Isoprenoids (a.k.a. terpenes/terpenoids) are an extremely large and diverse group of natural compounds with myriad biological functions, including roles in photosynthesis, respiration, signaling, membrane biosynthesis, and as pigments, hormones, virulence factors, vitamins, etc. Isoprenoids also have many industrial uses, ranging from specialized applications (e.g. anti-cancer and anti-malarial pharmaceuticals) through to bulk chemicals (e.g., rubbers, agricultural chemicals, fragrances, and fuel replacements). However, extracting these compounds from natural sources or chemically synthesizing them is often unfeasible. We are using metabolic engineering with systems and synthetic biology tools to re-design microbes for industrial isoprenoid production. These tools are also being applied to understand both the biological roles of isoprenoids and the regulation of carbon flux through isoprenoid pathways. Understanding flux regulation is a pre-requisite for engineering economically-competitive microbial cell factories for isoprenoid production.