This California company has a better version of a simpler, faster Covid-19 test

But the technique — known as LAMP — can also, in some situations, be less sensitive and less accurate than PCR tests. And it can be hard to run many of the tests at once outside of a central laboratory; people can only work so quickly.

Enter Color Genomics, a California-based, genetic testing company that says it has solved many of the problems associated with the technique. Its Covid-19 tests are just as accurate as PCR tests, according to the documents it filed to the Food and Drug Administration for an emergency authorization. And it’s automated the process enough to run thousands of tests each day. Already, Color is processing about half of all the daily tests run in San Francisco and returning results in one to three days.