• A new computational pipeline for designing 2-D protein arrays was described, based on two Baker-lab papers that use homo-oligomers placed into 17 crystallographic layer groups to create micrometre-scale lattices with P 3 2 1, P 4 2(1) 2 and P 6 symmetry for applications in structure determination, sensing and nanomaterial engineering.

• Participants began compiling a practical catalogue of non-protein molecular machines—linear springs, antenna arrays, rod-logic return mechanisms, polymerase clamps and single-molecule cages—seeking simple, useful components that can function in isolation rather than as parts of complex systems.

• Two competing low-cost DNA synthesis hardware approaches were debated: an inkjet-based POSAM-style oligo printer versus an on-chip nanopore/terminal-deoxynucleotidyl-transferase (TdT) microfluidic platform integrating peristaltic pumps, mixing zones, molecule-counting electrodes and waste-exclusion lattices fabricated with FIB and silicon processing.

• A roadmap for an open-source sub-micron “machine shop” was outlined, starting with surplus SEMs (Zeiss EM-109 or JEOL JSM-35C units on eBay for $2.5–3.5 k) and progressing to DIY dual-beam FIB systems capable of nanomachining and mass-spectrometry, with practical fabrication details including CAD for macro-to-micro fluidic manifolds and conversion of STEP/IGES files to 256-level greyscale BMP masks for FIB patterning.

• Open hardware resources were shared, including the PLOS Biology paper “Open Labware: 3-D Printing Your Own Lab Equipment” and the DissidentX steganography framework, alongside links to Harvard’s firefly synchronization project, a Nature Reviews Microbiology review on archaeal viruses, and DARPA’s renewed push into “biology as technology” including funding for organ-on-a-chip startup EmulateBio and telepresence robotics work at Johns Hopkins APL.