Working Towards a Sneakernet for Libre Biotech Wetware

Sunday, July 14, 2024: 12:00 pm (Little Theatre): A valuable feature of biological organisms is that their code (DNA) is contained in their self-replicating hardware. That means it should be possible to develop biotech (tools) that can be shared as e...

Sunday, July 14, 2024: 12:00 pm (Little Theatre): A valuable feature of biological organisms is that their code (DNA) is contained in their self-replicating hardware. That means it should be possible to develop biotech (tools) that can be shared as easily as plant clippings. In practice, the investment required to do that development is only mobilized when the assurances of intellectual property can be claimed and enforced in order to protect the investment. How then can we work towards a world where biotech innovations can be more easily accessed by anyone? What does a sneakernet for biotech wetware even look like and what sorts of things would it be good for exchanging? This talk will first tell a story about how open data principles have shaped genomic research, then describe the gaps in that openness extending to biotech in general. That will be followed by a description of some examples of how we share biotech wetware and what it could look like in the future.

Danny Chan