Termed the AI4B.ioLab, DSM said it will be the first of its kind in Europe to apply AI’s potential in biosciences and biotechnology, from full-scale biomanufacturing and microbial strain development to process optimization and scheduling. AI is already widely applied in engineering research and DSM said the technology is unique in that it allows scientists to invert their traditional “trial-and-error” research process.

Located on the TU Delft campus, the AI4B.io Lab will be part of the Dutch National Innovation Center for AI (ICAI). DSM said it will invest €2.5 million in the lab over the first five years as it regards biosciences as an important tool for addressing climate change and resource scarcity as well as optimizing the global food system.

“Biotechnology can contribute significantly to solving major societal challenges, such as climate change, healthy nutrition for the world’s rapidly growing population, and raw material scarcity,” said Marcel Reinders, director at TU Delft Bioengineering Institute. “AI plays a crucial role in the development of biotechnology applications, but – scientifically speaking – there are still many unanswered questions at the cellular, lab, and process level. By linking our fundamental research to concrete opportunities at DSM, we can maximize our impact.”

TU Delft will also invest in 24 interdisciplinary AI laboratories at the campus, working on a broad range of topics to further drive collaboration between scientists working in AI and those from other domains.

The AI4.B.io Lab will work too with Planet B.io, the open-innovation ecosystem at the Biotech Campus Delft, for instance by providing research insights and consultancy to biotechnology startups on the campus. Both DSM and TU Delft are founding partners of Planet B.io.

Author: Elaine Burridge, Freelance Journalist