Great strides have been taken towards the in vitro engineering of clinically-relevant tissue constructsusing the classic triad of cells, materials and biochemical factors. In this perspective, we highlight ways in which these elements can be manipulated or stimulated using a fourth component: the application of remote fields.This arena has gained great momentum over the last few years, with a recent surge of interest in using magnetic, optical and acoustic fields to guide the organization of cells, materials and growth factors. We summarize recent developments and trends in this arena and then lay out a series of challenges that we believe, if met, could enable the widespread adoption of remote fields in mainstream tissue engineering.