Tech and Science Daily | The Standard

For episode five of Brave New World, Evgeny is joined by Ben Lamm, CEO and co-founder of Colossal Biosciences - the company working on de-extinction and species preservation, including its flagship woolly mammoth project. Together, they explore what “bringing back” an extinct species actually means in practice: rebuilding fragmented ancient DNA, comparing it to a close living relative (the Asian elephant), and using gene editing to reintroduce key traits like cold tolerance - before creating embryos that could one day be carried by a surrogate or, eventually, an artificial womb.
Ben also explains why the mammoth has become Colossal’s defining project - from public fascination and unusually strong samples preserved in permafrost, to the potential conservation upside. The conversation dives into how the same tools can support living species too: developing new reproductive technologies, using AI and drones to understand elephant behaviour, and tackling threats like EEHV, a disease that kills young elephants. Along the way, they discuss Colossal’s viral moments - including the woolly mouse and the dire wolf - as well as the ethical lines the company says it won’t cross.
This episode was produced by Message Heard and The Standard.
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Alan Leer is in the host seat in London, watching the Sun kick off like it pays rent here — a severe space-weather event has operators on satellite-watch and grid-watch. Back on the ground, Brick Lane’s Truman Brewery row turns into the most modern London argument imaginable: do we prioritise homes, or the server farms that keep the city’s digital heartbeat going? Meanwhile, the EU moves toward forcing “high-risk” suppliers out of critical infrastructure and Microsoft does yet another emergency Windows fix. More news over at standard.co.uk — and follow for your weekday hit of tech and science, made for the commute. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Alan Leer on the mic from London with a security-flavoured tech-and-science roundup: the government green-lights China’s mega-embassy by the Tower with data-cable nerves in the background, OpenAI makes ChatGPT guess who’s under 18, and researchers remind us quantum computers aren’t magically “unhackable” — they’re just expensive and complicated. Plus, Riot’s 2XKO finally lands on console, and there’s a quick iPhone update PSA for anyone still sulking about the new look. More news over at Standard.co.uk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Today on Tech and Science Daily from The Standard, Alan Leer is on the Tube signal beat as TfL’s 4G and 5G rollout in the London Underground reaches the halfway mark. Then we head skyward, with a UCL-led team spotting a strange iron “bar” hidden inside the Ring Nebula.
Also on the slate: the BBC is reportedly lining up YouTube-first content to win over younger viewers, RuneScape turns 25 with a wave of player-first changes, and Samsung might’ve accidentally revealed more than it meant to about the Galaxy S26 lineup.
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Today on Tech and Science Daily from The Standard, Alan Leer coversTfL’s ticketing tech getting a major operational change, UCL robots learning to react to sound in real time, and we round up UK robotics policy, AMD’s CES reveals, a Final Fantasy VII update, and the latest Android 16 beta fixes. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.