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This activity was supported by a contract between the National Academy of Sciences and National Security Commission on Emerging Biotechnology via the U.S. Department of Defense (K15 HQ00342310017 P00001). Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views of any organization or agency that provided support for the project.

International Standard Book Number-13: 978-0-309-72673-3
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Digital Object Identifier: https://doi.org/10.17226/27971

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Suggested citation: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2025. Strategic Report on Research and Development in Biotechnology for Defense Innovation. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. https://doi.org/10.17226/27971.

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COMMITTEE ON BIOTECHNOLOGY CAPABILITIES FOR NATIONAL SECURITY NEEDS—LEVERAGING ADVANCES IN TRANSDISCIPLINARY BIOTECHNOLOGY

DIANE DiEULIIS (Chair), Senior Research Fellow, National Defense University

JAMES M. BRASE, Director, Center for Predictive Bioresilience, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory

R. ALTA CHARO, Warren P. Knowles Professor Emerita of Law and Bioethics, University of Wisconsin at Madison

SARA Y. DEL VALLE, Senior Scientist, Los Alamos National Laboratory

JESSICA S. DYMOND, Vice President, B.Next, IQT

NANDI O. LESLIE, Principal Technical Fellow, RTX

THOMAS GREGORY (GREG) McKELVEY, JR., Senior Physician Policy Researcher, RAND

National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine Staff

NIA D. JOHNSON, Study Director, Senior Program Officer

KAVITA BERGER, Board Director

ANDREW BREMER, Program Officer

TRISHA TUCHOLSKI, Program Officer

JESSICA DE MOUY, Research Associate

CHRISTL A. SAUNDERS, Program Coordinator

HOANG-NAM VU, Senior Program Assistant

Reviewers

This Consensus Study Report was reviewed in draft form by individuals chosen for their diverse perspectives and technical expertise. The purpose of this independent review is to provide candid and critical comments that will assist the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in making each published report as sound as possible and to ensure that it meets the institutional standards for quality, objectivity, evidence, and responsiveness to the study charge. The review comments and draft manuscript remain confidential to protect the integrity of the deliberative process.

We thank the following individuals for their review of this report:

DAVID ALLISON (NAM), Indiana University

CATHERINE CABRERA, MIT Lincoln Laboratory

SARAH CARTER, Science Policy Consulting, LLC

ROCCO CASAGRANDE, Deloitte

ELLIOT CHAIKOF (NAM), Harvard Medical School

CHARLES GILBERT (NAS), Rockefeller University

THERESA GOOD, National Science Foundation

AMNA GREAVES, MIT Lincoln Laboratory

BRIAN HOLMES, Office of the Director of National Intelligence

RICHARD MURRAY (NAE), California Institute of Technology

WILLIAM PRESS (NAS), The University of Texas Austin

Although the reviewers listed above provided many constructive comments and suggestions, they were not asked to endorse the conclusions or recommendations of this report nor did they see the final draft before its release. The review of this report was overseen by MICHAEL MARLETTA (NAS/NAM), University of California, Berkeley, and SALLIE A. KELLER (NAE), U.S. Census Bureau’s Research and Methodology Directorate. They were responsible for making certain that an independent examination of this report was carried out in accordance with the standards of the National Academies and that all review comments were carefully considered. Responsibility for the final content rests entirely with the authoring committee and the National Academies.

Acknowledgments

The study committee and project staff would like to thank the study sponsor—National Security Commission on Emerging Biotechnology—for providing essential leadership on the topic of innovative biotechnologies, artificial intelligence, and automated laboratories. This consensus study report was greatly enhanced by discussions with participants of the meetings of experts and planning committee members, speakers, moderators, and participants of the National Academies’ workshop on Artificial Intelligence and Automated Laboratories for Biotechnology: Leveraging Opportunities and Mitigating Risks. We are especially thankful to the Standing Committee on Advances and National Security Implications of Transdisciplinary Biotechnology for sharing ideas and expertise on the study topics. Finally, we thank Tucker Nelson and Chris King of the National Academies’ Office of Congressional and Government Affairs for providing guidance on how to best communicate key conclusions and recommendations to potential partners and policymakers.

Contents

ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS

SUMMARY

1 STUDY SCOPE AND APPROACH

2 BIOTECHNOLOGY FOR MEETING NATIONAL SECURITY NEEDS

Applicability of AI/ML and Automated Experimentation in Biotechnology

3 CREATING A RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT NETWORK FOR NATIONAL SECURITY AND DEFENSE: THE BIOCATALYST NETWORK

Role of Public and Private Components

Practical and Operational Factors Enabling Investments

4 FUTURE DEFENSE CAPABILITIES THROUGH INNOVATIVE BIOTECHNOLOGIES

5 OPPORTUNITIES FOR PREVENTING MISUSE OF BIOTECHNOLOGY

The Role of AI/ML and Automation in Preventing and Mitigating Misuse Risks

Conclusion

REFERENCES

APPENDIX A: PUBLIC MEETING AGENDAS

APPENDIX B: STUDY COMMITTEE BIOGRAPHIES

Acronyms and Abbreviations