“Colossal”, the all-new start-up which focuses on bio-conservation and environment protection, has landed a new deal to develop a scientifically sound process to resurrect the woolly mammoths. This bioscience-based firm was founded by geneticist George Church, who is also a Professor at Harvard. It is backed by the entrepreneur Ben Lamm.
Colossal is pioneering one of their most innovative and landmark projects—the “de-extinction” of the woolly mammoth in an attempt to show that the damage done to the environment by Mankind can be reversed. For this project, they have got funding worth 15 million USD when they closed a deal on September 13th, led by Thomas Tull, the Head of Legendary Pictures, an American movie production company.
This start-up is also backed by Bitcoin moguls Tim Draper and the Winklevoss twins. Peter Diamandis (from Bold Capital), Jim Breyer (Breyer Capital), and the uber-famous self-help specialist Tony Robbins—are all a part of this project.
The last of the woolly mammoths roamed this earth around 10,500 years ago. They died towards the end of the last Ice Age around 3,700 years ago, mostly due to the rising sea level. These were declared extinct by George Cuvier in the 18th century.
Now, Colossal is claiming that if the team’s research goes well and there are no setbacks, then they hope to produce the calf of a woolly mammoth in as little as six years’ time. This news has sent the entire community of science enthusiasts into a state of frenzy. Professor Church and the other researchers are devising methods to alter the genetic configuration of the endangered Asian elephants. Test-tube embryos, created in vitro using artificial processes, will be implanted into the wombs of these animals to grow mammoths that will be immensely adaptive towards cold, just like the woolly mammoths.
This news has shocked the internet as soon as it broke, and now, with the multimillion-dollar grant, there’s no stopping Church and his team. But what does the future hold for “Colossal”? That remains to be seen.
