Michael Laufer
DIY pharmaceutical inventor
Michael Swan Laufer is the de facto leader of the open-source anarchist biohacking network, Four Thieves Vinegar Collective. Laufer is notable for creating the EpiPencil, an open source alternative to the Epipen.
Background
Michael Swan Laufer, sometimes styled as Mixæl Laufer, holds a Ph.D. in mathematics and physics from the CUNY Graduate Centre. His academic background spans both pure mathematics and the physical sciences, forming the technical foundation for his later work in biohacking and pharmaceutical DIY research.
Career
Laufer served as director of mathematics at Menlo College in Silicon Valley and taught mathematics part time at San Quentin State Prison in California. He also holds a position as Senior Research Fellow at the UNESCO Crossings Institute.
In 2008, Laufer traveled to El Salvador, where he encountered hospitals that had run out of birth control medicine. That experience prompted him to found the Four Thieves Vinegar Collective, an open-source anarchist biohacking network oriented around expanding access to medications that are unavailable or unaffordable through conventional channels.
Notable Work
The EpiPencil
In 2016, Laufer publicly released videos demonstrating how to construct the EpiPencil, an open-source epinephrine auto-injector built from components readily available to the general public. The project was conceived as a direct alternative to the commercially sold EpiPen, whose pricing had drawn widespread criticism. The EpiPencil became Laufer's most widely recognized contribution and brought significant public attention to the Four Thieves Vinegar Collective.
Apothecary MicroLab
Laufer has been developing a DIY controlled laboratory reactor called the Apothecary MicroLab, designed to enable individuals to manufacture pharmaceutical compounds at home. The first version of the device is capable of producing pyrimethamine, a drug whose U.S. price rose from $13 to $750 between 2016 and 2019. The project reflects Laufer's broader argument that individuals have a right to produce medications necessary for their own survival, particularly when market forces place those medications out of reach. He has expressed interest in using the platform to produce emergency contraceptives and common medications for HIV/AIDS and hepatitis C.
Sub-dermal Mesh-Network Implant
In 2019, Laufer co-created a mesh-network sub-dermal implant priced at under $50, designed to allow humans to internally carry wireless routers. Following its development, Laufer had one of the implants placed in his own body.
Philosophy
Laufer's work is grounded in the belief that access to medicine is a matter of personal autonomy and the right to information. He argues that the concentration of healthcare decision-making in the hands of financially motivated private actors represents a systemic problem, and that providing lifesaving medication to those in need justifies the violation of intellectual property rights. His projects consistently aim to lower the technical and financial barriers to pharmaceutical production and medical self-determination.
