Biotechnology's growth is spurring major industry efforts to develop new, high efficiency biomanufacturing platforms for biotherapeutics and vaccines to drastically reduce manufacturing scale-up and production times and costs. Less visibly, government, recognizing that such systems are integral to responding rapidly to pandemic or biological threats, has become a driver of new biomanufacturing technology as well. In 2007, DARPA launched an ambitious program specifically aimed at developing ultra-fast new biomanufacturing technologies. This panel will review progress in these efforts and how technology flowing from it has potential to transform commercial biomanufacturing as well.

• Highlight biomanufacturing initiative that is central to the rapid response to biological threats
• Describe the progress that has been made to date in the effort, as well as the key challenges ahead
• Outline the potential impact improvements from this program might have on commercial biologic and vaccine manufacturing