David Sun Kong, Ph.D.

WE DID IT!!! Congratulations to all of the amazing @mit , @harvard , and @wellesleycollege students for successfully completing the @mitmedialab synthetic biology course @howtogrowalmostanything ! 🧬 It was an intense but rewarding semester exploring the frontiers of synthetic biology, from reading, writing, and editing DNA, to using the latest AI models to design proteins, assembling genetic circuits with liquid handling robots, and prototyping projects with large-scale cloud laboratories. It was an epic semester! The course culminated with final presentations from our in-person @mit , @harvard , and @wellesleycollege students, and also more than 13 hours of presentations from our global students 😱😳🤯!!! Follow @howtogrowalmostanything to learn more about our students, their projects, and the larger HTGAA learning community! #syntheticbiology #synbio #biodesign #howtogrowalmostanything #htgaa

The 2nd week of @howtogrowalmostanything featured a DNA Design and Manipulation lab! Students picked a protein of interest, generated a codon optimized DNA sequence which they prepared for synthesis via @twist_bioscience . In the wet lab, students used restrictions enzymes to digest lambda DNA into patterns to make DNA gel art. Thanks to all of the amazing HTGAA TAs for designing and executing the week’s homework and lab with our students!

For our @mitmedialab synthetic biology course @howtogrowalmostanything 2026 we are proud to collaborate with 15 nodes around the world where global students can take the course alongside our @mit , @harvard , and @wellesleycollege students! We are excited and grateful to highlight in this post the following global nodes: @lifefabs Institute in London, UK; @designercells Lab in Yonsei, South Korea; @bioclubtokyo in Tokyo, Japan; @htgaa_latinamerica at Universidad San Francisco de Quito in Quito, Ecuador; @bugsslab in Baltimore, Maryland, USA; @william_and_mary in Williamburgs, Virginia, USA ⏰The deadline to apply for @howtogrowalmostanything 2026 has been extended to February 1 at 11:59p PT! 👉Apply today via the link in the bio. 📚Class begins on Tuesday, February 3 from 2-5p ET! Special thanks to @tokimonsta and Esther Choi for the amazing first slide poster design!

We are excited to announce that the application for the 2026 edition of our @mitmedialab #SyntheticBiology course “How to Grow (Almost) Anything” is now open! We could not be more thrilled for this year’s #HTGAA. In addition to our in-person @MIT and @Harvard students, we also open up the course to a global classroom of virtual listeners. Listeners can participate via one of our national or global HTGAA nodes located around the world. Each year we have grown our vibrant global community, and we are thrilled to have you join us! You can submit an application via the link in the bio, where you can also find Nature Biotechnology and MIT News articles on our global learning model. We work as a global network on collaborative research projects, including one on phage therapy and artificial neural networks in cells. We will work on more global projects together this year! Come grow (almost) anything with us! MAS.885: How To Grow (Almost) Anything Instructors: *Dr. David Kong (@davidsunkong ), Director, @communitybiotech (@mitmedialab ) *George Church (@george.church ), Professor (Harvard Medical School) *Joseph Jacobson, Professor (@mitmedialab ) In ‘How to Grow (Almost) Anything,’ experienced bio-enthusiasts and those new to the life sciences alike learn concepts and skills at the cutting edge of bioengineering and #synbio. Each week features a lecture from a global expert in their respective research domain and wet lab skills development, with topics including: * Reading, Writing, & Editing DNA * AI-powered #ProteinDesign * BioProduction * Cell-Free Systems * Microbiome Science & Engineering * Microfluidics & Frugal Science *Cloud Labs (@ginkgobioworks ) and Lab Automation (@opentrons_ ) * #BioDesign & Biofabrication * Advanced Imaging Techniques * …and more! Our faculty have included global pioneers in their fields such as: Professor Drew Endy (Stanford) Professor Chris Mason (Cornell) Professor Manu Prakash (Stanford) Professor Jef Boeke (NYU) Dr. Nina Tandon (@epiboneinc ) Dr. Reshma Shetty (@ginkgobioworks ) Dr. Emily LeProust (@twist_bioscience ) Dr. John Glass (J. Craig Venter Institute) Dr. Megan Palmer (@arpahealth ) Suzanne Lee (@biofabricate ) …and more!

