Case Study
Baylor Genetics
Bringing the future of precision genomics to the forefront of clinical genetics at ACMG 2026
Pure Exhibits designed and built Baylor Genetics' custom 20×20 island booth at ACMG 2026 — a precision-genomics-inspired exhibition that brought the leading diagnostic genomics partner to life for 2,500+ clinical geneticists, genetic counselors, and laboratory directors at the Baltimore Convention Center.
The Challenge
Translating Molecular Complexity into Meaningful Connections
ACMG is where the world's most advanced clinical geneticists, genetic counselors, and laboratory directors converge — professionals who fluently read variant interpretation reports and speak the language of ACMG/AMP classification criteria. For Baylor Genetics, the challenge at Baltimore's Convention Center was not simply to inform, but to inspire: how do you communicate the transformative power of multimodal genomic testing — whole genome sequencing augmented by RNA sequencing, optical genome mapping, long-read sequencing, and metabolomic analysis — in a 400-square-foot exhibition environment?
The brief demanded more than a product showcase. With nearly 50 years of genetic testing heritage and over four million tests performed worldwide, Baylor Genetics carries an unmatched depth of diagnostic authority rooted in Houston's Texas Medical Center and its long-standing connection to Baylor College of Medicine. The booth needed to honor that scientific legacy while simultaneously communicating a bold forward vision: that more answers are possible, that rare disease patients who have gone undiagnosed through conventional testing deserve a more powerful diagnostic workup, and that the era of Answers Beyond the Genome is now within reach for every ordering clinician in the room.
"While genomic sequencing is increasingly the standard of care for patients with rare disease, too many patients still complete testing without receiving the answers they need. At Baylor Genetics, we believe that more answers are possible."
— Christine Eng, M.D., Chief Medical Officer and Chief Quality Officer, Baylor Genetics
The Creative Journey
From Laboratory Innovation to Exhibition Architecture
The Diagnostic Hub
Conceiving the 20×20 footprint as a modern diagnostic center translated from laboratory to exhibition floor. The design language drew on the clean, precision-engineered aesthetic of a genomics laboratory — white laminate surfaces, natural wood slat cladding that evoked warmth without sacrificing scientific authority, and a symmetrical island layout that invited attendees in from all four aisles simultaneously. The overarching goal was a space that felt both clinically credible and genuinely welcoming to the rare disease specialists, laboratory directors, and genetic counselors who would walk through it.
Multimodal Storytelling
Designing distinct spatial zones to represent each pillar of Baylor Genetics' multimodal testing portfolio. The services display panel — prominently featuring EXPANDED and NEW badges for the latest additions to the WGS-plus offering — served as the booth's editorial spine, communicating the breadth of RNA sequencing, optical genome mapping, long-read sequencing, and metabolomic analysis as complementary layers of a single, unified diagnostic platform. Each zone was calibrated to support conversation at the depth level appropriate for a clinical genetics specialist audience.
Warm Science
Balancing clinical precision with genuine hospitality — a deliberate design choice grounded in the reality that genetic counseling is an inherently human discipline. Natural wood slat paneling, a turquoise accent palette drawn from the color of life-science imagery, live plants, a beverage station, and curved ottoman seating created an atmosphere where conversations about rare pediatric disease, unsolved exomes, and diagnostic odysseys could unfold naturally. The warmth was not decorative but strategic: rare disease is personal, and the booth needed to honor that truth.
Interactive Discovery
Embedding multiple interactive touchpoints — tablet kiosks, QR code towers, and a detailed services panel with navigable test categories — to allow clinical specialists to self-direct their discovery at their own pace and depth. A dedicated tower featuring the headline "What If Your Clinical Genome Test" with a scannable QR code gave every passerby an immediate, low-friction entry point into Baylor Genetics' diagnostic narrative, driving post-show engagement beyond the Baltimore convention floor.
Design Elements
Six Signature Features
Multimodal Services Display
The booth's most information-dense feature — a full-height services menu panel presenting Baylor Genetics' complete diagnostic portfolio with EXPANDED and NEW badges that immediately drew the eye of clinical geneticists tracking the latest developments in WGS-based testing. The panel detailed the multimodal data analysis framework: whole genome sequencing as the foundation, with RNA sequencing to evaluate splicing variants and gene expression, optical genome mapping for structural variant resolution, long-read sequencing for repeat expansions and complex rearrangements, and metabolomic analysis for biochemical phenotyping. Bar-height tables and cylindrical ottoman seating placed directly in front of the panel transformed a static display into an active consultation zone where ordering clinicians could work through test selection with Baylor Genetics specialists in real time.
Dual-Level Hanging Sign
A commanding overhead hanging sign in Baylor Genetics' deep navy blue, engineered to carry the Baylor Genetics wordmark and "Answers Beyond the Genome" tagline on all four faces for 360-degree visibility across the Baltimore Convention Center floor. At ACMG — where the exhibition hall fills with 2,500 highly credentialed clinical genetics professionals — aerial signage is the first filter that draws the right specialists to the right booth, and the dual-level structure ensured Baylor Genetics was visible from every approach angle, eliminating dead zones and drawing traffic from neighboring aisles throughout all five days of the meeting.
