When the COVID-19 pandemic began in 2020, researchers announced they had created the first living robot.
These so-called “xenobots” are programmable organisms created from the stem cells of African clawed frog embryos — or Xenopus laevis. Just two years later, researchers announced that xenobots were spontaneously reproducing. This shocking and concerning news was not widely covered except by scientific publications and a social media post by Joe Rogan. Rather than solely leaving important moral and ethical implications such as this one to scientists, we need to bring them into the public discourse.
Xenobots are tiny living organisms that can walk, swim, survive for weeks, and self-heal even when cut in half. The cells were cultured in saltwater and independently clumped together and developed cilia, which allow them to move by propelling themselves. They use their movement and work together to make random piles of particles in their environment. While xenobots have no brain or digestive system, studies from Tufts University, Harvard University, and the University of Vermont show that these living organisms can be programmed like robots. First, to corral other cells, but other possible applications exist as well. Researchers hope that one day the xenobots will be useful for finding cancer cells in the human body, delivering medicine to specific parts of the body, eliminating radioactive waste, or collecting microplastics in the ocean.
Artificial intelligence was used to predict what shapes of xenobots would be most efficient for their gathering behavior. The supercomputer predicted that a C-shape, similar to the shape of the Pac-Man video game character, would be most efficient. When placed with loose stem cells, the xenobots used this gathering behavior to do something never seen before: They made new xenobots, successfully creating copies of the original xenobot from the piles of collected stem cells. This type of “kinetic self-replication” is a new discovery in living organisms.
The discovery that these xenobots would spontaneously self-replicate uncovered the new potential for benefit to humankind but also new ethical considerations for evolutionary biology. Indeed, the application for such research can reach far beyond the human imagination, even at this advanced stage. If past precedence of scientific discoveries suggests anything, it is that leaving it up to our imagination will have important moral and societal ramifications.
The lines between what we once would have considered science fiction and real life are blurring faster than we can even imagine. The line between technology that helps humanity thrive and that which can change humanity on a fundamental level can be difficult to monitor. Amid a war in Ukraine, a 40-year high in inflation, and a looming recession, this unexpected discovery is not the top matter that the average person discusses at the kitchen table. Yet, as technology and scientific discovery continue to advance rapidly, we must be aware of how our world is changing via scientific discovery. And we must ensure policymakers are able to understand the implications of its use and establish a framework for ethical boundaries.
Dismissing such fundamental concerns as doomsday predictions and Dr. Frankenstein science fiction is a mistake. Scientific advancement and the pursuit of technology cannot be the final arbiter of what we will accept in our society. Given the promises and the pitfalls of technology, it is we who must assume the role of monitoring these often blurred lines. Technology will continue to progress and for the sake of our advancement, it should. But we, the people, need to be having these discussions now. We must ensure policymakers engage, listen, and lead. We must also be a leader in important international discussions lest we get left behind.
At the American Cornerstone Institute, we believe this conversation must occur at the intersection of religion, science and technology, and culture. Leadership in thought and action is required to ensure there is a powerful voice for doing what’s right in this ever-evolving arena. And while beneficial discoveries can come from the pursuit of knowledge, we must ensure that those in pursuit of these discoveries are operating under a framework that puts God at the center of our lives.
Remember, once Pandora’s box is opened, the consequences cannot be contained.
Ben Carson is the founder and chairman of the American Cornerstone Institute and the former Secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
