• DARPA is funding early-stage work toward a synthetic human genome: $500 k to Harris Wang (Columbia) to insert ~40 non-human metabolic genes into human cells so they can synthesize all nine essential amino acids, and $200 k to Chromologic to develop methods for delivering very large synthetic DNA constructs into cells.  
• Neochromosome, a startup co-founded by Jef Boeke, aims to create off-the-shelf synthetic chromosomes for universal, low-immunogenicity cell therapies and transplants.  
• A microarray-based gene-synthesis strategy was discussed: 10× tiling of overlapping oligos, each covering a different window of the target gene and present in many redundant copies, so failed oligos do not prevent full-length assembly.  
• MIT’s “BioFPGA” project (Weiss Lab) is developing a reconfigurable cellular chassis—programmable, modular living cells that can be rewired for diverse synthetic-biology circuits.  
• Antha-lang.org was noted as a closed-source lab-automation platform; participants expressed interest in reverse-engineering its drivers to open up hardware control.  
• DIYHplusWiki published same-day transcripts of the GP-write 2017 meeting covering announcements, organoids, molecular assemblies, technology-roadmap working groups, safety/ethics, IP/licensing, and next-step planning.  
• A participant criticized the GP-write conference for “too much tangentially-related content” and lack of focus on the actual technical challenges of genome writing.