What if…? | MIT Tough Tech Summit 2023
At dawn last Wednesday, I took the 5 a.m. train from Providence to Boston, marking my second year at the MIT Tough Tech Conference, courtesy of the Engine team.
The MIT Tough Tech Conference is a two-day conference hosted annually by the Engine to unite founders working on tough technology.
Tough technology companies are building a vision into reality with innovative technology, grappling with the unknown. Founders of these companies are pursuing some of the hardest problems in the world with patience.
These founders are…
- Asking questions others aren’t willing to ask
- Trying the unexpected in pursuit of a greater solution
- A willingness to work hard, even in situations of uncertainty
Most importantly, these founders have laid the foundation from years of research to ask the right “what-ifs.” They are crazy enough yet realistic to send them on life-long journeys to manifest “what if?”
What if you can automate, scale, and personalize manufacturing stem cell treatment for Parkinson’s’, diabetes, and heart disease?
Cellino Biotech is developing a platform that accurately manufactures personalized tissue for stem therapy to cure disease.
What if you can build and commercialize fusion energy for the world?
Commonwealth Fusion is validating its fusion energy machine with the aim of scaling its technology to a commercial level.
What if you could mix electricity and cement together to create carbon-neutral cement?
Sublime Systems is creating a low-carbon cement by reinventing the most fossil-fuel-intensive process of manufacturing traditional cement.
What if you can automate, scale, and personalize manufacturing stem cell treatment for diseases like Parkinson’s’, diabetes, and heart disease?
Your cells. Your cure. Cellino envisions “a world in which any tissue can be produced on demand for any therapy in areas such as ophthalmology, heart disease, and neurological disorders to name a few” (Cellino).
Their Tech
Cellino Biotech is developing a precision platform to create medicines for diseases like Parkinson’s, diabetes, and heart disease. They are using image-guided machine learning in their laser technology. Their laser edits a patient’s stem cells through cell reprogramming, expansion, and differentiation to create personalized human cells to cure these diseases.
Stem cells are crucial for regenerative medicines because they are the only cells in the body that can generate new specialized cell types; a stem cell can differentiate into a nerve cell, liver, blood, cardiac, etc. The ability to differentiate cells into specific, personalized cells is important because it can create specific cells to target/repair the specific disease each patient has.
Particularly, direct reprogramming (transdifferentiation) of cells changes the identity of a cell into a different cell type. Reprogramming cells into different types of cells is useful to restore specific cells, tissues, and organs for patients suffering from significant diseases; for example, providing stem cell treatment for Parkinson’s disease allows the restoration of functioning dopamine-producing brain cells that these patients lack. A restoration of dopamine-producing brain cells made from reprogrammed stem cells will improve the patient’s mobility, such as their stiffness (NIH).
Status Quo
Based on a paper published in 2020 by Stem Cell Investigation, there has been an exponential advancement in clinical trials regarding stem-cell therapies. It’s important to note, that the successful cases of therapies working do not imply that they have yet received full regulatory approvals as valid therapies.
- Epidermolysis Bullosa is a disease that affects 500,000 people worldwide (EB Research). | The rare disease causes fragile and easily blistered skin. A case study to treat Epidermolysis Bullosa used epidermal stem cells to improve the patient’s skin recovery.
- Macular degeneration affects 200 million people worldwide (NIH). | It is a disease that blurs central visions — mainly occurs due to aging. Stem cells were used to treat macular degeneration, which significantly improved the patient’s eyesight.
- The most established stem-cell treatment is bone marrow transplants. Roughly 18, 000 individuals up to 74 years old in the US have a life-threatening illness that requires them to have a bone marrow transplant or BMT (umbilical cord blood transplant) (HRSA). Bone marrow transplants use stem cells to replace damage to cells caused by disease or chemotherapy. Diseases can include leukemia, lymphoma, neuroblastoma, and multiple myeloma.
Meanwhile as noted in Cellino’s mission, stem-cell therapies have made notable strides in both Parkinson’s disease and diabetes.
