Gautam Mukunda calls for DNA screening to prevent AI-driven biological threats

The United States has spent decades treating biosecurity as a slow-moving policy problem. Artificial intelligence just made it a fast-moving one. Gautam Mukunda, writing for Bloomberg on September 17, 2026, argues that AI has fundamentally changed the calculus around biological risk. His core demand is straightforward: make screening of synthesized DNA orders mandatory, not optional. AI tools now allow people without advanced biology training to design genetic sequences capable of producing harmful pathogens and toxins. Why voluntary guidelines are not cutting it For years, the US biosecurity framework around DNA synthesis has relied on companies voluntarily screening orders against databases of known dangerous sequences. A Microsoft-led study released in October 2025 found that AI-generated protein variants could design toxins capable of evading commercial DNA screening tools entirely. Detection rates for certain AI-designed sequences fell to as low as 32%, meaning roughly two in three dangerous designs slipped through undetected. Industry leaders are already on board In June 2026, an open letter signed by leaders from prominent AI companies, including OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and Go...