Samuel King discusses AI-designed viral blueprints

Stanford University PhD student Samuel King used a generative AI model in 2025 to propose genetic blueprints for microscopic viruses. His work offers a preliminary answer to whether AI can design new life forms, but it does not yet constitute AI-generated life. The distinction places the research at the stage of proposing viral genetic designs rather than demonstrating the broader possibility of creating life with AI.

King, a bioengineering PhD candidate affiliated with Stanford University/Arc Institute, discussed the research with AI reporter James O’Donnell in a conversation recorded on Friday, October 16, 2026. The discussion covered his work, his recognition among MIT Technology Review’s Innovators Under 35 and new ways of seeing biology, with AI-generated life presented as a possible next step.