First AI to Design Brand New Viruses Leads Scientists to Warn of 'Urgent Biosafety' Concerns

Source: International Business Times

A scientist in a lab coat uses gloves to handle samples and equipment on a wooden table in a laboratory. Test tubes and beakers are present Artificial intelligence has been used to design complete viral genomes that function and replicate in a laboratory, in what researchers describe as a first for generative AI. The 16 novel viruses were designed to infect bacteria rather than humans, but the breakthrough has also prompted warnings about urgent biosafety and biosecurity risks.