In the past year, KAUST SHI has worked with relevant stakeholders to establish research laboratories that support advancing translational research to bridge the gap between basic science discoveries and their practical applications in clinical settings. These projects include establishing a central biobank for human biospecimens and data, the viral vectors laboratory for gene therapy as well as the induced pluripotent human stem cells laboratory. We present an overview of the purpose, planning and progress of these projects and their prospective roles in supporting interdisciplinary translational research projects that foster research collaborations between scientists and clinicians. These facilities will provide researchers with high quality advanced resources and services to enable deciphering the “omics” print of disease development and its plausible correlation with clinical outcomes. This advanced research infrastructure will support new discoveries and interventions in the pursuit of accelerating impact in health and wellness for Saudi Arabia and beyond.