Customizable, anaerobic-enabled system aims to
accelerate discovery and development of sustainable biofuels at the
University of Wisconsin–Madison's GLBRC
BOSTON, Jan. 23,
2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Ginkgo Bioworks (NYSE:
DNA), which is building the leading platform for cell programming
and biosecurity, today announced that Ginkgo Automation will design
and deploy a flexible, anaerobic-enabled laboratory automation
system for the Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center (GLBRC), a
U.S. Department of Energy-funded Bioenergy Research Center at the
University of Wisconsin–Madison. This new system is designed to
support the diverse needs of multiple investigators and research
teams simultaneously, enabling GLBRC scientists to more efficiently
discover and optimize synthesis of biofuels and bioproducts from
plant biomass.
GLBRC's mission involves numerous investigators tackling a
variety of scientific challenges, requiring flexible and robust
research infrastructure. The anaerobic-capable automation system
Ginkgo Automation will develop is designed to enable GLBRC
scientists to run multiple, diverse experiments at once, across
both aerotolerant and anaerobic conditions, while increasing
"walkaway" time—allowing investigators to spend more time
interpreting data and planning the next generation of experiments
rather than tending to routine laboratory tasks. By consolidating
diverse experimental needs into a single, flexible system, Ginkgo
Automation expects to help GLBRC advance its mission of enabling
cost-effective, sustainable biofuel production at scale.
Ginkgo Automation's capabilities are built on years of internal
expertise honed at Ginkgo Bioworks and Zymergen, encompassing
hardware design, software integration, and applications
development. Ginkgo Automation brings significant prior experience
in automating workflows for anaerobic organisms, a key requirement
for many of GLBRC's research programs. The result is a
customizable, future-forward system that can be easily adapted to
meet emerging research needs and support more complex workflows as
GLBRC continues to pioneer innovations in the bioenergy space.
In addition to providing advanced automation hardware and
software, Ginkgo Automation's deployment at GLBRC will include
access to Catalyst Flow, a fully remote, active error resolution
and troubleshooting support service. Catalyst Flow's proactive
monitoring is expected to enable Ginkgo's scientists and engineers
to identify and resolve approximately 80-90% of system errors
remotely, without the need for user-initiated tickets. Remote
recovery is especially critical when working within an anaerobic
chamber, because of how disruptive environmental breaches are to
research throughput. This helps enable extended walkaway time,
improved instrument uptime, and minimized interruptions to research
activities, allowing investigators at GLBRC to focus on innovation
rather than maintenance.
"This project brings us one step closer to transforming the way
researchers leverage laboratory automation," said Will Serber, Head of Ginkgo Automation.
"With the design of this new, automated, anaerobic-enabled system,
we're not just pushing boundaries—we're reimagining what's possible
in the lab. By giving GLBRC investigators the ability to run
flexible, multi-user, lab-directed evolution workflows in a highly
automated manner, we expect this system to accelerate scientific
progress. Ultimately, it's about empowering researchers to achieve
more with less effort and drive real-world impact in biofuels and
bioproducts development."
"We're excited to incorporate this advanced automation system
into our workflows," said Michael
Botts, Laboratory Automation Coordinator at GLBRC. "Our
researchers tackle a wide range of scientific challenges, from
optimizing microbial conversion processes to exploring new
feedstocks. Having a single, flexible platform that can manage both
anaerobic and aerobic conditions—and can run multiple experiments
simultaneously—will be a game-changer. It frees our scientists to
focus on innovation and analysis, rather than routine lab tasks,
ultimately helping us advance our mission more efficiently."
To learn more about how you can leverage Ginkgo's Automation -
built by scientists for scientists - please visit our website.
About Ginkgo Bioworks
Ginkgo Bioworks is the leading horizontal platform for cell
programming, providing flexible, end-to-end services that solve
challenges for organizations across diverse markets, from food and
agriculture to pharmaceuticals to industrial and specialty
chemicals. Ginkgo Biosecurity is building and deploying the
next-generation infrastructure and technologies that global leaders
need to predict, detect, and respond to a wide variety of
biological threats. For more information, visit ginkgobioworks.com
and ginkgobiosecurity.com, read our blog, or follow us on social
media channels such as X (@Ginkgo and @Ginkgo_Biosec), Instagram
(@GinkgoBioworks), Threads (@GinkgoBioworks), or LinkedIn.
GINKGO BIOWORKS INVESTOR CONTACT:
investors@ginkgobioworks.com
GINKGO BIOWORKS MEDIA CONTACT:
press@ginkgobioworks.com
Forward-Looking Statements of Ginkgo Bioworks
This press release contains certain forward-looking statements
within the meaning of the federal securities laws, including
statements regarding the capabilities and potential success of the
partnership and Ginkgo's cell programming platform. These
forward-looking statements generally are identified by the words
"believe," "can," "project," "potential," "expect," "anticipate,"
"estimate," "intend," "strategy," "future," "opportunity," "plan,"
"may," "should," "will," "would," "will be," "will continue," "will
likely result," and similar expressions. Forward-looking statements
are predictions, projections and other statements about future
events that are based on current expectations and assumptions and,
as a result, are subject to risks and uncertainties. Many factors
could cause actual future events to differ materially from the
forward-looking statements in this press release, including but not
limited to: (i) volatility in the price of Ginkgo's securities due
to a variety of factors, including changes in the competitive and
highly regulated industries in which Ginkgo operates and plans to
operate, variations in performance across competitors, and changes
in laws and regulations affecting Ginkgo's business, (ii) the
ability to implement business plans, forecasts, and other
expectations, and to identify and realize additional business
opportunities, (iii) the risk of downturns in demand for products
using synthetic biology, (iv) the uncertainty regarding the demand
for passive monitoring programs and biosecurity services, (v)
changes to the biosecurity industry, including due to advancements
in technology, emerging competition and evolution in industry
demands, standards and regulations, (vi) the outcome of any pending
or potential legal proceedings against Ginkgo, (vii) our ability to
realize the expected benefits from and the success of our Foundry
platform programs, (viii) our ability to successfully develop
engineered cells, bioprocesses, data packages or other
deliverables, and (ix) the product development or commercialization
success of our customers. The foregoing list of factors is not
exhaustive. You should carefully consider the foregoing factors and
the other risks and uncertainties described in the "Risk Factors"
section of Ginkgo's annual report on Form 10-K filed with the U.S.
Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") on February 29, 2024, Ginkgo's most recent quarterly
report on Form 10-Q, and other documents filed by Ginkgo from time
to time with the SEC. These filings identify and address other
important risks and uncertainties that could cause actual events
and results to differ materially from those contained in the
forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements speak only
as of the date they are made. Readers are cautioned not to put
undue reliance on forward-looking statements, and Ginkgo assumes no
obligation and does not intend to update or revise these
forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information,
future events, or otherwise. Ginkgo does not give any assurance
that it will achieve its expectations.
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