AI-designed viruses are here and already killing bacteria

AI researchers at Stanford and Arc Institute created functional viruses using AI, the first instance of "generative design of complete genomes." They trained AI models on bacteriophage genomes, chemically printed 302 AI-designed DNA sequences, and found 16 designs successfully replicated and killed E. coli bacteria. This breakthrough could advance treatments like phage therapy and gene delivery systems, but experts warn of potential misuse with human pathogens. The technology is a significant step toward AI-designed biological entities, though creating larger organisms remains far more complex.