Huimin Zhao

Dr. Huimin Zhao is the Steven L. Miller Chair Professor in the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, with affiliate appointments in Chemistry, Biochemistry, and Bioengineering. He directs multiple NSF-funded institutes, including the AI Institute for Molecule Synthesis and the Global Center for Reliable and Scalable Biofoundries, and serves as Editor-in-Chief of ACS Synthetic Biology. A Nobel Prize-associated researcher, he earned his Ph.D. at Caltech under Dr. Frances Arnold and held a project leadership role at Dow Chemical before joining UIUC in 2000.

• B.S., Biology, University of Science and Technology of China (1992)
• Ph.D., Chemistry, California Institute of Technology (1998)

Dr. Zhao pioneers synthetic biology, machine learning, and automation to engineer proteins, pathways, and genomes for biotechnology and medicine. His research spans foundational tool development (StEP recombination, DNA Assembler, CRISPR/Cas9 methods), industrial biotechnology breakthroughs (cellulosic ethanol, organic acid production in Issatchenkia orientalis), and mammalian synthetic biology innovations (TALEN-based gene therapy systems). His iBioFAB platform integrates robotics with computational design for scalable bioengineering.

Recent publications emphasize hybrid catalytic systems combining photocatalysis with enzymatic reactions, AI-driven biosystems design, and genome-scale engineering in non-model organisms. His work reduces industrial processing costs and environmental impacts through acid-tolerant yeast strains for sustainable chemical production, with techno-economic analyses showing potential 90% carbon emission reductions.

• NSF CAREER Award
• Guggenheim Fellowship
• ACS Marvin Johnson Award
• AIChE Daniel I.C. Wang Award
• SIMB Charles Scott Award
• Emeritus Editor-in-Chief, ACS Synthetic Biology

Dr. Zhao has mentored 38 former graduate students and postdocs who became professors or principal investigators globally. His lab collaborates across disciplines, with recent projects integrating plant biotechnology (Sorghum, Miscanthus), microbial engineering (Saccharomyces, Yarrowia), and computational biology. Current initiatives focus on CRISPR-COPIES for genome editing, AI-enhanced protein engineering, and sustainable biorefinery systems for biofuels and biochemicals.