Listen to this postKey Takeaways In a new study, researchers showed that they could use AI to design 16 functioning viruses not found in nature. For the first time, researchers have tapped into AI to design brand-new viruses, according to a new report from The New York Times. How the AI worksThe study focused on an AI model called Evo, which is like ChatGPT. They started with viruses because their genetic instructions are much smaller and simpler than ours. After studying Phi X-174 and related viruses, Evo was asked to create its own versions.