MIT Technology Review hosts a subscriber-only live roundtable with Stanford PhD candidate Samuel King, one of its Innovators Under 35, about using generative AI to design viral genetic blueprints.
<p><strong>Friday, October 16, 2026</strong></p>
<p>Can AI design new life forms? In 2025, Stanford University PhD student <a href="https://www.technologyreview.com/innovator/samuel-king-ai-designed-viruses/" data-type="link" data-id="https://www.technologyreview.com/innovator/samuel-king-ai-designed-viruses/"><strong>Samuel King</strong></a> came up with a preliminary answer when he used a generative AI model to propose genetic blueprints for microscopic viruses. It isn’t yet an example of AI-generated life, but that could be next. Join senior AI reporter James O’Donnell as he interviews King about his work, being named one of MIT Technology Review’s Innovators Under 35 and new ways of seeing biology.<br></p>
<p><strong>Going live on October 16th at 18:30 BST / 1:30pm EDT / 10:30am PDT</strong></p>
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<p><strong><strong><strong><strong>Speakers</strong></strong></strong><em><strong><strong><strong>:</strong></strong></strong></em><a href="https://www.technologyreview.com/author/james-odonnell/"> James O’Donnell</a></strong>, AI Reporter, and <strong>Samuel King</strong>, Bioengineering PhD Candidate, Stanford University/Arc Institute</p>
<p><strong>Related Stories</strong></p>
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<li><a href="https://www.technologyreview.com/innovator/samuel-king-ai-designed-viruses/" data-type="link" data-id="https://www.technologyreview.com/innovator/samuel-king-ai-designed-viruses/">He asked an AI to design viruses … and it worked.</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.technologyreview.com/2025/09/17/1123801/ai-virus-bacteriophage-life/" data-type="link" data-id="https://www.technologyreview.com/2025/09/17/1123801/ai-virus-bacteriophage-life/">AI-designed viruses are here and already killing bacteria</a></li>
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# Roundtables: A Conversation With the Creator of AI-Designed Viruses
Source: [https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/10/08/1146224/roundtables-a-conversation-with-the-creator-of-ai-designed-viruses](https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/10/08/1146224/roundtables-a-conversation-with-the-creator-of-ai-designed-viruses)
Join a subscriber\-only conversation with one of MIT Technology Review's Innovators Under 35\.
Available only for MIT Technology Review subscribers\.
**Friday, October 16, 2026**
Can AI design new life forms? In 2025, Stanford University PhD student[**Samuel King**](https://www.technologyreview.com/innovator/samuel-king-ai-designed-viruses/)came up with a preliminary answer when he used a generative AI model to propose genetic blueprints for microscopic viruses\. It isn’t yet an example of AI\-generated life, but that could be next\. Join senior AI reporter James O'Donnell as he interviews King about his work, being named one of MIT Technology Review's Innovators Under 35 and new ways of seeing biology\.
**Going live on October 16th at 18:30 BST / 1:30pm EDT / 10:30am PDT**
********Speakers*************:*******[James O'Donnell](https://www.technologyreview.com/author/james-odonnell/)**, AI Reporter, and**Samuel King**, Bioengineering PhD Candidate, Stanford University/Arc Institute
**Related Stories**
- [He asked an AI to design viruses … and it worked\.](https://www.technologyreview.com/innovator/samuel-king-ai-designed-viruses/)
- [AI\-designed viruses are here and already killing bacteria](https://www.technologyreview.com/2025/09/17/1123801/ai-virus-bacteriophage-life/)
Samuel King, a Stanford PhD student, is honored as an MIT Technology Review Innovator Under 35 for his work using the AI model Evo to design functional bacteriophages, advancing AI applications in biological design.
MIT Technology Review hosts a live roundtable discussion featuring AI experts to debate whether advanced AI poses a real threat to humanity and what actions might be needed.
US researchers used generative AI models Evo1 and Evo2 to design complete virus genomes for the first time, creating 16 novel bacteriophages that can kill E. coli. The breakthrough could enable new disease treatments but raises urgent safety and security concerns.
Researchers at Stanford and the Arc Institute used AI models Evo 1 and Evo 2 to design hundreds of novel bacteriophage genomes, 16 of which produced fully functional viruses capable of infecting E. coli. The breakthrough opens new avenues for combating antibiotic resistance but raises biosecurity concerns.