulated research environments.

The advancements center on new SPRQ-Nx sequencing chemistry and consumables, which are designed to deliver PacBio’s most affordable HiFi genome to date. Customers operating at scale could see as much as a 40% reduction from current costs, down to a price of less than $300 per genome. Additional improvements include 5hmC detection for epigenetic profiling and 21 CFR Part 11 compliance features for Vega. These updates reflect PacBio’s continued investment in making its highly accurate long-read sequencing solutions accessible at scale for population genomics, clinical research, and production-scale environments.

Beta testing of SPRQ-Nx chemistry on the higher throughput Revio is expected to begin in November 2025, with full commercial availability planned in 2026. Beta participants will be able to purchase 384 genomes of sequencing reagents for approximately $250 per genome. At launch, Revio systems running SPRQ-Nx will produce complete, multiomic native long-read genomes at the lowest cost in the market. PacBio intends to achieve these cost savings by enabling multiple runs per SMRT Cell while maintaining output per run, which will improve efficiency, reduce waste, and preserve PacBio’s hallmark accuracy and data richness.

“With lower sequencing costs, deeper biological insights, and new capabilities for clinical research and production-scale labs, we are delivering on our goal to make HiFi sequencing accessible for every genome and every lab,” said Christian Henry, President and Chief Executive Officer of PacBio. “From early discussions with customers, we’re seeing funding for projects at a larger scale than we’ve seen in the past. Our new pricing will allow researchers to apply the richness of HiFi data to many applications requiring more genomes, especially those leveraging large sample numbers to build robust AI models.”

Vega, PacBio’s benchtop system, will integrate SPRQ-Nx chemistry and 5hmC detection capabilities in 2026. Vega will also add rapid two- and four-hour sequencing runs, designed for high-demand applications such as plasmid and targeted sequencing. These upgrades will include secure authentication and audit logging features to support 21 CFR Part 11 compliance for labs operating under regulated conditions.

“Long reads are essential for population genomics because they reveal variants, phasing, methylation, and complex regions that other methods often miss,” said Michael Schatz, Bloomberg Distinguished Professor at Johns Hopkins University. “With Revio’s multi-use SMRT Cells driving down sequencing costs, long-read data will be foundational to the next generation of population studies, enabling deeper discovery and greater representation across diverse populations.” With the increased demand for HiFi data in large-scale, multi-year population studies, PacBio plans to provide to long-term support for the Revio and Vega platforms through 2032.