Colossal Biosciences' Functional De-Extinction Drives Conservation Technologies

Masters of Scale · December 23, 2025 · Listen to Original Episode →

Original Title:

TL;DR

Colossal Biosciences' "functional de-extinction" approach engineers existing species with ancient DNA, creating approximations rather than true clones, which allows for rapid progress and conservation applications despite semantic debates.
The company's de-extinction efforts, while scientifically impressive, serve as a catalyst for developing advanced reproductive technologies and genetic tools that are then made freely available for critical endangered species conservation.
Colossal's business model leverages de-extinction research to spin out high-value technology companies in computational biology and plastic degradation, alongside a long-term vision for revenue generation through biodiversity credits from rewilded species.
The development of exogenous development (artificial womb) technology, while initially aimed at species reproduction without surrogates, has potential applications in human IVF, offering a more advanced method for embryo assessment and growth.
Colossal's strategy of focusing on culturally appealing extinct species like the dire wolf and woolly mammoth attracts significant attention and investment, which is then channeled into less glamorous but equally critical conservation work, such as saving the red wolf.
The company has established its own ethical framework, deliberately excluding non-human primates and Neanderthals, and requiring all projects to demonstrate a direct tie-in to saving an existing endangered species.

Deep Dive

Colossal Biosciences is pioneering "functional de-extinction" by genetically engineering existing species to express traits of extinct ones, aiming to address biodiversity loss and inspire future scientific innovation. This approach, exemplified by the creation of dire wolf puppies through advanced gene editing and cloning techniques, represents a significant leap in synthetic biology, moving beyond theoretical possibilities to tangible, albeit controversial, outcomes. The company's long-term vision extends to conservation, human health applications, and the potential for rewilding species, positioning itself as a leader in a nascent but rapidly evolving field.

The creation of dire wolves, while capturing public imagination, highlights a critical tension between scientific advancement and public perception. By using gray wolves as a genetic base and introducing engineered genes from ancient dire wolf DNA, Colossal demonstrates the power of gene editing to approximate extinct phenotypes. This process, likened to the fictional Jurassic Park, is not a direct clone but a sophisticated reconstruction, leading to debate within the scientific community about species classification. However, the company argues that this approach, coupled with parallel efforts in elephant and rhino conservation and the development of assisted reproductive technologies, offers novel tools to combat the accelerating biodiversity crisis. The business model, currently revenue-free and valued at $10 billion, relies on the spin-off of technology platforms like Form Bio and Breaking, and anticipates future revenue from long-term rewilding initiatives through carbon and biodiversity credits.

Colossal's strategy of focusing on high-profile extinct species like the dire wolf and woolly mammoth serves a dual purpose: it drives scientific progress and attracts significant investment and public attention. The involvement of high-profile investors and celebrity endorsements, while seemingly driven by the "cool factor," is presented as a means to democratize science and inspire a new generation. The company's ethical framework, which excludes work on non-human primates and Neanderthals, and prioritizes species with a direct link to saving endangered relatives, attempts to navigate the complex ethical landscape. The ultimate implication is that these de-extinction efforts, alongside conservation technologies, could provide scalable solutions to environmental challenges, although the primary stake remains the urgent need to halt current biodiversity loss, with the hope that technological breakthroughs will eventually be adopted and funded by broader societal efforts.

Action Items

Audit genetic engineering process: Identify 3-5 critical control points for ensuring accuracy and preventing off-target edits in de-extinction projects.
Create ethical framework document: Define 5-7 core principles for de-extinction and conservation technology development, addressing biodiversity impact and potential misuse.
Develop conservation technology roadmap: Outline 3-4 applications of synthetic biology and assisted reproductive technologies for endangered species preservation within 2 years.
Track red wolf conservation metrics: Measure progress on red wolf population recovery and genetic diversity against baseline data (ref: cloning from blood technique).

Key Quotes

"Until recently, we took a 13,000-year-old tooth and a 72,000-year-old skull and then through a process called somatic cell nuclear transfer, aka cloning, you get an embryo. You put it into a domestic dog, 60 days later, we had our first dire wolf puppies."

Ben Lamm, co-founder and CEO of Colossal Biosciences, explains the foundational steps of their "functional de-extinction" process. This quote highlights the use of ancient DNA and advanced cloning techniques to bring back extinct species, emphasizing the creation of viable embryos and their gestation in surrogate domestic dogs.

"What do you say to people who say like, oh, it's wrong to mess with nature, it's playing God? I think that, you know, given that we're going to lose up to 50% of biodiversity between now and 2050, we have a moral obligation to do something."

Ben Lamm addresses ethical concerns surrounding de-extinction, framing it as a moral imperative rather than "playing God." He argues that the significant biodiversity loss projected by 2050 necessitates action, positioning Colossal's work as a response to this crisis.

"So, Colossal focuses on what we call functional de-extinction. It's not possible to clone an extinct species. There's no living cells. It's not possible to completely just like take a cell like you do with Dolly the sheep and just clone that. That is part of the process, but you actually have to start with something, right?"

Ben Lamm clarifies the concept of "functional de-extinction," differentiating it from direct cloning. He explains that since living cells from extinct species are unavailable, the process involves engineering the DNA of closely related living species to express the traits of the extinct ones.

"And so it is the closest approximation, but it isn't just engineered to look like a dire wolf. It is actually using the dire wolf specific genes that drove those traits. So, one of the things that's pretty cool is that we had no idea that dire wolves were white until we got all this ancient DNA."

Ben Lamm elaborates on the genetic engineering process, emphasizing that it incorporates specific genes from the extinct dire wolf to recreate its traits. He shares a specific example, the unexpected discovery of the dire wolf's white coloration based on ancient DNA analysis, which contradicted previous assumptions.

