MGI hosted the 2019 Sequencing Technology and Application Summit in Beijing from 21–23 June 2019, bringing together more than 200 experts from across the global gene sequencing industry. The event focused on recent technological advances, evolving applications, and the development of industry standards and data specifications.
At the main forum on 21 June, Dr Jiang Hui, Chief Operating Officer of MGI, announced the global release of the MGI Techdocs: White Paper 2019. The report outlines key innovations in high-throughput sequencing and sets out a roadmap centred on lower cost, faster speed, and higher accuracy, supporting the broader vision of large-scale genomic access.
The white paper reflects on two decades of sequencing progress, with applications now spanning healthcare, environmental research, and agriculture. It also addresses ongoing technical and industry challenges, reinforcing MGI’s continued investment in sequencing platforms and emerging technologies.
A central focus of the report is MGI’s proprietary technologies, including DNBSEQ and stLFR (single tube long fragment reads). DNBSEQ leverages DNA nanoball-based amplification to reduce error accumulation and index hopping, while improving signal density and detection accuracy. Meanwhile, stLFR enables efficient long-range genomic information capture, supporting structural variation analysis without the complexity and cost of traditional long-read approaches.
The white paper also introduces MGI’s “676” Quality Genome standard, designed to improve the accuracy and completeness of diploid genome assembly. This framework represents a step towards more reliable genomic data and supports ongoing advances in personalised medicine.
In addition, MGI highlighted its broader ecosystem, including the MegaBOLT bioinformatics accelerator, integrated automation solutions, and high-efficiency data processing capabilities, demonstrating strength across both sequencing hardware and software.
The summit featured multiple technical sessions covering high-throughput research, animal and plant genomics, and microbial applications. Experts from academia and industry also took part in discussions on future sequencing tools, applications, and development models for the next decade.
