Materials that grow and repair themselves

How far are living materials from real products?

Living materials are still at laboratory and prototype stage. The best-documented example is a film made from cultured engineered bacteria and their protein fibres, reported in 2024. Both compost tests it went through broke it down completely, but its strength and water resistance still need work, and the paper does not report whether any cells remain alive in the finished film. A company says bacteria grew a solid column from sand and gravel in a 2023 exhibition project, and that it has a commercial factory in Ikast, Denmark. The sources reviewed give no output or independent test data for either. The commercial products found so far are not shown to be living. Bacterial cellulose has its cells removed during processing, and mycelium composites can be heat-treated to stop the fungus growing for good.

AI illustration · Illustrative scene, not a photograph of the specific device or experiment.
WHERE WE AREEngineering prototypes

Getting closer. Prototypes exist, but not in real-world use.

Living materials have been shown at laboratory scale. These include a 2024 film made from engineered bacterial protein fibres and a bacteria-grown column made in a company-linked exhibition project. The commercial products found are not shown to be living: bacterial cellulose is sold with its cells removed, and mycelium composites can be heat-treated so that the fungus cannot grow again. A commercial factory for bacteria-bound cement is announced, but the sources reviewed give no independently tested performance or output data for it. The stage is therefore engineering prototype, not pilot.

The tech tree

Everything recorded on Vrulum that this future needs, oldest foundations at the top and the goal at the bottom. Lines show what each step requires.

What it takes: Materials that grow and repair themselves Unlocked Being researched Locked
  1. 2012Engineered living materialsResearch and prototypes Being researched.
  2. 2018Mycelium compositesResearch and prototypes Being researched.
  1. 2023Bacteria bind loose aggregate into a solid columnDone Unlocked.
  2. 2024Engineered bacterial protein film with tuneable propertiesDone Unlocked.
  3. Date not recordedCommercial bacterial cellulose productsDone Unlocked.
  4. Date not recordedMycelium composites in packaging and insulationDone Unlocked.
  5. Date not recordedCompany-announced commercial factory for bacteria-bound cementIn progress Being researched.
  6. Date not recordedIndependent tests of bacteria-bound building productsNot started Locked.
  7. Date not recordedLiving cells shown to stay alive in a finished, usable materialNot started Locked.
  8. Date not recordedEngineered-strain product approved for sale or useNot started Locked.
  1. GoalMaterials that grow and repair themselvesGoalRequires: Engineered living materials, Mycelium composites, Bacteria bind loose aggregate into a solid column, Engineered bacterial protein film with tuneable properties, Commercial bacterial cellulose products, Mycelium composites in packaging and insulation, Company-announced commercial factory for bacteria-bound cement, Independent tests of bacteria-bound building products, Living cells shown to stay alive in a finished, usable material, Engineered-strain product approved for sale or use. Locked.

The road so far

4 of 8 steps done, 1 in progress.

  1. Done · 2023Bacteria bind loose aggregate into a solid column

    In a company-linked exhibition project, bacteria grew a solid column from loose aggregate in 72 hours, with minimal human intervention. The company says its Biocement technology uses non-modified bacteria. This was shown as a project, not as a measured test with published conditions. [2]

  2. Done · 12 Nov 2024Engineered bacterial protein film with tuneable properties

    A paper in Nature Communications reports a film made from cultured engineered Escherichia coli biomass containing engineered curli protein fibres. Across its formulations, elongation at break ranged from 1% to 160% and Young's modulus from 6 to 450 MPa. Yield was 0.5 to 1 gram per litre of culture. These are ranges across formulations and test conditions, not the properties of one film. [1]

  3. DoneCommercial bacterial cellulose products

    Bacterial cellulose is made by fermentation and is commercially used in wound dressings, vascular grafts and plant-free rayon and fabric. A 2020 review lists Suprasorb X (Lohmann and Rauscher) and Basyc (Jenpolymer) as examples. During processing, bacterial cells are removed by alkaline treatment, so the product is cellulose rather than a living material. [4]

