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Simon Maechling

@simonmaechling • 69,238 subscribers

PhD Chemist 🧪 Chemistry • Biotech • Agriculture • AI Separating scientific evidence from internet nonsense.

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Humans have been modifying crops for thousands of years. All of the corn ears on display are the same species (Zea mays), developed in different parts the world. Some resist pests or have kernels that are brightly colored, are sweet, or pop when heated. US Botanic garden.

Humans have been modifying crops for thousands of years. All of the corn ears on display are the same species (Zea mays), developed in different parts the world. Some resist pests or have kernels that are brightly colored, are sweet, or pop when heated. US Botanic garden.

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Dear USA, This is what the French think about you at the moment.

Dear USA, This is what the French think about you at the moment.

Simon Maechling

68,170 views • 7 months ago

I’m a scientist. I have worked in chemical industry R&D for >20 years. People talk about automated wet labs as if they’re the next great AI revolution. But there is a problem. They’re not new. Industry has been automating experiments for decades. Automated analytical chemistry: 1950s. Laboratory robots: 1980s. High-throughput screening: 1990s. Today we automate liquid handling, synthesis, biological testing, plant phenotyping and much more. Pharma and chemical companies have spent decades building the machines, protocols and infrastructure to generate experimental data at scale. So what does AI actually change? Potentially something much more interesting: Which experiment we run next. Generate 1,000 hypotheses. Choose the most informative experiment. Run it. Measure reality. Feed the result back. Choose again. Repeat. That loop could get dramatically faster. And here’s the irony: AI could make decades of investment in wet-lab infrastructure more valuable, not less. Because no matter how intelligent the model becomes, look at what never disappears from the loop: The experiment. AI can accelerate the thinking. Automation can accelerate the testing. But reality still gets the final vote.

I’m a scientist. I have worked in chemical industry R&D for >20 years. People talk about automated wet labs as if they’re the next great AI revolution. But there is a problem. They’re not new. Industry has been automating experiments for decades. Automated analytical chemistry: 1950s. Laboratory robots: 1980s. High-throughput screening: 1990s. Today we automate liquid handling, synthesis, biological testing, plant phenotyping and much more. Pharma and chemical companies have spent decades building the machines, protocols and infrastructure to generate experimental data at scale. So what does AI actually change? Potentially something much more interesting: Which experiment we run next. Generate 1,000 hypotheses. Choose the most informative experiment. Run it. Measure reality. Feed the result back. Choose again. Repeat. That loop could get dramatically faster. And here’s the irony: AI could make decades of investment in wet-lab infrastructure more valuable, not less. Because no matter how intelligent the model becomes, look at what never disappears from the loop: The experiment. AI can accelerate the thinking. Automation can accelerate the testing. But reality still gets the final vote.

Simon Maechling

10,994 views • 1 month ago

This double-bass video took 10 years of practice. Science is the same. You can’t gain expertise in an afternoon. Everyone has an opinion. But you wouldn’t take music advice from someone who’s never played a note. So why take science advice from someone who’s never studied it?

This double-bass video took 10 years of practice. Science is the same. You can’t gain expertise in an afternoon. Everyone has an opinion. But you wouldn’t take music advice from someone who’s never played a note. So why take science advice from someone who’s never studied it?

Simon Maechling

22,620 views • 11 months ago

This music didn’t happen overnight. It’s the result of years of practice, mistakes, corrections, and repetition. Science works the same way. You don’t gain expertise in an afternoon. Everyone is allowed an opinion. But expertise is earned. You wouldn’t take music advice from someone who’s never touched an instrument. So why take science advice from someone who’s never studied it?

This music didn’t happen overnight. It’s the result of years of practice, mistakes, corrections, and repetition. Science works the same way. You don’t gain expertise in an afternoon. Everyone is allowed an opinion. But expertise is earned. You wouldn’t take music advice from someone who’s never touched an instrument. So why take science advice from someone who’s never studied it?

Simon Maechling

10,432 views • 10 months ago

Farmers worldwide struggle with significant crop losses in fruits and vegetables due to nematodes. These pests penetrate the roots, reproduce, and cause root galling, depriving the plants of vital water and nutrients, resulting in poor growth and economic losses for farmers.

Farmers worldwide struggle with significant crop losses in fruits and vegetables due to nematodes. These pests penetrate the roots, reproduce, and cause root galling, depriving the plants of vital water and nutrients, resulting in poor growth and economic losses for farmers.

Simon Maechling

23,899 views • 3 years ago

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