Stem cells attract a great deal of attention due to their developmental potential and lineage-independent characteristics. Adult stem cells, otherwise known as inducible pluripotent stem cells (“iPSCs”), are particularly favourable as research tools because they are derived from somatic cells such as blood, skin, or muscle. In this article, Angela Huang from Tempo Bioscience demonstrates that appropriate applications of iPSCs and their disease models will improve the efficiency of drug discovery and development in the coming years.