Natural Wood Slat Architecture
Horizontal and vertical natural wood slat panels served as the booth's primary architectural material, cladding the WGS tower, reception counter fascia, and internal partition walls in warm-toned timber that offset the clinical white of the structural surfaces. In a discipline where laboratories are sterile and data-dense, the wood slats introduced a deliberate humanity — a visual cue that Baylor Genetics' diagnostic mission is ultimately about patients, families, and the genetic counselors who serve them. Literature shelves integrated into the slat panels provided convenient placement for take-home materials without disrupting the clean architectural lines.
Interactive Discovery Stations
A dedicated interactive tower anchoring one corner of the booth posed the provocation central to Baylor Genetics' clinical messaging: "What If Your Clinical Genome Test" — a deliberately open-ended question designed to stop a clinical geneticist mid-aisle and invite reconsideration of what comprehensive genomic testing can and should include. The tower's prominent QR code linked directly to Baylor Genetics' multimodal testing resources, allowing ordering clinicians to access case studies, test requisition information, and variant interpretation support on their own devices. Adjacent to the tower, a curved reception desk with integrated tablet kiosk offered a more guided discovery experience, with Baylor Genetics team members walking visitors through the diagnostic hierarchy — from standard clinical WGS to the full multimodal panel — using real patient scenario data to illustrate the incremental diagnostic yield of each additional modality.
Cylindrical Tower Displays
Freestanding cylindrical towers in Baylor Genetics' deep navy blue served dual roles as wayfinding landmarks and brand storytelling surfaces. Positioned at the booth's primary entry points, the towers carried key messaging about Baylor Genetics' diagnostic heritage — nearly 50 years of leadership in clinical genetics, over four million tests performed worldwide, and the laboratory's deep integration with Baylor College of Medicine's research infrastructure. The cylindrical form was deliberately chosen to avoid the rectangular rigidity of typical exhibition structures, introducing organic curvature that softened the island's footprint and invited approach from multiple directions.
Genomics Storytelling Panels
Large-format graphic mural panels transformed the booth's interior walls into a visual narrative about the power and promise of precision genomics. The "Unlocking The Power of Genomics" photo mural — depicting the human scale of the diagnostic mission through evocative scientific imagery — anchored the booth's side elevation, while DNA helix pattern graphics woven throughout the structure reinforced Baylor Genetics' identity as a genomics-first laboratory. The panels were calibrated to resonate at two levels: immediately arresting for passersby unfamiliar with Baylor Genetics, and substantively informative for the clinical genetics specialists who formed the core ACMG audience and who could read specific testing modalities and diagnostic applications into the visual language.
Gallery
The Booth in Detail
Booth Walkthrough
Experience the Booth
A full walkthrough of the Baylor Genetics 20×20 custom island booth at ACMG 2026 in Baltimore — showcasing the multimodal services display panel, natural wood slat architecture, interactive discovery towers with QR codes, cylindrical tower displays, genomics storytelling murals, beverage hospitality station, tablet kiosks, and the dual-level hanging sign that anchored the booth's presence on the Baltimore Convention Center exhibition floor.
Impact & Results
By the Numbers
Answers Beyond the Genome — Brought to Life
ACMG 2026 was Baylor Genetics' opportunity to establish its multimodal genomic testing platform as the definitive standard of care for rare disease patients who have exhausted conventional diagnostic pathways. At a meeting where the attendees are themselves the clinical decision-makers — the laboratory directors who sign out variant reports, the clinical geneticists who counsel families through diagnostic odysseys, the genetic counselors who translate molecular findings into clinical action — the booth needed to operate at the level of a peer-reviewed argument, not a marketing pitch.
The 20×20 island design accomplished this by treating the exhibition space as an extension of Baylor Genetics' diagnostic philosophy. The multimodal services display panel made the clinical case for layered testing with the same precision that a journal article might deploy: specific modalities, specific applications, specific incremental diagnostic yields. The interactive discovery towers gave every visiting clinician an immediate pathway to deeper engagement — whether through a real-time tablet demonstration, a QR code linking to published evidence, or a structured conversation with a Baylor Genetics genetic counselor or laboratory scientist. The result was a booth environment where clinical conversations of genuine depth were not just possible but architecturally inevitable.
The warm, humanistic design language — natural wood, live plants, hospitality elements, curved seating — was equally strategic. Rare disease genomics is not an abstract enterprise; it is the science that ends diagnostic odysseys for children and families who have sometimes waited years for answers. Baylor Genetics' nearly 50-year history at the forefront of clinical genetics, its deep roots in Baylor College of Medicine's research ecosystem, and its commitment to genetic counselor-supported testing all reflect an organization that has never lost sight of the patient at the center of every variant call. The booth at ACMG 2026 made that conviction visible, tangible, and — for the 2,500 clinical genetics professionals who walked through it — genuinely inspiring.