On industrial strength Bio-design Automation

Abstract

Bio-Design Automation (BDA) denotes the nascent domain-specific Information and Communication Technology (ICT) discipline for synthetic biology, which constitutes the core technology of the Knowledge-Based Bio-Economy (KBBE). Ultimately, the success or failure of synthetic biology and the emerging KBBE equates to the progress or lack of progress in establishing an industrial strength BDA discipline. In this paper, we seek answers to the question “What does it take for BDA to become an industrial strength discipline?” Our goal is to stimulate a broad community discussion including Business Managers, Computer Scientists, ICT professionals, Synthetic Biologists, etc. around this question. To jump-start the debate, we will provide four core hypotheses covering what we believe are the most important aspects to be considered. Given that industrial strength is a composite aggregate of several technical and managerial variables, we have chosen to take a holistic approach and not restrict ourselves a priori to any particular viewpoints. Last, but not least, we will apply our findings and provide a prototypical industrial implementation of a BDA platform.