From mammoths to dodos: Can extinction be reversed? Dubai summit told

What once belonged firmly to the realm of ‘Jurassic Park’ fantasy is edging closer to scientific reality and Dubai wants a front-row seat.

At the World Governments Summit, an audience of policymakers, futurists and technologists leaned forward as Ben Lamm, co-founder and CEO of US biotech firm Colossal Biosciences, laid out what he cheerfully called one of humanity’s biggest “moonshots”: bringing extinct species such as the woolly mammoth and the dodo back to life.

Speaking at a session titled: ‘Can governments keep up with human imagination?’, Lamm framed de-extinction not as a stunt, but as a response to what scientists increasingly describe as an existential biodiversity crisis. If current trends continue, he warned, the planet could lose up to 50 per cent of its biodiversity within the next 25 years.

The idea, Lamm said, took hold after an early conversation with Harvard geneticist George Church – often dubbed the “father of synthetic biology”, who convinced him that the tools to attempt de-extinction already exist.
“I felt it was a true opportunity to change the world. I was pretty hooked from day one,” Lamm said.

Colossal, founded in 2021, has attracted global attention and controversy with its ambition to resurrect extinct animals using advanced genome engineering, AI modelling and reproductive biology. Global media have tracked the company’s progress closely over the past two years, questioning whether the effort is visionary conservation or high-tech hubris.

Lamm argues it is firmly the former.

“We as humanity need moonshots,” he said, pointing out that the technologies being developed for mammoths and dodos are already delivering results for living species. Colossal now works with around 75 global conservation partners. High-profile investors include Tom Brady, Paris Hilton and YouTube star MrBeast.

One breakthrough he highlighted is a vaccine for elephant endotheliotropic herpesvirus (EEHV) – the leading cause of death in young elephants, which is already being administered and showing promising resistance levels.

“That one innovation will save more elephants than all elephant conservation efforts combined across history,” he said.

Dubai’s role in this futuristic push was also revealed at the summit.
Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defence of the UAE, on Tuesday announced the launch of the Life and Biodiversity Laboratory developed in collaboration with Colossal.

According to Lamm, the lab will feature ‘bio vault’ – effectively a modern-day Noah’s Ark – at the Museum of the Future. The facility would cryogenically store cells, tissues, embryos, and genetic material from endangered species, particularly from the region.

Unlike traditional seed vaults, the proposed Dubai bio vault would function as a living laboratory, complete with genomic sequencing, AI-driven data modelling and public education spaces.
“We need a backup plan for life,” Lamm said, “but not hidden away in a cold, dark corner.”

The science is already accelerating. Colossal has created so-called “woolly mice” – engineered to express mammoth-like traits and recently announced the birth of three dire wolf puppies using ancient DNA recovered from fossils. “We took a 73,000-year-old skull and a 12,000-year-old tooth, carried out extensive computational analysis, and produced puppies – two males, Romulus and Remus, and a female, Khaleesi.”

“Yes! 100 per cent,” Lamm said when asked if a woolly mammoth could exist within a few years.

“I think of it as the moon-landing moment for biology.”

He added that the first Dubai bio vault is expected to open by 2027 or sooner.