There is a growing appetite in Silicon Valley for the legally dubious and ethically tainted practice of embryo editing.
It would work like this: Companies would use an existing gene-editing technology called Crispr to cut out unwanted traits from the DNA of embryos, sperm or eggs.
Two startups in particular made headlines last month for their work in this area. Preventive is a California-based startup backed by Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and his husband. The startup has reportedly already identified a couple interested in using its services, but the company denies that claim.
Then there’s New York-based Manhattan Genomics, co-founded by tech investor and former recipient of antichrist-lecturer Peter Thiel’s fellowship, which gives people money to drop out of college and start businesses.
There is one small hiccup, however. This practice, which has been the subject of interest from new investors, is prohibited by law in the United States.
Not only would these startups be prevented from editing embryos within the United States, but they would also face federal restrictions on research and development in an effort to improve the technology. Privately, they can do whatever research they want but, per FDA policy, they cannot spend any federal funds on embryo-editing research and cannot obtain clinical approval to use the edited embryos.
According to Arthur Caplan, professor of bioethics at New York University, this does not leave much scope for these companies.
“It’s very easy for the government to tie private activities to government funding, because they’ll say things like, ‘Well, you used a DNA sequencer, and it was built with NIH money, so you can’t use it,'” Caplan told Gizmodo.
But, undoubtedly, there are flaws. These companies can set up their headquarters in the United States, and theoretically can even do business with American couples, as long as the embryo-editing and implantation takes place in another country where the laws are on their side.
There are currently no countries that explicitly permit and regulate hereditary fetal gene editing, also known as fetal gene editing that results in a real child, but there are countries that are relatively more favorable towards the practice than the United States and a group of other countries that do not have any laws explicitly regulating it.
Many countries such as China and the United Kingdom allow embryo editing for research but strictly prohibit it for reproductive purposes. In 2018, China was host to the only documented example of edited embryos. The scientist who produced the embryos was sentenced to three years in prison, but since last year he has gone back to work researching embryo gene editing. In a twist straight from the book, he is also the ex-boyfriend of researcher Kathy Tye, the Thiel partner who co-founded Manhattan Genomics.
Naturally, both startups are looking for the right place for such an operation. According to the Wall Street Journal, Preventive is considering deploying its experiments in the United Arab Emirates, while Manhattan Genomics plans to conduct its trials in Honduras.
Even though the current US legal and ethical framework is against this practice, once the industry starts to grow in Silicon Valley, and scientific advances start to grow and money starts to flow in, it may turn in its favor.
In the report, the WSJ claimed that Armstrong, who supports Prevent, had planned to take the startups private and shock the world by unveiling a healthy baby that came from a genetically engineered embryo. However, a spokesman for Armstrong denied that he would ever recommend that mode of operation for Preventive, and said that he agreed that the plan was a bad idea.
The stated goal of both these startups and many other emerging startups is to eliminate debilitating genetic diseases like sickle cell. If they succeed in that goal, it could help humanity eliminate many diseases, and even give babies a boost to the immune systems of a new generation in general.
But there are many problems. There is a risk that comes with every gene editing. Even though the technology has improved a lot, it is still quite delicate. Edits can still cause off-target effects that can create even bigger problems than the ones they were trying to eradicate.
“You don’t want to kill or mutilate a child just because you were hoping to make him a better violinist,” Caplan said.
The second barrier is access. Caplan points out that embryo gene editing is unlikely to be a cheap and easy process. So imagine what a moral and social disaster it would be if the power to create super babies was only available to a small elite group.
The third is that this practice, no matter how many times those in charge of it claim that it will be used only to prevent life-threatening diseases, could still very easily be the first step on the road to eugenics.
“The way to sell it to the world is to prevent disease or improve genetic diseases, and show that you can do that. Then you start opening up the door to ‘How do I start improving my kids,’ which of course is the goal of the rich out there, they’ve told you this thousands of times,” Caplan said. “Eugenics runs very strongly in Silicon Valley.”