‘Unsettling’ bid to bring dodo back to life

published 1 February 2023

Scientists are trying to bring the dodo back to life after it went extinct 361 years ago. Researchers at Colossal Biosciences, a US gene-editing firm, said they will “de-extinct” the flightless bird in a new $150m project. The project, described as “unsettling” by the Financial Times, will see scientists mine the dodo genome for key traits that they believe they can effectively reassemble within the body of a living relative. The company, Colossal Biosciences, has already embarked on projects to revive the woolly mammoth and the thylacine.

Emma Watson reads Mein Kampf in deepfake hoax

A company has been forced to introduce safeguards after a deepfake audio recording of the actress Emma Watson reading Mein Kampf by Adolf Hitler was released. In the latest misuse of AI technology, hoaxers also used the voice-cloning technology to produce fake clips of Sir Alec Guinness and President Biden making sexist and transphobic comments, and Sir David Attenborough being racist. The firm, ElevenLabs, has pledged to tackle abuse of its voice-cloning technology, said The Times.

World’s richest dog inherited £64m fortune

The world’s richest dog “lives the life of an A-list celebrity” in the former home of Madonna, reported the Daily Star. The story of Gunther VI, a German shepherd, set to be featured in the upcoming documentary Gunther’s Millions, which will reveal that Gunther inherited the £64.9m ($80m) fortune of countess Karlotta Liebenstein. “The story sounds bonkers,” said the director. “So, naturally we were intrigued right from the start.”