"My argument is is that if people want to call them direwolves, call them direwolves. If they want to call them Colossal direwolves, call them Colossal direwolves. If they want to call them genetically modified wolves, call them that. But it's still amazing. It's like if you go to Jurassic Park and you believe that movie is about dinosaurs, then our direwolves are direwolves."

Ben Lamm addresses the controversy surrounding the classification of the resurrected dire wolves, suggesting that the naming is less important than the scientific achievement. He uses the analogy of Jurassic Park to illustrate that the focus should be on the scientific endeavor and the creation of these animals, regardless of precise nomenclature.

"And so we always try to talk about that functional de-extinction should be about engineering and rebuilding extinct species for today. So, if we know that we can cure this EHV or prevent it from causing death, we should engineer that into our mammoth species as well."

Ben Lamm connects the de-extinction work with conservation efforts, explaining how technologies developed for bringing back extinct species can be applied to saving endangered ones. He uses the example of EHV, a herpes virus affecting elephants and potentially mammoths, highlighting the importance of engineering resistance into resurrected species.

Resources

External Resources

Books

"Founders Mentality: The CEO Sessions" by Jimmy Allen - Referenced as a resource for leaders seeking unfiltered insight on fighting business drift and staying fast, focused, and human at scale.

Articles & Papers

"How to Clone a Mammoth" by Beth Shapiro - Mentioned as a foundational text in the field of de-extinction, highlighting the author's expertise in ancient DNA.

People

Ben Lamm - Co-founder and CEO of Colossal Biosciences, discussed as the driving force behind de-extinction projects like the dire wolf and woolly mammoth.
Bob Safian - Host of Rapid Response, featured as the interviewer for Ben Lamm.
Beth Shapiro - Chief Science Officer at Colossal Biosciences, noted as a former critic turned key scientific mind within the company.
George Church - Geneticist at Harvard, identified as a pioneer in synthetic biology and a key advisor to Ben Lamm.
Jimmy Allen - Executive Advisor, author of "Founders Mentality: The CEO Sessions."
Tom Gilbert - Mentioned as one of the top scientific minds involved with Colossal Biosciences.
Andrew Pask - Mentioned as one of the top scientific minds involved with Colossal Biosciences.
Emily Warden - Owner of Emily Warden Designs, featured as a Capital One business customer.
Mike Nicholas - Co-founder of Anset Uncle's, featured as a Capital One business customer.

Organizations & Institutions

Colossal Biosciences - Company focused on de-extinction and species preservation through genetic engineering.
Harvard - Institution where George Church is a geneticist.
Project Management Institute (PMI) - Organization offering resources for teams to collaborate and deliver results.
Capital One - Financial institution providing business credit cards and services.
Anset Uncle's - Plant-based restaurant and community space.
Emily Warden Designs - Handcrafted fine jewelry store.
Rapid Response - Podcast series, host of the episode featuring Ben Lamm.
American Humane Society - Organization that certifies and monitors animal welfare practices.
AZA (Association of Zoos and Aquariums) - Partner zoos collaborating on research for species preservation.
Baylor College of Medicine - Institution where Dr. Pauling is conducting research on elephant herpes virus.

Websites & Online Resources

rapidresponseshow.com - Website for the Rapid Response podcast.
rippling.com/scale - Website for Rippling, offering unified HR, IT, and finance platforms.
freshworks.com - Website for Freshworks, providing service software.
pmi.org - Website for Project Management Institute.
capitalone.com/businesscards - Website for Capital One business credit cards.

Other Resources

Dire Wolf - Extinct wolf species, the subject of a de-extinction project by Colossal Biosciences.
Woolly Mammoth - Extinct mammal, a de-extinction project pursued by Colossal Biosciences.
Tasmanian Tiger - Extinct marsupial, a de-extinction project pursued by Colossal Biosciences.
Dodo - Extinct bird, a de-extinction project pursued by Colossal Biosciences.
Somatic Cell Nuclear Transfer (SCNT) - Cloning process used in de-extinction efforts.
Functional De-extinction - The process of genetically engineering existing species to express traits of extinct ones.
Jurassic Park - Film franchise, used as an analogy for de-extinction processes.
Game of Thrones - Television series, mentioned in relation to the popular understanding of dire wolves.
Dungeons and Dragons - Game, mentioned in relation to the popular understanding of dire wolves.
Biodiversity Credits - Market mechanism for valuing the preservation of species.
Carbon Credits - Market mechanism for valuing carbon sequestration.
Synthetic Biology - Field of biology focused on engineering biological systems.
Directed Evolution - Process of guiding the evolution of biological molecules or systems.
CRISPR - Gene editing technology.
AI (Artificial Intelligence) - Technology used in genetic analysis and engineering.
Form Bio - Computational biology platform spun out from Colossal Biosciences.
Breaking - Company spun out from Colossal Biosciences focused on plastic degradation.
Assisted Reproductive Technologies (ART) - Technologies used to aid reproduction.
Northern White Rhino - Critically endangered subspecies, Colossal Biosciences is the exclusive genetic rescue partner.
Red Wolf - Endangered wolf species, Colossal Biosciences has cloned more red wolves than dire wolves.
Exogenous Development (ExoDev) - Artificial womb technology being developed by Colossal Biosciences.
EHV (Elephant Herpes Virus) - Disease affecting elephants and potentially mammoths.
Human IVF (In Vitro Fertilization) - Medical procedure where Colossal's technologies might have applications.
Neanderthal - Extinct human species, Colossal Biosciences has stated they will not work on them.