In a recorded session featured by MIT Technology Review, senior AI reporter James O'Donnell interviewed Samuel King, a bioengineering PhD candidate at Stanford University and the Arc Institute, who was named one of the publication's Innovators Under 35. The discussion centered on King's work in 2025, when he utilized a generative AI model to propose genetic blueprints for microscopic viruses. According to the source material, while this achievement does not yet constitute fully AI-generated life, it represents a preliminary step toward that possibility and introduces new ways of seeing biology. The conversation explores the intersection of artificial intelligence and biological design, highlighting how generative models are being applied to create genetic blueprints for microorganisms. Related coverage notes that these AI-designed viruses have successfully been used to target and kill bacteria.
Roundtables: A Conversation With the Creator of AI-Designed Viruses
In 2025, Stanford University bioengineering PhD student Samuel King used a generative AI model to propose genetic blueprints for microscopic viruses. MIT Technology Review senior AI reporter James O'Donnell interviewed King about his work, being named one of MIT Technology Review's Innovators Under 35, and new ways of seeing biology.
Why it matters
This research demonstrates the practical application of generative AI in proposing genetic blueprints for microscopic viruses, hinting at future possibilities for AI-designed life forms.