Shanghai bio-tech leaders pioneer AI-assisted protein synthesis platform

China's efforts to combine artificial intelligence with biotechnology are moving from computer models to laboratory experiments, as a national research facility launches an automated platform capable of rapidly turning AI-designed proteins into physical samples for testing, potentially shortening a process that has traditionally taken months.

The platform was jointly developed by the National Facility for Protein Science in Shanghai and Shanghai-based biotechnology company Kangma (Shanghai) Biotechnology Co. Using cell-free protein synthesis technology, the automated system can produce up to 10,000 proteins a day, according to its developers. They say the platform addresses one of the biggest hurdles in AI-driven protein research by allowing scientists to quickly manufacture and experimentally test proteins designed on computers.

"The bottleneck is no longer protein design," Wu Jiarui, director of the National Facility for Protein Science in Shanghai, said. "AI can generate protein sequences very quickly, but they still have to be synthesized and experimentally verified. This platform bridges that gap."

The project reflects a broader global race to combine AI with laboratory automation as pharmaceutical companies and biotechnology firms seek to accelerate the discovery of new drugs, industrial enzymes, and novel protein-based materials.

The Shanghai facility already houses nine major technology platforms — including nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, cryo-electron microscopy, and mass spectrometry — that can determine whether newly synthesized proteins have the desired structure, stability, and biological function.

"Making a protein is only the beginning," Wu said. "It must then be analyzed and validated."

By combining AI-assisted protein design, automated synthesis, and structural and functional verification at a single location, the facility aims to provide researchers with an end-to-end workflow that significantly reduces the time needed to evaluate candidate proteins.

Unlike conventional protein production, which relies on living cells such as bacteria or yeast, the platform uses a cell-free system that synthesizes proteins directly from DNA templates without requiring cells to grow, helping shorten production cycles and avoiding some of the limitations associated with cell-based manufacturing.

The platform itself will operate as a shared research infrastructure. Wu said it is intended to support universities, research institutes, and biotechnology companies by providing high-throughput protein synthesis and verification services.

The underlying technology has already been applied commercially. Founded in 2015, Kangma says it was the first Chinese company to scale up cell-free protein synthesis and has developed an AI-assisted DNA-to-Protein platform integrating protein design, synthesis, and optimization.

One of its latest commercial applications is a high-sweetness protein ingredient produced using the D2P platform and incorporated into a line of children's and adult mouthwash products. According to the company, the protein is intended to provide sweetness without conventional sugar or artificial sweeteners and is produced using AI-assisted screening and cell-free synthesis.

Kangma is also developing therapeutic proteins, including GLP-1-related drug candidates, and has expanded manufacturing capacity in eastern China as it seeks broader applications for its cell-free protein synthesis platform.