Pacific Biosciences announced Sprq‑Nx chemistry and a program to reuse SMRT cell consumables for high‑volume customers, aiming to lower long‑read whole‑genome costs to roughly $250–$300 per genome at 20X. The company will beta test automated SMRT cell washing and offers customers the option to reuse consumables, potentially trimming consumable costs by as much as 40% for large projects. PacBio pitched the move as a push to make long reads competitive on price for population‑scale sequencing.