HYBpy: A web-based framework for hybrid modeling of biological systems

Hybrid modeling is gaining prominence in various industrial sectors because it offers a flexible balance between mechanistic and data-driven modeling. However, the adoption of such hybrid modeling techniques has been rather limited. Only few expert researchers using in-house tools have technical background and skills to develop such hybrid models worldwide. Additionally, freely available and user-friendly software tools for developing hybrid models in bioprocesses and biological systems are lacking. To address these gaps, we developed HYBpy. HYBpy is a user-friendly web-based framework based on a generalized step-by-step pipeline for quick and easy generation/training of hybrid models compliant with current file formats. We demonstrated the HYBpy functionalities using two literature case studies in the biological engineering domain. HYBpy is expected to greatly facilitate the usage of hybrid modeling, making these approaches accessible for the nonexpert community. Availability: HYBpy and two case examples can be accessed online at www.hybpy.com . Although HYBpy is offered as a web-based tool, it can also be installed locally as described in the GitHub repository instructions. The source code is hosted and publicly available on GitHub at https://github.com/joko1712/HYBpy under the GNU General Public License v3.0.