Smart Biotech Scientist | The CMC and Biomanufacturing Podcast for Bioprocess Development and Manufacturing Leaders
The go-to CMC and bioprocessing podcast for process development scientists and CMC leaders scaling biologics into regulatory-ready therapies with less trial and error.
Practical, execution-focused guidance on CMC development, tech transfer, scale-up, GMP readiness, CDMO partnerships, and manufacturing economics.
Hosted by Dr. David Brühlmann, CMC strategist, former Bioprocess Innovation Manager at Merck, PhD in glycoengineering, and close to 20 years of biomanufacturing experience. Smart Biotech Scientist delivers actionable insights for the people doing the hard work of turning promising molecules into scalable, regulatory-ready therapies.
This podcast is for you if:
- You are a process development scientist or CMC lead managing a technology transfer, scale-up, or CDMO partnership
- You are a biologics developer working on upstream or downstream process development, cell culture optimization, or GMP manufacturing readiness
- You are a biotech founder preparing for an IND filing or Series A fundraise, and need a CMC strategy that holds up under investor and regulatory scrutiny
- You are building or advising an early-stage biopharma team and need to make smart manufacturing decisions with limited resources
What you will learn:
CMC strategy and regulatory planning, bioprocess scale-up from lab to clinical and commercial manufacturing, cell culture process development and media optimization, technology transfer best practices, CDMO selection and partnership management, hybrid modeling and manufacturing economics, continuous manufacturing and Industry 4.0 in biopharma, biologics modalities including mAbs, ADCs, and cell and gene therapies.
Top 10 life sciences podcast with 200+ episodes and guests from Merck, FUJIFILM Irvine Scientific, Cytiva, KBI Biopharma, Eppendorf, and biotech innovators worldwide.
New episodes released weekly. Subscribe and join 400+ biotech leaders already using these insights to accelerate development, reduce manufacturing costs, and de-risk scale-up.
Next Steps:
Book a free assessment to reduce biomanufacturing costs and make lifesaving therapies more accessible: https://bruehlmann-consulting.com/assessment
Fast-track bioprocess development with expert guidance: https://bruehlmann-consulting.com
Visit the Website: https://smartbiotechscientist.com
Email us: hello@bruehlmann-consulting.com
Smart Biotech Scientist | The CMC and Biomanufacturing Podcast for Bioprocess Development and Manufacturing Leaders
185: How Generative AI Accelerates Protein Design for Biotech Discovery with Elise de Reus - Part 1
Use Left/Right to seek, Home/End to jump to start or end. Hold shift to jump forward or backward.
For decades, protein design has hinged on painstaking rounds of wet lab mutagenesis and trial-and-error, a process limited not by human ingenuity, but by time and complexity. Yet as the biotech field seeks faster, greener, and more effective solutions for therapeutics and industrial applications, the next leap might not come solely from the lab bench.
In this episode, host David Brühlmann explores the frontiers of AI-driven protein engineering with Elise de Reus, co-founder of Cradle. Elise’s journey weaves together a passion for DNA, real-world impact from the dairy industry to synthetic biology, and high-throughput experience at Zymergen. Now, at the helm of Cradle, she is bridging cutting-edge computational models with experimental validation, making biology programmable and accelerating the path from idea to functional protein.
Here are three reasons this episode is essential listening:
- AI Makes Biology Programmable: Generative AI platforms like Cradle can intelligently design protein variants by learning from evolutionary trends and your own project data, enabling smarter, faster iterations and optimizing for stability, activity, and manufacturability - simultaneously.
- Limited Data? No Problem: While traditional approaches have stumbled over small, “short and fat” datasets, new generative AI models can effectively update their understanding with as little as a 96-well plate per round, democratizing high-impact protein design for startups, academia, and industry alike.
- The Future is Human + Machine: Even as algorithms advance, Elise stresses the irreplaceable value of wet lab validation. Cradle’s hybrid approach, integrating experimental feedback with algorithmic prediction, ensures reliable, scalable results and empowers multidisciplinary teams to unlock first- and best-in-class solutions.
Want to see how you can leverage AI to simplify and accelerate your own protein engineering projects? Don’t miss this episode to hear how Elise and Cradle are transforming the pace - and possibilities - of biotech.
Curious how Generative AI is reshaping biotech? From streamlining regulatory compliance to transforming protein purification, AI is changing the game. Dive into these standout episodes to explore the cutting edge of innovation in biotech:
- Episodes 77-78: Cell Factories Explained: How Synthetic Biology and AI Revolutionize Protein Production with Mauro Torres
- Episodes 119-120: Innovating Protein Purification Using Synthetic Organelles and AI with Haotian Guo
- Episodes 123-124: Manufacturability: Why Most Protein Candidates Fail (And How to Pick Winners Early) with Susan Sharfstein
- Episodes 167-168: How Generative AI Is Revolutionizing Biotech Regulatory Compliance with Abhijeet Satwekar
Connect with Elise de Reus:
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/elise-de-reus-77b83a24
Website: www.cradle.bio
Next step:
Book a free consultation to help you get started on any questions you may have about bioprocess development: https://bruehlmann-consulting.com/call
🧬 Ready to eliminate CMC chaos and hit your IND timeline with absolute certainty? Get the complete Notion CMC Dashboard at https://stan.store/SmartBiotech/p/cmc-dashboard-for-biotech-founders - the proven roadm
One bad CDMO decision can cost you two years and your Series A. If you're navigating tech transfer, CDMO selection, or IND prep, let's talk before it gets expensive. Two slots open this month.