ORIGIN launches an AI-enabled route to sustainable natural ingredients

Seven partners from six countries have launched ORIGIN, a four-year Horizon Europe Innovation Action connecting AI-enabled discovery, precision fermentation and responsible innovation.

Project updates
15 Jun 2026
a person holding a plant in their hands

Illustrative image. Photos from the kick-off meeting to follow.

Published
15 June 2026
Coordinator
SilicoLife SA
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The ORIGIN consortium met on 15 June 2026 to begin a four-year collaboration focused on transforming how high-value natural ingredients are discovered and produced. The project brings together seven partners from Portugal, Denmark, Spain, the United Kingdom, Switzerland and the Netherlands, coordinated by SilicoLife.

ORIGIN will develop a digitally integrated bioproduction platform connecting large-scale microbial bioprospecting, AI-driven pathway and enzyme design, multi-host strain engineering, fermentation scale-up, and economic, safety, sustainability and regulatory assessment.

Pipeline targets

  • 50 molecules with pathway blueprints
  • 10 lead microbial strains selected
  • 3 processes demonstrated at pilot scale

During the kick-off, partners aligned the seven work packages, interfaces between digital and experimental activities, data and governance principles, impact planning and the NOVA-led Citizen Science initiative.

The meeting marked the start of a shared effort to accelerate biotechnology while supporting biodiversity protection, more resilient ingredient supply chains and responsible public engagement.

About ORIGIN

Optimized Routing and Industrial Generation of Ingredients from Nature — a Horizon Europe Innovation Action, Grant Agreement No. 101289831.

More from ORIGIN

Project updates
30 Sep 2026

The bioprospecting team has started building the initial portfolio of more than 120 candidate molecules from terrestrial botanical sources.

Project updates
30 Sep 2026

Partners from academia, research and industry met to align the first work packages, from digital bioprospecting to pilot-scale fermentation.