Episode
Frank Li: From Images to Identity, Engineering Cell Fate with ML
- Podcast
- Galaxy Balance
- Published
- Feb 2, 2026
- Duration seconds
- 3717
- Processing state
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Summary
How do cells decide what they are, and can we deliberately control that process? In this episode of Galaxy Balance, Cory Smith is joined by Frank Li, co-founder of Stately Bio, to explore the emerging frontier of cell identity engineering. Frank’s work sits at the intersection of developmental biology, synthetic biology, and therapeutic design, with a focus on understanding, and reprogramming, the molecular rules that govern cell fate. The conversation dives into how cell identity is established and maintained, why most cell therapies struggle with stability and reproducibility, and how a deeper understanding of developmental programs can enable more precise and durable engineered cell states. They discuss the vision behind Stately Bio, the challenge of translating complex biological control systems into scalable therapeutics, and what it means to move beyond “cell types” toward programmable cellular behaviors. Zooming out, the episode explores broader questions about control versus emergence in biology, how engineering mindsets are reshaping developmental biology, and what the next decade may bring for regenerative medicine and cell-based therapies. This is a conversation about building reliable biology, by learning how cells remember who they are. Timestamps: 00:00 - Intro to Galaxy Balance and today's focus on cell engineering & AI innovation 00:36 - Frank Lee's background in computer science and transition into biotech 01:49 - The origins of Stately Bio and its mission to enable non-perturbative cell analysis 02:10 - How machine learning revealed surprising signals in cellular imaging 04:10 - Use cases for live-cell imaging in regenerative medicine and stem cell differentiation 06:00 - The philosophical questions around cell state and biological identity 07:05…