What if your clothes can sense pollution and show it? 👚🌁 Sharing a project I developed earlier this year before the year ends. Developed at the MIT Media Lab as part of @howtogrowalmostanything taught by @davidsunkong and @george.church , with invaluable guidance and support from the army of TAs especially @suvin.sundararajan and @ronancdonovan , this project explores synthetic biology as a material and artistic medium. 𝘚𝘺𝘮𝘱𝘰𝘪𝘦𝘵𝘪𝘤 𝘚𝘦𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨 explores the idea of embedding freeze dried, cell free genetic circuits into textiles as a form of bioart and environmental sensing. The proposed system would activate when exposed to signals like zinc or pH changes, producing a visible color response when rehydrated. Rather than a finished artifact, this work operates as a material and conceptual exploration into how biology might function as a shared, expressive interface with our environment. It was my first time working in a wet lab and my first lab experience since ninth grade biology (which I struggled miserably), a challenging and rewarding journey learning synthetic biology through both hands on experimentation and theory. Feeling really grateful for this learning journey! #bioart #syntheticbiology #speculativedesign #environmentalsensing #wearableart

After 8 years away, it was beyond incredible to return home to the International Genetically Engineered Machines competition, iGEM (@igem_hq @igemcommunity ). iGEM started in 2003 at @MIT when a small group of researchers asked, what is a “biological part,” and how might we design, synthesize, and construct them? A year later, the first iGEM competition was held at MIT in 2004. In 2025, the iGEM jamboree, held in Paris, boasts some 5k participants from all around the world—undergrads, high school, and overgrad students, sharing their projects and visions for synthetic biology with the world. It’s an awe-inspiring set of work. This year’s undergrad Grand Prize winner, @igem.mcgill , made Cohera, a toolbox for cell-cell adhesion, enabling the construction of complex inter-species assemblies. The high school winner, GreatBay-SCIE, created a mold fungicide, “ArMOLDeddon,” and the overgrad winner, @igem_brno , made a programmable, affordable, duckweed protein for agricultural feedstocks. But all of the thousands of students are winners, for pushing themselves, giving extraordinary effort, and showing that another world is possible. I had the honor of serving as the Co-Host of the Final Show with iGEM VP and all-around all-star Dorothy Zhang (@bluepumpkin0801 ), and had the honor of DJing alongside @matildmusique . Thanks to @nemanyas for your leadership and Drew, Tom, and Randy for creating something beautiful and impactful. Thanks also to @carlossilveira.design @v1v13n1 for organizing a great panel on “BioHybridization,” I enjoyed participating. It was an epic experience all around—can’t wait to see you again next year iGEM!!!! Last but not least, my trip to Europe concluded with a visit to London and @goodenoughcollege . It was a huge honor to speak to the @goodenoughmembers ! Huge love and gratitude to Dean Alan for hosting me, and to the inspiring @w112233442 for organizing and being such an amazing collaborator over all of these years on @howtogrowalmostanything . Grateful for all of the adventures ahead—let’s Grow the Future together!!! #GrowTheFuture #iGEM #syntheticbiology #biodesign #synbio #goodenough #goodenoughcollege #HowToGrowAlmostAnything

We were delighted to recently welcome Dr @davidsunkong , Director of @mitmedialab research group @communitybiotech for a captivating seminar: Growing the Future: How Synthetic Biology Will Change the Frontiers of Creativity, Learning, and Design—from Communities to Ecosystems. 📈Dr Kong’s groundbreaking work bridges science, art, and community. 🤝Goodenough Members enjoyed an opportunity to take part in a thought-provoking discussion and connect with Dr Kong over drinks in a relaxed and inspiring setting. 🙌 Special thanks to Member Danny Chen @w112233442 who organised this brilliant event. 📸 @alxndkl #GoodenoughCollege #postgraduateuk #postgraduateaccommodation

As part of the @mitmedialab and global synthetic biology course @howtogrowalmostanything (HTGAA), students conceptualize and research synthetic biology projects of their own design using the skills they developed over the semester. In this series, we highlight projects created by students over the years. 𝐒𝐭𝐮𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐣𝐞𝐜𝐭: RGB screen-printing fabric & bio-fiber by Rosalie Lin @rosalie.h.j.l 𝐑𝐨𝐬𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐞 𝐋𝐢𝐧 is a student at @harvardgsd and took How to Grow in 2022. What if we can print our cloth as photograph films, with single ink and single process? What if we can produce an ink that is bio-based, and environmental friendly? What if the cloth can be printed by projecting images? What if the print can be erased, and re-print again? ——— . . . . . #syntheticbiology #howtogrowalmostanything #htgaa #howtogrow #science #studentscience #bioengineering #mit #medialab #mitmedialab #BioDesign #fiber #screenprinting

We are the lucky ones. Blessed for life, for being a part of this beautiful, tragic, joyful, stressful, peaceful, anxious, crazy ride on a little blue marble hurtling through the infinite vastness of space. Another birthday, grateful for another year of growth and figuring it all out a day at a time. Love yall.

