Nina Tandon

Nina Tandon believes that the era of engineered tissues—like, for example, a replacement kidney grown in the lab—is just beginning. Tandon shows us how we (and our bodies) have lived through most of history (Body 1.0), and then how we evolved into “cyborgs” with implants (such as pacemakers and artificial joints, Body 2.0). Now, Body 3.0 is all about growing our OWN body parts. For her Ph.D. thesis, Tandon grew cardiac cells that beat like tiny hearts. In this thrilling and eye-opening talk, she explains the process of growing tissue and transplants, and the future of medical science. With the help of manufacturing and information technology, we are on the verge of being able to grow human tissue—and Tandon is here to walk us through this unbelievably exciting era.

From clay and stone to plastic and steel, basic building materials have always shaped our physical world and our sense of possibility. Now we are at the cusp of exploring and exploiting a new substance so groundbreaking that it challenges our very notion of what it means to build. This new material is: life. In this keynote, Nina Tandon takes us on an eye-popping tour of the tantalizing array of inventions already being created with nature’s elemental building block, the cell. Imagine the possibilities: broken bridges that have the ability to self-heal, one-stop body-shops for human body parts that render organ donation obsolete, living looms spinning high-tech fabrics, PETA-friendly porterhouse steaks—smarter, more adaptive technologies that may form our future arsenal as we confront looming challenges. With great enthusiasm, Tandon contends that we’re entering a new technological revolution, one in which we can create smarter technologies by making cells our partners in design—often on our own steam, in collaborative biohacking labs. And, she confront the thorny questions that come with playing with the power of life.

In a highly competitive field like technology, what does it take to start—and grow—a business? In this talk, Nina Tandon shares her entrepreneurial journey. She addresses everything from funding projects with extremely long go-to-market lead times; to learning from your end user; to community engagement; to team-building; to creativity and innovation. Learn the key ingredients to being a successful entrepreneur from a truly unique innovator and technologist.