Roundtables: A Conversation With the Creator of AI-Designed Viruses

# AI Can Now Design New Viruses—And That's a Problem A Stanford researcher used artificial intelligence to create genetic blueprints for viruses that don't exist in nature, raising serious questions about whether AI tools could eventually help bad actors develop dangerous biological weapons. While the AI didn't actually create living viruses yet, experts worry it's only a matter of time before the technology becomes powerful enough to do so. This highlights a growing tension: the same AI capabilities that could help us cure diseases might also make it easier for someone to cause a pandemic.