Colossal CEO Ben Lamm Revived Dire Wolves, Making Major Strides in Bringing Back Extinct Animals

A world where extinct animals are brought back for the betterment of both the planet and mankind may seem like science fiction — but Colossal Biosciences has made great strides toward making the fascinating concept a reality!

Billionaire CEO Ben Lamm, the visionary who cofounded Colossal with Harvard University geneticist George Church, says, “By 2050, research from the U.N. predicts that there is the chance that nearly half the species in the world could be extinct.”

“That could have a really big impact on humanity’s capacity to grow food, find drinkable water and continue living as we have. So, someone needs to solve for that.”

He argues that “we can’t wait until 2050 to figure out the problem of extinction. We need to start today.”

Colossal, which employs 130 scientists, has already made significant headway since it was established in 2021. Last year, the company announced they’d successfully created three dire wolf pups — the first of their species to walk the earth in over 12,000 years!

Relying on genetic engineering and preserved DNA, Colossal’s scientists rewrote the genetic code of the common gray wolf to match the dire wolf genome — and surrogate mother dogs successfully carried to term the trio of pups named Romulus, Remus and Khaleesi.

Colossal also says they’re on track to revive other species within the next five to 10 years.

“Listen, most science sounds outlandish when people first hear about it,” Lamm explains. “Imagine if someone in 1980 told you that in the future, everything you do would happen on a hand-held phone you carry in your pocket. People would have thought you were nuts.

“But the people making cell phone technology like the iPad, were working on that early computing technology then.”

In addition to the dire wolf revival, Colossal stunned the scientific community in 2025 by revealing they had copied woolly mammoth DNA to create a woolly mouse, a tiny rodent with the long, golden coat and the accelerated fat metabolism of the ancient animal.

The unusual critter is considered a proof of concept for Colossal’s team, which has designs of de-extincting the large-tusked woolly mammoth.

Some of the additional animals that Colossal is working on bringing back are the flightless dodo bird, and the thylacine, also known as the Tasmanian tiger.

“We are just getting started. As we announce more species, take on more projects and build more technology, we will get faster and better at the entire process of de-extinction,” Lamm says.

Late last year, legendary NFL quarterback Tom Brady shared that Colossal, which he has invested in, cloned his late pooch Lua from a blood sample to create the genetically identical pit bull mix Junie.

The news came as Colossal announced its acquisition of Viagen Pets & Equine, the company that cloned Barbra Streisand’s Coton de Tulear Samantha and Paris Hilton’s chihuahua Diamond Baby.

Brady says, “I am excited how Colossal and Viagen’s tech together can help both families losing their beloved pets, while helping to save endangered species.”

Colossal anticipates that their technology can support biodiversity and ultimately be used to prevent existing animals at risk from slipping into extinction.

Lamm notes that “2050 is right around the corner, and we need to start to develop the solutions now that will help us ensure it’s not a crisis point for humanity. Things can get better. But we need to start today for the solutions we will need tomorrow.”