A research team led by POSTECH Professor Joongoo Lee reported a modular, automated method for assembling reconstituted cell-free systems and said it cut the cost of building these protein-producing “test-tube” platforms by 95%. The work focuses on simplifying and standardizing the assembly steps so researchers can deploy cell-free systems more efficiently for protein expression. Reconstituted cell-free systems can produce proteins outside living cells, supporting faster prototyping for biologics and enabling certain assays and engineering workflows without cell-culture bottlenecks. Cost reductions are particularly relevant for scaling bench workflows and supporting high-throughput protein generation. If the approach is widely adoptable, lower build costs may accelerate experimentation cycles for biotech groups using cell-free tools for target validation, assay development, and protein engineering.