- In August 2018, Nobel Prize winner and researcher, Shinya Yamanaka got the first approved clinical trial to treat Parkinson's using stem cells. Parkinson’s mainly affects the elderly population as over 8.5 million people are diagnosed with it as a disorder in the brain that causes difficulty in movement (WHO).
- In both type 1 and 2 diabetes, beta-cells are needed; for example, type 2 diabetes is caused by beta cells' inability to produce insulin. Multiple trials are being done to test beta cell replacement, notably ViaCyte involving 40 patients in 2014. The trial showed that the therapy successfully corrected blood sugar levels; and the stem cells injected remained alive and function for at least 174 days.
Next Steps for the Company
Cellino’s goal is to scale manufacturing personalized cell therapies to a commercial scale. They are able to do this by guiding the stem cell to the targetted tissue area which will allow for the stem cell to mature into the specific cell type. According to the Engine’s website, Cellino’s technology manufactures the highest quality of human tissues currently. Meanwhile, their machine learning platform is 10x faster at “writing programs to make functionally mature tissues that are critical for clinical therapies” (Engine).
Beyond working on Stem cell therapy with lasers that use this technology, Cellino’s vision is to automate personalized medication. Using machine learning, Cellino may personalize therapies with more nuance by considering the patient’s genetic, biochemical, physiological, exposure level, behavioral level, and treatment responsiveness- all principles that vary depending on the patient. Machine learning is playing an increasingly bigger role in biotech, particularly drug discovery and personalized medication.
What if you can build and commercialize fusion energy for the world?
Bob Mummgaard studied at MIT for his PhD in Applied Plasma Physics. One night by the local MIT bar, Muddy Charles, he asked himself this very question: What does a future powered by carbon-free, limitless fusion energy look like?
Now, Mumgaard is the CEO of Common Wealth Fusion Systems working on commercializing fusion energy. They are currently developing SPARC, the first-ever net-energy fusion device that generates more energy than the machine consumes.
When Bob Mumgaard, CEO of Common Wealth Fusion Systems, was asked if he knew his company for fusion energy would succeed, he said his technology follows the laws of physics– just look at the sun! The question wasn’t if achieving his project’s future was possible, instead, the question was how he could get there.
Status Quo
“We are witnessing a moment in history: controlling the power source of the stars is the greatest technological challenge humanity has ever undertaken,” -Physicist, Arthur Turrell Independent
Fusion energy is the process of two light nuclei that join together to release energy. Comparatively, nuclear energy splits an atom’s nucleus to generate energy, known as fission energy. Nuclear energy accounts for ~20% of electricity in the US (Department of Energy). It produces nearly no greenhouse gas emissions however, it creates radioactive material. An even more exciting energy opportunity is fusion.
Fusion energy would reduce fossil fuel plants as an emission-free source of power. It produces large amounts of energy with fewer products without leaving behind radioactive material.
2022 marked history in fusion energy, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory created a fusion reaction in the lab that generated more power than it consumed (New Yorker)!
The Energy Department deemed this moment:
“a major scientific breakthrough decades in the making that will pave the way for advancements in national defense and the future of clean power.”
One year later, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory was able to reproduce this reaction but to produce even more energy than previously.
Next Steps for the Company
As with other tough tech companies, they are paving the way to a greater vision beyond proving that their technology is feasible.
As the technology SPARC is proven, the company will work its way to build a world powered by fusion energy with stage ARC.
- Arc is focused on commercialization aimed at making the first power plant using fusion energy. It hopes to bring fusion energy into “homes, businesses, and communities” (CFS).
What if you could mix electricity and cement together to create carbon-neutral cement?
A fellow Canadian like myself, Leah Ellis studied chemistry at Dalhousie for undergrad, grad, and Ph.D. During the conference’s fireside chat, she prompted others to treat their career as an adventure and to define what fun looks like.
Her personal journey entangled itself with her career. She fell in love with chemistry in Dalhousie. Meanwhile, she went on biking adventures growing a closer connection to nature, made friends with some hippies, and bonded over their shared passion for environmentalism. From dumpster-diving for produce as an environmentalist paired with years of hands-on experience in the lab, she formulated a crazy and feasible enough idea to create Sublime Systems. Sublime Systems is a tough tech company that creates low-carbon concrete.
