Genomics & DNA design

01Overview and value chain

Markers: [EC: New Genomic Techniques (NGT) Regulation | OECD: genomics-bioinformatics | Regulator: FDA (US), EMA (EU), NMPA (CN)]

Genomics and DNA design is the “write” complement to sequencing’s “read”: designing and chemically synthesizing DNA from scratch, assembling whole synthetic chromosomes, and encoding digital data directly into DNA base pairs rather than analyzing naturally occurring genomes. Twist Bioscience, a leading DNA synthesis company, spun out its DNA data storage technology into an independent company, Atlas Data Storage, in a $155 million launch in 2025, aimed at providing commercial end-to-end DNA data storage solutions for hyperscale cloud providers and enterprise customers. In China, Tianjin University’s synthetic biology team, led by Academician Yuan Yingjin, co-authored the landmark 2017 Science papers reporting the de novo design and chemical synthesis of four synthetic yeast chromosomes as part of the international Sc2.0 project, and in 2026 published a Nature Methods paper describing SynNICE, a new technology enabling precise megabase-scale assembly of human DNA fragments in yeast and their cross-species delivery into mouse embryos, where the synthetic DNA was observed to be activated and to carry regulatory epigenetic marks. In France, Toulouse White Biotechnology (TWB) — Europe’s flagship industrial synthetic-biology design center — is accelerating its development of industrial biotechnology strain-design work for chemicals and materials production. In Germany, the Max Planck Institute for Synthetic Biology is pursuing bottom-up synthetic biology, including minimal approaches to synthetic cell construction and photosynthetic synthetic organisms.

The key directions of genomics and DNA design are:

1. De novo genome and chromosome synthesis: chemically synthesizing entire chromosomes or genomes from scratch, as demonstrated by the international Sc2.0 synthetic yeast genome project, rather than only reading and annotating natural ones.
2. Large-fragment DNA assembly and cross-species delivery: assembling megabase-scale synthetic DNA fragments (including human sequences) in a host organism such as yeast, then delivering them into a different species to study gene regulation and epigenetics.
3. Industrial strain design (foundry work): engineering microbial production strains for chemicals and materials manufacturing, the applied/industrial counterpart to fundamental synthetic genomics.
4. DNA-based digital data storage: encoding digital information directly into synthetic DNA base sequences for ultra-dense, long-term archival storage, now moving from R&D into dedicated commercial ventures.

Sectoral value chain

[Design & Codon Optimization] ──> [DNA Synthesis (oligos/genes)] ──> [Assembly into Chromosomes/Constructs]
                                                                                  │
                                                                        (Host delivery/transformation)
                                                                                  │
                                                                                  ▼
[Applications: Data Storage / Industrial Strains / Research] <─── [Validation & Sequencing QC]

Value chain levels

Cross-cutting technologies of the sector:

• Solid-phase DNA synthesis: automated synthesizers building oligonucleotides base-by-base using phosphoramidite chemistry, the foundational technology behind both gene synthesis and DNA data storage.
• Synthetic chromosome design (Sc2.0-style): redesigning a genome’s chromosomes with modifications (removed repetitive elements, relocated tRNA genes, an inducible genome-scrambling system) while preserving the organism’s viability.
• DNA-based digital data storage: encoding binary data as base sequences (A/C/G/T), exploiting DNA’s extreme information density (on the order of petabytes per gram) and multi-century stability for archival storage.

02US

The US leads in commercializing DNA synthesis and its emerging data-storage application, moving fundamental synthetic-genomics capability into standalone businesses.

commercial DNA synthesis, dedicated data-storage spinoffs, hyperscaler-focused storage solutions

• Twist Bioscience: a leading DNA synthesis company that spun out its DNA data storage technology into Atlas Data Storage, an independently launched company backed by $155 million in 2025.
• Atlas Data Storage: aims to provide commercial end-to-end DNA data storage solutions targeting hyperscale cloud providers and enterprise customers, competing with other emerging DNA-storage ventures.
• National security interest: the sector benefits from research-funding interest in DNA-based cold storage of very large datasets, given the technology’s extreme information density and multi-century archival stability.

