Sustainable transportation solutions are the goal for the future. With the technological shit happening in the transportation market towards electric vehicles, the electric road system (ERS) is a necessary technology required to reach the sustainability goals for the future. While many studies show the role of innovation in a socio-technical landscape, many neglect the diffusion process of the innovation which occurs to create a socio-technical change. The nature of this thesis is an exploratory case study with a qualitative approach. To address the study, a literature review for the diffusion of innovation, its characteristics, multi-level perspective, and technology readiness level (TRL) was presented in order to provide a better understanding and build a foundation for the research. A review of scientific articles regarding the electric road system was performed to provide insights and obtain information on the technology. The data from scientific articles were complemented by interviews from experts regarding electric road systems to obtain an understanding of technology if it was to be implemented in the future in Sweden. The empirics collected were analyzed using the literature framework and conclusions were drawn. Analyzing the data was required to find the factors hindering the technology and if there is a window of opportunity for the technology to exist in the Swedish market. Environmental sustainability has been the driving factor, but the rate of diffusion for the technology will depend on the complexity and the maturity of the technology to function as a whole working system. The study contributes to evaluating the implementation of an inductive electric road system in the Swedish context and if it could be a viable solution in the transportation market. The perspectives of the technology in the Swedish market and the motivation for the solution are discussed. An analytical contribution by evaluating if the technology could exist in the future and insights on the diffusion of the technology into the existing landscape.

The paper reports findings from a FAIR principles-based research project dedicated to investigating how cross-field research between the DH and Sociotechnical Sustainable Transport Research could help to enhance the holistic understanding of sociotechnical low-carbon transport transitions.  Using the hashtag search queries #sustainabletransport and #sustainablemobility, 33,121 Tweets (2013-2021) and 8,089 Instagram images including captions (2017/2018-2021) were mined using Python scripts. Quantitative text and sentiment analyses were applied to the Tweets and image captions. Additionally, an automated image analysis using the Instagram dataset was conducted. Synthesized results formed the base for the cross-platform analysis comprising: 1) hot topics, 2) mentioned users, 3) sentiment, 4) co-hashtags. Data were visualized via Tableau, Excel, RAWGraphs, and Bubbl.us. Whereas electromobility, one of Holden et al.’s Grand Narratives for sustainable mobility, has been significantly present in the digital discourse on both platforms (especially Instagram), #sustainabletransport has been closely associated with active transport, especially bicycling, and #sustainablemobility with the electromobility theme. The study has demonstrated the investigative potentials of cross-field cross-platform social media analysis studies and ultimately DH to enhance the understanding of sociotechnical low-carbon transport transitions. Drawing on core results, the paper also suggests an adapted version of the Geelsean Multi-Level Perspective.

The natural environment will become an increasingly important arena for economic competition in the future. The growing world population and the increased global consumption raise concerns about the sustainability of the current and future use of natural resources. Due to the growing global population the production of agricultural crops and food security is high on the global policy agenda. The purpose of this study has been to investigate the opportunities for a sustainable intensification in the Swedish cereals production and how the Lantmännen cooperative, a company active in the whole cereals value chain can act in order to enable the intensification. The research was conducted as a descriptive case study. Given the comprehensive nature of the purpose of this study, we have studied the Swedish agriculture from a system perspective in order to get the comprehensive understanding of its complexity. The findings presented in this report are based on data from multiple research methods such as interviews with stakeholder in the agriculture, database search, and archive searches. We show in this study that a sustainable intensification of the Swedish cereals production can be realized through utilizing the existing unused farmland registered by the farmer as fallow for a number of consecutive years in a row, which can be described as acreage that is not used for crop production but is still kept in farmable condition. Our study has identified four barriers hindering the intensification; Single payment system, Leasing contract, Logistics and Investment costs. To overcome these barriers we argue that the RO PSS business model is appropriate. By using this model Lantmännen will be able to deliver four different types of values to the farmers. The first value is the intangible value of identity, which let inactive farmers continue to live on their farms while being able to focus on other sources of main income. The second value we name