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The Real Risk of AI-Designed Viruses

The Insider
October 29, 2026

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Episode Notes:

Nicole sits down with Jason Kaelber, a structural virologist and professor at Rutgers whose lab works on virus detection, design, and virus-inspired therapeutics. They discuss his recent article on defending against AI-designed viruses and why the danger is real without being the civilization-ending threat some imagine. Kaelber explains where the biological risk from AI actually originates, why much of the current safety debate is aimed at the wrong targets, and what a practical path between alarmism and dismissiveness would require.

Image: NIAID via Wikimedia Commons