Brains Over Brew - What Nature Can Teach Us About Building Smarter

Technology has long looked to machines for progress—but nature may hold the smarter blueprint. In this lecture, Professor Rein Ulijn explores how biology’s ability to self-assemble, adapt, and build from the bottom up could transform how we design materials, harness energy, and solve some of humanity’s most pressing sustainability challenges. As advances in AI and automation now allow us to decode and replicate the molecular design rules that underpin biological function, we may be approaching a universal assembly code—a framework that connects chemistry, computation, and biology to generate new materials with specific functions. From creating more accessible drugs in collaboration with Memorial Sloan Kettering to developing new ways to store energy and build with biological precision, Professor Ulijn reveals how understanding molecular cooperation could reshape our world—so come tap into a new way of thinking about technology and nature.