ownerless consumption. This value offers farmers with little capital to start up or expand their production without having to invest in new machinery and equipment. The third value we call safety, which is connected to the barrier of lease contracts identified and the distrust between landowners and tenants. The fourth value, specialization, gives the farmer possibility to leverage overall cereals bulk production by including niche crops. We conclude by arguing that the opportunities for an intensification of the Swedish Cereals production lie in delivering these four values. / Naturen kommer i framtiden bli en alltmer viktig arena för ekonomisk konkurrens. En växande världsbefolkning och en ökad global konsumtion skapar oro kring hållbarheten i vårt användande av naturresurser. På grund av den ökande befolkningsmängden placerar sig frågor såsom produktionen av jordbruksgrödor och livsmedelsförsörjning högt upp på den globala politiska dagordningen. Studiens syfte är att undersöka möjligheter för en hållbar intensifiering av den svenska spannmålsodlingen och hur Lantmännen, ett kooperativt företag som verkar i spannmålets hela värdekedja ska agera för att möjliggöra intensifieringen. Med tanke på den övergripande karaktären av våra frågeställningar har vi studerat det svenska jordbruket ur ett systemperspektiv för att få en övergripande förståelse av dess komplexitet. Forskningen har genomförts i form av en beskrivande fallstudie. Våra resultat baseras på data från flera forskningsmetoder som intervjuer med intressenter inom jordbruket, databassökning, arkivsökning. Vår studie visar att en hållbar intensifiering av den svenska spannmålsodlingen kan realiseras genom att utnyttja befintlig oanvänd jordbruksmark som av jordbrukaren registrerats som träda i flera år i följd. Träda kan beskrivas som jordbruksareal som inte används till växtodling men som fortfarande hålls i odlingsbart skick. För att få denna mark i bruk och därmed möjliggöra en intensifiering krävs det att få bukt med fyra identifierade barriärer inom det svenska jordbrukssystemet; Gårdsstödet, Arrendekontrakt, Logistik och Investeringskostnader. Vi hävdar, baserat på våra resultat och analyser, att affärsmodellkonceptet RO PSS är lämplig att använda då Lantmännen ska lyckas få bukt med barriärerna. Denna modell kommer leverera fyra olika värden till jordbrukarna. Det första värdet har vi döpt till Identitet och är av en immateriell natur som vilket låter inaktiva jordbrukare fortsätta bo kvar på sina gårdar medan de inriktar sig på andra inkomstbaserade verksamheter. Det andra värdet gav vi namnet Ägandefri konsumtion. Detta ger värde till jordbrukaren i form av att jordbrukaren inte behöver låna pengar för höga  investeringskostnader i maskiner och infrastruktur vid uppstart eller expansion av verksamheten. Det tredje värdet kallar vi för Säkerhet, vilket är relaterat till barriären arrendekontrakt där vi har funnet en misstro mellan markägare och arrendatorer. Det fjärde värdet, Specialisering, ger jordbrukaren möjlighet att blanda in specialgrödor i sin produktion, och på så vis skapa en hävstång åt bulkproduktionen. Vår slutsats är att möjligheterna för en intensifiering av den Svenska spannmålsodlingen ligger i att kunna leverera dessa värden.

Structurée autour de l’étude longitudinale de quatre projets, cette thèse questionne la portée de l’innovation centrée usagers en analysant, dans la diversité de leur planification et de leurs épreuves, les trajectoires collectives initiées par la consigne − commune mais labile − invitant des équipes-projet à impliquer des usagers « réels » dans le processus d’innovation. En mobilisant les apports croisés de la sociologie de l’innovation et de la sociologie des usages, elle explore plus spécifiquement les conditions d’élaboration des stratégies d’intéressement convoquées par cette consigne, les dispositifs de confrontation aux situations d’usage échafaudés ainsi que les principes de catégorisation des usagers que les acteurs mobilisent pour décrire le processus d’innovation à l’oeuvre et tenter de l’infléchir. En visant le développement d’innovations commer-so-cialisables, ces projets investissent dans les usagers qu’ils convoquent des préoccupations, des aspirations et des contraintes inégalement distribuées au sein des équipes-projet. Au-delà des épreuves propres à chaque histoire partenariale, cette thèse propose de questionner les conditions de réalisation d’une innovation plus « participative » dans le monde connexionniste et court-termiste de la Cité par projets. / Based on the longitudinal study of four projects, this thesis examine the impact of user-centered innovation development by analyzing the collective trajectories compelled by the instruction − common but ambiguous − that invites the project teams to involve “real users” in the innovation process. By referring on intersected contributions in sociology of innovation and sociology of the uses of ICTs, I explore more specifically the strategies of enrolment, the protocols for interact with users and the different ways to categorize the users that the actors choose to describe the innovation process and try to control it. Focused on the development of socio-marketable products and services, these projects place on users various purposes and matters of concern that are unevenly distributed in the project teams. Beyond the specific proofs in each trajectory, this thesis aims to challenge the possibility of developing an innovation more “participative” in the short-term world of the Projects-oriented Cité.

