Can AI Design Viruses? A Conversation With the Researcher Exploring the Possibility
Could artificial intelligence help design entirely new forms of life? In 2025, Stanford University PhD student Samuel King offered an early glimpse of what may be possible, using a generative AI model to propose genetic blueprints for microscopic viruses. The work does not mean AI has created living organisms: the designs are not, on their own, proof of AI-generated life. But the research raises important questions about how AI could shape biology—and what might come next. In this Roundtables conversation, MIT Technology Review’s senior AI reporter speaks with King about how he approached the project, what the model produced, and what the results do and do not show. The discussion also considers whether designing biological systems with AI could become more capable over time, and why the prospect deserves careful attention. Join the conversation on Friday, October 16, 2026.