No, SpudCells aren’t alive. But they’re a step toward the first synthetic life

Researchers at the University of Minnesota created SpudCells, synthetic cells that can replicate DNA and divide multiple times, marking a significant step toward fully artificial life. Unlike previous attempts, SpudCells link DNA replication to growth and division, but they still require outside help to function and cannot make their own proteins. Scientists have launched an international nonprofit called Biotic to coordinate further research and eventually make synthetic cells fully independent.