While some robots are learning to dance or play soccer, others are quietly revolutionizing where it really matters — in the production of life-saving drugs. Multiply Labs, in partnership with Universal Robots, has developed a robotic cluster for bio-production that reduces the cost of cancer therapy by 74%. How did they do it? Very simple: They've replaced virtuoso scientists with robots that don't breathe, sneeze, or spill coffee on equipment.

The Problem: Million Dollar Art

The production of personalized cell therapies for the treatment of diseases such as lymphoma and leukemia has until now resembled art. Scientists manually performed hundreds of operations: pipetting, shaking test tubes, transferring cells. Each dose of such "art" cost from $300,000 to $2 million. Any mistake or microbial contamination resulted in the loss of the entire batch. It was impossible to scale such production.

Solution: Pharmaceutical robots without coffee breaks

Multiply Labs has created a modular robotic cluster where Universal Robots cobots work in parallel — from floor to ceiling — and completely repeat the actions of scientists. How did they learn this? With the help of simulation training. The company asks pharmaceutical companies to videotape the work of their scientists, and then uploads the recordings to the system. Robots analyze the data and accurately repeat every movement — only faster, more accurate, and 24/7.

The key point: Robots don't just copy actions — they work with submillimeter accuracy (0.1 mm) and never deviate from the protocol.

Results: Figures that make you applaud

• Cost reduction by 74%.
• Increased production density: up to 100x doses per square foot of clean room.
• Zero pollution: Robots do not breathe and do not touch what is not needed. In the UCSF studies, the contamination was only in manual processes.
• Maintaining regulatory approvals: Since the process does not change (only the contractor changes), pharmaceutical companies do not need to undergo expensive re-approval.

Why Universal Robots cobots?

6 degrees of freedom: They are needed for complex manipulations that simple SCARA robots cannot do.

• Power tools: Allow you to work with fragile materials without risk of damage.
• Compatible with clean rooms.
• Easy integration: Open-source platform and Python support.

What's next? Global access to treatment

Multiply Labs' robotic clusters are already operating at the facilities of global pharmaceutical companies. This not only reduces the cost of treatment, but also allows for distributed production around the world. Now patients in different countries will be able to receive therapy that was previously unavailable to them.

Humor in the subject

• Robots do not ask for a salary increase and do not go on maternity leave.
• They do not argue with their superiors and are not late for their shift.
• The only thing they "spill" is data to the cloud.