Biofoundry Architect 1.0: A Robot-Assisted Module Configurator and Workflow Designer with Hub Interoperability and Throughput-Workflow Economic Evaluation

Abstract

Laboratory automation has rapidly advanced across chemistry, materials science, and the life sciences, enabling high-throughput and predictive experimentation. In synthetic biology, biofoundries facilitate Design−Build−Test−Learn cycles through automated workflows but remain limited by software tools lacking integration and throughput-workflow economic evaluation. Here, we present Biofoundry Architect 1.0, an open, web-based platform for designing, evaluating, and comparing automated workflows using robot-assisted modules (RAMs). The system enables quantitative assessment of performance metrics, including the turnaround time and cost, while ensuring workflow compatibility and scalability. By supporting modular design, interoperability, and community-based sharing of workflows, Biofoundry Architect bridges the gap between planning and execution, improving efficiency, accessibility, and collaborative innovation in laboratory automation. This web-based Biofoundry Architect software can be viewed at https://biofoundry-architect.streamlit.app/, and all code is released under the license GNU General Public License version 3.