Du fait du développement de nouveaux produits (NPD) dans l’industrie, l’organisation devient de plus en plus complexe, ceci est dû notamment à la complexité même des produits. Dans ce contexte, le MBSE (Model Based Systems Engineering) et les approches collaboratives, qui adressent ces complexités, ont été reconnus pour leurs facultés à améliorer le NPD. Une implémentation réussie d’une conception collaborative du type MBSE, doit permettre de gérer ces deux complexités. Cette thèse de doctorat a pour objet l’étude de projets de conception collaborative MBSE au sein des équipes françaises chez des équipementiers automobiles et aéronautiques, afin de mettre en avant l’amélioration du développement des produits. La conception collaborative du type MBSE est assimilable à un système organisationnel complexe, impliquant des vues ou dimensions différentes. Ainsi, l’identification de ces dimensions, leur définition et l’étude de leurs interactions constituent le premier objectif de cette recherche. La compréhension de chacune d’entre elles pour améliorer la collaboration entre les différents membres du projet, est le deuxième objectif.Le troisième et dernier objectif de cette thèse est de proposer des systèmes socio-techniques (STS), assistant la collaboration. Les résultats de cette recherche, fournissent une méthodologie pour manager la complexité organisationnelle dans des projets collaboratifs du type MBSE. Elle est le produit d’une combinaison de quatre méthodes permettant la caractérisation de ses dimensions (processus, acteurs, objets et outils), tout en définissant leurs interactions. Ces méthodes assistent respectivement : 1) La description et l’évaluation de ces projets avec une perspective systémique 2) l’établissement d’une vision partagée du travail 3) l’analyse des coopérations entre les acteurs, et 4) le développement de STS tels quels des environnements collaboratifs et des supports collaboratif de capitalisation. L’implémentation en industrie des méthodes proposées, processus et recommandations, a montré comment la mise en avant de la collaboration dans les projets de design MBSE, permet d’améliorer l’ensemble du développement de produit. / The organisational complexity implied by New Product Development (NPD) within the industry, is often induced by the complex nature of the products themselves. In this context, MBSE (Model Based Systems Engineering) and collaborative approaches address those complexities and have been recognised by their contribution to improve the NPD processes. A successful implementation of a collaborative MBSE design would allow to manage both complexities. This PhD thesis describes an investigation on collaborative MBSE design projects within French teams in automotive and aeronautics companies, with the purpose of enhancing them to improve product development. We understand collaborative MBSE design as a complex organisational system which implies different views or dimensions. The identification of those dimensions, their definition and the study of their interactions constitute the first objective of this research. Understanding each dimension in order to improve collaboration between the project members is the second objectivedeuxième objectif.The third and last objective of this research is to propose Socio Technical Systems (STS) supporting this collaboration. The results of the thesis provide a methodology to manage organisational complexity in collaborative MBSE design projects. The methodology is a combination of four methods assisting the characterisation of the MBSE dimensions (people, process, information objects and tools), while defining their interactions. These methods support respectively: 1) The assessment and description of collaborative MBSE design projects from a systemic perspective 2) The establishment of a shared vision of the work 3) The analysis of the cooperation among the actors 4) The development of STS such as collaborative environment and a collaborative capitalisation support. The implementation of the proposed methods, process and guidelines in the industry has shown how the enhancement of collaboration in MBSE design projects can improve the overall product development.

While the proliferation of AI technologies offers opportunities for the workplace and its processes, their implementation in business effectively is still a challenge. Today, companies require strategic guidance in their AI management. Accordingly, there is a need for more research on the topic with a holistic approach including governance of data. Considering the challenges of the private sector and the gap in the IS research, this thesis focuses on the barriers to implementing AI in the private sector. It specifically assesses the sociotechnical mechanisms for AI evolution in the case of the agricultural machinery industry. The conducted case study suggests an overall approach including data governance for AI implementation and an alignment between the digital, it, and business strategies. Based on the research findings, this study suggests a model for AI management with three parts: The opportunities and the new data generation to realize these opportunities lie on the benefit side of the digital transformation while the sociotechnical mechanisms to tackle the barriers stand at the core. By introducing a model for AI management, the thesis offers a roadmap for the case company while bringing a new perspective to the literature and further research.

