Ann: Quarterly Update and Appendix 4C, page-46

I don't see it as a particularly positive report for the Life Sciences division, some good news from energy though.

1. First acknowledgement from the company that we missed the boat on COVID RATs by essentially pulling out of markets. While those markets are some of the more price sensitive, all markets are price sensitive if you are not offering a ***valued*** point of difference from the cheaper competition. I'm not convinced we are.
2. COVID/Flu A/Flu B test - it's good that this is progressing but I can't help but feel this may pass us by too. (In my non-expert opinion) as COVID becomes more and more like the Flu it is less critical to be able to diagnose between them - isolate and rest for both. This is different to when COVID was considerably worse than the Flu. Leads back to point 1, will this be a ***valued*** point of difference - at least it would open up more opportunities in the US - ironically the one jurisdiction we aren't seeking approvals in.
3. Sepsis comments are a bit strange. I likely skew more negative than most (and readily admit not to wear rose coloured glasses) but I worry that they are preparing us for "we have a great test but the market is too complex and fragmented for entry in the near future". The planned evaluation is obviously a good thing, the way they have communicated it makes it sound like a potential roadblock as opposed to an optimisation of a committed path. They do say "AnteoTech remains committed to developing biomarkers to aid in the diagnosis of Sepsis" which is good to hear and likely means I am wrong. To me the evaluation of the market and regulatory requirements sounds like such a fundamental step in launching a medical diagnostic product that it would just be something done as part of development of a new test. Perhaps this is the refreshed Boards way of communicating to shareholders just how bad it was when they took over.