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Artificial Intelligence used to design brand new viruses
US researchers at Stanford University have used generative AI models, Evo1 and Evo2, to design brand new, fully functional viruses from scratch.
Ce qu'il faut retenir
- Artificial Intelligence has been used to design brand new, fully functional viruses that can replicate in a laboratory.
- The AI models Evo1 and Evo2 predict genetic sequences similarly to how large language models predict text.
- Out of 302 AI-designed genomes synthesized in the lab, 16 successfully killed E. coli bacteria.
- The breakthrough is a very significant turning point because we are beginning to design biology on a computer.
- The findings raise urgent biosafety and biosecurity questions regarding whether generative viral genome design can be used without enabling serious harm.
US researchers at Stanford University have used generative AI models, Evo1 and Evo2, to design brand new, fully functional viruses from scratch. Trained on genetic codes, the AI designed synthetic bacteriophages. Out of 302 synthesized designs, 16 successfully killed E. coli bacteria in the lab. While scientists hope this milestone could lead to new treatments for antibiotic-resistant infections, biosecurity experts warn the breakthrough raises urgent safety concerns regarding the potential creation of new diseases.
Leurs propres mots
“This is a next step in the complexity that's designable by generative AI, this is the first time generative AI has been used to design a complete genome”
“We were starting to see these clear spots and it was just extremely exciting”
Les chiffres clés
- 16
- successful novel viruses created to infect bacteria
- 302
- promising AI designs picked for laboratory synthesis
- 5,400
- base pairs in the genetic code of the phage
- 500,000
- base pairs in the smallest genome of a living cell
- 3B
- base pairs in the human genome
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Questions fréquentes
- Que s'est-il passé avec US researchers using generative AI to design brand new viruses ?
- Artificial Intelligence has been used to design brand new, fully functional viruses that can replicate in a laboratory.
- Où puis-je lire le rapport d'origine ?
- Retrouvez le rapport complet sur bbc_world.