The thesis aims to explore future mobility system alternatives in the context of “winter cities” to achieve a more sustainable society. This is done by interviewing a broad range of mobility experts - encompassing those focused on cities in the northern regions and those with global expertise. The result highlights what (social and technological) innovations are believed to transform winter city mobility and what factors can play a key role in successful transformations. The relevance of the findings is illustrated with examples of their contextualization for the case of Skellefteå municipality, located in Sweden. / Studien syftar till att utforska framtida mobilitetssystemalternativ i sammanhanget "vinterstäder" för att uppnå ett mer hållbart samhälle. Detta görs genom att intervjua en rad olika mobilitetsexperter – som besitter erfarenhet och kunskap från städer lokaliserade i de norra regionerna samt de med global expertis. Resultatet belyser vilka (sociala och tekniska) innovationer som tros förändra vinterstadens mobilitet och vilka faktorer som kan spela en nyckelroll i en framgångsrik transformation. Studiens relevans påvisas genom att resultat illustreras med exempel på dess kontextualisering i caset Skellefteå kommun.

This study concerns investigating an industry, i.e. system, which is subject to radical technological changes, and how actors within the system can enhance their innovation processes and manage technological shifts efficiently. The specific context in which these processes are investigated is the compliance departments within the Swedish insurance industry. The Swedish insurance industry constitutes a central pillar in the national economy, which is why the stability of the industry must be ensured. As a result, the insurance industry is subject to various regulations and the scope and amount of regulations have increased since the global financial crisis in 2008. In other words, the regulatory burden has increased while the risks of non-compliance pose a threat to incumbents' competitive position. In order to meet the pressure of increased regulatory burden as well as leverage on the pressure of digitalization, Regulatory Technology (RegTech) has been identified as a key focus area for Swedish insurance companies in enhancing their operational efficiency as well as reduce the risk of non-compliance. Consequently, the purpose of this study is to identify system challenges to adoption of RegTech as well as system enablers which suggest how the related innovation processes can be facilitated. The empirical data in this study consists of ten in-depth interviews with representatives from Swedish insurance companies as well as knowledge providers within RegTech. The study reveals 38 system challenges and 38 system enablers to adoption of RegTech in various dimensions related to market forces, organizational factors and product development aspects, to mention a few. The most commonly raised system challenges are based on that RegTech is related to cost-reduction and thus has limited impact on revenue-generation as well as the fact that the insurance industry is characterized for being conservative and rigid, to name a few. Two examples of commonly mentioned system enablers are increasing regulatory pressure which leads to uneconomical and resource-intensive compliance operations with an increasingly high risk of non-compliance, as well as that younger insurance companies have to deploy RegTech in order to survive in the long run. The results from the study are presented at landscape-, regime- and niche-level according to the theoretical frameworks of Multi-level Perspective of Sociotechnical Systems and Absorptive Capacity in conjunction with a relevant theoretical framework within compliance management, denoted the Efficient-investment-risk model. / Denna studie inkluderar undersökandet av en industri, med andra ord ett system, som genomgår radikala tekniska förändringar samt hur aktörerna inom detta system kan förbättra sina innovationsprocesser och hantera teknikskiften mer effektivt. Det specifika fallet i vilket dessa processer undersöks i är complianceavdelningar hos svenska försäkringsbolag. Den svenska försäkringsbranschen utgör en central pelare i den nationella ekonomin, vilket är anledningen till varför industrins stabilitet behöver värnas. På grund av detta omfattas industrin av en mängd olika regelverk och vidare har omfattningen samt antalet regelverk ökat sedan den globala finanskrisen 2008. Med andra ord har den regulatoriska bördan ökat medan risken av icke-compliance fortsätter att utgöra ett hot mot försäkringsbolagens marknadspositioner. För att möta det ökade regulatoriska trycket och dessutom dra fördel av trycket från digitaliseringsvågen har Regulatory Technology (RegTech) identifieras som ett nyckelområde för svenska försäkringsbolag i deras strategi att förbättra operationell effektivitet samt bibehålla låg risk av non-compliance. Följaktligen är syftet med denna studie att identifiera systemutmaningar inom anammandet av RegTech samt systemmöjliggöranden som kan underlätta innovationsprocesser relaterat till anammandet av RegTech. Den empiriska datan i studien består av tio djupgående intervjuer med representanter från svenska försäkringsbolag samt RegTech-experter som utgörs av bland annat konsultbolag samt teknikföretag. Studien avslöjar 38 systemutmaningar samt 38 systemmöjliggörare relaterat till anammandet av RegTech