Synthetic biology will revolutionize how we define family, how we identify disease and treat aging, where we make our homes, and how we nourish ourselves. This fast-growing field - which uses computers to modify or rewrite genetic code - has created revolutionary, groundbreaking solutions such as the mRNA COVID vaccines, IVF, and lab-grown hamburger that tastes like the real thing.
It gives us options to deal with existential threats: climate change, food insecurity, and access to fuel. But there are significant risks.