As part of the @mitmedialab and global synthetic biology course @howtogrowalmostanything (HTGAA), students conceptualize and research synthetic biology projects of their own design using the skills they developed over the semester. In this series, we highlight projects created by students over the years. 𝐒𝐭𝐮𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐣𝐞𝐜𝐭: Gene Play - Bacteria Human Collaboration in Media Arts by Kevin Tang @_tangatory Kevin Tang is a student at @harvardgsd and took HTGAA in 2024.   This project explores how bacterial systems can become accessible, interactive partners for humans outside traditional laboratory settings. It asks how a user, rather than a scientist, might directly touch and manipulate bacterial gene expression, reframing microbes as collaborators in design and interaction. The broad aim is to develop a framework where both bacteria and human interface bypass conventional wet-lab protocols, opening pathways for everyday interaction.   The first goal is to build a proof-of-concept interface that allows real-time interaction with E. coli gene expression. The second is to investigate how bacterial agency—expressed through molecular responses—can feed back into human behavior and environmental conditions. The third goal is to position bacterial systems as interactive and accessible as digital systems, enabling continuous communication loops between living matter and human users.   As a model, the project employs the E. coli DnaK heat shock protein system, part of the Hsp70 chaperone family responsible for folding nascent proteins and refolding damaged ones after thermal stress. By leveraging DnaK’s stress-responsive dynamics, the project envisions an interface where bacterial signals not only reflect but actively shape real-world actions, reframing microbes as active participants in human–environment interactions. #syntheticbiology #howtogrowalmostanything #htgaa #howtogrow #science #studentscience #bioengineering #mit #medialab

As part of the @mitmedialab and global synthetic biology course @howtogrowalmostanything (HTGAA), students conceptualize and research synthetic biology projects of their own design using the skills they developed over the semester. In this series, we highlight final projects created by students. 𝐒𝐭𝐮𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐣𝐞𝐜𝐭: E. coli Chitosan Biosensor by Sophia Liao @sophy.a_liao Development of an E. coli Chitosan Biosensor for Formaldehyde Detection Sophia Liao is a student at @harvardgsd and took HTGAA in 2025. This project presents a novel indoor air quality installation that contains biosensor utilizing a chitosan-immobilized Escherichia coli system designed for real-time detection of formaldehyde, a prevalent indoor pollutant linked to respiratory and systemic health issues. Formaldehyde levels frequently exceed safety thresholds in residential and commercial environments, underscoring the urgent need for low-cost, rapid monitoring solutions. The biosensor combines genetically engineered E. coli—f containing a formaldehyde-responsive GFP reporter and constitutive YFP expression—embedded within a biodegradable chitosan matrix, suitable for building integrated sensor platforms. The broad hypothesis is that this dual-fluorescent system can reliably indicate formaldehyde concentrations through fluorescence changes, with the chitosan matrix providing stability and biocompatibility in indoor conditions. Specific aims involve constructing the E. coli biosensor, optimizing the immobilization process for stability, and evaluating its sensitivity, selectivity, and response time within a simulated indoor environment. Methods include gene cloning, fluorescence quantification, calibration with formaldehyde standards, and testing within a prototype installation. The resulting biosensor offers a low-cost, environmentally friendly solution for continuous air quality monitoring that can be integrated into smart building systems, contributing to healthier indoor environments. Credit: fabrication done with @yichen.w_ @qianxxianq

When the music begins to play… …another epic Monsta Monday (on a Friday! Thank you weather gods!) with @tokimonsta and @duck.pond ! Always an honor to play b2b with my love and legend at one of the best day parties on playa. Let’s do it again soon? Thanks @n8tefish for the awesome vids and pics and @jumpsession for making it happen! —————— #burningman #burningman2025 #blackrockcity #industwetrust #duckpond #tokimonsta #davidsunkong #kongo #housemusic #technomusic #dancemusic @burningman.world @burningmanfashion_