  4. DoneMycelium composites in packaging and insulation

    Mycelium composites are used commercially, mainly in packaging, thermal insulation and furniture. Growth can be stopped by drying or heating. Heating stops growth permanently, while drying leaves the fungus dormant and able to resume growth if moisture returns. Heat treatment kills the strain's ability to restart growth, so heat-treated material would not contain a fungus able to grow again. [3]

  5. In progressCompany-announced commercial factory for bacteria-bound cement

    The company says its collaboration with IBF has produced the world's first commercial Biocement factory, in Ikast, Denmark. The press release gives no output, price or customer figures. Its performance claims, that the material is about 20% lighter than concrete blocks and three times stronger, are stated without test conditions. [2]

  6. Not startedIndependent tests of bacteria-bound building products

    The sources reviewed contain no independent strength, durability, fire or service-life test results for a bacteria-bound block, and no building-code approval. [2]

  7. Not startedLiving cells shown to stay alive in a finished, usable material

    The 2024 film paper does not report whether cells remain viable in the finished film. The sources reviewed show no living finished product that stays active over its working life. [1]

  8. Not startedEngineered-strain product approved for sale or use

    In the EU, Directive 2009/41/EC lays down common measures for the contained use of genetically modified micro-organisms, so an engineered strain used in production falls under those rules. The sources reviewed do not show how a product containing an engineered strain would be approved for sale or use in buildings or packaging. [5]

Why it matters

Materials grown by microbes or fungi could, in principle, need less heat and fewer fossil inputs than fired or mined materials such as cement. Living parts could also, in principle, respond to damage or the environment. Both ideas depend on whether cells stay alive, whether they can be controlled over a product's life, and whether they can be handled safely. Those questions are not yet answered in public evidence.

What stands in the way

  • The strength and water resistance of the best-documented film need improvement. Its authors list tensile strength, tear strength and water resistance as areas for further work.
  • The best-documented film is made at a yield of 0.5 to 1 gram per litre of culture. The sources reviewed give no production process at block or product scale.
  • Whether engineered cells stay alive in a finished material, and for how long, is not reported in the main study. Claims of growth or self-repair cannot yet be checked.
  • Performance claims for bacteria-bound building products come from the company, with no test conditions and no independent data in the sources reviewed.
  • In the EU, engineered strains fall under contained-use rules, and the sources reviewed do not show how a product using one would be approved.
  • Heating can stop mycelium growth for good, so a heat-treated mycelium product would not contain a fungus able to restart growth.

Signals to watch

  • Independent test results for a bacteria-bound block or panel against a recognised building standard, with the test method stated.
  • Peer-reviewed reports that show whether engineered cells are alive in a finished material, and for how long.
  • Reproduction of the 2024 film results by a research group outside the original team.
  • Published output, cost and customer figures for the Ikast factory.
  • Regulatory or biosafety decisions on products that contain engineered bacteria.

Sources

  1. peer reviewed paper
    Mechanically Tunable, Compostable, Healable and Scalable Engineered Living Materials
    Avinash Manjula-Basavanna, Anna M. Duraj-Thatte, Neel S. Joshi. Nature Communications, 12 Nov 2024.
  2. company announcement
    BioConcrete: Beyond Concrete (press release text)
    GXN (3XN Architects) with Biomason, 2023.
  3. review article
    Mycelium-Based Composite: The Future Sustainable Biomaterial
    Digafe Alemu, Mesfin Tafesse, Ajoy Kanti Mondal. International Journal of Biomaterials, 12 Mar 2022.
  4. review article
    Industrial-Scale Production and Applications of Bacterial Cellulose
    Chunyan Zhong. Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology, 22 Dec 2020.
  5. other
    Directive 2009/41/EC on the contained use of genetically modified micro-organisms (recast)
    legislation.gov.uk (copy of the EU directive), 6 May 2009.

Last reviewed 21 Oct 2026.