Colossal Biosciences Inc, a Dallas-based biotech firm with a $10 billion valuation, has announced a new breakthrough in its audacious mission to resurrect extinct animals.
The company said Monday it’s created three dire wolves, a species popularised by fantasy series Game of Thrones but not seen on Earth in over 12,000 years. Colossal first gained fame in 2022 when it announced its goal to bring the woolly mammoth back to life – though it’s only so far managed to create a woolly mouse. The company has pitched its gene-editing technology as not just a way to bring back prehistoric wonders, but also develop lucrative applications in health and biodiversity.
Colossal said its latest development is the births of 80-pound brothers Remus and Romulus and the younger female Khaleesi (named for a popular character in GoT). The pups live in a secret US location and eat beef, deer and horse meat along with a specially formulated kibble. The brothers are about 20 to 25% bigger than their closest living relative, a gray wolf, would be at their age. Colossal estimates they’ll weigh 140 pounds when fully grown. “If we are successful, we’re building technologies that can help human health care and conservation,” Colossal CEO Ben Lamm said.
The company’s focus on bringing back long-dead animals, including the dodo and Tasmanian tiger, has drawn skepticism from paleo-geneticists and the very idea has raised questions about the ethics of manipulating the natural world. This, however, has not put off backers. Motivational speaker Tony Robbins and Paris Hilton, among others, are already getting returns in the form of equity from Colossal’s two spinoffs.
Colossal said it’s also cloned and birthed two litters of red wolves, the most endangered wolf.