Eric Klavins

Eric Klavins is the Professor and Chair of the Electrical & Computer Engineering Department at the University of Washington in Seattle. He holds adjunct appointments in Computer Science and Engineering and in Bioengineering.

Dr. Klavins received a B.M. in Music in 1992 and a B.S. in computer science in 1996 from San Francisco State University. He received M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in computer science and engineering in 1999 and 2001 from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. From 2001 to 2003 he was a postdoctoral scholar in the Control and Dynamical Systems Department at the California Institute of Technology where he worked with Richard Murray. In 2003 Eric was hired in Electrical Engineering at the University of Washington in Seattle; he received tenure in 2009.

Dr. Klavins' research spans Synthetic Biology, Molecular Programming, Biosystems, and Robotics and Controls. Until approximately 2008, his research was primarily in computer science and control systems, focusing on stochastic processes, robotics and self-assembly. At about this time, he learned the basics of genetic engineering. In the next few years he switched fields to synthetic biology and now runs an interdisciplinary group of engineers, biologists, experimentalists, and theorists — all focused on engineering life. His current projects include synthetic multicellular systems with engineered bacteria and yeast, modeling and design for synthetic multicellular systems, and laboratory automation.

Analysis of Dr. Klavins' recent publications reveals a strong focus on synthetic biology applications, particularly in yeast and bacterial systems. His work bridges computer science, engineering, and biology, with significant contributions to laboratory automation software (like the Aquarium platform), genetic circuit design, and protein engineering. The publications show a clear trend toward increasingly complex biological systems and the development of computational tools to design and analyze these systems.

Dr. Klavins has advised numerous graduate students and postdocs whose work has led to significant contributions in synthetic biology. Many of his former students have gone on to successful careers in academia and industry, including positions at Google, Ginkgo Bioworks, and as founders of biotechnology startups.

Dr. Klavins leads the Klavins Lab, which focuses on synthetic biology research. The lab brings together engineers, biologists, experimentalists, and theorists to engineer life through synthetic multicellular systems with engineered bacteria and yeast.