WayBio: Sequence-Verified Plasmids and Variant Libraries for Fast Design-Build-Test Cycles
A Cambridge, Massachusetts DNA foundry that builds mutagenesis panels and custom vectors from your own parts, now on the Cypher AI Marketplace.
By Cypher AI ·
When a model proposes a new round of protein variants, the assay team can often test them within days. The wait is usually in the build. Each variant has to be cloned, transformed, picked, prepped and sequenced before anyone can put it in an assay.
WHAT IS WAYBIO?
WayBio is a DNA foundry in Cambridge, Massachusetts, that builds plasmids and variant libraries for protein engineering and vector development teams. WayBio works from a team's own scaffolds and parts, and it confirms the full sequence of every plasmid before delivery. As of October 2026, WayBio's plasmid cloning, prep and consultation service is listed on the Cypher AI Marketplace, a catalog of lab services that scientists can browse and order from.
Eli Zhang, PhD, founded WayBio and leads it as CEO. He was a research scientist at the Broad Institute, then an early team member and director at Arbor Biotechnologies, where he led teams across DNA sequencing, automation, lab informatics and plasmid construction. WayBio's board also includes David Walt, PhD, a scientific founder of Illumina and Quanterix.
WHAT PROBLEM DOES A DNA FOUNDRY SOLVE?
When a model proposes variants with changes at several sites in one scaffold, the cloning work can hold up the next assay round. Building them by hand means designing primers, assembling, transforming, picking colonies, prepping and sequencing, and one failed construct can delay the whole panel.
A DNA foundry helps shorten the build step. WayBio delivers the arrayed, sequence-verified plasmids each cycle needs. Because every construct is confirmed, the assay data that goes back to the model is more reliable too. John Murphy, chief scientific officer at Arbor Biotechnologies, calls WayBio "a trusted partner for delivering the high-quality plasmids our programs demand."
WHAT CAN YOU ORDER FROM WAYBIO ON CYPHER AI?
As of October 2026, WayBio lists one service on the Cypher AI Marketplace, called Plasmid Cloning / Prep / Consultation. It covers three order types: cloning and prep, prep only, and a consultation. The service is priced by quote, with an estimated turnaround of 2 to 4 weeks.
Prep sizes run from a miniprep of 5 to 10 µg up to a gigaprep of 2.5 to 10 mg. A team can send its plasmid list as an Excel file, another file or pasted data.
WHAT VARIANT LIBRARIES AND VECTORS DOES WAYBIO BUILD?
WayBio builds variant panels in three formats. MonoPlex covers single-site mutagenesis. PrecisionPlex makes exact, user-defined combinations across 2 to 12 sites, and ComboPlex builds combinatorial panels across up to 12 sites for mapping sequence space at scale.
For custom vectors, WayBio helps teams plan multi-fragment assemblies, optimize codons for the target host, and modify promoters, UTRs, origins of replication and selection markers. WayBio also takes on constructs that are hard to clone, such as AAV vectors with ITR-flanked cassettes, repetitive elements and high-GC regions.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
How long does a WayBio variant panel take? Single-site mutagenesis takes about a week, and multi-site and combinatorial panels take about two weeks. The Marketplace listing estimates 2 to 4 weeks for cloning and prep overall.
Can WayBio work from parts we already have? Yes. A build can start from a concept, a sequence or parts already in your inventory. WayBio also keeps a private inventory of your backbones, inserts and finished constructs across projects.
Can WayBio act as our cloning team? Yes. Some labs run WayBio as an outsourced DNA foundry, engaging at the stage they need and scaling throughput up or down without building a cloning group in-house.
HOW DO YOU ORDER FROM WAYBIO ON CYPHER AI?
You can browse WayBio's listing at cypherbio.ai/services without an account. To request a quote, create a free Cypher AI account. The request form asks for the order type, the number of plasmids and the prep size, and you can attach your plasmid list.
WayBio scopes the build and sends you the quote. You pay WayBio directly.