Building an AI-Driven Autonomous Lab for Life Science R&D | Discovery Engines

Jason Kelly, CEO of Ginkgo Bioworks, believes the future of life science R&D is autonomous, starting with the 52-cart lab he and his team have built in Boston. In this episode, I sit down with Jason to explore Ginkgo's autonomous biology lab, its collaboration with OpenAI, the POTUS-backed Genesis Mission, and where autonomous physical systems could take science next.

Hosted by Nabil Laoudji. See below for episode links, chapters, and our socials. 🙏🙌

Episode Links:

Chapters:

(00:00) - Preview
(01:54) - Jurassic Park and the Value of Storytelling in Science
(04:50) - What Is the Department of Energy's AMP2 at PNNL?
(07:17) - How Autonomous Labs Can Be Used to Run Experiments
(11:49) - Principles of the Autonomous Lab (Waymo Analogy)
(17:12) - Project Genesis, Competing with China in Scientific Discovery
(23:42) - Reindustrializing America via Automation
(37:03) - OpenAI Designing and Running Bio Experiments
(47:17) - Advice to Frontier Labs Designing AI Intelligence for Science
(49:24) - Ginkgo Autonomous Lab Tour
(1:00:38) - OpenAI's Interface With Ginkgo
(1:02:51) - Lab Scheduler Platform
(1:16:19) - Advice for Deep Tech Startups
(1:22:22) - Advice for Scientists and Founders Thinking About Where to Focus in Biotech
(1:25:18) - How Research Labs Could Better Collaborate and Communicate Results
(1:29:23) - Advantages and Challenges of Going Public
(1:32:14) - Public Perception of Ginkgo
(1:33:57) - How Ginkgo's Business Model Has Changed

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