Amphacademy – Advancing Knowledge in Bioprocessing
Amphacademy Bioprocessing is an onsite symposium to connect experts, innovators, and decision-makers around key topics in cell analysis and biotechnology. Amphacademy Bioprocessing creates a forum where science and industry meet to exchange knowledge and offers a platform for networking and interdisciplinary exchange.
The upcoming symposium is entitled Optimizing Bioprocessing: Precision Monitoring and Advanced Manufacturing. Participants will learn about recent advancements in bioprocess development, progress in biomanufacturing technologies, and improvements in precision cell culture monitoring. Alongside expert talks and real-world case studies, the event will also introduce a breakthrough at-line cell analysis device designed for microbial fermentation.
Event Details
📅 Date: November 20, 2025
📍 Location: Technopark Lucerne, Switzerland
🕘 Time: 9:30 – 17:00
Join us for a full day of expert talks, discussions, and networking. The program includes keynote sessions, interactive exchanges, and opportunities to connect with peers over coffee breaks and lunch. Participation is free of charge, but seats are limited.
Program Overview
20. November 2025
09:30 – 09:45
Welcome & Introduction
09:45 – 10:30
Unlocking Biotechnology’s Potential at Scale
Arsenale Bioyards – Massimo Portincaso
Coffee Break
10:45 – 11:30
Characterisation of Microalgal Cultures by Impedance Flow Cytometry – from Dynamic Complexity to Single Cell Properties
University of Salzburg – Prof. Gerhard Obermeyer
11:30 – 12:00
From Cells to Scale: Navigating the Future of Industrial Bioprocessing
Amphasys – Furkan Gökçe
12:00 – 13:30
Lunch Break
13:30 – 14:15
The Challenges of Applying Process Analytics to Cell Culture Processes for Cultured Food
The Cultured Hub – Nicolò Razza
14:15 – 15:00
Enhancing Bioprocess Cultures: Innovative Concepts in Real-Time Monitoring
ZHAW – Prof. Lukas Neutsch
Coffee Break
15:15 – 15:15
Monitoring Next-Generation Protein Degrader Bioproduction with Impedance Flow Cytometry
GlycoEra – Quentin Demeyere
15:15 – 16:45
Real-time insights for smarter bioprocessing: fully integrated, in-process cell monitoring
Amphasys – Marco Di Berardino
from 17:00
🥂 Apéro riche
Program & Speakers
Thursday, 20.11.2025
09:30 – 09:45 (CEST)
Welcome & Introduction
Marcel Ottiger, CEO – AMPHASYS
09:45 – 10:30 (CEST)
Unlocking Biotechnology’s Potential at Scale
Massimo Portincaso – Arsenale Bioyards
Biotechnology promises to transform industries far beyond biopharma – from food and enzymes to materials and fuels. Yet despite rapid scientific advances, its potential remains limited by the inability to scale in a reliable and economically viable way. The true challenge is not in the discovery of new biotechnology pathways, but in building the industrial backbone that allows biology to operate at scale.
In this keynote, Massimo Portincaso (CEO and Co-founder, Arsenale Bioyards) will show how integrating biology, engineering, data, and AI can overcome these barriers of cost and complexity. Drawing on Arsenale’s mission to build an end-to-end precision fermentation infrastructure, he will outline how large-scale biomanufacturing can mark the rise of a new industrial paradigm – one that redefines manufacturing and positions nature as a true partner in industry.
10:45 – 11:30 (CEST)
Characterisation of microalgal cultures by impedance flow cytometry – from dynamic complexity to single cell properties
Prof. Gerhard Obermeyer – Uni Salzburg
Microalgae play a key role in the vision of a green, circular economy – producing renewable biomaterials while consuming CO₂. Yet monitoring their cultivation and controlling the biomanufacturing process typically relies on labor- and cost-intensive microscopy.
In this keynote, ao. Univ.-Prof. Dr. Gerhard Obermeyer (University of Salzburg) will present how impedance flow cytometry offers a powerful alternative to track the physiological and metabolic state of algal cells at single-cell resolution. Using Auxenochlorella protothecoides as a model, he will demonstrate how specific impedance patterns can reveal culture conditions and cell viability, providing a reliable and cost-efficient tool for monitoring biotechnological production processes. This approach opens new perspectives for algae biotechnology and industrial applications.
11:30 – 12:00 (CEST)
From Cells to Scale: Navigating the Future of Industrial Bioprocessing
Furkan Gökçe – Amphasys
Bioprocessing is advancing at a remarkable pace, promising sustainable and scalable solutions for food & feed, enzymes, biopharma, and beyond. Yet across diverse applications, a set of common challenges continues to shape the path forward: achieving cost-effective scalability, moving beyond established microbial hosts, realizing novel end-products, navigating complex regulatory frameworks, and sustainability.
