Silicon Valley tech firm brings encrypted solution for tracking Canadian developer's 15-minute Covid19 rapid antigen test for point of care, and then at-home testing
LOS ALTOS, CALIF. APRIL 28, 2021– Afero has entered into an agreement with Therma Bright TSXV(THRM.V), developer of the AcuVid™ COVID-19 Rapid Antigen Saliva Test and other progressive diagnostic and medical device technologies, to bring greater innovation, security and tracking to its 15-minute COVID-19 rapid antigen screening solution. AcuVid™, Powered by Afero, will help communities safely and securely return to work and play using embedded and encrypted technology for tracking and reporting AcuVID Tests for quality assurance, shipping, logistics, and point-of-care test results. It also paves the way for preparing the AcuVID COVID-19 Rapid Antigen Test for approval for at-home testing.
The Afero solution was introduced to Therma Bright by Ridge Global, who saw an immediate need for serial testing to help slow the pandemic spread while providing accurate, secure reporting on testing results. Backed by the fifth largest IoT patent portfolio globally, the Afero Platform gives partners an agile development process, best-in-class security, and rapid data capture across multiple products and product generations. Afero's mobile application supports advanced quality control features and an intuitive user experience every single time a test is connected. With the secure Afero Cloud, AcuVid™ test status is tracked and managed on a real-time basis for many millions of tests deployed around the world. And with secure Afero Integrations, millions of test results can be shared with government agencies, workplaces, entertainment venues and more.
Even with the proliferation of COVID-19 vaccines across the United States and Canada, the need for secure and reliable rapid antigen testing remains critical to help in slowing the spread of the original COVID19 virus (Wuhan SARS-CoV-2). In addition, Therma Bright has successfully detected its growing list of variants including Brazilian P.1 and P.2 and the UK B.1.1.7 variants. The Afero encrypted QR Code solution will be embedded on each Acuvid Rapid Antigen Test for both enterprise and consumer use. Therma Bright will be able to use this tracking technology for quality assurance and logistics tracking as well as reporting results in a safe, secure manner first for point-of-care facilities, and then for at-home use.
"Our AcuVid COVID-19 Rapid Antigen Test, powered by Afero, will provide users our "Brighter Experience" - a complete end-to-end solution to ensure product tracking, quality control and test validation data are all cryptographically captured and secured to protect individual privacy for every test taken," explained Rob Fia, CEO of Therma Bright. "By integrating Afero's Secure QR Code technology, each AcuVid test deployed will be validated for its efficacy and confirmed on the Afero-powered mobile application. All data captured will be securely stored in the Afero Cloud. If accepted by the end user, their test results can then be transmitted to their personal healthcare practitioner, and/or to their mobile health wallet for ease of use and test verification."
"The opportunity to work with Therma Bright to help mitigate community spread of COVID-19 is a critical step in the growth of our intelligent edge technology" said Joe Britt, Afero co-founder and CEO. "Therma Bright's AcuVid COVID-19 Rapid Antigen Test, powered by Afero, is measurable progress towards enabling everyone on the planet to be able to take a secure, simple, reliable saliva-based test. Afero's expertise in user validation, security, data management and data analytics serve as a critical platform for deploying a "smart" AcuVid solution which reduces risk and adds a layer of quality control which currently doesn't exist with other rapid tests."