i en bredd av olika dimensioner så som marknadskrafter, organisatoriska faktorer, produktutveckling m.m. Bland de vanligast identifierade systemutmaningarna presenteras faktumet att RegTech är begränsat till kostnadsreducering och därmed inte har en direkt positiv inverkan på intäktsdrivandet. En annan vanlig systemutmaning är faktumet att försäkringsbranschen är konservativ och stel i dess natur. Ett exempel på systemmöjliggörare å andra sidan är trenden att det regulatoriska trycket ökar, vilket leder till att complianceprocesser behöver effektiviseras för att försäkringsbolag ska kunna bibehålla konkurrenskraft samt att konsekvenserna av non-compliance blir allvarligare. En annan möjliggörande faktor inom systemet är att unga försäkringsbolag är i stort behov av att anamma RegTech för att överleva ekonomiskt i det långa loppet. Studiens resultat är presenterat på landskap, regim samt nichenivå i enlighet med teorin multi-nivåperspektivet av sociotekniska system samt i enlighet med teoriområdet absorptionsförmåga. Utöver detta har även en teori inom compliance management vid namn Effektiv-investering-riskmodellen tillämpats.

Sociotechnical systems (STSs) rely on the collaboration between humans and autonomous decision-making units to fulfill their objectives. Highly intertwined social and technical contextual factors influence the collaboration between these human and engineered elements, and consequently the performance characteristics of the STS. In the next two decades, the role allocated to STSs in our society will drastically increase. Thus, the effective design of STSs requires an improved understanding of the human-autonomy interdependency. This dissertation brings together management science along with systems thinking and uses a mixed-methods approach to investigate the interdependencies between people and the autonomous systems they collaborate within complex socio-technical enterprises. The dissertation is organized in three mutually exclusive essays, each investigating a distinct facet of STSs: safe management, collaboration, and efficiency measurement. The first essay investigates the amount of work allocated to safety-critical decision makers and quantifies Rasmussen's workload boundary that represents the limit of attainable workload. The major contribution of this study is to quantify the qualitative theoretical construct of the workload boundary through a Pareto-Koopmans frontier. This frontier allows one to capture the aggregate impact of the social and technical factors that originate from operational conditions on workload. The second essay studies how teams of humans and their autonomous partners share work, given their subjective preferences and contextual operational conditions. This study presents a novel integration of machine learning algorithms in an efficiency measurement framework to understand the influence of contextual factors. The results demonstrate that autonomous units successfully handle relatively simple operational conditions, while complex operational conditions require both workers and their autonomous counterparts to collaborate towards common objectives. The third essay explores the complementary and contrasting roles of efficiency measurement approaches that deal with the influence of contextual factors and their sensitivity to sample size. The results are organized in a structured taxonomy of their fundamental assumptions, limitations, mathematical structure, sensitivity to sample size, and their practical usefulness. To summarize, this dissertation provides an interdisciplinary and pragmatic research approach that benefits from the strengths of both theoretical and data-driven empirical approaches. Broader impacts of this dissertation are disseminated among the literatures of systems engineering, operations research, management science, and mechanical design. / Doctor of Philosophy / A system is an integrated set of elements that achieve a purpose or goal. An autonomous system (ADS) is an engineered element that often substitutes for a human decision-maker, such as in the case of an autonomous vehicle. Sociotechnical systems (STSs) are systems that involve the collaboration of a human decision-maker with an ADS to fulfill their objectives. Historically, STSs have been used primarily for handling safety critical tasks, such as management of nuclear power plants. By design, STSs rely heavily on a collaboration between humans and ADS decision-makers. Therefore, the overall characteristics of a STS, such as system safety, performance, or reliability; is fully dependent on human decisions. The problem with that is that people are independent entities, who can be influenced by operational conditions. Unlike their engineered counterparts, people can be cognitively challenged, tired, or distracted, and consequently make mistakes. The current dependency on human decisions, incentivize business owners and engineers alike to increase the level of automation in engineered systems. This allows them to reduce operational costs, increase performance, and minimize human errors. However, the recent commercial aircraft accidents (e.g., Boeing 737-MAX) have indicated that increasing the level of automation is not always the best strategy. Given that increasing technological capabilities will spread the adoption of STSs, vast majority of existing jobs will either be fully replaced by an ADS or will change from a manual set-up into a