The Mutant Project

At a medical conference in Hong Kong in November 2018, Dr He Jiankui announced that he had created the first genetically modified babies - twin girls named Lulu and Nana - sending shockwaves around the world. A year later, a Chinese court sentenced Dr He to three years in prison for "illegal medical practice."

As scientists globally start to catch up with China's vast genetic research programme, gene editing is fuelling an innovation economy that threatens to widen racial and economic inequality. Fundamental questions about science, health, and social justice are at stake: who gets access to gene editing technologies? And can we shape research agendas to promote an ethical and fair society?

As countries loosen regulations around the globe, from the US to Indonesia, this book takes us on a continent-hopping journey to meet the key scientists, lobbyists, and entrepreneurs who are bringing cutting-edge genetic engineering tools like CRISPR to their local clinics. The author ventures beyond the scientific echo chamber, talking to disabled scholars, doctors, hackers, chronically ill patients and activists who provide alternative visions of a genetically modified future for humanity.

'Deftly integrates science, ethnography, and social fiction through the lens of the author's peerless analytic imagination. Empathetic, provocative and probing, it is a must read.' - Alondra Nelson, Harold F. Linder Professor, Institute for Advanced Study and author of The Social Life of DNA