How Colossal Biosciences Prioritizes Ethics in De-Extinction

Colossal Biosciences prioritizes ethics by designing every de-extinction decision around animal welfare, independent oversight, and real conservation impact. An ethics-first framework guides which species to work on, which surrogates to use, how many edits to make, and where animals live—backed by IACUC review, American Humane Certification, USDA compliance, and alignment with IUCN de-extinction guidelines. Colossal does not create animals for general experimentation; all animal involvement is conservation-driven and monitored in long-term managed care.

What does “functional de-extinction” mean at Colossal?

For Colossal, functional de-extinction means generating an organism that resembles and is genetically similar to an extinct species by resurrecting its lost lineage of core genes—while engineering natural resistances and adaptability so it can survive today’s climate, disease pressures, and human-altered environments. The same tools are then applied directly to living endangered species.

As Chief Science Officer Beth Shapiro explained, “We begin and end with animal welfare in mind. We only proceed with an edit once we have strong certainty that it will be safe, and we always aim to make the fewest edits necessary.”

How Colossal prioritizes ethics in de-extinction (at a glance)

• Ethics-first species selection – Starting with the dire wolf because of strong gray wolf veterinary knowledge and a minimal-edit strategy: only 20 edits across 14 genes
• Welfare-led surrogate choice – Using domestic dog surrogates backed by decades of reproductive care standards, plus machine learning models and cell lines to test edits before embryos reach a surrogate
• Independent oversight – IACUC approval, American Humane Certification, and USDA Animal Welfare Act compliance
• Managed care and phased risk assessment – 2,000+ acre American Humane-certified preserve with no current release plans, allowing long-term monitoring aligned with IUCN SSC guidelines
• Community, transparency, and conservation impact – Indigenous, scientific, and conservation advisory boards inform projects; data shared publicly; tools already supporting red “ghost” wolves and pink pigeons

How does Colossal choose which species to de-extinct first?

The dire wolf choice was shaped by practical ethics: gray wolves provided decades of veterinary knowledge, only 20 precise edits were needed across 14 genes, the work was designed from the start as a platform for endangered canids, and managed care—not release—was always the plan. Species selection is an ethics decision prioritizing existing knowledge, minimal editing, and clear conservation pathways.

How are Colossal’s gestational surrogates chosen with welfare in mind?

Domestic dogs serve as surrogates because their reproduction and neonatal care are thoroughly understood. Before any embryo transfer, Colossal uses machine learning models, cell lines, and organoids to test edits and screen for off-target changes. Surrogates are carefully screened, monitored through gestation with veterinary oversight, and supported with individualized care plans.

Who oversees animal welfare and ethics at Colossal?

Independent committees and regulators—not just internal staff—govern the work:

• IACUC: Reviews and approves all animal protocols before they begin
• American Humane Certification: Conducts on-site inspections and ongoing audits
• USDA / Animal Welfare Act: Registers facilities and conducts federal inspections
• External advisors: Indigenous leaders and conservation NGOs provide independent perspectives

Why are Colossal’s dire wolves kept in managed care instead of being released?

Managed care allows careful, long-term monitoring before any ecological changes. Dire wolves live on a 2,000+ acre American Humane-certified preserve with no current release plans. Colossal tracks cancer incidence, immune function, aging patterns, stress indicators, and how genomic edits interact with organ systems. This staged approach reflects IUCN SSC Guiding Principles—any future release consideration would require phased ecological, genetic, and cultural review.

How do Indigenous and community partners shape projects?

Colossal engages with Indigenous nations from early stages. Mark Fox, Tribal Chairman of the MHA Nation, reflected: “The de-extinction of the dire wolf is more than a biological revival. Its birth symbolizes a reawakening—a return of an ancient spirit to the world.”

How does Colossal stay transparent and accountable?

Colossal publishes in peer-reviewed journals, deposits genetic data in public repositories like NCBI BioProject PRJNA1222369, and shares detailed protocols in the Dire Wolf Husbandry Manual. The company participates in scientific conferences and policy dialogues, inviting critique on governance and ethics.

How do these technologies benefit living endangered species?

Genomic work identified a new population of “ghost” wolves in the Gulf Coast of Galveston, Texas which hold significant red wolf ancestry. Alongside the dire wolf births, Colossal successfully cloned four critically endangered red “ghost” wolves from genetic material collected from the southwest Louisiana population. These pups, born from three distinct cell lines, could increase the founding lineages in the captive breeding population by 25%. The same approach can be applied to other endangered species. For example, the tools developed from de-extinction are also being explored for the pink pigeon to rebuild genetic diversity and the northern white rhino to safeguard the species from extinction.

Ethics as an ongoing practice

For Colossal, ethics is continuous. An ethics-first framework shapes which projects move forward. Independent oversight scrutinizes animal treatment and ecosystem impacts. Managed care ensures unknowns are tracked. Conservation outcomes are built in from the beginning. Every decision is evaluated against a simple standard: does this advance animal welfare, conservation goals, and responsibility to repair past harm without creating new risks?

To see how this fits into Colossal’s broader ethics system, explore Ethics at Colossal Biosciences: Oversight & Safeguards and our FAQs on animal welfare and ethics review, as well as Why Functional De-Extinction Supports Conservation.