In this talk, Furkan Gökce, NBD Manager at Amphasys, will outline key hurdles shared across the value chain and will point to promising developments such as automation, advanced monitoring, circular feedstocks, and new infrastructure models. Rather than focusing on a single niche, it will highlight the importance of integration and collaboration in turning innovation into real-world manufacturing impact.
13:30 – 14:15 (CEST)
The challenges of applying process analytics to cell culture processes for cultured food
Nicolò Razza – The Cultured Hub
Applying process analytics to cellular agriculture is far from straightforward. Unlike biopharma, cultured food processes must deal with a wide range of cell types and cell lines, partially with little historical data, the aggregation of cells as part of the production process, and the need for controlled differentiation into tissues such as muscle or fat.
In this keynote, Nicolò Razza (Head of Process Development, The Cultured Hub) will explore these unique challenges and share insights into how his team is addressing them to advance the field of cultured food.
14:15 – 15:00 (CEST)
Enhancing Bioprocess Cultures: Innovative Concepts in Real-Time Monitoring
Lukas Neutsch – ZHAW
Bioprocessing, the science of using cells as ‘biofactories’ to produce valuable compounds, is central to many modern manufacturing industries. Cost-efficient, safe, and reproducible processes to grow diverse host organisms and maximize productivity are prerequisites and Process Analytical Technology (PAT) plays here a crucial role.
In this keynote, Prof. Lukas Neutsch will discuss the challenges in bioprocessing and how to overcome them. One of the fundamental challenge in bioprocessing is that key culture variables — cell growth, viability, morphological traits, and productivity-related factors — are often not available with sufficient detail, robustness, or speed. Impedance Flow Cytometry operates with single-cell resolution, and is a powerful tool for extracting additional details to optimize and control bioprocesses more effectively.
15:15 – 16:00 (CEST)
Monitoring Next-Generation Protein Degrader Bioproduction with Impedance Flow Cytometry
Quentin Demeyere – GlycoEra
Developing next-generation protein degraders requires innovative production hosts and equally advanced analytics. For the generation of these bispecific molecules, GlycoEra employs the protozoan Leishmania tarentolae for its novel biologics. In contrast to CHO cells these hosts support human glycosylation while maintaining homogeneity and design control. However, monitoring such unconventional cells with off-the shelf analytics presents unique challenges.
In this keynote, Quentin Demeyere (Senior Scientist, GlycoEra) will show how impedance flow cytometry overcomes the limitations of traditional analytics and enables efficient cell counting, opening new possibilities for tracking cell status and morphology during bioprocess development. His talk will highlight how this approach supports the design and production of cutting-edge extracellular protein degraders for autoimmune diseases.
16:00 – 16:45 (CEST)
Closing the Loop: Automated, Real-time, In-process Monitoring of Microbial Cell Cultures
Marco Di Berardino – Amphasys
Microbial cell cultures are dynamic and heterogeneous, vary in growth rate, metabolic activity and stress response which makes real-time monitoring difficult. Traditional analytical methods are either offline or do not provide the required detailed information for the steering of bioprocesses.
In this keynote, Marco Di Berardino, CTO of Amphasys, will present a new concept of microbial analysis in bioprocesses, integrating automated sampling and dilution from one or more bioreactors with high-content, label-free cell analysis. This closed-loop setup enables continuous monitoring of key cellular parameters – including cell size, viability, concentration, and metabolic status – without manual intervention or fluorescent labeling. The design study bears the potential to automate further process parameters, such as product concentration, paving the way for fully integrated and highly efficient bioproduction systems.
17:00 (CEST)
Apéro riche
Who Should Attend
Amphacademy Bioprocessing is designed for:
Bioprocess engineers and scientists seeking new analytical tools and methods
Biotech innovators and entrepreneurs exploring scalable solutions for biomanufacturing
Cell culture and upstream specialists working on cultured food, biologics, or industrial biotechnology
Industry professionals and academics interested in algae biotechnology, protein degraders, and next-generation process analytics
Whether you are active in biopharma, cellular agriculture, or industrial biotech, this event will give you new perspectives on how impedance flow cytometry and advanced process analytics can accelerate your work.
Don't miss your Spot for the Amphacademy 2025 in Switzerland!
Seats are limited – don’t miss the chance to join leading experts and peers in Lucerne for a full day of insights, discussions, and networking around the future of bioprocessing.
