To promote collaborative innovation in synthetic cell research in Asia and further explore the establishment of an open and inclusive international cooperation mechanism, the SynCell Asia 2025 Workshop will be held in Guangming, Shenzhen from July 9th to 11th. The seminar was co sponsored by the Institute of Synthetic Biology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology (hereinafter referred to as the Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology) and the Asian Association of Synthetic Biology (ASBA).

  As an important continuation of the "SynCell Asia Workshop" series, this conference, themed "The Future of Asian SynCells," once again brings together top experts and scholars in the field of synthetic cells from six countries across Asia, including Japan, South Korea, Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, and China. The attending experts conducted in-depth discussions on the latest developments and core technological challenges in synthetic cell research in Asia, discussing joint research and regional collaborative innovation to promote the open sharing of research resources and the construction of a global cooperation framework.

  At the beginning of the conference, Liu Chenli, co chairman of the conference and president of Shenzhen Advanced Institute, reviewed two landmark events in international cooperation in the field of synthetic cells: the establishment of the Asia Alliance for Single Cell Life Synthesis initiated by six Asian countries in 2023, and the establishment of the International Alliance for Synthetic Cells jointly promoted by top scientists from 15 countries on five continents during the first International Conference on Synthetic Cells in 2024. Co chairs of the conference, Byung Kwan Cho, Vice President and Professor at the Korean Academy of Science and Technology, and Matthew Wook CHANG, Professor at the National University of Singapore, highly praised the significant achievements of the Asian Synthetic Biology Association in expanding its scale and increasing its global influence over the past seven years. They emphasized that the conference will focus on building a vibrant SynCell Asia research community to deepen collaboration among alliance members and cultivate young research talents. The conference also announced that the ASBA Annual Conference to be held in South Korea in December this year will also include a Synthetic Cell Forum to continue strengthening this strategic dialogue mechanism.

  At the meeting, authoritative experts in the field of synthetic cell research in Asia gave special presentations on key topics such as functional research of synthetic cells, basic theoretical construction, self replication of synthetic cells, and their application. They also focused on discussing the strategic planning and implementation path of the SynCell Asia research community. In addition, this conference innovatively established the "New Scholars Forum", which provides an important opportunity for the joint training of young research talents in Asia and the cultivation of future leaders in the field of synthetic biology through the collision of cutting-edge academic viewpoints and cross disciplinary knowledge sharing among outstanding young research backbones.

  So far, the Asian Society for Synthetic Biology has made a series of progress in promoting the construction of the Asian regional cooperation system: in October 2023, led by the Shenzhen Advanced Institute and jointly initiated the establishment of the Synthetic Cell Asia Alliance with six Asian countries; In April 2024, the Asia Symposium on Synthetic Cells successfully facilitated the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding in Shenzhen, establishing a solid mechanism for research cooperation in the field of synthetic cells in the pan Asian region. In addition, the "SynCell Asia Seminar" initiated by Shenzhen Advanced Institute has attracted more than 2000 participants, and has achieved initial results in promoting the open sharing of research resources in the region. These achievements will lay the foundation for the follow-up of the Chinese Academy of Sciences International Science Program on Synthetic Cells to carry out international cooperation across countries, scales and disciplines, break through the core bottleneck of synthetic cells, and build a global innovation network for synthetic cells.

  In the future, SynCell Asia will continue to deepen regional cooperation with an open and inclusive attitude, innovate international cooperation mechanisms for scientific research, unite Asian forces to break through key technological bottlenecks in synthetic cells, and continuously enhance the overall innovation strength and international influence of synthetic biology in Asia through complementary advantages.