Fact check: Reviving the extinct dire wolf

1. Summary of the results

Colossal Biosciences has created three wolf pups named Romulus, Remus, and Khaleesi through genetic engineering ^[1]. The pups were born in October 2024 and January 2025 and are being kept in a secure 2,000-acre facility ^[2]. The company used CRISPR technology to edit 20 genes in gray wolves using ancient DNA from a 13,000-year-old tooth and a 72,000-year-old skull ^{[3] [4]}. The resulting animals are expected to be larger than modern gray wolves, weighing around 68 kilograms and reaching 1.8 meters in length ^[1].

2. Missing context/alternative viewpoints

The most crucial missing context is that these animals are not true dire wolves, but rather genetically modified gray wolves. They are 99.9% gray wolf with only specific dire wolf traits ^[3]. Experts like Jeremy Austin argue that the company has essentially produced white gray wolves rather than reviving an extinct species ^[5]. The pups exhibit some dire wolf characteristics such as dense, pale coats and larger size ^[4], but independent scientists caution against calling this a true species revival ^[1].

3. Potential misinformation/bias in the original statement

The term "reviving" is potentially misleading, as it suggests a complete resurrection of the extinct species. Several parties have different stakes in this narrative:

• Colossal Biosciences benefits from promoting this as the "world's first de-extincted animal" ^[6], which could attract more investment and publicity for their work.
• Scientific community maintains a more measured perspective, with experts like Love Dalén acknowledging it as a significant achievement while being clear about its limitations ^[6].
• Media outlets might benefit from sensationalizing the achievement as a complete "revival" rather than a genetic modification project.

The animals will remain in captivity ^[4], suggesting this is more of a scientific experiment than a true species restoration project.