News Summary

• Researchers from Stanford University have synthesised brand-new, self-replicating viruses using genomes designed by artificial intelligence.
• The viruses, designed by AI models trained on genetic code from other viruses as well as more complex organisms, were able to replicate inside E.
• coli bacteria, demonstrating their viability.
• The breakthrough could potentially lead to significant medical advances but has also raised concerns the technology could be misused to create powerful bioweapons.
• The researchers took a number of safety precautions while carrying out their experiment, such as excluding humans and animals from their training data.