An emerging laser-based surface structuring technology (DLIP) uses the interference of light to transfer to materials well-defined periodic features for the large-scale production of novel bio-inspired multifunctional surfaces. In this text, we describe briefly some fundamental aspects of laser-based materials processing, describe the different capabilities of DLIP for producing functional surfaces and give some examples of multifunctional surfaces thus produced. Finally, the main strategies that are being developed to boost the throughput of interference-based patterning technologies are presented.