Status Quo
Concrete after water is the most widely used substance on Earth accounting for 4–8% of the world’s CO2 (The Guardian). “Half of the concrete’s CO2 emissions are created during the manufacture of clinker, the most intensive part of the cement-making process” (The Guardian). Sublime Systems replaces the most fossil-fuel-intensive process of manufacturing cement:
- Fossil fuels to burn a kiln
- CO2 emitted inside the kiln from limestone decomposing
Their Tech
They are replacing the most energy-intensive part of cement’s manufacturing process. Sublime developed an ambient temperature electrochemical calcination method to create carbon-neutral lime without high heat.
- This method uses water electrolysis to produce acid and base at different electrodes. The acid reacts with a calcium-bearing mineral to form calcium ions, which then combine with the base to precipitate as calcium hydroxide (lime).
- Their technology can work with various calcium sources, including non-carbonate minerals. When using limestone, the resulting CO₂ is already compressed and easily captured.
More can be read in detail in this article Sublime System published.
As I return from Boston to Providence on the RISD campus, I’ve been thinking about how the grandiose words associated with tough tech (i.e. moonshot, impact billions, hard problems that solve) fit into the lived experience of everyday life:
- How do you break down a big vision into smaller steps?
- What does daily life look like when you’re working towards shaping the future with tough tech?
- What were the personal experiences that shaped the founders that I met to develop their vision?
As a bio-designer, I use art and Industrial Design methods to make commentary about emerging technologies such as that of the Engine’s portfolio companies. I seek to challenge these technology’s roles in our individual lives and personal philosophy. My work can be seen here: Portfolio that delve into…
- Using Tattoo Designs to explain skin microbiome populations
- My work and fascination with the microbiome lead me to design and make this dress for a fashion show.
I made this dress for the Lumina Fashion Show as part of the biomimicry fashion wear collection. This dress explores how nature’s designs influence our daily lives, and how to incorporate these insights into fashion wear.
This dress highlights the dynamic bodily interaction between systems in the human bodies such as the cardiovascular system and the gut microbiome.
- Inspired by this MIT’s research with biosensors, drafted a vision for personalized, customized sensors for pre-diabetics.
- I grew the bacteria on my body onto Petri dishes which the bacteria patterns inspired this renaissance, goddess dress that I made. I hold the bacteria in a maternal pose and light to symbolize the womb. My bacteria is an extension of myself. My child.
- Fascinated by patterns in nature, I turned to an auditory exploration of nature. I made a harp crafted from a fallen branch in the woods. Pluck its strings…and its music will transcend you back to the wood’s history through rain, wind, thunder, and its past habitats.
Art enables a deeper personal connection with the technology. As said in my TEDx Talk,
Besides personal fulfillment, I found that art could make medical information accessible and understandable. For example, I worked at a non-profit, Ending Maternal Mortality where I collaborated with mothers who are illiterate to create illustrations that explain how to take a life-saving pill, Misoprostol. Through this experience, I learned the power of using art in medicine… Such as using images to help your immigrant grandmother who doesn’t speak English understand the surgery she might need.
Visuals are a universal communicator; but we have to ask ourselves, what messages are worth sharing?
And for me, I’ve been exploring how to communicate science to build inclusive tech, especially important as tech advances, but the gaps between the developed and developing keep rising.
I will bring the insights derived from this conference and a deeper understanding of the tough tech ecosystem into my bioart practice. I will continue to explore an artistic relationship with tough technology, while asking “what if?”
For every “what if” posed at the conference, there were undoubtedly years of unseen hard work, trial and error, and quiet resilience. As I listened to founders speak about their personal journey truthfully, they had a clear alignment with their whys and mission. These founders exemplified the delicate balance of dreaming big while staying grounded in the realities of technological innovation. They served as powerful reminders that innovation isn’t just about fast growth praised by Silicon Valley. It’s about the gritty, day-to-day grind, and the belief in a future that can be better than our present.
Special thank you to the Engine team, especially to Chloe Holzinger and Alex Grant for an incredible experience at the conference! I value the network’s kindness that drives each one of us to fulfill our whys.
