AI vs. Evolution: Who Designs Life Better?
Move over Darwin, AI just did in minutes what nature would have needed half a billion years to accomplish...
Researchers at EvolutionaryScale used an AI model called ESM3 to create esmGFP, a fluorescent protein that doesn’t exist in nature. Unlike traditional protein engineering, which modifies existing structures, ESM3 generates novel proteins by predicting sequences beyond what evolution has explored.
The result? A protein that’s only 58% similar to its closest natural counterpart, with 96 unique mutations that would have taken nature eons to develop.
By training on 2.78 billion natural proteins, ESM3 can fill in missing protein sequences much like a predictive text model. This method sidesteps the slow, trial-and-error nature of evolution, accelerating the discovery of new drugs, materials, and biological tools.
If AI can create new proteins faster and smarter than evolution, what are the ethical and practical implications? Should we embrace AI-driven bioengineering, or tread carefully before rewriting nature’s playbook?
Read the full article on Live Science.
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