Ben Lamm to Discuss AI-Driven De-Extinction at TechCrunch Disrupt 2026

The session, titled "Can We Engineer Nature’s Comeback?," moves beyond the headlines of de-extinction to address the profound ethical and technical challenges of manipulating living systems. Lamm, a serial entrepreneur behind companies like Hypergiant and Chaotic Moon, has pivoted his focus to applying computational biology to biodiversity. His work at Colossal sits at the center of a growing divide: is engineering nature a necessary tool for environmental resilience, or a dangerous distraction from protecting existing ecosystems?

TechCrunch Disrupt 2026, held October 13–15 at Moscone West in San Francisco, will host this dialogue as part of its broader look at how AI is migrating from digital infrastructure into the natural world. For founders and researchers, the discussion serves as a case study in high-stakes innovation. Lamm’s perspective offers a look at the responsibilities of building at the intersection of deep tech and life sciences, where the consequences of failure or success extend far beyond the laboratory walls.