Next Generation Bio Innovation 2025

Bio-improved value creation offers differential value to the customer: To produce bio-derived and bio-improved products, bio-enabled processes can be used to replace existing processes; the value lies primarily in enhancing the production system. The value in incorporating these approaches must be carefully articulated to businesses – this is addressed further in the upcoming section “Beyond the customer”. The distinction between bio-derived and bio- improved products lies in the value perception for end-customers. For consumers, bio-derived products are often “invisible” and hence fail to capture their attention and drive demand. Examples of these universal, under-the-radar bioproducts include citric acid, monosodium glutamate (MSG), xanthan gum and many detergent enzymes, to name a few. These examples underpin several industries and have been bio-produced at scale globally for decades. Conversely, bio-improved products can drive demand by capturing consumer desires such as being animal component-free, cleaner, consistently high-quality, sustainably produced or more ethical than existing end-products of similar core functionality (see chymosin, Table 1). For business customers, bio-improved products can enable new ways of achieving end goals, delivering benefits for the production system (such as getting the product to market faster) in addition to increased perceptible value for end-customers (see hyaluronic acid, Table 1). Communicating the inherent value of bio-improved products through sales and marketing channels will define and drive demand generation. Unique product performance through biology: Both bio-superior and bio-disruptive products create differential functional performance through biology. For consumers, bio-superior products are improved everyday products such as food, household items or health supplements (see Sicilian Rouge tomato, Table 1). For businesses, bio- superior products can enhance production systems, such as maize seeds developed for superior growth characteristics (see TELA maize, Table 1), or the improvement of final product formulations, such as the incorporation of spider silk products, like those produced by AMSilk, into diverse, high- performance materials. By creating differential value for customers, better-performing products can create new product niches or acquire market share by substitution within existing categories. Bio-disruptive products represent an entirely new use case or solution in the eyes of the customer. By creating fundamentally new value for customers, their evolving needs and preferences can be addressed; the corresponding value is determined by how a product impacts their daily lives. The mRNA Covid vaccine, for example, is disrupting how vaccines are produced and delivered for consumer benefit. CAR-T therapies also represent an entirely novel approach to immune therapy, and while they currently face cost and scaling challenges, they provide significant value to patients (see CAR-T therapies, Table 1). For businesses, disruptive products can transform their production, modify commercial models and create value downstream for end-consumers (see Nitrogen-fixing microbes, Table 1). Bio-convergent technology to enhance value creation: The spectrum of production system approaches is not correlated with technology sophistication across these four areas – the development of a drop-in replacement may require novel, advanced technologies; conversely, an entirely novel product could result from replacement with bio-based approaches. By combining rapidly expanding capabilities in biology with convergent technologies – such as advances in synthetic biology, artificial intelligence (AI), data approaches, bio-sensing, additive manufacturing and robotics – bio-innovation can drive value by transforming production systems and creating unique, impactful products and services, while at the same time servicing unmet needs. For example, ongoing research into bio- engineering approaches for hyaluronic acid (HA) are demonstrating the potential for enhanced production and functionality, moving beyond cosmetics into diverse biomedical applications.5 Value creation is fluid and evolves as technologies change, enhancing the ability to target value during solution design. Therefore, bio-innovation must be framed around the value itself, with technology reframed as a fundamental enabler, instead of the ultimate driver of value. Next Generation Bio-Innovation: Delivering Commercial Value 7