In 2018, when the world found out a Chinese scientist had edited the genes of twin baby girls, the reaction was instant and loud: absolutely not. Scientists called it reckless. Ethicists called it unethical. Governments rushed to reinforce bans. And He Jiankui, the scientist behind the experiment, was sentenced to prison in China for violating medical regulations.

When people talk about the future of artificial intelligence, the loudest voices often come from opposite ends of a spectrum: unshakable optimists and doomsday prophets. But in a forecast like AI 2027 , what we’re given isn’t hype or horror, it’s foresight grounded in a deep understanding of how systems evolve, how capabilities scale, and most importantly, how institutions react under pressure. The report doesn’t make a prediction.

The first time I saw real snow, I panicked. Not because it was cold, my body knew cold better than breath, but because it was finally real. It wasn’t the polymeric white fluff they sprayed from ceiling nozzles to “simulate seasonal cues” inside the dome. This was actual ice crystal, drifting from a slate sky outside the controlled perimeter, collecting in stillness on a field of grasses no longer extinct.

Romulus, Remus, and Khaleesi were born in Texas, but their story stretches back more than 12,000 years. They’re not myths or simulations or prototypes in a pitch deck. They are real. Living, breathing, healthy pups, engineered from ancient genetic blueprints to bring back an apex predator the world hasn’t seen since the Ice Age.

I wake to my phone vibrating angrily on the nightstand. 6:30 AM. A red notification pulses on the screen: “DELIVERY FAILED.” My stomach twists. Today was the day OncoCure was due, my daughter Maya’s next dose of the therapy that keeps her cancer at bay. For the past year, a monthly vial of this miracle drug has arrived at our doorstep like clockwork. And why not?

The story of American innovation has always hinged on a singular question: When the moment comes, will we move with intention, or hesitate until it’s too late? On April 8th, 2025, the National Security Commission on Emerging Biotechnology (NSCEB) dropped its final report. A 195-page beast of a document. Dense, detailed, and urgent. The kind of thing Washington usually takes months to digest, if it bothers to read it at all. But this time?

1. The Frog in the Freezer The first time I saw a wood frog thaw back to life, I nearly dropped the microscope. It was a field lab in Fairbanks, Alaska. A plastic shoebox full of peat moss, a digital thermometer sunk in the dirt, and a small, unremarkable amphibian with a faint rust stripe down its side— Rana sylvatica . I was an undergrad tagging along on a grad student’s project.

There’s a quiet revolution underway in how we think about global power. In the 20th century, alliances were built on the movement of oil, steel, and troops. In the 21st century, they’re being rebuilt on the movement of cells, code, and biological knowledge. This isn’t a metaphorical shift. It’s literal.

This is a guest post from Evan Peikon, who publishes Decoding Biology, a substack about computational biology, biosensor development and analytics, and network biology. He’s a prolific writer, founder, and scientist, and well worth following along. Science today looks very different than it once did.

My name’s Cameron Wells, and if you’d told me five years ago I’d be running a fermentation line in a biomanufacturing facility outside Bloomington, Indiana, I would’ve laughed you out of the barracks. Back then, I was an Airman First Class in the 3rd Medical Support Squadron, stationed at Travis. Logistics. Paperwork. Syringe kits.

If there’s one chapter in the National Security Commission on Emerging Biotechnology’s final report that lays bare the disconnect between potential and preparedness, it’s Chapter 5. The message is as critical as it is uncomfortable: we are not ready. Not ready to govern the biotechnology age, not ready to build it at scale, and not ready to defend our position in it. That’s not a reflection of a lack of interest or ambition.