Hear how AI can engineer nature’s comeback at TechCrunch Disrupt 2026

Not long ago, bringing an extinct species back to life belonged to sciencefiction. Today, it’s the mission of a billion-dollar startup. Advances inartificial intelligence, genetics, and computational biology are changing what’spossible in conservation research, raising questions that extend far beyond thelaboratory. If technology can help revive extinct species, should it? And whatrole should AI play in shaping the future of biodiversity? Those are the questions at the center of “Can We Engineer Nature’s Comeback?[https://techcrunch.com/events/techcrunch-disrupt/agenda/?promo=post_lamm_09142026&utm_campaign=disrupt2026&utm_content=agenda&utm_medium=post&utm_source=tc],”a Real World AI Stage fireside chat at TechCrunch Disrupt 2026[https://techcrunch.com/events/techcrunch-disrupt/?utm_source=tc&utm_medium=post&utm_campaign=disrupt2026&utm_content=agenda&promo=post_lamm_09142026&display=].Joining the conversation is Ben Lamm [https://www.linkedin.com/in/benlamm/],co-founder and CEO of Colossal Biosciences [https://colossal.com/], a companypioneering efforts to bring extinct species back through advances in syntheticbiology and AI. Rather than focusing solely on the science, the discussionexplores the technologies behind de-extinction, the role AI now plays in modernbiology, and the growing debate over whether engineering nature represents aconservation breakthrough — or a distraction from protecting the ecosystems wealready have.TechCrunch Disrupt 2026 Ben Lamm[https://techcrunch.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/TCD26_Ben-Lamm_1-Speaker-16x9-Dark.png?w=680]https://techcrunch.com/events/techcrunch-disrupt/?utm_source=tc&utm_medium=post&utm_campaign=disrupt2026&utm_content=agenda&promo=post_lamm_09142026&display=ImageCredits:TechCrunchDisrupt returns to Moscone West[https://techcrunch.com/events/techcrunch-disrupt/?utm_source=tc&utm_medium=post&utm_campaign=disrupt2026&utm_content=agenda&promo=post_lamm_09142026&display=]in San Francisco, October 13–15, bringing together 10,000+ founders, investors,and operators for 250+ sessions exploring the technologies and market forcesshaping what’s next. Hear one of this year’s most provocative conversations.Secure your pass to Disrupt[https://techcrunch.com/events/techcrunch-disrupt/tickets/?promo=post_lamm_09142026&utm_campaign=disrupt2026&utm_content=agenda&utm_medium=post&utm_source=tc].WHERE AI MEETS BIOLOGYAI is already reshaping software, robotics, and scientific research. Biology maybe its next frontier. Researchers are using AI to analyze genetic data, modelbiological systems, and accelerate discovery. Companies like Colossal arepushing those advances even further, applying AI alongside synthetic biology toquestions that until recently belonged in science fiction.This session[https://techcrunch.com/events/techcrunch-disrupt/agenda/?promo=post_lamm_09142026&utm_campaign=disrupt2026&utm_content=agenda&utm_medium=post&utm_source=tc]explores where those technologies intersect and what happens when AI movesbeyond digital systems and into the natural world. For founders working at theintersection of deep tech, life sciences, and AI, it’s an opportunity to hearhow one of the industry’s most ambitious companies is approaching problems feworganizations have attempted to solve.Explore the Real World AI Stage lineup[https://techcrunch.com/events/techcrunch-disrupt/agenda/?promo=post_lamm_09142026&utm_campaign=disrupt2026&utm_content=agenda&utm_medium=post&utm_source=tc] andregister for Disrupt today[https://techcrunch.com/events/techcrunch-disrupt/tickets/?promo=post_lamm_09142026&utm_campaign=disrupt2026&utm_content=agenda&utm_medium=post&utm_source=tc].A FOUNDER BUILDING AT THE EDGE OF WHAT’S POSSIBLEBen Lamm has spent more than two decades building companies at the intersectionof AI and emerging technologies. A serial entrepreneur, he’s built businessesfocused on solving complex challenges — from enterprise AI and criticalinfrastructure to conversational intelligence. Before founding ColossalBiosciences, he launched several pioneering technology companies, includingHypergiant, Conversable, and Chaotic Moon, which were later acquired by TriveCapital, LivePerson, and Accenture, respectively.Today, he’s applying that entrepreneurial mindset to an entirely differentchallenge: using AI and synthetic biology to explore de-extinction as aconservation tool. That work has made Colossal one of the most closely watched —and most debated — companies in science and technology. As CEO, Lamm sits at thecenter of conversations about biodiversity, climate resilience, emergingtechnologies, and the responsibilities that come with engineering livingsystems.His experience offers founders a rare look at what happens when breakthroughtechnology doesn’t just disrupt an industry, challenging how we think aboutwhat’s possible.Join the conversation with one of tech’s most unconventional founders. Secureyour Disrupt pass today[https://techcrunch.com/events/techcrunch-disrupt/tickets/?promo=post_lamm_09142026&utm_campaign=disrupt2026&utm_content=agenda&utm_medium=post&utm_source=tc].A CONVERSATION BIGGER THAN DE-EXTINCTION, ONLY AT DISRUPT 2026Reviving extinct species captures headlines. The broader questions may proveeven more significant. As AI becomes part of scientific discovery, conversationsabout technology increasingly extend beyond software into medicine, biology,conservation, and climate science. Those advances bring new possibilities, butthey also raise difficult questions about how, and where, these tools should beused.Whether you view de-extinction as a scientific breakthrough, a conservationstrategy, or a controversial experiment, the discussion reaches far beyond anysingle species. It asks what role emerging technologies should play in solvingsome of the world’s most complex problems and who gets to decide.Lock in your pass to Disrupt with[https://techcrunch.com/events/techcrunch-disrupt/tickets/?promo=post_lamm_09142026&utm_campaign=disrupt2026&utm_content=agenda&utm_medium=post&utm_source=tc]up to $200 in savings, and join the conversation about where AI, biology, andinnovation intersect.Disrupt 2024 Main Stage[https://techcrunch.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Disrupt-2024-main-stage.jpg?w=680]https://techcrunch.com/events/techcrunch-disrupt/tickets/?promo=post_lamm_09142026&utm_campaign=disrupt2026&utm_content=agenda&utm_medium=post&utm_source=tcImageCredits:Kimberly White / Getty Images