Engineering Biology Research Consortium

We provided $225,000 to the Engineering Biology Research Consortium (EBRC), working with the International Biosecurity and Biosafety Initiative for Science (IBBIS), to develop an auditable Know-Your-Customer (KYC) standard for nucleic acid synthesis providers. The standard will define the baseline customer information that providers must collect and verify for all orders, and at a higher bar, for orders containing sequences of concern. We hope this will create the foundation for a concrete, enforceable standard for regulators.

With screening mandates under consideration in the U.S., the EU, and several other jurisdictions, the absence of a concrete, enforceable standard is one of the biggest blockers to enforceable KYC regulations. This project aims to fill that gap, producing an auditable standard designed for adoption by government authorities.

This grant builds on our earlier work with the EBRC on stress-testing nucleic acid synthesis providers and complements our work with the IGSC and IBBIS on sequence screening standards.