STS. Therefore, we need a better understanding of the relationships between social (human) and engineered elements. This dissertation, brings together management science with systems thinking to investigate the dependencies between people and the autonomous systems they collaborate within complex socio-technical enterprises. The dissertation is organized in three mutually exclusive essays, each investigating a distinct facet of STSs: safe management, collaboration, and efficiency measurement. The first essay investigates the amount of work handled by safety-critical decision makers in STSs. Primary contribution of this study is to use an analytic method to quantify the amount of work a person could safely handle within a STSs. This method also allows to capture the aggregate impact of the social and technical factors that originate from operational conditions on workload. The second essay studies how teams of humans and their autonomous partners share work, given their preferences and operational conditions. This study presents a novel integration of machine learning algorithms to understand operational influences that propel a human-decision maker to handle the work manually or delegate it to ADSs. The results demonstrate that autonomous units successfully handle simple operational conditions. More complex conditions require both workers and their autonomous counterparts to collaborate towards common objectives. The third essay explores the complementary and contrasting roles of data-driven analytical management approaches that deal with the operational factors and investigates their sensitivity to sample size. The results are organized based on their fundamental assumptions, limitations, mathematical structure, sensitivity to sample size, and their practical usefulness. To summarize, this dissertation provides an interdisciplinary and pragmatic research approach that benefits from the strengths of both theoretical and data-driven empirical approaches. Broader impacts of this dissertation are disseminated among the literatures of systems engineering, operations research, management science, and mechanical design.

Ce mémoire traite des représentations du vivant portées par l’imaginaire sociotechnique de la biologie de synthèse. Domaine technoscientifique en pleine expansion, elle a comme objectif de fabriquer des entités biologiques détenant une application commerciale. En plus de ses visées économiques, les promoteurs de la biologie de synthèse annoncent qu’elle constitue une solution aux enjeux engendrés par la crise écologique. Ce type de promesse étant moins étudié par la sociologie des sciences et des technologies, ce présent mémoire fera lumière sur cet enjeu. Je montrerai que la biologie de synthèse s’inscrit dans le modèle bioéconomique qui implique une mise en ressource à large échelle globale des processus biologiques. L’imaginaire de la biologie de synthèse reconduit ainsi une double promesse : poursuivre le modèle de développement industriel tout en évacuant les limites écologiques qui s’y posent. Avec une analyse des discours médiatiques et publicitaires relatifs aux promesses écologiques de la biologie de synthèse, je démontrerai que son imaginaire s’appuie sur une représentation machinique et informationnelle du vivant. Par le fait même, cette analyse montrera que la volonté de mettre les processus biologiques en ressource se décline elle-même en deux tendances. D’une part, le vivant est posé dans les termes d’une matière première inerte et malléable. D’autre part, il est représenté comme une entité active qui peut être mise au travail. L’imaginaire de la biologie de synthèse relève donc d’une radicalisation de la volonté d’englober les processus biologiques dans la production industrielle. Les promesses écologiques de ce domaine apparaissent subordonnées à cette visée. / This thesis focuses on the representations of the living carried by the sociotechnical imaginary of synthetic biology. Synthetic biology is a fast-growing technoscientific field whose main objective is to manufacture biological entities with commercial applications. In addition to its economic aims, promoters of synthetic biology claim that it represents a solution to the challenges posed by the ecological crisis facing contemporary societies. As this type of promise is less studied by the sociology of science and technology, this thesis will shed light on this issue. I will show that synthetic biology is part of the bioeconomy, which proposes the large-scale transformation of biological processes into valuable resources. The imaginary of synthetic biology thus makes a double promise : to continue the industrial development model while bypassing its ecological limits. Through an analysis of media and advertising discourse relating to the ecological promises of synthetic biology, I will demonstrate that its imaginary underpins a machine-like, informational representation of living matter. Furthermore, this analysis will show that the desire to turn biological processes into resources underlies two trends. On the one hand, living matter is posited in terms of an inert, malleable raw material. On the other, it is represented as an active entity that can be put to work. The sociotechnical imaginary of synthetic biology thus reflects a radicalization of the desire to incorporate biological processes into industrial production. The ecological promises of this field appear subordinate to this aim.