The future of cell-free biotechnology

Michael Jewett is a pioneer of cell-free biotechnology. Instead of using living microbes as factories, he uses their internal molecular machinery to make valuable proteins, medicines, diagnostics, and other chemicals. Jewett recently used the technique for vaccine production in an approach that could produce up to 150,000 doses from one liter. He believes cell-free biotech could democratize the production of essential medicines, improve water safety, and help convert atmospheric carbon into useful products, among other promising possibilities. “It’s just-add-water biotechnology,” Jewett tells host Russ Altman on this episode of Stanford Engineering’s The Future of Everything podcast. Have a question for Russ? Send it our way in writing or via voice memo, and it might be featured on an upcoming episode. Please introduce yourself, let us know where you're listening from, and share your question. You can send questions to thefutureofeverything@stanford.edu . Episode Reference Links: Stanford Profile: Michael Christopher Jewett Connect With Us: Episode Transcripts >>> The Future of Everything Website Connect with Russ >>> Threads / Bluesky / Mastodon Connect with School of Engineering >>> Twitter/X / Instagram / LinkedIn / Facebook Chapters: (00:00:00) Introduction Russ Altman introduces Mike Jewett, a professor of bioengineering and chemical engineering at Stanford University. (00:03:23) What Is Cell-Free Biotechnology? Using the internal machinery of cells without the cells themselves. (00:04:20) Removing “Evolutionary Baggage” Why cells’ natural priorities can conflict with engineering goals. (00:07:41) Advantages of Cell-Free Systems From large-scale production to decentralized, on-demand manufacturing. (00:11:40) Making Proteins Outside Cells How DNA instructions are used to produce functional proteins. (00:13:49) Biosensors for Water Safety Detecting contaminants like lead using engineered proteins. (00:17:05) Engineering Better Sensors Improving sensitivity and selectivity through protein design. (00:20:33) AI in Bioengineering How data and models accelerate discovery and design. (00:23:22) Sustainability & Carbon Capture Turning atmospheric carbon into useful chemicals. (00:26:18) Building New Biological Pathways Combining chemistry and biology to create novel production systems. (00:27:54) From Molecules to Materials How acetyl-CoA enables fuels, plastics, and other products. (00:30:51) Teaching Biotechnology Making biotech accessible through hands-on, “just-add-water” kits. (00:33:12) Future In a Minute Rapid-fire Q&A: innovation, collaboration, and the future of biotech. (00:35:32) Conclusion Connect With Us: Episode Transcripts >>> The Future of Everything Website Connect with Russ >>> Threads / Bluesky / Mastodon Connect with School of Engineering >>> Twitter/X / Instagram / LinkedIn / Facebook Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

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The future of cell-free biotechnology is an episode from The Future of Everything presented by Stanford Engineering by Stanford Engineering & Russ Altman.

This episode is 00:36:35 long.

This episode was published on Apr 24, 2026.

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