03CN

China is a leading contributor to fundamental synthetic-genome design, with university-led teams co-authoring landmark international synthetic chromosome projects and advancing large-fragment human DNA synthesis.

synthetic yeast chromosome design, large-fragment human DNA assembly, cross-species delivery research

• Tianjin University: its synthetic biology team, led by Academician Yuan Yingjin, co-authored the landmark 2017 Science papers on de novo design and chemical synthesis of four synthetic yeast chromosomes as part of the international Sc2.0 project, and in 2026 published a Nature Methods paper on SynNICE, a technology enabling precise megabase-scale assembly of human DNA fragments in yeast and their cross-species delivery into mouse embryos.
• International collaboration: the Sc2.0 synthetic yeast genome project brought together Chinese universities with international partners (including the University of Manchester as international coordinator), reflecting China’s role as a core contributor rather than a solo actor in fundamental synthetic genomics.
• Translational direction: the 2026 human-DNA assembly and cross-species delivery work extends synthetic genomics from yeast-only systems toward tools for studying human gene regulation and epigenetics in animal models.

04EU

The EU’s contribution spans applied industrial strain-design foundries and fundamental bottom-up synthetic biology research.

industrial biotechnology strain design, bottom-up synthetic cell research, New Genomic Techniques regulation

• Toulouse White Biotechnology (TWB, France): Europe’s flagship industrial synthetic-biology design center, accelerating development of industrial biotechnology strain-design work for chemicals and materials production.
• Max Planck Institute for Synthetic Biology (Germany): pursuing bottom-up synthetic biology, including minimal approaches to synthetic cell construction and the design of photosynthetic synthetic organisms.
• Regulatory framework: the EU’s New Genomic Techniques (NGT) regulation is shaping how synthetically designed organisms and DNA constructs are classified and approved relative to conventional GMO rules.

05Leading companies and research institutes

06Tech stack and innovations

The genomics and DNA design stack pairs computational sequence design with wet-lab synthesis and assembly methods:

1. Automated solid-phase oligonucleotide synthesis:
   • DNA synthesizers build oligonucleotides base-by-base using phosphoramidite chemistry, the core process underlying both custom gene synthesis and DNA-based data storage encoding.
2. Synthetic chromosome assembly and genome scrambling:
   • Following the Sc2.0 model, redesigned chromosome sequences (with repetitive elements removed and an inducible recombination system inserted) are assembled from synthesized fragments and delivered into a host cell, preserving viability while enabling large-scale genome-scale engineering.
3. Large-fragment DNA assembly for cross-species delivery:
   • Technologies such as Tianjin University’s SynNICE assemble megabase-scale DNA fragments (including human sequences) within a yeast host, then extract and deliver the intact large fragment into a different species’ cells or embryos for functional study.

07Value chains and production pipelines

Industrial pipeline for de novo synthetic chromosome design and assembly

┌───────────────────────────┐      ┌───────────────────────────┐
│ 1. Target sequence design │ ───> │ 2. Oligonucleotide         │
│    & codon optimization    │      │    synthesis                │
└───────────────────────────┘      └───────────────────────────┘
                                                 │
                                                 ▼
┌───────────────────────────┐      ┌───────────────────────────┐
│ 4. Host cell               │ <─── │ 3. Fragment assembly      │
│    transformation           │      │    into larger constructs  │
└───────────────────────────┘      └───────────────────────────┘
              │
              ▼
┌───────────────────────────┐      ┌───────────────────────────┐
│ 5. Sequencing validation  │ ───> │ 6. Application deployment │
│    & QC                     │      │    (data/strain/research)  │
└───────────────────────────┘      └───────────────────────────┘

Stage 1: Target sequence design and codon optimization

The target DNA sequence — a synthetic chromosome segment, an industrial gene construct, or an encoded data payload — is designed in silico, with codon usage optimized for the intended host organism.

Stage 2: Oligonucleotide synthesis

Automated DNA synthesizers chemically build short oligonucleotides base-by-base using phosphoramidite chemistry, which are then enzymatically joined into longer gene-length fragments.

Stage 3: Fragment assembly into larger constructs

Synthesized fragments are assembled, using enzymatic assembly methods and yeast or bacterial vectors, into progressively larger constructs — up to entire synthetic chromosomes or megabase-scale DNA fragments.

Stage 4: Host cell transformation

The assembled DNA construct is transformed into a host cell (commonly yeast for large-fragment assembly work) or, for cross-species studies, extracted and delivered into a different species’ cells or early-stage embryos.

Stage 5: Sequencing validation and QC

The transformed or delivered DNA is sequenced and functionally tested to confirm it matches the intended design and, where relevant, is correctly activated with expected regulatory/epigenetic behavior.

Stage 6: Application deployment

The validated synthetic DNA construct is deployed for its intended application — encoding archival digital data, serving as an industrial production strain, or supporting research into gene regulation and development.