Most of biotech runs on a tiny handful of "model" organisms — E. coli, baker's yeast — while millions of wild species sit unstudied in what scientists call microbial dark matter. In this episode, Karl and Erum sit down with Henry Lee, co-founder of Cultivarium, to explore why the future of synthetic biology depends on learning to grow, study, and engineer the organisms we've ignored. Henry breaks down the real difference between model and non-model organisms, why simply culturing a new microbe can take years, and how Cultivarium is standardizing growth recipes and building an open digital platform so any researcher can work with strains that were once impossible to handle. Along the way: a fistulated cow, a spectacular failure that ultimately cracked the genetics of cement-making bacteria, extreme microbes that could free fermentation from fresh water, and Cultivarium's evolution from a Focused Research Organization into a "Frontier Research Contractor." The conversation closes on the state of American science — funding, public trust, and AI — plus the America's Living Library Act and a quick-fire round on archaea, overused buzzwords, and whether we're alone in the universe. Before the interview, Karl and Erum spill some biotech tea on "Biotech Barbie" Cathy Tie and unpack what the video game Stray gets right about engineered microbes escaping into the wild.
Grow Everything brings the bioeconomy to life. Hosts Karl Schmieder and Erum Azeez Khan share stories and interview the leaders and influencers changing the world by growing everything. Biology is the oldest technology. And it can be engineered. What are we growing?
Learn more at www.messaginglab.com/groweverything
Chapters:
(00:00:00) — Summer vibes & a little biotech gossip: meet "Biotech Barbie"
(00:07:42) — What a video game about a lost cat teaches us about runaway microbes
(00:12:38) — How Henry went from building circuits to falling for biology
(00:16:25) — So what actually is a "non-model" organism?
(00:22:30) — Yes, we really talk about a cow with a window in its stomach
(00:25:40) — Step inside Cultivarium: incubators, recipes & happy accidents
(00:33:35) — Borrowing nature's best ideas: fungi, archaea & glowing jellyfish
(00:39:15) — The failure that taught us everything (a cement-making bacteria story)
(00:43:45) — Could the ocean fuel the future of fermentation?
(00:48:45) — Real talk: science funding, public trust & the promise of AI
(00:53:25) — Reinventing how big science gets funded — and a library of life
(01:00:10) — Dream organisms, pet-peeve buzzwords & "are we alone?"
(01:05:55) — Karl & Erum unpack their favorite moments
Links and Resources:
Cultivarium
Biosphere Project
27. Charting the Unexplored Microverse for Biological Gold with CULTIVARIUM’s Nili Ostrov
147. Shhh…They’re Talking: Holoclara's Dr. Andrea Choe Tunes Into Worm Signals for Health
98. Gotta Get Them All: bitBiome's Quest to Decode All Microbes with Yuji Suzuki
183. The American Biotech Blueprint: Senator Todd Young on Biodiversity as National Security
Kathy Tie Biotech Barbie Gene Editing
Stray - A Synthetic Biology Video Game
BioInnovations Events - For 25% off use code: Grow Everything
Topics Covered:
non-model organisms, microbial dark matter, model organisms, Cultivarium, industrial biotechnology, microbial engineering, DNA repair, CRISPR, fermentation, frontier research contractor
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Music by: Nihilore
Production by: Amplafy Media
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