GeneSeque is a Trondheim, Norway based company aiming to develop MagSeq, a break-through technology for single-molecule sequencing. The technology concept is based on using monodisperse beads and image chips as principles for base detection. The development program has been motivated by the market need for bringing down the cost of DNA sequencing and improving the quality of the data produced. The company has been funded by a combination of venture, institutional and private investors, and has been supported by several research and development grants from the Norwegian Research Council and Innovation Norway.

The next generation sequencing (NGS) market is evolving rapidly, fuelled by the need to increase accuracy and speed, and to reduce the cost of sequencing. According to Research and Markets , the NGS market was valued at USD bn 1.2 in 2012 and forecasted to grow to USD bn 2.7 by 2017, driven by recently introduced bench-top and NGS platforms. In 2012, Illumina, followed by Life Technologies, Roche and Pacific Biosciences, dominated the NGS platform market. The current leading NGS sequencing platforms are based on multi-molecule sequencing. It is expected that the introduction of well positioned single-molecule sequencing technologies hold the potential to significantly drive down the cost of sequencing, while increasing accuracy and speed.

GeneSeque believes that the company´s MagSeq technology offers the potential of becoming a significant contender in this market, by opening up for highly cost-effective and massively scalable single-molecule sequencing. MagSeq readily has the potential of human genome sequencing prices well below $1000.